Learn Mandarin Newsletter 12

10 Tips To Better Learn Chinese. And expressing “I Love You” in Mandarin

10 Tips to Learn & Improve Your Chinese Mandarin

#10 - Watch Chinese Dramas

Are you a drama fan? I’m not. But I do love watching dramas in the Chinese language. Why? Well, what better way is there to observe Chinese being used in a variety of different natural settings, with different kinds of people, and also learn about Chinese culture at the same time! And even if you think you hate dramas, I guarantee you that you’ll be hooked after an episode or two. When to do this: watch an episode every night before hitting the sack! It’ll help you fall asleep, too (hopefully).

#9 - Post sticky notes around your home.

Learning a language takes memorization. Memorization takes repetition. Repetition means seeing something again and again and again. What are some things you see every day? Your fridge, your computer, your bathroom mirror, your toothbrush (I hope), your toilet, your bed, the list goes on and on. Get some sticky notes and stick them on every object you can get your hands on, even your cat, and write the Chinese word for it in pin-yin and han-zi if you can. From then on, you’ll be seeing it every day, and you’ll have no choice but to memorize it. Before you know it, you’ll be saying mao (which means cat) every time you see your cat. When to do this: take a couple of hours one evening to post the notes on anything and everything you can.

#8 - Do Daily Flashcard Drills

For those vocabulary words that you aren’t able to stick a note to (sky? spider? love?), you should make separate flashcards. If you are artistic, draw a picture of the object or something that represents it (perhaps a boy and girl kissing for love or the girl slapping the boy for hate). This will get the juices flowing in the visual side of your brain, which will help you associate the word with the image and help you memorize it faster. On the back of the card, write the Chinese word in pin-yin or han-zi (or both!). When to do this: take ten minutes every morning and evening to review your flashcards. If a card becomes very easy, remove it from the stack. Review the cards before watching my video lessons in the evening; better yet, take words that you learn from watching the Chinese dramas and make flashcards out of them! Try to get around 10 to 15 new words per lesson/episode! (No, you don’t have to make a flashcard out of every new word. That would be overwhelming.) There will be flashcards available for each of my lessons later on which you will be able to print out in case you’re not so artistically inclined.

#7 - Take Chinese Calligraphy Lessons

Learning Chinese characters, han-zi, can be tedious. What better way to learn them than as an artistic skill that you can show off to your friends? Calligraphy makes learning Chinese characters fun. It also makes them easier to memorize. Check your local college or community center to see if they offer Chinese calligraphy lessons. Not only is it fun, but it’s a great way to meet others whom you can practice your Chinese with. If you absolutely cannot find any lessons offered anywhere in your vicinity, you could purchase a basic calligraphy kit and learn from books. When to do this: see if there are any lessons available in the evenings or on weekends. If learning on your own, it could be any time you choose, but make sure you grab that brush at least twice a week! (for those of you interested in learning to write Chinese, not in calligraphy, I will be offering a Beginner’s Chinese Writing Course Online)

#6 - Write a journal in Chinese

Some of you probably keep journals in English already. It is worth the extra effort and time to translate the main points of your original journal entry into Chinese (using PinYin or Chinese characters). Now, if you frequently write thousand-word entries in English, translating all of that into Chinese is indeed quite a project, so just summarize the main ideas. For example, for each paragraph that you write in English, write a sentence in Chinese summing up the main points. Getting into this habit will help you diversify your Chinese vocabulary and grammar. Also, if you have Chinese friends online, share the Chinese version of your journal (only with things you feel comfortable about, of course!) with them to get some feedback! When to do this: whenever you usually write your English journal, just take an extra 15 or 20 minutes at the end to summarize it in Chinese. If you don’t already have an English journal, take around 30 minutes a day to write one up in Chinese. It can be about anything you want!

#5 - Engage with the Local Chinese

Wherever you are, I’m sure you can find plenty of Chinese people to engage with. When I was in the remotest part of country Brazil, I stumbled upon a Chinese restaurant and ordered everything in Chinese! In my home city of Sydney, I’ll bump into Chinese people in cafes, libraries, aquatic centers, bus stops, and so on. If I start talking to them in Chinese, they love to interact and tell their stories.

Engaging with Chinese people in your community is a great way to practice your Mandarin, immerse yourself in Chinese culture, and make some new friends!

#4 - Talk and sing to yourself in Chinese

Yes. It’s not a joke. Many language professionals agree that the most reliable language partner is yourself! Unlike other language partners, you aren’t going anywhere! You will always be there for yourself when you are in need of someone to talk to in Chinese. At the beginning of the day, stand in front of the mirror and talk to yourself about what you plan to do that day. At the end of the day, talk to yourself about what you did. While you’re typing your blog or writing in your journal in Chinese (see #6), first say out loud everything you intend to type. Better yet, if you love to sing to yourself, learn a Chinese song or two by heart and sing it to yourself frequently, like in the shower. When to do this: all the time! But preferably when nobody else is around…

#3 - Put out ads for a language partner

Even better than talking to yourself is finding a language partner to talk with. There are many overseas Chinese who would love to improve their spoken English language skills. You want to improve your Chinese skills. It’s a match made in heaven. Put up an ad at a local college or university, at a local tea or coffee shop, at that Chinese restaurant where you dine, or on your local Facebook Group. Write that you are learning Chinese and that you would like to find a language exchange partner to meet, ideally in a public place like at a cafe or at the library for the first meet. For the first half, you can speak English together, and for the second half Chinese. Both parties benefit, and you both go home feeling happier and wiser. You could also try posting on websites like GumTree, Craigslist, and Reddit (better for video calls, though, rather than in-person meetups since they can end up being some distance away from you). When to do this: most overseas Chinese students have spare time in the evenings or weekends and would love to find a native English speaker like you to converse with.

#2 - Download WeChat And Make WeChat Friends

Are you technically inclined? Then you should try to download WeChat. This is by far the most popular communication software in mainland China (including for social networking and chat services). If you want to tap into a country of over a billion people, this is one way to do it! WeChat is an app that can be downloaded for Android or iPhone. If you go to WeRead, they have a huge library of Chinese books and other reading materials that can help you improve your language skills in a fun and interactive way.

#1 - Get a Chinese Partner

And finally, the best way possible is to get into a relationship with a Chinese speaker (or marry one as many of my students have!). Why is this the best way? Well, depending on how good the English of your ‘significant other’ is, you will often find yourself in situations where you will be forced to use Chinese in order to communicate with each other. Also, your partner will want to improve their English, so you can reach a compromise with each other — set a Chinese time and an English time. You can help each other out with each other's homework, watch Chinese movies, post sticky notes in each other's rooms, learn Chinese and English songs together, go to Chinese restaurants together, and so on.

Of course, if you are already married or in a relationship, then this probably isn't going to be an option… but that doesn't mean that your partner can't learn Chinese, too! You can watch some Chinese dramas together on Netflix with subtitles.

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