Articles tagged with ‘Q&A’
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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?
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Student Q&A, October 2024: Pronouncing the final -i after sh-, the initial z- and if Pinyin is a good transcription system
How is the Pinyin final -i pronounced after sh? How is the initial z- pronounced compared to z in English? And is Pinyin a good transcription system for learning pronunciation?
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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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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