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Guide to the HSK 4 exam- advanced Chinese

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Guide to the HSK 4 exam

In this article you’ll find grammatical constructions, the most important expressions and the most useful words that will help you pass the HSK exam level 4.

The HSK 4 exam’s structure

You’ll surely be more comfortable knowing how the exam is laid out. The HSK 4 exam is divided into 3 smaller sections: 45 listening questions (lasting 30 minutes); 40 reading questions (lasting about 40 minutes); 15 writing questions (lasting about 25 minutes).

At the end of each section you’ll be given 5 minutes to write your answers on the famous 答题卡 (datika) “answer card” (a pink color); you’ll have a total of 105 minutes available.

I recommend that when you fill in your answers on the answer sheet, try to fill in the right boxes well with a 2B pencil (don’t make an X, you have to fill in the boxes!). Now let’s take a look at how each smaller section is laid out.

听力 (tingli) “listening”

First part – 判断对错 (panduan dui cuo) “choose true or false”. In this first part composed of 10 questions, you’ll hear something stated and you have to figure out if it corresponds or not with what is written in the question. [Read more…]

How to teach Chinese in high schools

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How to teach Chinese in schools

In recent years, in many “western” schools teaching Chinese has been initiated and I have been fortunate to be one those who have had the chance to teach it in high schools (in Italy).

I confess that I found myself taken aback since I didn’t have even a minimal idea of how to teach this difficult language to such young learners. For this reason, the first few years I took refuge in the university teaching method and I used a grammatical-translation approach that, which I only realized later on, didn’t produce the hoped for results.

Now I’d like to share a few techniques based on my experience as a teacher and the master in teaching Chinese language as a second langugae.

A premise for those who dream of becoming a Professor

First of all you’ll need an indispensable premise: for any teaching operation (not just teaching Chinese) we have to choose the most opportune strategies, having the knowledge that every context requires a specially thought out solution based on who is in front of you, the time available, and the teaching tools in your possession. Therefore, there’s no one style or unique response when it comes to teaching and learning. [Read more…]

One-to-One Chinese Online Lessons: Our Review of the Best Platforms

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chinese 1 on 1 online

The unstoppable progress of today’s technology has been the source of significant advances in language learning, and Chinese is no exception.

Both mobile apps and online resources have led to many possibilities for improving the effectiveness of studying. However, in this article, we are going to focus on individual lessons online, which constitute a veritable revolution, as they permit access to good teachers regardless of where you are.

Click here to skip directly to the review of the platforms offering 1-on1 lessons which we recommend [Read more…]

Skritter Review: Learn how to write Chinese characters

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If you sign up to Skritter using one of the links on this page with the coupon “FURIO3952” you get a 33% discount for the first six months (only valid for new accounts)

What is Skritter?

Skritter is, in my opinion, the best way to learn how to write Chinese characters.

I used it ten minutes per day for about one year and I managed to learn how to write more than 1,000 characters (all the charactares on the HK4 list, to be precise). Also, I learned the meaning and pronunciation of those characters.

Why do you need a software to write characters?

If you watched the video at the beginning of this post you already know that the software is pretty cool.

But the real reason for using Skritter is the algorithm behind the software, which allows you to remember more than the 90% of the characters that you are studying (in the photo below you can see that in 30 days I was able to remember the 92.9% of the characters that I studied, [Read more…]

Study Chinese in Beijing – Our guide

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Study Chinese in BeijingPeking University (Beida)

If you are planning to study Mandarin Chinese in China, you probably thought about coming to Beijing. The goal of this article is to help you to understand whether Beijing is the right destination for you or not. You’ll find out:

  • The pros and cons of studying Chinese in Beijing.
  • The best universities for studying Chinese in Beijing.
  • A short list of well-known agencies and private schools for studying Chinese in Beijing (under construction).

If you’re interested in a more general overview, you can read Studying Chinese in China: What’s the best choice for you? [Read more…]

Chinese Level Test – Determine Your HSK Level

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HSK Chinese Level Test

Welcome to SDC’s Chinese level test. Before you start, it’s important that you read the instructions closely so that the test is as accurate as possible.

This test has been created in collaboration with the Chinese school EsChina Space.

Fill out the form to start the test!

This form collects your name, email and other information, so that we can reply to your inquiry. For more information on where, how and why we store your data (and how you can access them), you can read our Privacy Policy

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Instructions

  • Test for levels HSK1, HSK2 and HSK3: This test is especially designed to assess Chinese levels up to HSK3 (or A2 of the European Reference Framework). We are currently working on offering other tests for more advanced levels that will soon be available on our website.
  • Maximum duration of one hour: Even though the majority of people can finish the test in a bit more than 30 minutes, we have limited the test time to one hour so that results are as accurate as possible (simulating an official exam). Make sure you have enough time to complete the test!
  • The level test has eleven exercises: We have divided the level test into four listening exercises, three reading exercises, two grammar exercises and two writing exercises.

[Read more…]

Where to study Chinese in Guangzhou – The Complete Guide

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Studying Chinese in Guangzhou

Either if you live in Guangzhou and want to study Chinese or you’re thinking about moving to Guangzhou to study Chinese, this article will help you before making a decision.

This article’s goal is to analyze the best public and private educational establishments for studying Chinese in Guangzhou. In addition, we will go over the pros and cons of studying Chinese in Guangzhou.

You can click on the links below to skip directly to the section that interests you the most:

If you’re interested in a more general overview of studying Chinese in China, you can read this article.

Pros of studying Chinese in Guangzhou

  • Guangzhou is one of the main economic drivers of the country: For students for whom studying Chinese is only the first step towards future jobs or businesses, without a doubt, Guangzhou is a place to keep in mind. Guangzhou was one of the first Chinese cities to open up to global trade, and it currently still has a significant volume of import and export businesses. If you’re interested in working in international trade, Guangzhou offers countless opportunities.
  • International city: Guangzhou has a significant community of ex-pats. In addition, it’s a city that has always had strong ties with the West. Because of that, living in Guangzhou can be quite easy for a Westerner, as you will find many of the services that you’re used to.
  • Relatively pleasant climate: Without a doubt, Guangzhou has a climate that’s a bit more pleasant than cities more to the north. Even so, in terms of climate, cities in the west such as Kunming are much more pleasant. Even though winters tend to be quite mild and pleasant, summers can be asphyxiating and very rainy.

Cons of studying Chinese in Guangzhou

  • Mandarin is not widely used in Guangzhou: If your only goal is to learn Mandarin, Guangzhou is most likely one of the worst places to go. In Guangzhou, almost everybody speaks Cantonese and is proud of doing so. In addition, when the local population does speak Mandarin, they tend to have a strong accent that can be hard to understand for a non-native speaker. Obviously, if you want to learn Cantonese, it’s one of the best places to go and you’ll win the respect of lots of people.
  • High cost of living: Guangzhou is without a doubt one of the most expensive cities in China for living. If you’re learning Chinese on a tight budget, you might be better off looking for other destinations. In China, there are second and third tier cities that are a lot cheaper, with strong growth and which offer equivalent or even better job opportunities than Guangzhou.
  • Immersion is difficult: One of the main reasons to study Chinese in China is immersion in the language, and in Guangzhou, it’s difficult to obtain this. In the city, lots of people speak English, without mentioning the abundant foreign population, which makes it too easy to live in the city without speaking a single word of Chinese. Cantonese isn’t really isn’t much help for this linguistic immersion either.

The best universities for studying Chinese in Guangzhou

Sun Yat-sen University (中山大学)

University NameSun Yat-sen University is considered the best university in southern China. It’s among the top ten universities in the country and tends to appear quite high in global rankings. The university was founded in 1924 by Sun Yat-sen and currently has more than 50,000 students, more than 3,000 of which are foreigners.

Sun Yat-sen University has a Chinese language and culture center at its School of Foreign Languages, where it offers Chinese classes to foreign students. The classes that it offers last for one semester (seventeen weeks) and all levels are available, from beginner to the most advanced. You can apply for classes online by following this link. The School of Foreign Languages is located at its campus in the Haizhu district.

Given the prestige of this university, studying here is always a good option despite the fact that the campus is a little far away from downtown.

Jinan University (暨南大学)

University NameJinan University was founded in 1906 and is one of the oldest universities in China and one of the most prestigious universities in the city. It has more than 50,000 students, almost 14,000 of which aren’t from mainland China. Jinan University was the first university in China to accept foreign students and is currently the university with the highest percentage of foreign students.

Jinan University’s School of Chinese Language and Culture is responsible for training future Chinese teachers and also teaches language courses to non-native speakers. The school offers a broad range of semester courses: regular courses for all levels, business Chinese courses, preparation for HSK exams, Cantonese courses, and two courses the contents of which aren’t very clear (Crash Chinese Course, Spare-time Chinese Language Class).

Registration for these classes tends to open between October and January for the first semester, and between April and June for the second semester. In addition to semester courses, the university also offers short-term courses that you can register for during the whole year (although groups are only opened up if there are at least ten students).

One of the main advantages of studying at this university is that it’s more or less located downtown in the Tianhe district. In addition to its location, the university is prestigious and very international, which makes it a good option for studying Chinese quite comfortably.

Other universities offering Chinese classes

Private schools in Guangzhou

Coming soon….

We are currently analyzing the offering of Chinese classes in the city of Guangzhou to recommend a few private establishments. If you have a suggestion for a school, please leave us a comment in the comments section below.

[Photo Credits (Creative Commons CC2.0): www.flickr.com/photos/mark-meng/]

Where to Study Chinese in Shenzhen – The Complete Guide

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Study Chineses in Shenzhen

This article is intended for people that live in Shenzhen or are thinking about moving there and want to study Chinese. We will analyze the best public and private schools for studying Chinese in the city. Plus, we will go over the pros and cons of studying Chinese in Shenzhen.

You can click below to skip directly to reading the section you’re most interested in:

If you want a more general overview of studying Chinese in China, I recommend that you read this article first.
[Read more…]

Where to Study Mandarin Chinese in New York

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Studying Chinese in New York

New York is probably one of the best places to study Chinese outside of China, as it has a large number of establishments that teach the language as well as an abundant Chinese community with a high level of education. In this article, we are going to analyze where to study Chinese in New York and what to keep in mind when doing so.

The Chinese community in New York

New York is considered the city with the largest number of residents of Chinese origin outside of China, with more than 800,000 people, and contains at least 6 “Chinatowns.” Its Chinese communities are very diverse. While historically, they mainly came from the rural areas of Fujian and Zhejian, with a limited knowledge of Mandarin, over the past years, many Chinese people from different areas with high levels of education have established themselves in the city. Because of this, today, New York is one of the best places to find quality native Mandarin teachers. [Read more…]

How to study Chinese in Shanghai

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study chinese shanghaiFudan University

Are you thinking about studying Mandarin in Shanghai but you aren’t quite sure whether it is the right city for you or not?

Conversely, are you already living in Shanghai and would like to start taking Chinese classes but you don’t know what school to choose?

In this article you’ll find:

P.s. If you’re interested in a more general overview of studying Chinese in China, such as the difference between studying Mandarin at a university or a private school, click here. [Read more…]