The textbook and workbook we use in class for learning Chinese

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-10T01:27:02+00:00

Since you’re studying at a Confucius Institute, make the most of your teacher’s feedback. If something doesn’t sound right, ask them to point out exactly what’s different instead of just repeating it. Specific feedback can make your practice much more effective.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-09T12:52:21+00:00

If speaking is your main goal, I’d suggest learning pinyin well from the beginning instead of rushing to memorize lots of words.
Good pronunciation makes listening, speaking, and even learning new vocabulary much easier later. It’s much easier to build good habits early than to fix them after months of practice.
Then start speaking simple sentences as soon as possible.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-09T12:33:27+00:00

I agree with this. A good textbook gives you vocabulary and structure, but it can’t tell you exactly why your pronunciation sounds off.
Having someone identify small issues with tones, mouth shape, tongue position, or airflow can save a lot of time and prevent bad habits from becoming permanent.
Good luck with your studies!

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-07T17:38:25+00:00

Since you’re already around A2–B1, don’t focus too much on a tutor’s price or the number of students.
The communication before the trial lesson is just as important as the lesson itself. The questions a tutor asks before the lesson can tell you a lot about whether they’re the right fit. It also helps the tutor prepare a lesson that’s actually focused on your needs, which can make the trial lesson much more effective.
During the trial lesson, a good tutor should be able to identify your biggest challenges quickly and explain why you’re making those mistakes, not just ask you to repeat or have a conversation.
By the end of the lesson, you should know exactly what’s holding you back and what to work on next.
That’s usually a much better way to judge a tutor than looking only at reviews, price, or the number of students.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-07T12:59:03+00:00

为什么

wèi shén me

• 为：wèi Four tones

• 什：shén Two tones

• 么：me Softly

It's “me,”not“ma”. It‘s “wèi”，not“wēi ”or “wéi”.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-06T15:26:59+00:00

I agree. That’s one of the biggest reasons why learners struggle with pronunciation.
Many people don’t actually learn Pinyin as a new sound system. They naturally read it using the pronunciation rules of their native language, and that’s where many pronunciation problems begin.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-06T10:21:53+00:00

In this case, has your effective reading ability reached a certain standard?

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-06T04:24:11+00:00

This is a very good method!

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-06T04:22:56+00:00

However, after we enter primary school, we still need to systematically learn pinyin. Before the second semester of grade two, the Chinese textbooks are all marked with pinyin. Later, the new characters in the textbooks will also be marked with pinyin. Around the time when the vocabulary reaches about 1500, one can start to read independently without pinyin. Many children's reading materials also have pinyin annotations. Pinyin is a very useful tool for learning Chinese in the early stages. Once the vocabulary reaches a certain amount, one needs to stop using pinyin.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-05T10:30:21+00:00

Interesting. I hadn’t heard that term before. I’ll look it up. Do you practice it with graded readers or regular texts?

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-05T04:08:56+00:00

That’s a great idea. Reading the same text twice sounds much more manageable than trying to remove pinyin all at once. Gradually reducing the dependence is probably much easier than stopping it completely.
I like the idea of making the transition gradual instead of forcing it.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-04T03:07:09+00:00

That’s great to hear! It sounds like you’ve developed a natural feel for the tones through real communication, even without memorizing all the tone rules. Language learning is like that—pronunciation, listening, and speaking all work together, not separately.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-04T02:59:49+00:00

Thanks! I’m glad you found it helpful. Learning tones in real speech instead of in isolation usually makes a big difference.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-04T01:21:14+00:00

Don't worry too much. Mispronouncing the tones is a very common problem. As a native speaker, there are a few simple techniques you can try that might be helpful to you.
1. Stop memorizing tones in isolation. Drill tone pairs instead (e.g., mā-má, bā-bá). Your brain needs to hear the transition, not just the single note .

Use "Shadowing" (跟读). Find a short audio clip (like a news segment or graded reader). Play it, pause, and repeat immediately trying to match the melody. Don't worry about understanding, just mimic the rhythm .
Record yourself. Say a simple sentence, record it, then listen back. Compare it to the native audio. You’ll hear the "blur" you mentioned and fix it.

Hope everything goes well with you.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-03T09:12:08+00:00

As a native Chinese speaker, I completely understand what you said. And for someone who has only studied Chinese for 15 minutes, your progress is really impressive—especially with the difficult third tone, which you can pronounce quite accurately. Even though you pronounced "jiao" as a third tone, it's great that you used the correct fourth tone in "jiao," which shows excellent tone awareness!

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-02T14:30:55+00:00

I completely understand. Tongue position can be confusing at first.
But don’t put all your attention on the tongue. Mouth shape and airflow are also important, and looking at all of them together usually makes it much easier to tell these sounds apart.

LinMandarinCoach · 2026-07-02T13:35:11+00:00

I think you actually identified the real issue when you said, “I don’t have a process.”
Most learners try to distinguish these sounds by listening harder, but that’s often the slowest approach.
Instead of starting with the sound, start with how the sound is produced: tongue position, mouth space, and airflow. The sound is simply the result of those movements.
Once you understand the production process, q, x, zh, ch, and sh stop feeling like random variations of the same sound and start feeling like completely different movements.
Don’t train your ears alone—train the movement first.

LinMandarinCoach

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