Speaking and understanding

[murph]

Hello everybody,

This is my first post and after reading a few threads I have decided to ask a question,

I'm Planning to visit China at the end of this year as a tourist for around 3-4 weeks.

What I'm planning to do is learn how to speak and understand Mandarin to a basic level by the end of the year, reading and writing is not important to me as of yet, so I would like to focus on fluency of the language.

 

I was wondering if anyone could direct me to some books,websites or resources that mainly target speaking and understanding Mandarin rather than writing and reading,

 

Also it would be great to know how much you guys were able to learn within 1 year of studying. ( speaking and understanding)

 

Much help would be fantastic,

Thanks!

[icebear]

I was wondering if anyone could direct me to some books,websites or resources that mainly target speaking and understanding Mandarin rather than writing and reading,

Also it would be great to know how much you guys were able to learn within 1 year of studying. ( speaking and understanding)

I suggest using the search function; this topic has been covered extensively. Podcasts are a good resource - ChinesePod and Popup Chinese are both popular.

Regarding possible progress - any substantive progress will require hard work. Many students study seriously for a year and have a lot to show for it (speaking comfortably, if not so sophisticated) while many more are more leisurely/complacent/lazy and don't have much to show at all. You won't learn the language one day a week or by osmosis. Decide how much time you're willing to commit per day and figure out the most efficient way to use that time. (Again, this forum has many good topics on that subject.)

[AucklandLove]

Chinesepod gets good reviews from a lot of people on here, though I did not extend my trial, as I need to talk to someone to learn. As stated above, check the forums here, however be aware that you will probably not get that far unless you live somewhere where you can practice Chinese regularly. For anyone to give you a realistic approximation on "how far you can get in one year" a lot more information would be needed (hours studied, intensity, practice).

[icebear]

Also suggest iTalki for reasonably priced Skype tutors.

[Francis101]

I feel like I am also in a similar situation as you having started learning Chinese for less than a year. I have found that getting your hands on as much input material as possible was very beneficial. I specifically benefited from listening to everything and anything I can get my hands on. Music, Podcasts, speeches, all are very good for just raw exposure to the language. I highly recommend getting your pinyin down very quickly. That way Chinese doesn't sound like one noise repeated over and over again. ChinesePod, Anki, and Pleco have been of most benefit to me. All of them are talked about extensively on this forum so take a look!

 

Also, If you can find a Chinese friend now who is willing to work with you that would be of a massive benefit.