Techniques to Help You Learn Chinese

By Athena Hunter


There are many good reasons to learn Chinese. Mandarin is the most widespread language on Earth and as China increases in economic influence, more people will discover the benefits of learning it. Yet, a lot of Westerners have a concern that learning Chinese is too tough. It's true that Chinese is very different from English and other languages spoken in the Western world, but if you approach it in the right way it can be a manageable task. Subsequent are some methods to make it more effortless to learn Chinese.

Along with any other devices you're using to study Chinese, don't disregard the most effortless of all, a Chinese dictionary. You should have one or more handy dictionaries that you can take with you anywhere you go. This will be very advantageous for reference, so if you're looking carefully at a book or hearing an audio program and you become stuck, you can go to your dictionary. It could take you some time to become familiarized with a Chinese dictionary, as you will be researching both the characters and the Pinyin (Romanized characters). The best thing about a dictionary is that it's an easy device that you can take anywhere you go, which will persuade you to study Chinese during any free time you have throughout the day.

If you are unable to visit China, the next best thing you can do to learn Chinese is to find a tutor who is a native speaker. One on one tutoring is better than any class, program or book you might find for learning Chinese. A tutor can help you progress more quickly correcting the mistakes you will make naturally as you begin studying. Your tutor can make suggestions as to materials and assignments to work on between sessions. Ask your Chinese friends for referral to a good tutor.

Lots of new students to foreign languages (Chinese or others) discover that they are quite afraid of making mistakes.

This can be one of the biggest problems in learning a new language. Practice is the best way to ingrain a new language which means that you are going to have to make some mistakes before you get good. If you are taking a class or get the chance to talk with someone in Chinese (who is fluent in the language) do your best and don't worry about making a mistake. In most cases, people who speak Chinese will be impressed that you are trying to speak their language, and they'll help and encourage you. If you are thinking of waiting until you have achieved fluency in Chinese to start speaking it, you're going to be waiting for the rest of your life because you can't become fluent without making mistakes.

In conclusion: you need to think of learning Chinese as learning anything else that is challenging. Rather than stressing out over fluency (which will take years as Chinese is a complicated language), challenge yourself to learn a little bit every day over time. Take all of the opportunities you can to learn and to practice, no matter which source your opportunity comes from (book, class, tutor, chance encounter). These tips on learning Chinese can be helpful as you work to learn this challenging but beautiful language.




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