Mandarin From the Ground Up

Welcome back! After a long, unplanned break, we're back to finish out Season 2 once and for all. Let's finally find out what happens to Xiao Li (L) and A-Ming (M) during their impromptu visit to Mrs. Kang's (K) house.  Lesson Outline: [00:21] Introduction [02:34] Dialogue (normal speed) [04:20] Line-by-line translation [14:17] Talking about 就 vs. 才 and auxiliary particles [19:45] Dialogue again...

After listening to S02 Lesson 12, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking five minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the dialogue. Repetition makes it stick. README: How to use this recording You'll hear the dialogue from Lesson 12 twice. The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear. Repeating aloud is...

In this new dialogue, Mrs. Kang (康太太) arrives with the water and something else that Xiao-Li (小李) hasn't seen before. And she receives a surprise phone call...  Lesson Outline: [00:21] Introduction [01:14] Dialogue (normal speed) [03:55] Useful vocabulary and phrases from the dialogue [15:45] Dialogue again (normal speed) Words and phrases from the dialogue, with examples (Chinese characters...

I talk about the importance of curiosity as fuel, and then we'll hear the line-by-line translation of the dialogue from Lesson 10. Lesson Outline: [00:21] Talking about curiosity [04:52] Dialogue (normal speed)  [06:28] Complete translation [12:56] Explanation of the word 乖 (guāi) [14:07] Repeat the dialogue  Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only): 康太太：這個是我兒子，他去年帶我去日本玩...

After listening to S02 Lesson 10, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking five minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the dialogue. Repetition makes it stick. README: How to use this recording You'll hear the dialogue from Lesson 10 twice. The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear. Repeating aloud is...

Xiao-Li (小李) goes to get some water at Mrs. Kang's (康太太) house, but it seems that something else is on her mind... Lesson Outline: [00:21] Introduction to the dialogue [00:53] Dialogue (normal speed) [03:46] Slow version [06:30] Useful vocabulary and phrases from the dialogue Words and phrases from the dialogue, with examples (Chinese characters only): 孩子, 小朋友 我有三個孩子 我不喜歡孩子 ...

We'll hear the line-by-line translation of the dialogue from S02 Episode 8, and then we'll further reinforce the vocabulary and practice answering some questions with a mock interview.  Lesson Outline: [01:53] Dialogue (normal speed)  [03:19] Complete translation [10:00] Explanation of 才對 and 我如果把車子先開到對面去 [12:35] Mock interview (reinforcement and speaking practice) [14:40] Reference...

After listening to S02 Lesson 08, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking four minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the dialogue. Repetition makes progress! README: How to use this recording You'll hear the dialogue from Lesson 08 twice. The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear. Repeating aloud is...

Xiao-Li (小李) and A-Ming (阿明) are on the way to the convenience store when they run into an unexpected obstacle.  Lesson Outline: [00:21] Introduction to the dialogue [01:35] Dialogue (normal speed) [03:12] Slow version (and repeat) [07:40] Useful vocabulary and phrases from the dialogue [14:12] Dialogue again (normal speed)  Words and phrases from the dialogue, with examples (Chinese character...

We'll hear the line-by-line translation of the dialogue from S02 Episode 06, and then we'll further reinforce the vocabulary and practice answering some questions with a mock interview. Lesson Outline: [01:19] Dialogue (normal speed)  [02:21] Complete translation [07:05] Dialogue again (normal speed) [08:08] Mock interview (reinforcement and speaking practice) [11:06] Reference interview with Xiao...

After listening to S02 Lesson 6, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking three minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the dialogue. Repetition makes progress! README: How to use this recording You'll hear the dialogue from Lesson 06 twice. The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear. Repeating aloud is...

Learning a new language can become a gateway to exploring an undiscovered side of yourself. Find out how in this lesson. In the dialogue, Xiao-Li (小李) and A-Ming (阿明) realize there's nothing to drink in Xiao-Li's apartment. Whether we like it or not, a lot of things happen in life just by accident. Some talents, skills, or passions may lie dormant, just because we never had the opportunity to...

One fun, engaging way you can give your Mandarin learning a boost is by conducting interviews with your Mandarin-speaking language parents, friends, or teachers. In this lesson, I offer some advice about how to turn the interview into a powerful language-learning tool. Then, we'll hear a line-by-line translation of the dialogue from Lesson 04. Lesson Outline: [00:21] How do you conduct an intervie...

README: How to use this recording You'll hear the dialogue from Episode 4 twice. The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear. Repeating aloud is important, partly because you'll be training your speech muscles to make the sounds of Mandarin, and partly because you'll be getting feedback about how you sound (if you're list...

What makes a good language parent, and how do you find one? In this episode I share some tips based on my own language learning experience. In the dialogue, 小李 is finally home after a long absence, and 阿明 notices that he seems a little nervous. Q: Who are the best language teachers in the world? A: Parents. Whether they do it consciously or not, parents (and parental figures) are the people wh...

After listening to S02 Episode 03, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking two minutes a day to practice listening and imitating the dialogue. Repetition makes progress! If you want to practice reading along in Chinese, here is the dialogue written out in Chinese characters only (you can find the translation and pinyin below that): Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only):  阿明：你現...

Xiao-Li (小李) runs into trouble buying presents for the family back home, and A-Ming (阿明) tries to give some advice. Lesson Outline: I'll mention a few words that will appear in the dialogue.  Listen to the dialogue at normal speed. Listen to the slow version and repeat.   Hear the translation, line-by-line, and try to infer the meaning of the parts you don't know yet. Listen to the slow versio...

We all acquire language in the same way, and it has nothing to do with talent or aptitude. In this lesson, we get the line-by-line translation of the dialogue and complete the picture from Lesson 01. Lesson Outline: Introduction: We all learn languages the same way, and talent has nothing to do with it.   Listen to the dialogue at normal speed. Get the translation line-by-line, and try to infer th...

After listening to S02 Episode 1, start reinforcing what you've learned by taking four minutes a day to practice listening and speaking the dialogue. Repetition makes progress! A transcript of the dialogue is available below. First, it is written out in only Chinese characters for those who are learning characters and want to practice reading along. Then it is written out with the translation and...

We're back for another season! In this episode,  Xiao-Li (小李) comes back to Taiwan. Learning how to digest (and even to be entertained by) material that you don't completely understand is an important skill for learning a language. In this episode, we introduce a new dialogue, but don't translate it all at once like we did in Season 1. Instead, I'll introduce some of the key words and phrases, a...

After you've listened to Lesson 16, use this track to reinforce what you've learned with short listening and speaking practice sessions every day over the following week. Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only) Ah-Ming (M)：小李，我問你喔，你有兄弟姊妹嗎？ Xiao Li (L)：我有一個姊姊 M：她做什麼工作？ L：她是醫生。你呢？你有兄弟姊妹嗎？ M：有，我有一個弟弟，還有一個妹妹 L：那，他們做什麼工作？...

In this lesson, Ah-Ming (阿明) and Xiao-Li (小李) ask about each other's families. This is the last episode of Season 1. Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only) Ah-Ming (M)：小李，我問你喔，你有兄弟姊妹嗎？ Xiao Li (L)：我有一個姊姊 M：她做什麼工作？ L：她是醫生。你呢？你有兄弟姊妹嗎？ M：有，我有一個弟弟，還有一個妹妹 L：那，他們做什麼工作？ M：他們沒有在工作，他們還在唸書 L：還在唸書？他們...

Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only) Ah-Ming (M)：你吃飽了嗎？ Xiao Li (L)：吃好飽！ M：不好意思，我們要買單！ Waiter (F)：好的，這樣五百八 M：好，來 L：等一下！你要請我嗎？ M：對啊，你剛來台灣，當然要請你啊 L：不行，上次你請我，這一次換我請你啦！ M：不要啦！我請你就好，等我去美國你再請我 L：很不好意思 M：不用不好意思！你來我的地盤，當然我請你啊 L：那好吧... M：不好意思，這裡一千，麻煩你...

In episode 15, I talk about how you might be misunderstanding your own forgetfulness. Meanwhile, Ah-Ming (阿明) and Xiao-Li (小李) fight over who's going to pick up the check. Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only) Ah-Ming (M)：你吃飽了嗎？ Xiao Li (L)：吃好飽！ M：不好意思，我們要買單！ Waiter (F)：好的，這樣五百八 M：好，來 L：等一下！你要請我嗎？ M：對啊，你剛來台灣，當然要請你啊 L：不行...

After you've listened to Lesson 14, use this track to reinforce what you've learned with short listening and speaking practice sessions every day over the following week. Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only) Ah-Ming (M): 菜都上了！你快試試看！ Xiao Li (L): 好 M：好吃嗎？ L：好吃！但很辣！ M：你會怕辣嗎？ L：還好，不會，我喜歡 M：那就好，要不要喝一點茶？ L：好 M：來，我幫你倒 L：謝謝 M：鍋...