LEARN NC

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Mandarin Chinese I | 中文课程1

In chapters 1, 2, and 3 you learned the basics of the Chinese pronunciation transcription system, commonly known as Hanyu Pinyin. You learned expressions and etiquette to greet and address someone appropriately in a Chinese community and learned how to talk about yourself, introduce your family members, and tell what family members do.

Chapter 4 includes four lessons that focus on important grammar needed in order to tell time and count in a series. Days of the week and months in the year will also be covered. You will develop deeper conversational topics that will enable you to ask questions and give responses with detail and creativity.

Learning Goals

At the end of Chapter 4, you will be able to:

  • Ask and explain what something is
  • Find out what someone owns
  • Make a phone call
  • Give times and dates
  • Make a request
  • Talk about one’s birthday
  • Check out books in library
  • Express wishes, possibilities, or permissions
  • Talk about duration of an action

Lesson 3: Whose book is this? 这是谁的书

You will know and be able to…

  • Use demonstrative pronouns: 这, 那
  • Use interrogative pronouns
  • Use measure words: 本, 枝
  • Count numbers from 0 to 100
  • Understand structure ()

You will find it useful in…

  • Asking what something is
  • Explaining what something is
  • Finding out what someone owns

Lesson 4: Chinese is really difficult 中文真难

You will know and be able to…

  • Respond to affirmative/negative questions
  • Count ordinal numbers
  • Construct a sentence with an adjective predicate
  • Create a tag question
  • Use the adverb
  • 有(一)点儿

You will find it useful in…

  • Using more yes and no questions
  • Making and responding to a suggestion
  • Talking about your Chinese course

Lesson 5: How old are you this year? 你今年多大

You will know and be able to…

  • Understand dates
  • Use the verb:
  • Use the pivotal sentence pattern 还是……
  • Understand the optative verb:
  • Tell time

You will find it useful in…

  • Making a phone call
  • Giving times and dates in Chinese
  • Saying the date of the week
  • Making a request
  • Talking about your birthday

Lesson 6: For how long can this book be checked out? 这本书可以借多久?

You will know and be able to…

  • Use optative verbs: 可以, 必须, 能
  • Use in an interrogative sentence
  • Use topic-comment sentences
  • Express time and duration
  • Understand the position of time-when expressions and time-duration expressions

You will find it useful in…

  • Checking out books from the library
  • Expressing wishes, possibilities, or permissions
  • Talking about the duration of an action

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