Prerequisite for entry
For complete beginners or those who have had only very little contact with the language.
Term duration
10 x 2-hour classes.
Aims and objectives
The course aims to provide an introduction to basic spoken Mandarin with the emphasis on the 4 tones in Mandarin, and developing practical listening skills; and 50 basic Chinese characters to enable students to function at a basic everyday survival level. Students should be able to communicate in Mandarin on a number of practical every matters. Students will learn how to use a Chinese dictionary to help them approach some authentic material like reading a menu.
Functions
- Formal and informal greetings, introducing yourself and others.
- Talking about one's nationality, and occupation.
- Introducing family members, and asking about someone's age
- Identifying time/dates/numbers
- Asking for direction, and locations
- Ordering food
- Answering telephone calls
- Talking about likes and dislikes
Course content
Main topics/themes to be covered:
- Greetings
- Names and nationalities
- Occupation
- Family members
- Numbers, days of the week, months
- Arranging time and place
- Leisure activities
- Ordering food/drinks
Linguistic structures/ Phonetics
- Emphasis is on the 4 tones
- Master the initials and finals
- Rules of pinyin pronunciation, including tone changes
- BasicÌý sentence structures
Grammar
- The verb shi4
- Question particles ma, ne
- Negative adverb bu4
- Adverbs ye3, dou1
- Choice type questions you3/ mei 2 you3
- The proposition / verb zai4
- Modal verbs hui4, ke3 yi3
- Possessive particle de
Learning resources
Books
Discover China: Student's Book One, edited by Chen Xin, Jing Lili , Macmillan.
Bilingual Dictionaries
Langenscheidt dictionary
Oxford Beginners’ dictionary
Macmillan-FLTRP Chinese Character Dictionary
Websites
In addition there are supplementary materials for self-study in the .
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