Chinese

Journeys into Chinese I is designed for those non-heritage Mandarin speakers who have never spoken or studied the language. This course provides students with the fundamentals for learning to understand, speak, and begin to read and write Mandarin Chinese. The course focuses on developing accurate pronunciation and tones, learning to understand the spoken language in context, and developing a foundation of basic sentence patterns, questions, and everyday vocabulary. The sound system (Pinyin and tones) and the writing system (radicals and stroke order) are presented in detail. Reading is used to support and reinforce the acquisition of the spoken language. The course is proficiency-based and its focus is on the development of listening and speaking skills.

Journeys into Chinese II is designed for those who have learned Pinyin and basic characters and can understand and answer simple questions. This course provides students with the fundamentals for learning to understand, speak, read, and write Mandarin Chinese. The course focuses on learning to understand the spoken language in context and developing a foundation of basic sentence patterns, questions, and everyday vocabulary. Reading is used to support and reinforce the acquisition of the spoken language. The course is proficiency-based and its focus is on the development of listening and speaking skills. The class is conducted mainly in Chinese.

Journeys into Chinese I is designed for those non-heritage Mandarin speakers who have never spoken or studied the language. This course provides students with the fundamentals for learning to understand, speak, and begin to read and write Mandarin Chinese. The course focuses on developing accurate pronunciation and tones, learning to understand the spoken language in context, and developing a foundation of basic sentence patterns, questions, and everyday vocabulary. The sound system (Pinyin and tones) and the writing system (radicals and stroke order) are presented in detail. Reading is used to support and reinforce the acquisition of the spoken language. The course is proficiency-based and its focus is on the development of listening and speaking skills.

A special feature of the course is a weekly shared virtual classroom with a high school in China, Global Understanding. Students thus have the opportunity to engage in language and cultural exchange with their counterparts in China. They use Chinese to communicate meaningful information in spontaneous interaction with native speakers, they also develop the ability to observe, compare and appreciate cultural commonalities, similarities and differences.

Journeys into Chinese I is designed for those non-heritage Mandarin speakers who have never spoken or studied the language. This course provides students with the fundamentals for learning to understand, speak, and begin to read and write Mandarin Chinese. The course focuses on developing accurate pronunciation and tones, learning to understand the spoken language in context, and developing a foundation of basic sentence patterns, questions, and everyday vocabulary. The sound system (Pinyin and tones) and the writing system (radicals and stroke order) are presented in detail. Reading is used to support and reinforce the acquisition of the spoken language. The course is proficiency-based and its focus is on the development of listening and speaking skills.

A special feature of the course is a weekly shared virtual classroom with a high school in China, Global Understanding. Students thus have the opportunity to engage in language and cultural exchange with their counterparts in China. They use Chinese to communicate meaningful information in spontaneous interaction with native speakers, they also develop the ability to observe, compare and appreciate cultural commonalities, similarities and differences.

Navigating in Chinese + Global Understanding is designed for students who can carry out basic conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics, and have mastery of pinyin and stroke order. The focus continues to be on the development of listening and speaking skills, with the specific goals of expanding vocabulary and exposing students to more complex sentence patterns. There is an additional focus on character/word analysis, reading strategies, composition skills, and cultural understanding. Students listen to, read and comprehend dialogues, short stories, and a wider array of media. Students will be able to express themselves in both oral and written forms on a variety of familiar topics related to daily activities and personal environment. The course is proficiency-based, and the class is conducted entirely in Chinese.

Navigating in Chinese + Global Understanding is designed for students who can carry out basic conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics, and have mastery of pinyin and stroke order. The focus continues to be on the development of listening and speaking skills, with the specific goals of expanding vocabulary and exposing students to more complex sentence patterns. There is an additional focus on character/word analysis, reading strategies, composition skills, and cultural understanding. Students listen to, read and comprehend dialogues, short stories, and a wider array of media. Students will be able to express themselves in both oral and written forms on a variety of familiar topics related to daily activities and personal environment. The course is proficiency-based, and the class is conducted entirely in Chinese.

Navigating in Chinese + Global Understanding is designed for students who can carry out basic conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics, and have mastery of pinyin and stroke order. The focus continues to be on the development of listening and speaking skills, with the specific goals of expanding vocabulary and exposing students to more complex sentence patterns. There is an additional focus on character/word analysis, reading strategies, composition skills, and cultural understanding. Students listen to, read and comprehend dialogues, short stories, and a wider array of media. Students will be able to express themselves in both oral and written forms on a variety of familiar topics related to daily activities and personal environment. The course is proficiency-based, and the class is conducted entirely in Chinese.

A special feature of the course is a weekly shared virtual classroom with a high school in China, Global Understanding. Students thus have the opportunity to engage in language and cultural exchange with their counterparts in China. They use Chinese to communicate meaningful information in spontaneous interaction with native speakers, they also develop the ability to observe, compare and appreciate cultural commonalities, similarities and differences.

Navigating in Chinese + Global Understanding is designed for students who can carry out basic conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics, and have mastery of pinyin and stroke order. The focus continues to be on the development of listening and speaking skills, with the specific goals of expanding vocabulary and exposing students to more complex sentence patterns. There is an additional focus on character/word analysis, reading strategies, composition skills, and cultural understanding. Students listen to, read and comprehend dialogues, short stories, and a wider array of media. Students will be able to express themselves in both oral and written forms on a variety of familiar topics related to daily activities and personal environment. The course is proficiency-based, and the class is conducted entirely in Chinese.

A special feature of the course is a weekly shared virtual classroom with a high school in China, Global Understanding. Students thus have the opportunity to engage in language and cultural exchange with their counterparts in China. They use Chinese to communicate meaningful information in spontaneous interaction with native speakers, they also develop the ability to observe, compare and appreciate cultural commonalities, similarities and differences.

Exploration in Chinese is designed for students who can carry on extended conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics and read simple stories comprising mostly high-frequency words and basic sentence structures. The course focuses on developing students' listening and speaking abilities while continuing to strengthen their reading and writing skills. Expanding vocabulary and more complex sentence patterns are also key goals. Students understand the main ideas and information on a variety of familiar topics that are spoken or written. They exchange information and express their thoughts in both conversations and written forms related to personal activities and social experiences. Students start to develop their ability to narrate, describe, and discuss. Students also start to develop abilities to observe, compare and appreciate commonalities, similarities and differences in cultural products, practices and perspectives. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese. 

Exploration in Chinese is designed for students who can carry on extended conversations in Mandarin about everyday topics and read simple stories comprising mostly high-frequency words and basic sentence structures. The course focuses on developing students' listening and speaking abilities while continuing to strengthen their reading and writing skills. Expanding vocabulary and more complex sentence patterns are also key goals. Students understand the main ideas and information on a variety of familiar topics that are spoken or written. They exchange information and express their thoughts in both conversations and written forms related to personal activities and social experiences. Students start to develop their ability to narrate, describe, and discuss. Students also start to develop abilities to observe, compare and appreciate commonalities, similarities and differences in cultural products, practices and perspectives. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese. 

Chinese for Heritage Speakers is designed for students who speak Mandarin at home and can carry on extended conversations in Mandarin comfortably, but who have limited literacy skills. The primary focus of the course is on developing students' reading and writing abilities while continuing to expand their listening and speaking skills. Starting from Pinyin, stroke order, basic radicals and characters, the course will expand students' character-recognition abilities. They develop reading comprehension strategies through reading stories and novels that provide cultural topics to narrate, describe, discuss and compare. They also improve abilities to distinguish colloquial language vs. literary language, to increase accuracy and clarity in spoken communication and to appropriately use more formal speech patterns when necessary. They could exchange information and express their thoughts in both conversations and written form on a variety of familiar topics related to personal activities and social experiences. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese.

Readings in Chinese with Topics is designed for students who can comfortably carry on extended conversations in Mandarin beyond everyday topics and to comprehend texts in high-frequency vocabulary with ease. The course focuses on developing students' reading and writing abilities while continuing to strengthen their listening and speaking skills. Expanding vocabulary and sentence patterns are also key goals in this course. By building these skills, students will further develop their ability to discuss various topics in a more sophisticated way. Students will also expand their cultural knowledge and language skills through reading and writing. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese.

This course is designed for students who can converse in Mandarin in more extended and complex ways and read simple Chinese writings. Students are regularly exposed to and engage with authentic auditory video and written materials on various topics ranging from families and communities, personal and public identities, beauty and aesthetics, to science and technology, contemporary life, and global challenges to practice and improve their listening and reading comprehension. Throughout the course, students develop high-level comprehension skills such as predicting, inferring, analyzing, comparing and contrasting, synthesizing, summarizing, and evaluating. Students improve their speaking and writing skills of describing, narrating, and providing suggestions, ideas, and opinions through regular discussions, presentations and writing assignments. Students deepen their cross-cultural communication skills by continuing to observe and compare cultural commonalities, similarities, and differences. Students write both by typing on a computer and by handwriting. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese. This course prepares students for the AP exam.

This course is designed for students who can converse in Mandarin in more extended and complex ways and read simple Chinese writings. Students are regularly exposed to and engage with authentic auditory video and written materials on various topics ranging from families and communities, personal and public identities, beauty and aesthetics, to science and technology, contemporary life, and global challenges to practice and improve their listening and reading comprehension. Throughout the course, students develop high-level comprehension skills such as predicting, inferring, analyzing, comparing and contrasting, synthesizing, summarizing, and evaluating. Students improve their speaking and writing skills of describing, narrating, and providing suggestions, ideas, and opinions through regular discussions, presentations and writing assignments. Students deepen their cross-cultural communication skills by continuing to observe and compare cultural commonalities, similarities, and differences. Students write both by typing on a computer and by handwriting. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese. This course prepares students for the AP exam.

This course is designed for students who scored 4 or 5 on the AP Chinese Language and Culture Exam. Students will comprehend, and interpret Chinese articles, stories, speeches, songs, and videos on various topics related to Chinese culture, history and contemporary life. Students will write messages, articles, and reports to address topics related to the readings. Students will discuss and present their perspectives or views, and improve their narrating, describing, debating and persuading skills. Students deepen their cross-cultural communication skills by continuing to observe and compare cultural commonalities, similarities, and differences. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese. 

This course is designed for students who scored 4 or 5 on the AP Chinese Language and Culture Exam. Students will comprehend, and interpret Chinese articles, stories, speeches, songs, and videos on various topics related to Chinese culture, history, and contemporary life. Students will write messages, articles, and reports to address topics related to the readings. Students will discuss and present their perspectives or views, and improve their narrating, describing, debating and persuading skills. Students deepen their cross-cultural communication skills by continuing to observe and compare cultural commonalities, similarities, and differences. The course is proficiency-based and conducted entirely in Chinese.