How to self-study Chinese?
Approximately 1.3 billion people (or about 16% of the world’s population) speak a variety of Chinese as their first language. As a result of several devoted initiatives, Standard Chinese, in the form of Standard Mandarin, rose to become the official language in the majority of Mainland China and Taiwan, one of the four in Singapore, and an official idiom of the United Nations, with a few exceptions. 71 per cent of Chinese speak a dialect of Mandarin known as “Putonghua.” In China, more than 70 million people from 55 distinct national minorities live, and although each minority has its own spoken language, many minority groups lack a distinguishable written medium for their languages. Standard Chinese is the most widely spoken language in China.
Let's now look at a few tips and tricks that will be of immense help when trying to learn Chinese through classroom or self-study:
Improve your listening skills by using a variety of online platforms, including talk shows, Chinese news, and audiobooks, to name a few. To speed up your learning, watch Chinese films with English subtitles and English films with Chinese subtitles. To make the most of your free time, learn through music, podcasts, and everything else you can get your hands on. Set attainable objectives! Determine your distinct preferred style, which will assist you in mastering the language. To improve your grammar, read aloud. Choose a native Chinese speaker as a dialogue partner with whom you can practise communicating and get input. Don’t be afraid to do new things and make mistakes. We’re both guilty of it. Why does it discourage or shame you? Improve your hearing abilities by using Remember, self-studying is NOT for all! Be wary of fake online Chinese learning resources!
Enrol in an intensive course. Keep translating Chinese words/phrases into English to a minimum when you’re first starting out! Shift away from it actively as you advance. Try not to write in your head.
Keep a journal with new expressions that will assist you in building your first conversation, not just vocabulary. Keep a Chinese dictionary close at hand. Set priorities. If you want to learn Chinese for business or travel, start with spoken Chinese! Choose frequently used terms to launch a dialogue rather than more difficult ones that are unlikely to be used in everyday situations! Try to associate Chinese words/phrases with pictures and visual scenarios rather than English words. Study a language every day in brief bursts or for around 2-4 hours, depending on how much time you have available. The same is true for the Chinese. Studying on a daily basis for a limited period of time is much more beneficial than attempting to do it all in one session on weekends! Without missing a beat, practise. There are no loopholes or ways to avoid the practice. Engage in continuous analysis to monitor your success – repetition is important!
Finally,
The majority of Chinese characters contain phonetic elements that include clues to their Old Chinese pronunciations. Old Chinese was not entirely devoid of inflection. It had a rich sound system in which consonants were separated by aspiration or hard breathing. From early historical times to the present, the evolution of spoken Chinese languages has been dynamic.
There’s an amazing new way to learn Mandarin! Want to see what everyone’s talking about! Click here.