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Michel Thomas Mandarin Foundation Course | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Programs, Books & Tapes |  | |
| volapuk49 Tetraglot Groupie United States Joined 6076 days ago 73 posts - 86 votes  Speaks: English*, Spanish, Yiddish, Modern Hebrew Studies: Esperanto | Message 17 of 70 21 November 2007 at 8:16pm | IP Logged |
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Hey, Alex
As far as whether you would benefit it is hard to say since I really don't know your level. If you really know everything in Pimsleur I and feel comfortable holding a conversation with a native speaker then you might pass in this sense. Also, with my experience with all of the courses out there tones are often mentioned but students rarely have them down pat. Chinese really relies on tones to communicate since it has far fewer sounds than we do in English. So tones are a big deal. If you don't have the right tone you won't be understood. There is some room for error but not much. I recently read a review of a course where a student said that he could speak but no one could understand him. Hmmm. As far as I can tell, none of the courses really get you super grounded in accurately using tones with your vocabulary. This course is different in many ways. You will learn the tones and you will remember them. I have developed a new method that uses hand gestures which you will be taught and use as you are learning. These gestures actually plant the tones and much else in your body, in your neurology, so to speak. In addition, colors associated with each tone further reinforce the tones and everything we are doing. You will effortlessly learn Chinese. It works well....if you are willing to follow the instructions and work with the two teachers on the CDs. Actually, I would like to think that anyone except those comfortable speaking Chinese would improve greatly by doing the course. I hope this is helpful. Ask more questions if you are not one hundred percent OK with what I have written. I need you to help me to help you. Take care. Harold Goodman 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| volapuk49 Tetraglot Groupie United States Joined 6076 days ago 73 posts - 86 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Yiddish, Modern Hebrew Studies: Esperanto | Message 18 of 70 21 November 2007 at 8:29pm | IP Logged |
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Kugel
Great question! I can tell that you are really getting into this. Yes, xian4zai4 (now) is a single word. It consists of two characters: xian4= present, zai4= at, ie. at present or....now! Cool language, huh? The following is the only time we use the trampoline. The trampoline is used with bu4 and a verb that follows it. If the following verb is tone 4 then bu4 becomes tone2. So we go up with tone 2 and down with the following tone 4. Example: bu4+shi4 becomes bu2 shi4. However, if we have a verb like mang2 or anything other than a tone 4 verb it would be, in this case, bu4 mang2. Don't sweat anything. By the end of the course you will know this stuff cold. Take care. Harold Goodman Edited by volapuk49 on 21 November 2007 at 9:48pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| AlexL Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 6893 days ago 197 posts - 277 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Italian | Message 19 of 70 22 November 2007 at 8:38am | IP Logged |
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Thank you for your response! How fast does the native speaker speak? Is it at a normal pace, or does he slow it down? I ask because if it is too slow, won't it be hard to understand native speakers in real-life situations?
Thanks, Alex 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| volapuk49 Tetraglot Groupie United States Joined 6076 days ago 73 posts - 86 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Yiddish, Modern Hebrew Studies: Esperanto | Message 20 of 70 22 November 2007 at 9:05am | IP Logged |
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Good point Alex.
The native speaker speaks slowly at first. As the course continues she gradually increases her rate. However, the rate never reaches that of a native speaker conversing with peers. Yes, native speakers do speak faster. However, our task is to make sure that you understand every word of Jingtao, the Beijing teacher on the course. If you do, you will gradually get more comfortable with dealing with native speakers. I have observed that to have the teacher speak rapidly doesn't work as well. It just places an additional burden on the student. My personal experience is that native speakers will usually slow down in their speech once they have gotten over their initial shock that you are able to speak any Mandarin beyond the usual ' Ni hao' and other phrases that every tourist seems to know. Chinese don't expect you to learn their language. They realize that for better or worse English is the de facto lingua franca of much of the world, not Chinese. They also appreciate the amount of effort that a foreigner must make to learn their language. So they are usually very supportive in communicating with us. Take care. Harold Goodman Incidentally, I shall be out of town until Sunday. When I return I will check the site and attempt to respond to any questions and comments. Happy Thanksgiving. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| LilleOSC Senior Member United States lille.theoffside.comRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6500 days ago 545 posts - 546 votes 4 sounds Speaks: English* Studies: French, Arabic (Written) | Message 21 of 70 22 November 2007 at 10:05am | IP Logged |
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After completing both courses what level do learners reach? Intermediate? High Beginner?
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| volapuk49 Tetraglot Groupie United States Joined 6076 days ago 73 posts - 86 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Yiddish, Modern Hebrew Studies: Esperanto | Message 22 of 70 24 November 2007 at 7:42pm | IP Logged |
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Lille OSC
Well, since I am not sure how you would define these terms I shall simply tell you what you will be able to do if you follow the direction of the two students on the CDs. You will be able to ask many questions that you will compose on your own and after you have begun to really listen to what the native speaker says (versus freaking out when you don't understand a word or lose the gist of the conversation) you will be able to have an enjoyable conversation. Let me give you an example. Tonight I went to a Sushi/Thai restaurant for supper. I noticed that the entire staff spoke Mandarin to each other. Whenever any of them would come to our table I only spoke Mandarin. I ordered my meal, asked questions about their lives, and played a bit in Mandarin. I held an entire conversation with one man about the business, his ill father, and his frustration with his limited education. I limited myself about 99% of the time to what is taught in this course ( Foundation/Advanced). One woman only spoke Mandarin with me ( about 4-5 separate occasions). We had a really nice exchange. The others understood every word and replied in English. However, their replies showed me that you can go wherever you want with what you will get here. You can always learn more vocabulary. In fact, what I have discovered is that students get really excited just being able to speak and be understood. You will get really creative at using an admittedly limited vocabulary. As you do you will begin to add more and more words. This is a tremendous incentive to learn more ( Vocabulary course time, if you wish). You will know the patterns of the language. With this invaluable skill you can basically do quite a lot. Edited by volapuk49 on 25 November 2007 at 9:36am 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| LilleOSC Senior Member United States lille.theoffside.comRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6500 days ago 545 posts - 546 votes 4 sounds Speaks: English* Studies: French, Arabic (Written) | Message 23 of 70 25 November 2007 at 9:28am | IP Logged |
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Thanks for answering my question volapuk49.
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| volapuk49 Tetraglot Groupie United States Joined 6076 days ago 73 posts - 86 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Yiddish, Modern Hebrew Studies: Esperanto | Message 24 of 70 25 November 2007 at 9:42am | IP Logged |
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You're welcome.
If you want more of the same I have also begun posting on the Michel Thomas thread which is to be found under the Language Programs, Books and Tapes section of the Forum. Take care. Harold 1 person has voted this message useful |
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