.

If you happen to live in a Chinese speaking community, some of your electronics can be a great source for learning Chinese characters. While living in Taiwan, I had a clock that spoke the time in Chinese. Remote controls also tend to have a lot of Chinese characters on them. Try to learn to recognize the characters that you’re likely to see regularly around you. Cell phones and computers are also a great source of learning. If you’re feeling adventurous you can try using them in Chinese mode which will force you to learn what some of the characters means so as help you navigate your way around the system. As well, modern technology allows you to use Pinyin to enter Chinese characters on a computer or cell phone which offers an easy way to utilize them without having to manually type them in.

Try to set functional goals for yourself. Our course is set in its own levels. However, as learners we each have our own set of circumstances. For example, in Taiwan one of my goals was to be able to order a pizza over the phone. At first, I wasn’t confident enough in being able to order for delivery so I would stick to ordering for pick-up. I would have all the key vocabulary items written out in front of me that I would use on the phone. Eventually though, after doing it a few times, I didn’t need that piece of paper in front of me anymore and could then work on getting them to understand what my address was for delivery. Like this, find your own challenge and see if you can figure out the steps to achieve it. It helps if it involves a task that you are likely to repeat in the future and so will aid in retention.