What are you talking about? Chinese is easy!
Well... You could say Chinese is difficult in some senses. The Chinese writing system uses symbols that represent a complete word or a phrase, also known as characters. Furthermore, Chinese is a tonal language, which means that the tone of syllable influences the meaning of the word.
HOWEVER, what most people don’t know is that Chinese has one of the easiest grammars in the world. The language doesn’t have verb conjugations, gender, plural nouns, articles, and so on!
Learning a new language takes time and commitment, especially Chinese; it might even take years, but we will do our best to give you some tips on how to learn Chinese quicker and easier!
Watch Chinese movies or TV
- Find a good movie to watch over and over again
- You will memorize vocabulary after watching the movie a few times
- Explain in Chinese in 5 minutes what you liked about the movie
Sing a song
- This will expand your vocabulary knowledge and improve your reading comprehension
- This will improve your speaking ability while you’re having fun
- Just practice singing anywhere: while you’re driving, jogging, cooking…
Use Post-It notes
- Stick Post-It notes on different objects such as your desk, door, chair, fridge...
- Write Chinese words on your Post-It and read them when you use that object´
Don't think, talk!
- Become a parrot and repeat everything you hear - even if you don't know what it means
- Recognize the words first by their sound, and say them correctly afterwards
Don’t be discouraged! Take it one step at a time, visualize the finish and keep the big picture in mind. People will be astonished to know you are learning Chinese because it is so ‘difficult’!
“Persistence can grind an iron beam down into a needle.” Good luck!
Thai Binh Ho Van
Marketing Assistant Intern