Chinese Course (Lvl 1), 5 Weeks, 7PM CET

Service Description

Classes are limited to 10 participants, with two 90-minute sessions each week. Please note that the schedule may adjust for holidays. "Speaking First" Pedagogy: Led by our star coach, Sebastian, this course prioritizes oral skills to ensure you build a strong foundation in Mandarin Chinese pronunciation through Bopomofo, the native phonetic system. By focusing on accurate pronunciation from the start, you’ll be understood more easily, boosting your confidence. This focus on speaking will also enhance your listening comprehension as you train your ear to recognize and produce authentic sounds. As you practice speaking with written materials, your reading abilities will naturally improve as well. Accent Reduction: While Pinyin may appear intuitive, it often leads to approximate rather than precise pronunciation. This course will help you master authentic Mandarin pronunciation through Bopomofo, no matter your native language. With his extensive training in English, German, French, and Italian diction, Sebastian has a deep understanding of the pronunciation challenges faced by non-native Mandarin speakers and effective techniques for overcoming them. Acting & Singing: Dramatic and musical literature offers a vibrant, immersive way to learn language and culture. With his background in theatre and vocal performance, Sebastian incorporates these materials into the course, making language learning dynamic and enriching. This approach broadens your cultural perspective and enhances language fluency through creative expression. Traditional Chinese Character Recognition: This course will use Traditional Chinese characters, but you'll also have exercises featuring Traditional and Simplified Chinese side by side. With practice, you'll develop the ability to recognize both character sets. Once you have a foundational understanding of Bopomofo, you'll be able to pronounce any Traditional Chinese character with Bopomofo notation. Over time, this skill will allow you to read Chinese literature from centuries past without relying on Simplified Chinese transcriptions. The Power of Bopomofo Typing: Typing in Bopomofo is more efficient than in Pinyin, as Bopomofo requires a maximum of 4 keystrokes per character, including tone markers, while Pinyin may require up to 6. Please see the policy section below for the full course booking policy.