ChinesePod is one of the most well-known names in online Chinese language learning and for good reason. Whether you love or hate hosts Ken, Jenny and John, pretty much all of the expats you come across in China have an opinion about them one way or the other.
Lessons on ChinesePod cover common circumstances, such as talking on the phone and buying groceries, and you can find Chinese language dialogues that pertain to pretty much any situation you might get into while in China.
You can listen to any of the over 1,500 episodes from your computer or pay for monthly plans starting at $14, which gives you access to the downloadable episodes, transcripts, exercises and study tools. Discounts are available for buying 3,6,12 or 24 month subscriptions. A week long free trial is available to check out this Mandarin language learning program before you buy.
There are five levels of language learning, so you are sure to find one appropriate for your personal level of Chinese.
The company offers podcast lessons for other languages as well, including French, Spanish and Italian.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
How to Find a Chinese Conversation Partner
Now that you understand the importance of having a Chinese conversation partner, you may be wondering how to find one.
Many colleges and universities offer programs to hook up Chinese speakers who are students at their school with local students who want to practice Chinese and are willing to help their students improve their English skills. Contact the foreign language department of nearby schools to find out if they have such a program.
Even if your local school doesn’t offer a conversation partner program, you may be able to make a connection on your own by placing an ad in the school paper or on bulletin boards on campus.
People who don’t live close to a school may have more trouble finding a conversation partner, but that doesn’t mean it is impossible. Try placing ads in your local classified paper or go talk to people working at a local Chinese restaurant who may be or know recent immigrants eager to practice their English in exchange for a little bit of Chinese conversation.
For the more technologically inclined, you may be able to find a conversation partner online who can converse with you via free chat or calling services such as Skype.
Many colleges and universities offer programs to hook up Chinese speakers who are students at their school with local students who want to practice Chinese and are willing to help their students improve their English skills. Contact the foreign language department of nearby schools to find out if they have such a program.
Even if your local school doesn’t offer a conversation partner program, you may be able to make a connection on your own by placing an ad in the school paper or on bulletin boards on campus.
People who don’t live close to a school may have more trouble finding a conversation partner, but that doesn’t mean it is impossible. Try placing ads in your local classified paper or go talk to people working at a local Chinese restaurant who may be or know recent immigrants eager to practice their English in exchange for a little bit of Chinese conversation.
For the more technologically inclined, you may be able to find a conversation partner online who can converse with you via free chat or calling services such as Skype.
Monday, February 21, 2011
What Does a Mandarin Chinese Conversation Partner Do?
Textbooks and classroom studies can only teach you so much and there comes a time when you’ll need to speak with a native Chinese speaker to get the fluency level you desire.
A Mandarin Chinese conversation partner can be an excellent way to get Chinese practice for free. Essentially, a conversation partner is a native speaker of the language you are learning who can talk to you and help you practice your speaking and listening skills. In exchange, you will spend an equal amount of time speaking English (or whatever your native language is) to help your partner practice his or her English skills.
A typical conversation session lasts between 1 ½ to 2 hours, split equally between the two languages. Conversation partners can meet at one of the participants’ home or they can meet up at a local coffee shop or fast food joint. It’s a good idea to plan in advance by coming up with some good topics to cover and writing down any specific questions you want to ask your partner. Many conversation partners go on to become good friends as their fluency improves and they move into conversations about each other’s lives.
Getting a conversation partner isn’t a necessity for learning Chinese, but it can definitely help improve your skills and teach you a lot about Chinese culture.
A Mandarin Chinese conversation partner can be an excellent way to get Chinese practice for free. Essentially, a conversation partner is a native speaker of the language you are learning who can talk to you and help you practice your speaking and listening skills. In exchange, you will spend an equal amount of time speaking English (or whatever your native language is) to help your partner practice his or her English skills.
A typical conversation session lasts between 1 ½ to 2 hours, split equally between the two languages. Conversation partners can meet at one of the participants’ home or they can meet up at a local coffee shop or fast food joint. It’s a good idea to plan in advance by coming up with some good topics to cover and writing down any specific questions you want to ask your partner. Many conversation partners go on to become good friends as their fluency improves and they move into conversations about each other’s lives.
Getting a conversation partner isn’t a necessity for learning Chinese, but it can definitely help improve your skills and teach you a lot about Chinese culture.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Review of Oxford Chinese Dictionary
The Oxford Chinese Dictionary was released in 2010 by Oxford University Press and is the largest single volume English-Chinese, Chinese-English dictionary in the world. For some students of Mandarin, this may seem like a treasure trove of words and phrases (over 300,000) to learn, but others may be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of words found in this new dictionary.
The dictionary contains small boxes explaining Chinese cultural concepts, which can sometimes be as important as learning the words. At over 2,000 words, this book isn’t well-suited for packing in your backpack and hauling to class, but for home use, you may enjoy using it to learn a few words and phrases on your own.
The decision on whether this dictionary is for you may depend on how you view your Chinese studies.
The bottom line- if you enjoy exploring words and phrases, think language learning should be approached with curiosity and fun or want to learn not just the words in your textbook, but words that people actually use, then the Oxford Chinese Dictionary could be right for you.
If you are struggling with your Mandarin classes and like to keep things straightforward, or tend to get easily overwhelmed or distracted when studying, you may want to stick to smaller Chinese dictionaries for now.
The dictionary contains small boxes explaining Chinese cultural concepts, which can sometimes be as important as learning the words. At over 2,000 words, this book isn’t well-suited for packing in your backpack and hauling to class, but for home use, you may enjoy using it to learn a few words and phrases on your own.
The decision on whether this dictionary is for you may depend on how you view your Chinese studies.
The bottom line- if you enjoy exploring words and phrases, think language learning should be approached with curiosity and fun or want to learn not just the words in your textbook, but words that people actually use, then the Oxford Chinese Dictionary could be right for you.
If you are struggling with your Mandarin classes and like to keep things straightforward, or tend to get easily overwhelmed or distracted when studying, you may want to stick to smaller Chinese dictionaries for now.
Friday, December 3, 2010
The Importance of Learning About Chinese Culture
When you study Chinese, you’re not only learning a language, or at least you shouldn’t be only learning a language.
To really get into the mindset of the people who speak it, you probably need to study a bit of Chinese culture along with practicing your tones and sorting out stroke order. The Chinese do, after all, have thousands of years of culture for you to investigate and explore. Learning about Chinese culture can help you with your Mandarin Chinese lessons in a few different ways.
You can understand the people you’ll be conversing with much better when you understand their culture. This cannot be underestimated. Making Chinese friends will help you improve your Mandarin more than almost anything else, but if you don’t get them and they don’t get you, there’s no room to develop those beneficial kinds of friendships.
You can appreciate your travels in China much more. Whether you plan on visiting for a week or two, taking a year off to travel the country end-to-end, or moving to Shanghai for business, the more you understand about Chinese people and their culture, the more you’ll be able to absorb in your time there.
Your mind will be opened to new ideas. You’re already in learning mode while you study the Mandarin language. Why not learn some cultural things,too, while you’re in this prime learning mode?
To really get into the mindset of the people who speak it, you probably need to study a bit of Chinese culture along with practicing your tones and sorting out stroke order. The Chinese do, after all, have thousands of years of culture for you to investigate and explore. Learning about Chinese culture can help you with your Mandarin Chinese lessons in a few different ways.
You can understand the people you’ll be conversing with much better when you understand their culture. This cannot be underestimated. Making Chinese friends will help you improve your Mandarin more than almost anything else, but if you don’t get them and they don’t get you, there’s no room to develop those beneficial kinds of friendships.
You can appreciate your travels in China much more. Whether you plan on visiting for a week or two, taking a year off to travel the country end-to-end, or moving to Shanghai for business, the more you understand about Chinese people and their culture, the more you’ll be able to absorb in your time there.
Your mind will be opened to new ideas. You’re already in learning mode while you study the Mandarin language. Why not learn some cultural things,too, while you’re in this prime learning mode?
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