Pronunciation is usually limited to the first few weeks of a Chinese course, which is a pity, because clear pronunciation is important, whether or not you’ve studied for a week or a decade. Link to article: Two reasons why pronunciation matters more than you think: https://www.hackingchinese.com/two-reasons-why-pronunciation-matters-more-than-you-think/ Tags: #learnchinese #pronunciation #tones #communication #benefits Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence: https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/mandarin-chinese-pronunciation-course/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Learning to read and write Chinese is a complex task with many layers, and there’s a risk of not seeing the forest for the trees, so let’s zoom out a bit and look at the bigger picture! Link to article: My best advice on how to learn Chinese characters https://www.hackingchinese.com/my-best-advice-on-how-to-learn-chinese-characters/ Tags: #learnchinese #characters #components #words #vocabulary Review: The Outlier Linguistics Dictionary of Chinese Characters: https://www.hackingchinese.com/review-the-outlier-linguistics-dictionary-of-chinese-characters-with-discount-code/ Chinese character variants and fonts for language learners: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-character-variants-and-fonts-for-language-learners/ More about learning and teaching games through games: https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-and-why-to-teach-chinese-through-games/ Spaced repetition software and why you should use it: https://www.hackingchinese.com/an-introduction-to-spaced-repetition-software/ 7 mistakes I made when writing Chinese characters and what I learnt from them: https://www.hackingchinese.com/7-mistakes-i-made-when-writing-chinese-characters-and-what-i-learnt-from-them/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

What if I told you that there is a game that helps you speak Chinese more fluently, is great for improving communicative ability and works well regardless of your current level? What if I said that the game is also fun and free to play? Link to article: How to improve fluency in Chinese by playing word games https://www.hackingchinese.com/playing-word-games-to-practise-fluency/ Tags: #learnchinese #games #fluency #alias #taboo More about learning and teaching games through games: https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-and-why-to-teach-chinese-through-games/ Playing Codenames to learn Chinese: https://www.hackingchinese.com/playing-codenames-learn-chinese/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

How many characters do you need to know to be able to read Chinese? The truth is that characters only provide a foundation, so regardless of how many you know, you won't be able to read much unless you also know many words. Link to article: The building blocks of Chinese, part 6: Learning and remembering compound words https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-to-learn-words-really-fast/ Tags: #learnchinese #words #compounds #morphology Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

How many characters do you need to know to be able to read Chinese? The truth is that characters only provide a foundation, so regardless of how many you know, you won't be able to read much unless you also know many words. Link to article: The building blocks of Chinese, part 5: Making sense of Chinese words https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-building-blocks-of-chinese-part-5-making-sense-of-chinese-words Tags: #learnchinese #words #characters #morphology Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

While spaced repetition software can be very useful, it also has some serious drawbacks. Fortunately, most of them don't apply to learning to write Chinese characters! Link to article: Why spaced repetition software is uniquely well suited to learning Chinese characters https://www.hackingchinese.com/why-spaced-repetition-software-is-uniquely-well-suited-to-learning-chinese-characters Tags: #learnchinese #characters #srs #spacedrepetition Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

The best way to learn to read in Chinese is to read texts you can understand without constantly using a dictionary. As a beginner, such texts aren't easy to find, but let's have a look at the best reading resources I know for beginners. Link to article: Should you learn the names of the strokes in Chinese characters? https://www.hackingchinese.com/should-you-learn-the-names-of-the-strokes-in-chinese-characters/ Tags: #learnchinese #characters #strokes Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

The best way to learn to read in Chinese is to read texts you can understand without constantly using a dictionary. As a beginner, such texts aren't easy to find, but let's have a look at the best reading resources I know for beginners. Link to article: The 7 best Chinese reading resources for beginners https://www.hackingchinese.com/beginner-chinese-reading/ Tags: #learnchinese #reading #beginner #resources Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

When learning to read Chinese you will encounter several challenges, some of them unique to Chinese. What are these challenges, what do they mean for you as a student and how can you overcome them? Link to article: 6 challenges students face when learning to read Chinese and how to overcome them: https://www.hackingchinese.com/6-challenges-students-face-when-learning-to-read-chinese-and-how-to-overcome-them Tags: #learnchinese #reading #beginner #challenges Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Some people think enrolling in a course is the best way to learn Chinese, but others say that courses are useless, and swear by the effectiveness of self-studying. So should you enrol in a Chinese course or are you better off learning on your own? Link to article: Should you enrol in a Chinese course or are you better off learning on your own? https://www.hackingchinese.com/should-you-enrol-in-a-chinese-course-or-are-you-better-off-learning-on-your-own Tags: #learnchinese #courses #self-study Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Everybody struggles with writing Chinese characters by hand, even if handwriting can often be avoided in a modern, digital society. But what about reading other people's handwriting?  Link to article: Learning to read handwritten Chinese https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-read-handwritten-chinese/ Tags: #learnchinese #handwriting #reading #fonts Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Sooner or later, most students realise that their Chinese isn't as good as they think it ought to be. Why is that and what can you do about it? Link to article: Why your Chinese isn't as good as you think it ought to be: https://www.hackingchinese.com/why-your-chinese-isnt-as-good-as-you-think-it-ought-to-be Tags: #learnchinese #progress #failure #success Chinese language logging, part 2: A healthy, balanced diet of Mandarin: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-language-logging-part-2-a-healthy-balanced-diet-of-mandarin What your Chinese course will not teach you: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-course-will-not-teach/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

The key to learning Chinese compound characters is to learn the building blocks and how they fit together, including both the function of each component and the structure of the compound. Add some clever memory techniques and you'll be able to dramatically increase the speed and efficiency of your learning! Link to article: The building blocks of Chinese, part 4: Learning and remembering compound characters https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-building-blocks-of-chinese-part-4-learning-and-remembering-compound-characters Tags: #learnchinese #characters #compounds #sound #meaning #mnemonics Link to the first episode in this series: https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-building-blocks-of-chinese-part-1-chinese-characters-and-words-in-a-nutshell/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

A vast majority of Chinese characters are compounds, and understanding how the components fit together and which function they have, will make learning and remembering characters a lot easier.  Link to article: The building blocks of Chinese, part 3: Compound characters https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-chinese-characters/ ‎ Tags: #learnchinese #characters #compounds #sound #meaning Link to articles about phonetic components: https://www.hackingchinese.com/phonetic-components-part-1-the-key-to-80-of-all-chinese-characters/ Link to my review of Outlier Linguistics dictionary and character course: https://www.hackingchinese.com/review-the-outlier-linguistics-dictionary-of-chinese-characters-with-discount-code/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

People who have't spent a lot of time with different languages sometimes think that learning a new language is mostly about relabelling the world with new words. This mentality is especially bad when translating to Chinese from another language. Link to article: The beginner's guide to Chinese translation https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-beginners-guide-to-chinese-translation/ Tags: #learnchinese #translation #beginner Link to Hacking Chinese translation challenge: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-translation-challenge/ Link to article about translation from Chinese: https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-translation-can-help-you-learn-chinese/ Link to article about translation to Chinese: https://www.hackingchinese.com/using-translating-to-improve-your-chinese/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Being able to have a conversation is a goal for most students of Chinese, be it with loved ones, for professional purposes or for travel, but what if you think conversations are too scary, too difficult or just impractical? Link to article: Using voice messaging as a stepping stone to Chinese conversations https://www.hackingchinese.com/using-voice-messaging-practise-speaking-listening/ Tags: #learnchinese #listening #speaking #chat #introvert Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Speech recognition has improved immensely in recent years and talking to one's phone has become more common. Some apps also rely on this technology to check your pronunciation, but how good is speech recognition as a learning tool? Link to article: Using speech recognition to improve Chinese pronunciation, part 1 https://www.hackingchinese.com/using-speech-recognition-to-improve-chinese-pronunciation-part-1/ Tags: #learnchinese #speaking #pronunciation #speechrecognition #ios #android Link to pronunciation course: Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence https://pronunciation.hackingchinese.com Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

It's often hard to assess one's own pronunciation when learning Mandarin. People around you might understand what you are saying, but that doesn't necessarily mean your tones are good. Simply asking people if your pronunciation is good won't work either, because they will often tell you that your pronunciation is good even if it's not. So how can you find out how good your pronunciation really is? Link to article: A smart method to discover problems with Mandarin sounds and tones https://www.hackingchinese.com/a-smart-method-to-discover-problems-with-tones/ Tags: #learnchinese #listening #speaking #tones #minimalpairs Link to pronunciation course: Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence https://pronunciation.hackingchinese.com Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Understanding spoken Chinese can be hard, but the solution is simple: listen more. That is not always easy to do, though, because it's hard to both find the time to listen and to actually get started. Here are seven ideas for smooth and effortless Chinese listening practice. Link to article: 7 ideas for smooth and effortless Chinese listening practice https://www.hackingchinese.com/make-sure-that-listening-is-not-a-practical-problem/ Tags: #learnchinese #listening #practicaltips #immersion Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Hacking Chinese can seen as a very long response to the question of what I would have done differently if I could go back in time and learn Chinese again from scratch. However, most people don't want to read 800,000 words to get the full picture, which is why I have distilled all that into a few courses. Getting the most out of your learning with Hacking Chinese https://www.hackingchinese.com/back-to-school-hacking-chinese-course-discount/ Tags: #learnchinese #courses #unlockingchinese #pronunciation #strategy Link to Unlocking Chinese (for beginners): https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/unlocking-chinese-ultimate-guide-beginner/ Link to Practical Guide (for all learners): https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/practical-guide-to-learning-mandarin/ Link to pronunciation course (for all learners): https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/mandarin-chinese-pronunciation-course/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Most Chinese characters are compounds consisting of two or more components, but some components are in themselves compounds that can be further broken down. But how do you know where to stop? And how do you learn and remember the most basic building blocks? Basic characters, components and radicals: The building blocks of Chinese, part 2 https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-building-blocks-of-chinese-part-2-basic-characters-components-and-radicals/ Tags: #learnchinese #characters #vocabulary #buildingblocks #components #radicals Link to The Outlier Linguistics Dictionary of Chinese Characters (use code "hacking25" for 25% off): https://www.outlier-linguistics.com/collections/chinese/products/outlier-dictionary-of-chinese-characters?rfsn=4170716.4415dd ...and my review: https://www.hackingchinese.com/review-the-outlier-linguistics-dictionary-of-chinese-characters-with-discount-code/ Link to Skritter (will give you 10% off): https://www.hackingchinese.com/skritter-discount ...and my review: https://www.hackingchinese.com/skritter-chinese-review-boosting-your-character-learning/ Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Learning to read and write Chinese is a daunting task, but the challenge becomes more manageable if you focus on learning the building blocks, learning how components form characters and how characters form words. The building blocks of Chinese, part 1: Chinese characters  and words in a nutshell https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-building-blocks-of-chinese-part-1-chinese-characters-and-words-in-a-nutshell Tags: #learnchinese #characters #vocabulary #buildingblocks #writing #reading Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Skritter is a modern tool for learning ancient characters. It combines active recall and spaced repetition with Chinese-specific tools and content. While it's not a free resources, it has enough edges over other solutions to be worth considering. Link to article: Skritter review: Boosting your Chinese character learning (2021 edition) https://www.hackingchinese.com/skritter-chinese-review-boosting-your-character-learning/ Direct link to Skritter for 10% off any subscription: https://www.hackingchinese.com/skritter-discount Tags: #learnchinese #characters #vocabulary #skritter #app #review Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

How do you study Chinese when you're busy with other things? How do you cope with a Chinese course that is too hard for you? And are translated texts okay to use for reading practice?  Hacking Chinese Podcast one-year anniversary Q&A: https://www.hackingchinese.com/hacking-chinese-podcast-one-year-anniversary-qa/ Tags: #learnchinese #podcast #faq #questions Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast  More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com  Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) 

Logging you language  learning can be very useful, and there are many tools and resources out there to help you, but which are the best and how do you use them?  Link to article: Chinese language logging, part 3: Tools and resources for keeping track of your learning https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-language-logging-part-3-tools-and-resources-for-keeping-track-of-your-learning  Tags: #learnchinese #logging #progress #tracking #resources  Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast  More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com  Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Digital resources have made learning Chinese considerably easier than it used to be, but another problem has appeared: How can we make sense of and navigate the vast number of resources and find what's best for us?  Link to article: Chinese language learning in the twenty-first century: Towards a digital ecosystem? https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-language-learning-in-the-twenty-first-century-towards-a-digital-ecosystem/  Tags: #learnchinese #resources #research #phd #ecosystem #digital #interview  Please check the article for more details, but here's a brief list of resources mentioned in this episode:  Marco Polo Project  Julien’s article about translation  Hacking Chinese Challenges  Skritter (read my review here)  Hacking Chinese Resources  Julien's thesis (contact him for details)  Pleco  FluentU (read my review here)  The Chairman’s Bao  Speak Chinese in 1000 words (now defunct, redirects to 全球華文網)  Julien on LinkedIn  Julien's professional site  Julien's personal site  The Future of Governance Agency  Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast  More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com  Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, not a dictionary, but did you know that it can be better than a dictionary for looking up words when learning Chinese? Link to article: The benefits of using Wikipedia to look up words when learning Chinese https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-benefits-of-using-wikipedia-to-look-up-words-when-learning-chinese/ Tags: #learnchinese #wikipedia #dictionary #wiktionary Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

When you start learning Chinese, your ability to communicate increases with every word you learn, but as your level improves, this feeling goes away and you it might feel  like you're no longer making progress. Welcome to the intermediate plateau! How to get past the intermediate Chinese learning plateau https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-to-get-past-the-intermediate-chinese-learning-plateau Tags: #learnchinese #podcast #intermediate #plateau #progress Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

On July 1st, 2021, a new Chinese proficiency standard took effect. This will have big consequences for the HSK, the most widely used proficiency test for non-native speakers. What are these changes and what do they mean for you as a student? Link: The new HSK 3.0: What you need to know https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-new-hsk-3-0-what-you-need-to-know Tags: #learnchinese #hsk #2021 #test Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

As soon as you leave the classroom, you will notice that people don't speak Chinese the way your teacher and textbook do. Why is that, and what can you do to learn to understand regionally accented Mandarin? Link to article: Learning to understand regionally accented Mandarin https://www.hackingchinese.com/learning-to-understand-regionally-accented-mandarin/ Tags: #learnchinese #accent #dialect #regional #mandarin Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Tones in Mandarin carry roughly as much information as vowels do, but still some people insist that tones are not very important, or even that native speakers don't really use tones. Why is that and what can we learn from digging deeper into this misconception? Link to article: The importance of tones is inversely proportional to the predictability of what you say https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-importance-of-tones-is-inversely-proportional-to-the-predictability-of-what-you-say/ Tags: #learnchinese #tones #communication #tontext Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Do you know the world's best footballer, Saylaw? What about Yàlǐshìduōdé? You probably do know them , even though you might not realise it. Link: Lost in transcription: Saylaw, Ice Island and Aristotle: https://www.hackingchinese.com/lost-in-transcription-saylaw-ice-island-and-aristotle/ Tags: #learnchinese #transcription #names Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast  More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com  Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Many students who take Chinese proficiency exams say that they understand the text, but can't read fast enough. Is that a valid complaint? And how fast do you have to read to pass the hSK or TOCFL? Link: How important is reading speed on tests like HSK and TOCFL? https://www.hackingchinese.com/how-important-is-reading-speed-on-tests-like-hsk-and-tocfl/ Tags: #learnchinese #readingspeed #tocfl #hsk Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

How do you balance your learning to make sure you get a healthy diet of Mandarin? Logging how much you listen, speak, read and write is easy, but are there better ways of doing it? Link: Chinese language logging, part 2: A healthy, balanced diet of Mandarin: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-language-logging-part-2-a-healthy-balanced-diet-of-mandarin #learnchinese #progress #logging #balance #fourstrands Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

How much time are you investing into learning Chinese? Most people don't actually know the answer to this question! Why is it a good idea to log your Chinese learning and how should you go about it? Link: Chinese language logging, part 1: Why and how to track your progress: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-language-logging-part-1-why-and-how-to-track-your-progress #learnchinese #logging #progress Listen to this and other episodes on your favourite podcasting platform, including Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcast, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, Spotify and YouTube: https://www.hackingchinese.com/podcast More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at https://www.hackingchinese.com Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Clear pronunciation makes communicating in Chinese much easier; the time to level up your pronunciation is now Link to announcement: It's time to level up your Chinese pronunciation: https://www.hackingchinese.com/the-hacking-chinese-pronunciation-course-is-finally-here/ Link to course front page: Hacking Chinese Pronunciation: Speaking with Confidence: https://www.hackingchinese.com/courses/mandarin-chinese-pronunciation-course/ More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

There are many ways of looking up Chinese characters you don't know, but which is the best for students? Link: How to look up Chinese characters you don’t know More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

It's not uncommon for both students and teachers to treat Chinese pronunciation and Pinyin as the same thing, but they are not, and thinking that they are can lead to certain problems. Link: What's the difference between Chinese pronunciation and Pinyin? Does it matter? More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

There are many different kinds of input methods available for Chinese, such as typing, handwriting, and speech to text, but which is the best for language learners, and why? Link: Learning the second tone in Mandarin Chinese More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

There are many different kinds of input methods available for Chinese, such as typing, handwriting, and speech to text, but which is the best for language learners, and why? Link: Chinese input methods: A guide for second language learners More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Many students say that listening is the hardest part of learning Chinese, not speaking, reading or writing. Why is that? Could it be that listening in Chinese is actually harder than in many other languages? Link: Why is listening in Chinese so hard? More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Many websites, apps and other resources for learning Chinese use colours to highlight tones, but does using colours really make tones  easier to learn? Link: Does using colour to represent Mandarin tones make them easier to learn? More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Reading is the best way to expand vocabulary and learn about new things, but how should you approach reading in Chinese? And what are the best free reading resources out there? Link: The 10 best free Chinese reading resources for beginner, intermediate and advanced learners More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Have you ever tried to do something in Chinese you thought would be fairly easy, only to find out it was much harder than you thought? Well, you're not alone! Link: 6 things in Chinese that are harder to learn than they seem More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Have you ever felt that you lack focus, that you don't spend enough time studying, and that it would be cool to cooperate with others to learn more Chinese? The Hacking Chinese Challenges is for you. Link: Hacking Chinese Challenges (challenges.hackingchinese.com) The major types of challenges: Chinese listening challenges: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-listening-challenge/ Chinese reading challenges: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-reading-challenge/ Chinese speaking challenges: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-speaking-challenge/ Chinese writing challenges: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-writing-challenge/ Chinese vocabulary challenges: https://www.hackingchinese.com/chinese-vocabulary-challenge/ More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Have you ever wanted to listen in on great Chinese teachers when they talk about science, technology and related topics? Now, you can!  Original article: Learning science in Chinese with 李永乐老师 More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

Understanding is necessary for efficient learning, but when it comes to Chinese characters, is more understanding always better? Original article: 5 levels of understanding Chinese characters: Superficial forms to deep structure More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)

For most people, writing in Chinese is synonymous with writing characters, but there is in fact a lot more to it than that Original article: 20 tips and tricks to improve your Chinese writing ability More information and inspiration about learning and teaching Chinese can be found over at Hacking Chinese (www.hackingchinese.com) Music: "Traxis 1 ~ F. Benjamin" by Traxis, 2020 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)