Course description:

Introduction to Mandarin book 0

This is a beginner-level language course designed for students who have little or no prior Mandarin learning experience. 

Session I: Starting from book 1,  lots of emphasis will be put on the phonetic system of pronunciation and tones, vocabulary building, writing characters with the correct stroke orders and sentence patterns. By the end of session I, students should be able to: 

• Pronounce characters with the help of the phonetic system, 
• Write Chinese characters with correct stroke orders
• Exchange basic greetings, 
• Introduce oneself,  
• Request someone’s last name, first name and nationality,
• Employ basic kinship terms.

In session II:  Continuing from session I, students will continue with vocabulary building, writing Chinese characters with correct strokes and practice sentence patterns from book 1. They will start to read short paragraphs and listen to short stories from supplementary materials.  Students will expand the topics on: 

• Occupations, 
• Hobbies, 
• Shopping, 
• Numbers, 

Basic Mandarin book 1

In session 1:  Students will start the lessons by reviewing some chapters from the “book 0” course just to solidify the foundation. They will continue where they left off from previous introductory lessons. Students will continue with vocabulary building, writing characters and sentence patterns. Lots of emphasis will be put on daily conversation,  comprehension of a short paragraph and listening to stories.  By the end of this session, students will be able to talk about: 

• Telling times and dates
• Going on a date
• Birthdays
• Is learning Mandarin hard?

In session 2:  Continuing from session 1, students will work on vocabulary building, writing characters and sentence patterns.  Lots of emphasis will be put on comprehension of reading a paragraph and listening to short stories. Students start working on book 2.  By the end of this session, students will be able to: 

• Talk about the weather
• Order food or drinks in a restaurant
• Go shopping. 

Basic Mandarin book 2

In session 1: Class will start by reviewing book 2 where students left off from the last session. Students will be focused on daily conversation, comprehension of a paragraph, reading and listening to stories. Quizzes at the end of each chapter will help students to assess their learning progress each week .  Students will be able to  participate in Lunar New Year and Dragon Boat Festival performances. By the end of this session, students will be able to: 

• Talk about clothing
• Give directions
• Tell locations.

In session II:  By the end of the session, students should be able to:

• Talk about a day in their life
• Talk about sickness
• Plan a trip to Taiwan

Basic Mandarin book 3

Class starts from book 3. Students will continue to focus on daily conversation, comprehension of a paragraph, reading and listening to stories. With the increase in vocabulary, students will feel comfortable conversing in Mandarin in class and preparing a quiz at the end of each chapter. Students will be able to  participate in Lunar New Year and Dragon Boat Festival performances. Students will prepare for the TOCFL examination at the end of book 3.(optional)

Basic Mandarin Book 4

Class starts from book 4. Students will continue to focus on daily conversation, comprehension of a paragraph, reading and listening to stories. With the increase in vocabulary, students will feel comfortable conversing in Chinese in class as well as in public. Students will be able to participate in Lunar New Year and Dragon Boat Festival performances. They will have opportunities to become the MCs or performers of the  show. Students will practice learning Mandarin from newspapers and build on their daily living vocabulary from the news. Students will prepare for the TOCFL examination at the end of book 4.(optional)