Mandarin Chinese I

Mandarin Chinese I is for students who have little or no prior background in the language. Students are introduced to standard Chinese language (Mandarin) and culture. Emphasis is placed on pinyin (the phonetic system indicating Chinese pronunciation in the English alphabet), listening comprehension, speaking skills and character writing. Simplified Chinese characters are taught during the course, while traditional forms of characters are also introduced to show the formation and change of Chinese characters. Students develop a core vocabulary and knowledge of basic grammar for conversation. Conversation topics relate to daily life and school life; such as, greetings, directions, personal hobbies, and courtesy expressions. Cultural knowledge is gained through videos, movies, online research, and supplementary readings.