5 Rockstar Tips to Learn Chinese Chinese at Home

China is one of the world’s most linguistically rich nations. Standard Chinese is the most widely spoken language in China.  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.  Most linguists refer to all of the varieties of spoken Chinese that form the Sinitic branch as the Sino-Tibetan language family (spoken by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and many minority ethnic groups in Greater China) and say that there was an original language, Proto-Sino-Tibetan, from which the Sinitic and Tibeto-Burman languages descended, similar to Proto-Indo-European. The relationship between Chinese and the other Sino-Tibetan languages is still unclear and being researched, as is the attempt to recreate Proto-Sino-Tibetan.

Your goals must be able to motivate you whenever you feel low or disinterested. 

Knowledge of a second language will improve your job prospects. In today’s global marketplace, knowing a second language can be a huge asset for both employers and employees. Modern businesses are always looking for employees who can assist them with international trade, and the Chinese language is particularly valuable in the current climate. Chinese speakers are a large demographic for businesses to target, and research indicates that some Chinese-speaking countries have excellent business prospects. 

Study with a strict regime adding fun bits to your learning 

To begin, create your own decks or use pre-existing decks in flashcard apps like Memrise and Anki to expand your vocabulary and learning. Writing a journal or a diary to capture the majority of the phrases and words that were used repeatedly in day-to-day Chinese speaking, along with their respective articles, to increase its practical usage. It’s also a good idea to gather conversation connectors and fillers to aid in the development of your first conversation. I read Chinese aloud in front of a mirror or to my pet or plant to practise pronunciation and speaking. After watching a movie or video, using the shadowing technique can be extremely beneficial. Play some Chinese music, audiobooks to aid you further.

Study thoroughly about what you’re about to get into and have realistic expectations! 

Make a realistic (but not overly ambitious) study plan, as well as short and long-term measurable learning goals. Divide your learning into short chunks, focusing first on the topics you want to focus on. Use the Pomodoro technique to ensure consistent study methodology, which involves studying in shorter intervals throughout the day rather than studying for longer periods of time on weekends.

Distractions will be your biggest enemy

If phone calls from friends or visiting guests are interfering with your studies, turn off your phone and lock your room, requesting that you not be disturbed while studying. It will significantly improve your comprehension and learning.

Study with world proven immersion method 

I created a mini-China in my home by hanging a lot of Chinese photos and labelled them with their respective names in Chinese. Make sure you spend a few hours revising, trying to remember the Chinese names of objects in your home rather than mentally translating names from English to Chinese. 

Approximately 1.3 billion people (or about 16% of the world’s population) speak Chinese as their first language. With a few variations, Standard Chinese, in the form of Standard Mandarin, rose to become the official language in the majority of Mainland China and Taiwan, one of four in Singapore, and an official idiom of the United Nations. Until the mid-twentieth century, the majority of Chinese in southern China did not speak Mandarin. Since the 17th century, several efforts and attempts have been made to make pronunciation adhere to the Beijing style. 

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