Learn Mandarin Chinese

About the course

The Basic Mandarin Chinese course is designed for students with no prior knowledge of the language who want an introduction to Chinese language and culture, building the essential communication skills for everyday situations.

The program progressively introduces phonetics (Pinyin), the Mandarin tones, basic sentence structure, pronouns and the verb “to be”, classifiers, everyday vocabulary and an introduction to characters (Hanzi). From day one you work on correct pronunciation, listening comprehension and basic dialogue, building your confidence when speaking.

Unit 1 — Introduction to Chinese

• What is Hànyǔ (汉语)?
• The difference between Hanyu and Zhongwen
• Introduction to the Pinyin system
• Initials (声母 shēngmǔ)
• Finals (韵母 yùnmǔ)
• The 4 Mandarin tones (声调 shēngdiào)
• Syllable structure
• Phonetics exercises

Unit 2 — Pronouns and the verb “to be” (是 shì)

• Personal pronouns (I, you, he, she, we)
• Using the verb 是 shì (to be)
• Affirmative and negative sentences (不 bù)
• The question particle 吗 (ma)
• Introducing yourself
• Nationalities and countries
• Basic professions
• Basic sentence structure: subject + adverb + verb + object

Unit 3 — Everyday vocabulary and basic structure

• The structural particle 的 (de)
• The classifier 个 (gè)
• Mandatory use of classifiers: numeral + classifier + noun
• Frequent verbs: 去 (to go), 看 (to see), 吃 (to eat), 学习 (to study)
• Adverbs of frequency
• Building questions: 谁 (who), 什么 (what), 哪 (where/which)

Unit 4 — Numbers and practical expressions

• Basic numbers
• Phone numbers and age
• Using 多少 (how much/how many)
• Expressions of acceptance: 好 (hǎo), 行 (xíng), 不行 (bù xíng)
• Family (家 jiā)
• Using 咱们 (inclusive “we”)

Unit 5 — Communicative situations

• What are you going to eat? 你吃什么?
• Food vocabulary
• Using the verb 要 (to want)
• The classifier 一些 (some)
• Demonstratives: 这 (this) and 那 (that)
• Practical café dialogues

Skills you'll develop

• Pronounce the four tones correctly
• Read pinyin with confidence
• Understand basic sentence structure
• Introduce yourself and exchange personal information
• Ask and answer simple questions
• Use classifiers correctly
• Hold basic dialogues in everyday contexts

How it is taught

• Interactive online classes
• Constant pronunciation practice
• Phonetics exercises
• Guided dialogues
• Practical activities per unit
• Partial assessments
• Comprehensive final assessment

How you are assessed

• Class participation
• Oral practice
• Written exercises
• Written exam
• Final oral exam

By the end of the course you'll be able to

• Introduce yourself and talk about yourself
• Understand simple questions
• Use everyday phrases
• Order food and express preferences
• Identify numbers, places and objects
• Read pinyin correctly
• Recognize and interpret basic characters

After the 60 hours you reach an early beginner level (approx. HSK 1). The course does not promise advanced fluency, but it does give you a solid, structured foundation to continue to the intermediate level, with an initial command of the phonetic system and an understanding of how the language is built.