How to begin to learn Chinese quickly?

Ready to go? Now it is the right time to work out a learning plan, getting prepared with the necessary learning materials, supplementary tools and the proper way to use them.

The first step is to learn the pinyin system which lets you grasp the way to speak mandarin. Standard pronunciation and tonal accuracy is the solid foundation of your coming move on your future Chinese learning.

Now no matter you decide to take Chinese courses or learn on your own, a suitable Chinese dictionary is a must. As a beginner, do not hurry into choosing a thick dictionary with as many as Chinese characters; instead, you would be wise to have a practical dictionary designed specifically for beginners like The Starter Oxford Chinese Dictionary or Chinese Characters: A Genealogy and Dictionary. Although there are several free online Chinese dictionaries, they only give you a very brief translation in English without detailed explanation on the usage and varied meanings. Especially to a beginner, never form the bad habit of consulting a Chinese character or word by using online dictionary as it may causes misunderstanding.

Next, you need a well-designed learning series set for a beginner-to-advanced systematic learning. A couple of things should be taken into consideration like the publishing time, version, simplified or traditional Chinese form, because many expressions used in older books are out-of-date. Be sure to focus on book set equipped with CD, textbook and workbook. Keep in mind the best way of learning Chinese is the spiral approach, meaning in the circulation of new things, application and review.

Chinese learning is character learning since Chinese characters take the core position. Though there are about 80,000 characters, a few thousands of them are more than enough. You will find a new Chinese symbol encountered is combined with two symbols you have learned previously. Learn the simple and frequently used Chinese characters first. As you learn more and more Chinese symbols, you will begin to be able to guess the meaning of some new ones. You will find it quite hard to remember a character. You may have met two Chinese characters. Yeah, some Chinese characters look like a drawing, so try to link the character and the picture in your mind. It is really interesting and effective. There are a few of books, such as Fun with Chinese Characters, which includes not only a Chinese character with vivid explanation on its structure by little story, but the character in phrases and a sentence to provide better understanding and expand your vocabulary. Another book,What's in a Chinese Character, which takes you to trace the lineage and reasons for about 500 characters with cartoons drawing and text explanations. Some similar characters are also listed to help you learn more easily at one time.

It is important to learn the correct way to write each Chinese character and if possible. Do not miss any opportunity to practice reading and writing Chinese characters.

After a period of character and word learning, you may focus more on the combination of learned characters, short phrases and simple sentence pattern.