Hacking Chinese

A better way of learning Mandarin

Articles tagged with ‘Q&A’

  1. Student Q&A, September 2024: Slowly spoken Chinese, passing listening exams and understanding numbers

    Should you slow down the Mandarin you listen to? How can you prepare for difficult listening exams? And how can you understand Chinese numbers in context?

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  2. Student Q&A, August 2024: Avoiding mental translation, untranslatable words and why practising translation is good

    How can you stop translating in your head? What are some Chinese words that can’t be translated? And why is translation a worthwhile learning activity?

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  3. Student Q&A, July 2024: Reading speed, children’s books and Chinese literature

    How can you read Chinese faster? Which children’s books are best for second-language learners? And what’s the ideal entry point into Chinese literature?

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  4. Student Q&A, June 2024: How much time on flashcards, Remembering the Hanzi, and resources for learning characters

    How much time should you spend on flashcards? Is Remembering the Hanzi good for learning Chinese characters? And what resources should you use if you want to understand the writing system better?

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  5. Student Q&A, May 2024: Understanding strangers, listening with transcripts, and which podcasts to avoid

    Why is your teacher is so much easier to understand than anybody else? Should you read transcripts or subtitles before, during or after listening? And why do I refuse to recommend certain podcasts?

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  6. Student Q&A, April 2024: Learning chengyu, listening to yourself and using role-playing games to learn Chinese

    Is recording and listening to your own Chinese useful for improving your speaking ability? How can you use chengyu to expand your repertoire? And how can role-playing games be utilised to improve your spoken Chinese?

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  7. Student Q&A, March 2024: Reading aloud, finding word boundaries, and working actively with reading materials

    How can you improve your ability to read aloud in Chinese? How can you learn to see where a word starts and ends in a text? And how can you make sure you get the most out of your reading practice?

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  8. Student Q&A, January 2024: Chinese music, too much Mandarin in the classroom, and listening in noisy environments

    Is listening to music a good way to learn Chinese? How can you learn to understand Mandarin spoken in noisy environments? And what if your teacher speaks only Chinese, but you don’t understand what she says?

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  9. Student Q&A, December 2023: How many words to learn, if it’s good to learn radicals, and whether to learn simplified or traditional characters

    How many words is reasonable to learn in a day? Will focusing on radicals make learning characters easier? And should you learn simplified or traditional characters, or maybe both?

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  10. Student Q&A, November 2023: Reading Pinyin or characters, comprehensible vs. compelling content and reading tools

    How do you transition from reading Pinyin to reading characters? Are compelling texts better than comprehensible texts? And which tools should you use when reading Chinese?

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