Podcast Episodes

100 - The most common Chinese words, characters and components for language learners and teachers

Season 1 Episode 100

A good  principle for choosing what to learn is to focus on the most useful things first, but how do you know what's most useful? Frequency lists can be helpful, but are often misused.

Link to articl…

Published on 2 years, 8 months ago

99 - How to become fluent in Chinese

Season 1 Episode 99

Being fluent in Chinese is more about being good at applying what you know, rather than knowing everything. Many students focus too much on learning new things, and neglect mastering what they've alr…

Published on 2 years, 8 months ago

98 - How to learn from your mistakes and errors when learning Chinese

Season 1 Episode 98

Making mistakes is a natural part of learning Chinese, but how can you make sure you learn as much as possible from the mistakes you make? The answer can be anything from "ignore it" to "stop everyth…

Published on 2 years, 8 months ago

97 - Do you have to learn to write Chinese characters by hand?

Season 1 Episode 97

Chinese characters are beautiful, but they take a long time to learn, especially if you want to be able to write them by hand. But do you actually need handwriting? When might you be required to writ…

Published on 2 years, 9 months ago

96 - Which words you should learn and where to find them

Season 1 Episode 96

When learning a language, it's important to know many words, but it's also important that you learn the right words. How do you know which words to learn? Where should you find those words? And how m…

Published on 2 years, 9 months ago

95 - Why you should use more than one Chinese textbook

Season 1 Episode 95

A textbook can only provide a sliver of the content and activities you need to learn Chinese, but rather than throwing your textbook away, try using several of them in parallel.

Link to article: Why …

Published on 2 years, 9 months ago

94 - Analyse and balance your Chinese learning with Paul Nation's four strands

Season 1 Episode 94

When learning Chinese, it’s hard to make sure you’re doing the right things. Paul Nation’s four strands allow you analyse and balance your learning!

Link to article: Analyse and balance your Chinese …

Published on 2 years, 9 months ago

93 - On accuracy, communication and comprehensibility when learning Chinese

Season 1 Episode 93

As if learning basic tones wasn't enough, tones in Mandarin also influence each other and change depending on context. Some of these tone change rules you have to learn, but others are better left al…

Published on 2 years, 9 months ago

92 - Obligatory and optional tone change rules in Mandarin

Season 1 Episode 92

As if learning basic tones wasn't enough, tones in Mandarin also influence each other and change depending on context. Some of these tone change rules you have to learn, but others are better left al…

Published on 2 years, 10 months ago

91 - How to find more time to practise Chinese listening

Season 1 Episode 91

Listening is probably the most important skill when learning Chinese, and the more you practise, the better. In order to listen as much as you should, you need to stop thinking about listening as a s…

Published on 2 years, 10 months ago