Perform Chinese: A Language Course for True Beginners

In this episode, we rehearse three acts. Act 1 On the street, you come across your Chinese friend whom you meet on a regular basis. Friend: 欸，小波。你去哪儿啊？(āi, Xiǎobō 。Nǐ qù nǎér a ？) Me: 我去办一点事。你呢？(Wǒ qù bàn yīdiǎn shì 。Nǐ ne ？) Act 2 Class is over. Ask your classmate where she is going to see whether you are heading in the same direction. Me: 你去哪儿啊？(Nǐ qù nǎér a ？) Classmate:我去____(Wǒ qù____)。  Act 3 State that you are going to the same destination: 我也去____(Wǒ yě qù ____)。

Have you ever heard your friends complain that their Chinese neighbors in China were "nosy" because they liked to ask about destinations when coming across each other in the neighborhood? Well, the Chinese neighbor doesn’t really expect you to tell them your destination. But why do they ask?  Listen to this episode to find out the reason. You will learn to respond to the question in different contexts. You will also learn to state some common destinations on campus.

This episode helps you rehearse three acts. Act 1 Respond to what you hear in Chinese as quickly as you can as if you are in a conversation. After the pause, you will hear a sample response provided by your classmate. Act 2 You are at a Starbucks in Beijing, waiting for your friend Lili whom you have not met for a while. You would like to buy her a coffee in return for her helping you get settled. Now, Lili comes, about 20 minutes late. Act 3 Now you are at the counter and it's your turn to order. You decide to have the same drink as Lili, so you order two of the drink Lili ordered.

In this episode, we go over the things you learned to do in Chinese so far. Below is a list of the things you have learned. As you listen, check off the ones that you can immediately recall. 1. Excitedly greet a friend you have not seen for a while: _________ 2. Ask the friend how she has been recently:_________ 3. State that you have been quite busy: _________ 4. State that your spouse been the same as before: _________ 5. Ask what she wants to drink: _________ 6. State that you want a coffee: _________ 7. Ask your friend whether they want a large cup or a small one: _________ 8. State that you want a hot Americano: _________ 9. Ask your friend how their studies have been going: _________ 10. State that your studies have been alright, not too busy:_________ 11. Ask your friend whether they find Chinese difficult: _________ 12. State that you find Chinese a little difficult: _________ 13. Ask your friend whether they have cats: _________ 14. Ask them how many cats they have:_________ 15. State that you don't have cats but you have dogs: _________ 16. State that your parents have been too tired: _________ 17. Ask your friend if they have any younger siblings:  18. State that you do not have younger siblings but you have an elder sister: _________

Supplementary vocab: 1. Latte (拿铁/nátiě) 2. Cappuccino (卡普奇诺/kǎpǔqínuò)  3. Mocha (摩卡/mókǎ).  4. Macchiato (玛奇朵/ mǎqíduǒ). In this episode, we rehearse five acts. Act 1 Order the same drink your friend orders: 我也要…… (Wǒ yě yào ……)。 Act 2 Correct the barista by saying that you are ordering one more cup. Barista: 您要一杯拿铁，是吗 (Nín yào yì bēi nátiě, shì ma)？ Me: 不是，我要两杯拿铁 (Bú shì, wǒ yào liǎng bēi ná tiě)。 Act 3 Correct the barista by saying that you ordered the opposite size. Barista: 您要一个大杯星冰乐，是吗 (Nín yào yígè dàbēi xīngbīnglè，shì ma )？ Me: 不是，我要一个小杯星冰乐 (Bú shì，wǒ yào yígè xiǎobēi xīngbīnglè)。 Act 4 Take the order: 喝什么 (Hē shénme)?  and ask your customer whether they want a large one or a small one: 大杯的，还是小杯的 (Dàbēi de, háishì xiǎobēi de)？ Act 5 Ask your customer whether they want the hot version or the iced version: 热的，还是冰的 (Rè de, háishì bīng de)？

Ordering drinks in Chinese is easy as long as you know how to say the item you want to order. In this episode, you will learn to say some of the items on Starbucks' menu. Don't worry about memorizing all the menu items now; just try to remember what you like to order. 1. coffee (咖啡/kāfēi) 2. Americano (美式咖啡/Měishì kāfēi) 3. green tea (绿茶/lǜ chá） 4. black tea (红茶/hóng chá) 5. Frappuccino (星冰乐/xīng bīng lè) 6. large (大杯/dà bēi)；medium(中杯/zhōng bēi)；small (小杯/xiǎo bēi) 7. hot (热的/rè de); iced (冰的/bīng de)

In this episode, we rehearse three acts. Act 1 Your Chinese friend comments on your weight. Respond to her comment by redirecting the topic:  Friend: 好久不见了！你胖了一点。(Hǎojiǔ bú jiàn le ！ nǐ pàng le yìdiǎn 。) Me: 是吗？你最近怎么样啊？(Shì ma? Nǐ zuìjìn zěnmeyàng a?) Act 2 Explain that your work or study has kept you too busy or exhausted: 哎呀，我工作太忙了（āiya, wǒ gōngzuò tài máng le ）。哎呀，我学习太累了( āiya, wǒ xuéxí tài lèi le 。)。 Act 3 Your friend makes an assumption about your situation. Confirm their assumption but downgrade itto not worry her. Friend: 你工作挺忙的吧(Nǐ gōngzuò hěn máng ba) ？ Me: 嗯，有一点忙(En, yǒuyìdiǎn máng)。

In China, it’s natural to comment on someone’s appearance in a direct way, but you might find it embarrassing. In this episode, you will learn ways to respond to such embarrassing comments.

In this episode, we rehearse three acts. Act 1: State that you have been OK: 我还行(wǒ hái xíng)。 Act 2: Restate what you hear in a softened tone without significantly changing the meaning: 我很…… vs. 我挺……的 (Wǒ hěn …… vs  Wǒ tǐng …… de)。我不…… vs. 我不太……(Wǒ bù …… vs  Wǒ bú tài ……)。 Act 3: Your Chinese friend wonders whether you find Chinese difficult or not. Respond with a different degree word each time,  from the highest degree "hěn nán" to the lowest "bù nán." 很难 (hěn nán) 挺难的 (tǐng nán de) 有一点难 (yǒu yī diǎn nán) 还行 (hái xíng) 不太难 (bútài nán) 不难 (bù nán)

When it comes to expressing personal feelings and opinions, the Chinese prefer to be indirect. In this episode, you will learn how to modify your statements about personal feelings to avoid sounding too blunt.

In this episode, we rehearse four acts. ACT 1 Greet a friend you've not seen for a while: 好久不见了！你最近怎么样啊？(Hǎojiǔ bú jiàn le, nǐ zuìjìn zěnmeyàng a ？) ACT 2 Tell your friend that you've not been what they thought you've been, but your spouse has: 我不……，不过我爱人很……(Wǒ bù ......, bú guò wǒ àirén hěn .......). ACT 3 Tell your friend that you've been in the same state as them: 我也……(Wǒ yě ......). ACT 4 Ask about updates of your friend's family members: 你的____怎么样啊？(Nǐ de____ zěnmeyàng a ？)

The Chinese do not use "Nihao" to greet friends. In this episode, you will learn a formulaic phrase that the Chinese use to greet a friend with excitement. 

Hey! We are Perform Chinese! Did people tell you Chinese is difficult to learn? That's because they did not PERFORM it.  With Perform Chinese, you learn to converse in Chinese RIGHT away.  You will find Chinese NO more difficult than ANY other language. Did you say the words and grammar are hard to memorize? Don't be fooled! Learning a language is NOT about memorizing the words and grammar; it's about learning to DO things in Chinese culture. Our lessons put YOU in specific DAILY situations where YOU interact with a Chinese speaker, so your brain will be ready to learn what to say in the situation. Then we teach you the appropriate expressions. We also make sure you RE-encounter the situations often enough to register the expressions naturally, so when you encounter similar situations, you will immediately understand what's going on WITHOUT hearing the specific words or grammar. So, why wait? Try Perform Chinese now!

In this episode, we practice saying "correct" and "incorrect" in Chinese. Tang laoshi will ask your classmate Di Ya to do some calculations (i.e., addition problems) and ask you and Yuan Xii to decide whether Di Ya's response is correct. Duì！/对！ Bú duì！/不对！ Conversation scripts: Táng lǎoshī: Dí Yà，yī jiā yī shì duōshǎo ？ Dí Yà: èr 。 Táng lǎoshī: Duì bú duì，Yuán Xī ？ Yuán Xī: Duì ！ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 唐老师：一加一是多少？ 狄亚：二。 唐老师：对不对，元夕？ 元夕：对！

Now that you know how to things in Chinese, you are ready for the song "Two Tigers" - two weird tigers. Chinese lyrics: Liǎng zhī lǎohǔ, /两只老虎， liǎng zhī lǎohǔ. /两只老虎。 Pǎo de kuài, /跑得快 ， pǎo de kuài. /跑得快。  Yī zhī méiyǒu ěrduǒ, /一只没有耳朵， yī zhī méiyǒu wěibā. /一只没有尾巴。 Zhēn qíguài, /真奇怪！ zhēn qíguài./真奇怪！ English lyrics: Two tigers Two tigers Running fast Running fast One has no ears One has no tail Really weird Really weird.  

In this episode, we rehearse four acts. ACT 1 Tell your friend that you don’t have the sibling they ask about, but you have other siblings:我没有XX， 不过我有YY (Wǒ méiyǒu XX, búguò wǒ yǒu YY)。 ACT2 Ask about the number of siblings your friend has: 你有几个XX (Nǐ yǒu jǐ gè XX)? ACT3 Ask about the number of colleagues or classmates: 你有几个同事/同学 (Nǐ yǒu jǐ gè tóngshì /tóngxué)？ ACT4 Measure words for chairs, tables, and plates.  one chair:一把椅子(yì bǎ yǐzi). one table: 一张桌子(yì zhāng zhuōzi). one plate: 一个盘子(yí gè pánzǐ).

In this episode, you learn to ask about the NUMBER of siblings, children, coworkers, classmates, dogs, or cats your friend has.

What if you don't know any more Chinese to keep a conversation going, or you need to excuse yourself from your Chinese friend's party? This episode teaches you how to politely excuse yourself from a conversation.

This episode invites you to participate in two extended conversations in Chinese. Skit 1: You come to Tang Laoshi’s office to practice Chinese. Start with knocking on the door. Skit 2: At a banquet hosted by your company, you try to network with two Chinese guests - a lady and a man sitting next to her. Since your company is hosting it, don’t forget to extend a welcome to your guests.

Congratulations! You've reached the first milestone of Perform Chinese! This episode invites you to look back and see how much you can do now in Chinese after just two weeks of learning.

In this episode, we rehearse the following functions in scenarios on campus, at business banquets, and at your place.  Act 1. Politely request someone to introduce the person next to them: 这位是……(Zhè wèi shì ……)？  Act 2. Introduce the person next to you: 这位是……(Zhè wèi shì …….)。

In this episode, you learn to introduce another person. Most importantly, you learn how to politely request someone to introduce him/herself or another person. You will also learn what a "measure word" does in the Chinese language .

In this episode we rehearse four acts.  Act 1. Apologizing for not having a business card: 对不起， 我没有名片 (Duì bu qǐ ，wǒ méiyǒu míngpiàn )。  Act 2. Politely responding to an apology:  没关系 (Méi guānxi)。   Act 3. Formally addressing a person you are meeting for the first time: Lady:  ...女士(...nǚshì)；  Man: ...先生 (..xiānshēng). Act 4. Stating the siblings you have or do not have:  我有……(Wǒ yǒu ….)。我没有……(Wǒ méiyǒu …)。 

What if you don't have a name card but still would like to network with a potential employer or business partner? This episode teaches you how to be polite in such a situation.

In this episode, we rehearse four acts.  Act 1. Presenting your name card: Zhè shì wǒde míngpiàn./ 这是我的名片。  Act 2. Introducing a home item: Zhè shì ……/ 这是……。  Supplementary vocabulary for Act 2: home items  1. stereo: 音箱(yīnxiāng).  2. desk lamp: 台灯(táidēng).  3. chair: 椅子(yǐzi).  Act 3. Responding to confirmation requests:  对(Duì)！ 不对(Bú duì)！  Act 4: Introducing a family member: 这是……(Zhè shì ……)。他(她)叫……(Tā jiào ……)。  Supplementary vocabulary for Act 3 &4: family members  1. elder sister: 姐姐(jiějie).  2. younger sister: 妹妹(mèimei).  3. elder brother: 哥哥(gēge).  4. younger brother: 弟弟(dìdi).  5. spouse: 爱人(àirén).  6. child: 孩子(háizi).

This episode teaches you how to act appropriately when networking in professional settings in China, such as at a business banquet or conference. 

This episode introduces you to all the compound finals that contain the /o/ and those that contain the /e/ sound. Again, we will challenge you to spell the sounds, so get your notebook ready.

This is the first of the two episodes that introduce you to the compound finals. In this episode, we will challenge you to spell all the compound finals that contain the /a/ sound, so get your notebook ready.

In this episode, we rehearse two functions.  1. Asking a person's name casually: 你叫什么名字(Nǐ jiào shénme míngzì)？  2. Asking a person's name with respect: 您贵姓(Nín guì xìng)？

In Chinese, it is not always appropriate to ask your interlocutor's full name. Listen to this episode to find it out.

In this episode, you will rehearse four functions. 1. Stating your name:  我叫……(Wǒ jiào ...)。 2. Accepting an offer: 谢谢(Xièxie)！ 3. Inviting someone to come in: 请进(Qǐng jìn)！ 4. Inviting someone to sit: 请坐(Qǐng zuò)！

Beginning with this episode, we will act out various daily scenarios to help you create memories for your Chinese-speaking self. Try your best to visualize the scene as you listen and respond loudly. 👍Sign up for a free 15-min Zoom session: https://forms.gle/zr9yHzPZDKjgD3Mt5 

This episode helps you rehearse saying "Thank you" and "Goodbye" to your teacher. Tang laoshi will also read the easily confused sound pairs. Listen carefully for the distinction and imitate. 1. zhi     ji           zhe    jie         zhu  ju          zhun  jun        zhen  jin         zheng  jing 2. chi    qi           che    qie        chu  qu        chun  qun       chen qin        cheng  qing 3. shi     xi          she    xie         shu  xu         shun  xun        shen  xin       sheng  xing 4. zi   ze             ci   ce             si   se A website with interactive exercises for pronunciation: https://www.laits.utexas.edu/ppp/practice.php?unit=1

Chinese has 23 different initial sounds represented by 20 of the consonant alphabet letters (except V) plus zh, ch, sh. This episode focuses on the seven unique initial sounds: j, q, x, zh, ch, sh, r. You may also explore the following vides for additional instructions. A 5-min video that teaches you how to distinguish  j q x zh ch sh z c s. https://youtu.be/4H6p-AkRWiE An 8-min video that explains the tongue positions for producing zh ch sh r. https://youtu.be/dpQ3IMd4AMg A 7-min video that explains the tongue positions for producing j q x. https://youtu.be/05BMKdxHjp8 A 5-min video that explains the tongue positions for producing z c s. https://youtu.be/-69O93VF404 Sign up for a free 15-min Zoom session: https://forms.gle/zr9yHzPZDKjgD3Mt5 

In this episode, we practice the six simple final sounds a-o-e-i-u- ü with Chinese numerals 1 to 10. We will spell out the pinyin of the numbers for you, so get your notebook ready. We'll also remind you of the tones.

This episode introduces the six simple final sounds a-o-e-i-u- ü. Warning! None of them should sound the same as in English, so listen and imitate carefully. Exaggerate your mouth movement when practicing. Also, get your notebook ready.

Listen and imitate the tones. 1. high-low dōng běi   xī běi    fēng jǐng    zhēn hǎo    fēng jǐng zhēn hǎo     dōng běi fēng jǐng zhēn hǎo (The Northeast's scenary is really good.) Xiānggǎng   Xiānggǎng fēngjǐng zhēn hǎo (Hong Kong's scenary is really good. ) gēn wǒ    shuō hǎo    gēn wǒ shuō hǎo    hē jiǔ    shuō hǎo gēn wǒ hē jiǔ 2. low-high lǎoshī    Lǎoshī hǎo!     Xiǎobō    Xiǎobō hǎo! Běijīng    měi tiān     jǐnzhāng     měi tiān jǐnzhāng     Běijīng měi tiān jǐn zhāng nǐ tīng    wǒ shuō    nǐ tīng wǒ shuō (You listen to me.) huǒchē    yǐjīng    zǒu le    yǐ jīng zǒu le    huǒchē yǐjīng zǒu le (The train has already left.) 3. high-falling gāoxìng    chī fàn    bēifèn    hē zuì    hūn shuì    zhēnduì    qīngcuì    gēchàng 4. fallling-high hòutiān    bù kāi    hòutiān bù kāi (The day after tomorrow it's closed.) yìbān     yì bān bù kāi  (Normally it's closed.) shuàigē   yòubiān    shuàigē, yòu biān. (Handsome boy, to your right.) 5. low-rising zhǔrén    hěn máng     zhǔrén hěnmáng(The master/host is busy.) měi guó (the USA)     měi rén    měi tiān 6. low-low (pronounced as rising-low) nǐ hǎo    hěn hǎo    wǒ yě    wǒ yě hěn hǎo (I'm also good/ doing well.) měinǚ    qǐng nǐ    měinǚ qǐng nǐ    rú guǒ   rúguǒ měinǚ qǐng nǐ (If the beautiful lady invites you) nǐ xǐ huān    nǎ lǐ     nǐ xǐ huān nǎ lǐ     wǒ xǐ huān     wǒ yě xǐ huān (I also like it.) 7. low-falling wǒ xìng    wǒ xìng lǐ （My family name is Li) wǒ jiào    wǒ jiào lǐ mào  (My full name is Li Mao) bǎi shì    kě lè      bǎishì kělè  (Pepsi coke) kěshì    yǒushì     zǎofàn     hǎokàn nǐ qù    lǐ miàn     nǐ qù lǐ miàn (You go inside.) 8. falling-low shàng wǔ    xià yǔ     shàng wǔ xià yǔ (In the morning, it rains.) bù lěng    shàng wǔ bù lěng (In the morning, not cold) xià wǔ    xià xuě     xià wǔ xià xuě (In the afternoon, it snows.) zìjǐ    zhù nǎ er    zì jǐ zhù nǎ er 9. rising-falling: bú duì (not correct)   bú shì (not the case)   bú qù (not going)   bú tài (not very)   bú yì (not easy)   bú kàn (not looking)   bú jiàn (not meeting)   lái qù (come and go) 10. falling-rising: bù háng (not OK)   bù máng (not busy)   bù nán (not hard)   bù lái (not coming)    tè bié (extremely)   zìyóu (free of restriction)   tè bié zì yóu 11. falling-falling zài jiàn    xiànzài    shàng kè    xiànzài shàng kè le (Now class begins.) xià kè    xiànzài xià kè le (Now class is over.) shuì jiào    xiànzài shuì jiào (Now, go to bed!)

This episode focuses on the last two tones: the low and the falling tones. You will also learn to make Yes/No questions and a common phrase for praising someone.

Tang Laoshi will read phrases and short sentences that contain the high and the rising tones. Listen and imitate (or hum) the tones. Don't worry about the spelling. Observe the tone marks in the transcript below. 1.high-high combination jīntiān   yīntiān    Jīntiān yīntiān.  (Today is cloudy.)    xīngqī yī    xīngqī sān    Jīntiān xīngqī sān.(Today is Wednesday.) hē kāfēi     Jīntiān hē kāfēi. (Today, drink coffee.) 2. high-rising combination jīngcháng    bāng máng     jīngcháng bāngmáng (often helps)     guān mén    jīngcháng guānmén (often closed) fēicháng    Zhōngguó     fēicháng Zhōngguó (very Chinese)  jūrán    kāi mén     jūrán kāimén     jīnnián jūrán kāimén (This year, surprisingly, it's open.) 3. rising-rising combination shítáng(dining hall)     liú xué(study abroad)    shíyuán(￥10)     nóngmín (farmer)    Chángchéng(the Great Wall)    chéngqiáng (city wall) Nánníng     rénmín    Nánníng rénmín (the people of Nanning) 4. rising-high combination zuótiān    qíngtiān     zuó tiān qíng tiān (Yesterday was sunny.)      huí jiā     zuótiān huí jiā (Yesterday went home) míngtiān    míngtiān lái Zhōngguó (Tomorrow come to China.)      míngtiān xué zhōngwén     míngtiān lái Zhōngguó xué zhōngwén (Tomorrow come to China to study Chinese) shíjiān    méi shíjiān     míng tiān méi shí jiān (Tomorrow there's no time.) míngtiān méi shíjiān xué zhōngwén (Tomorrow there's no time to study Chinese.)

Chinese spoken language has four distinctive tones. If you applied the tones randomly, people wouldn't understand your Chinese. Listen to this episode to learn to distinguish and make the first two: the high tone and the rising tone.

Mandarin Chinese is not only spoken in mainland China, and it may not be as difficult as you thought. Listen to this episode to find out where Chinese is spoken and how to make Chinese learning easy. 

This is the rehearsal section of the previous episode. We will rehearse the ritual at the beginning of a Chinese class - greeting the teacher and responding to the roll call. Repeat loudly after the model. When prompted to perform,  respond loudly.

You might wonder how you can perform Chinese with a podcast. Engage with this episode to learn how our course works and get a concrete experience of learning with our feed. You will learn about the approach that informed the design of our course, learn your Chinese name, and have your first Chinese lesson!!  To greet your teacher respectfully, you say, "Lǎoshī hǎo! （老师好！）"