Hacking Chinese

A better way of learning Mandarin

Articles in the ‘Advanced’ category Page 19

  1. Training your Chinese teacher, part 1: Introduction

    Finding a good Chinese teacher is not easy, but there are many things you can do to get more out of the time you spend with a teacher, and in a sense, train him or her to better suit your needs and preferences.

    Read →

  2. 36 samples of Chinese handwriting from students and native speakers

    This article features 36 samples of Chinese handwriting. The same text was written by native speakers and students with varying backgrounds and time spent learning Chinese.

    Read →

  3. How to improve your Chinese handwriting

    Learning to write Chinese by hand is a complex task. This article gives an overview of what it means to write by hand, answering questions like: “Do I need to learn to write by hand?”, “What skills does handwriting in Chinese require?” and” How do I improve my handwriting?”

    Read →

  4. Cramming vs. spaced repetition: When to use which method to learn Chinese

    Should you cram or use spaced repetition to learn Chinese? Discover when each method works best and why spaced repetition is key to long-term success.

    Read →

  5. How and why to learn and teach Chinese through games

    This article is a follow-up to a keynote presentation and a workshop held at the 15th Annual Chinese Teaching Conference at University College London. Even though the original target group is teachers of Chinese, the article is relevant for students as well.

    Read →

  6. 866 digital textbooks for expanding your Chinese

    Using textbooks written with the aim of teaching Chinese children about history, mathematics and biology can be great learning resources for adult foreigners as well. This article discusses how to do that, and also introduces a resource that offers almost a thousand textbooks, all easily accessible online.

    Read →

  7. New text game for Chinese learners: The Magistrate’s Gallery

    The Magistrate’s Gallery is a new interactive text game for Chinese learners. A man knocks on your door with an unusual problem: his daughter has been trapped inside one of the paintings in the magistrate’s gallery. But which one? And how can you get her out? To rescue her, you will need to travel into the paintings and unravel the story about how the girl ended up there.

    Read →

  8. 8 tips for learning Chinese as an introverted student

    Introverts are not necessarily worse language learners than extroverts, but not taking or creating opportunities to speak Mandarin will slow you down. In this article, I share some methods I’ve used to compensate for this as an introvert learner.

    Read →

  9. Learning to unicycle, learning anatomy and learning Chinese

    Is learning Chinese more like learning to unicycle or like learning anatomy? It strongly depends on what we’re talking about more precisely. Some aspects of language learning are skills akin to unicycling, others are more about knowing and understanding.

    Read →

  10. Can you learn Chinese faster by making it harder?

    Throwing yourself into very challenging situations can be great for language learning, but so can focusing on large volumes of easier content too. So when should you use which approach? This article discusses if you can learn faster by making it harder.

    Read →