Articles in the ‘Reading’ category
-
Benchmarking progress in Chinese to stay motivated
The more Chinese you learn, the less noticeable your progress becomes. Benchmarking can make your improvements more visible and help you stay motivated!
Read → -
Can English learning materials help you learn Chinese?
Can English learning materials for Chinese speakers help you learn Mandarin? Discover their potential, pitfalls, and how to use them effectively.
Read → -
Student Q&A, December 2024: Learning similar Chinese characters, polyphonic characters, and flashcards vs. reading for building vocabulary
How can you remember the difference between similar Chinese characters? Are flashcards better than reading for building vocabulary? And how do you learn polyphonic characters?
Read → -
Chinese reading challenge, April 2025
It’s time for a Chinese reading challenge! It starts on April 10th, so enrol, set your goal and read as much as you can before the end of the month. This article contains more information about the challenge, as well as some advice about improving reading ability in Chinese.
Read → -
Student Q&A, November 2024: Pros and cons of digital tools for Chinese reading, and the struggle to find comprehensible and interesting texts
Is reading digitally in Chinese better than on paper? What are the best digital tools for reading? And what should you do if you can’t find texts that are both interesting and at the right level?
Read → -
Three things I wish I had known as an advanced student of Chinese: The time machine, part 3
Improving after you reach an advanced level of Chinese requires new ways of learning and new sources of motivation. If I could go back in time to give a less proficient version of myself advice, here is what I would say.
Read → -
Don’t learn Mandarin pronunciation by reading, listen and mimic instead
Don’t try to learn pronunciation by reading. Instead, the best way to improve is to listen to and mimic native speakers. Focusing too much on how sounds are written down can actually make it harder to hear them!
Read → -
How to use YouTube and other video platforms to learn Chinese
YouTube and similar platforms offer a vast treasure trove of content that can help you learn Chinese, whether you’re watching videos in Chinese or exploring content about language and culture. But how can you get the most out of this resource at different stages of learning?
Read → -
Three things I wish I had known as an intermediate student of Chinese: The time machine, part 2
Traversing the intermediate Chinese learning plateau requires a shift in focus. Here are three pieces of advice for intermediate students of Mandarin.
Read → -
Three things I wish I had known as a beginner student of Chinese: The time machine, part 1
I started learning Chinese more than 15 years ago. Here are three things I wish I had known as a beginner!
Read →