Hello everyone, and welcome to a new episode of "Everyday Chinese."
I'm Li Ming.
Hello everyone, I'm Wang Yu.
Hi, Li Ming!
Hi, Wang Yu! It's great to be back with everyone again.
Yes, it's wonderful to be with our listeners again.
Li Ming, I feel like it's been such a long time.
Really? Didn't we just see each other last week?
Haha, you're right.
But I'm so eager to learn Chinese with everyone,
that even one week feels very long.
I get it. You really love our podcast and enjoy chatting with everyone.
Of course! I think learning Chinese together with our listeners is a really joyful experience.
By the way, Li Ming, have you been up to anything interesting lately?
Well, I recently met a new friend.
He's from the United States and is working hard at learning Chinese.
He told me about a learning method he uses, and I found it really interesting.
Oh? What method?
Tell me! I want to try it out. My Chinese needs improving, too.
Okay. His method is very simple. It's this: read ten pages of a Chinese book every day.
Ten pages? Every day?
Yes, ten pages every day.
Wow, that sounds a little difficult.
Ten pages, not one, not two. Reading every single day... is that even possible?
Haha, you had the same initial reaction as me. I also thought, "Wow, ten pages, that sounds like a lot."
But today, we can talk about this very topic:
Reading ten pages of Chinese every day. Is it actually a good method, or is it too difficult a goal?
That's great! This is a very interesting topic.
I also want to know what would happen to my Chinese if I really read ten pages a day.
Listeners, what do you all think of this method?
Join us today to chat about it.
Alright, Wang Yu. Let's start with the first question.
You just said that you think reading ten pages of Chinese a day
sounds difficult.
Why do you feel that way?
Well, here's the thing.
First, I'm very busy with work every day.
I go to the office early in the morning and don't get home until late at night.
After I get home, I'm exhausted and just want to rest.
I probably don't want to study or read a book.
I understand. A lot of people have this problem.
After a full day of work, both your body and brain are tired.
Exactly. Second, the number "ten pages" just sounds like a lot.
I imagine if I start reading, the first page might have a lot of characters I don't know.
It would take me a long time just to understand it.
So, wouldn't reading ten pages take an even longer time?
I'd probably feel like it's too hard and then just give up.
Hmm, the two points you made are very important.
One is the issue of time, and the other is the issue of difficulty.
Let's take them one by one. First, time.
How long do you think it would take to read ten pages of Chinese?
I guess... if there are a lot of words I don't know,
maybe an hour? Or even longer?
Well, that depends on what kind of book we're reading.
Let's think, if it's a book for young children,
the kind called a "picture book," with lots of pictures and very few words.
Maybe there's only one or two sentences on a page.
Oh, right! Children's books are very simple.
A page might just say something like: "This is an apple. The apple is red."
Exactly.
If it's a book like that, how long do you think it would take to read ten pages?
If it's a book like that, it would be super fast!
Maybe... five minutes? Or ten minutes?
See? So, the number "ten pages" sounds like a lot,
but the time it takes is closely related to the "book" you're reading.
I see what you mean.
So if I choose a very simple book,
then reading ten pages a day might only take ten or fifteen minutes.
I can definitely find time for that.
Right. For example, you could read a little before bed,
or while you're having coffee in the morning.
Ten minutes isn't long, is it?
Mmm, you're right. Ten minutes a day, I can do that.
Thinking about it this way, the method doesn't seem so hard anymore.
Of course. The key to this method isn't the number "ten pages," but the habit of doing it "every day." 76 00:47:766 --> 00:49:566 The habit of "every day"... 77 00:59:566 --> 00:05:05,366 Yes. When learning a language, the most important thing is to interact with it every day.
Read a little, listen a little, speak a little every day.
Even if it's only ten minutes a day, it's better than studying for two hours once a week.
Why is that? Isn't two hours a week more time?
Because our brains love repetition.
If you show it a little Chinese every day, it will gradually get used to it,
and it will remember these characters and sentences.
If you only look at it once a week, your brain might remember it today,
but forget it tomorrow, and you'll have to start over again next week.
Oh... I get it!
So "every day" is more important than "a lot."
Exactly right.
So, we can think of the goal "read ten pages of Chinese every day"
as "read consistently for a little while every day."
It could be one page, five pages, or ten pages.
The most important thing is that you do it every day.
That's great! Now that you put it that way, I feel like I can actually try this method.
I can start with reading three or five pages a day.
If I feel it's easy and I have enough time, I can increase it to ten pages.
That's an excellent idea.
Starting with a simple goal makes it much easier to stick with it.
Okay, Li Ming. I think this is a great method now.
But, I have a new question.
Go ahead.
My Chinese level isn't very high,
probably around HSK level one or two.
What kind of books should I read?
When I go to the bookstore, many books are too difficult.
They're all filled with characters I don't know.
That's a very good question,
and it's one that many beginners ask.
Choosing the right reading material
is possibly even more important than deciding how many pages to read.
Really? Why?
Think about it. If you choose a book that's too difficult,
just like you said,
you read one page and there are twenty words you don't know.
How would you feel?
I'd feel exhausted and frustrated,
and I'd feel stupid.
Then I'd probably just toss the book aside
and never want to look at it again.
Exactly. If that happens, forget about reading ten pages a day,
you might not even want to finish one page.
Your motivation to learn would be gone.
But what if you choose a book that's simple
and interesting?
If the book is simple,
and I can understand a whole page,
I'd probably think:
"Wow, I'm amazing!
I can read a Chinese book!"
I would be so happy,
and I'd want to keep reading.
That's exactly it.
So choosing the right book
is crucial for helping us stick with it.
So, for beginners like us,
what do you recommend we read?
I have a few suggestions.
The first one, and the best one,
is what I mentioned earlier,
books made for foreigners learning Chinese.
This type of book has a special name.
What's it called?
It's called a "Chinese graded reader."
Chinese... graded... reader?
What does that mean?
Let me explain.
"Graded" means there are different levels.
For example, level one, level two, level three.
A "reader" is something you can read,
like a book or a story.
Oh, I get it.
So "Chinese graded readers" are books for people at different levels of Chinese proficiency.
Exactly right.
For example, there will be level one readers,
and all the words in that book will come from the HSK level one vocabulary list.
The sentence structures are also very simple.
Really? That's perfect!
So if I've finished HSK level one, I'll be able to understand the whole book?
Yes. You might encounter one or two new words,
but you'll know ninety percent of it.
Reading like that, you won't feel tired,
and you'll still be able to learn new things.
Where can I buy these "Chinese graded readers"?
Are they in bookstores?
Yes. You can look in online bookstores.
For example, if you search for "Chinese graded reader" on Taobao or JD.com,
you'll find lots and lots of them.
They have many interesting stories.
That's amazing! That's a really great suggestion.
Besides those, is there anything else we can read?
Of course.
My second suggestion is what I mentioned before,
books for young Chinese children,
especially "picture books" for kids aged three to six.
Picture books. The ones with lots of pictures and few words.
Yes. Because they're for young children,
the words and sentences they use are very practical for daily life,
and very simple.
Like "Mom is home from work,"
or "The kitten is sleeping under the table."
These are all phrases we can use in our daily lives.
And there are pictures.
If I can't read the words,
the pictures can help me understand the meaning.
Very smart!
The illustrations are a great help.
You can look at the pictures and guess the meaning of the characters.
That process itself is a lot of fun.
Mmm, I like that idea.
I can pretend I'm a little Chinese kid, haha.
That's a great mindset to have.
The third suggestion is maybe a little different.
We can read things where we already know the content.
Things where we already know the content? What do you mean?
For example, a movie you really like,
or a story you already know,
like a fairytale such as "Snow White."
You can try to find and read the Chinese version.
Oh! I get it!
Because I already know what the story is about,
even if I come across a word I don't know,
I can probably guess what it means.
See? You're already getting the hang of this method.
These three suggestions—Chinese graded readers,
children's picture books,
and Chinese versions of stories you're familiar with—
are all excellent reading materials for beginners.
Thank you, Li Ming!
Now I know what I should be reading.
I feel really confident now!
Great, Wang Yu. So now we've solved the "why read" and "what to read" problems.
Now, let's talk about the most practical question: "How to read?"
Yes!
This is the most important question.
Okay, so I have a simple Chinese book,
I'm sitting at my desk, and I've opened it to the first page.
What's next? What should I do?
Haha, well, then of course you start reading.
But very quickly you'll encounter a problem,
a problem that all language learners face.
I know! Seeing a character you don't recognize!
Li Ming, seriously, if I see a character I don't know,
what should I do?
My old habit is to
immediately pull out my phone, open a dictionary app, and look up its meaning.
A lot of people do that. Do you think that's a good habit?
I think... not really.
Because looking up one word might take a minute.
If there are five words I don't know on one page,
I'd have to look things up five times, stopping five times.
My reading flow would be constantly interrupted,
and it feels really jarring.
By the time I finish the page, I might have forgotten what the story was about.
You're absolutely right. That's exactly the problem.
Frequently checking a dictionary will break your reading rhythm
and ruin your overall understanding of the story.
So what should I do?
The unknown word is right there,
I can't just pretend I don't see it.
I'd feel really uncomfortable and want to know what it means.
I completely understand that feeling.
When we see something we don't understand,
we want to figure it out immediately.
That's very normal.
But, when you're reading,
I suggest you try a new method.
Tell me, what is it?
The method is: don't stop, keep reading.
Don't stop? But I don't know that word.
Right. Even if you don't know it, don't look it up yet.
You can underline the word
and then continue reading.
Try to finish the whole sentence, or the whole paragraph,
or even the entire page.
And then?
Then, based on the other information you've read,
meaning the words and sentences you do know, try to guess
what this unknown word might mean.
Guess? Can I guess correctly?
A lot of the time, you can.
Let's take an example.
Say you read a sentence:
"It's very cold today, and it's ______ outside.
You should bring an umbrella when you go out."
The blank is a word you don't know.
What do you guess it is?
Hmm... it's cold, and you need an umbrella...
Then the blank is probably "raining" or "snowing."
See! You didn't even need a dictionary to guess its meaning.
This is called using context to understand new words.
It's a very, very important reading skill.
Wow, that makes sense!
So my goal isn't to know every single word,
but to understand the meaning of the whole story.
Exactly!
Your goal is comprehension, not translation.
The first time you read, just read quickly,
and try to understand the general gist of the story.
If you see a word you don't know, just underline it and move on.
Okay. So I'll read it quickly once and try to guess.
What about after I'm done? What do I do with the underlined words?
After you've read it once, you can go back and look.
At this point, you can choose a few words you think are most important,
or words you've seen many times,
and look up their meanings in a dictionary.
Oh, so I don't look up all the unknown words, just a few important ones.
Right. For example, if there are ten new words on a page,
you might only need to look up two or three.
This way, you won't feel so overwhelmed,
and you'll have learned the most crucial new information.
I see. This method sounds great.
First pass: read quickly, understand the gist.
Second pass: learn the key new words.
Reading this way feels more like an enjoyable activity,
rather than a painful task.
Yes. Learning a language
is like eating.
Eating? What do you mean by that?
Well, you eat to keep your body healthy and energized.
You can't say, "I'm going to eat a ton of food today,
and then not eat for a week." That's bad for your body, right?
Right, of course. We should eat every day,
breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Learning a language is the same. Reading is like feeding your "Chinese brain."
It's best to feed it a little bit every day,
and let it slowly absorb the nutrients.
Reading a few pages a day
is like giving your Chinese brain some healthy food.
Over time, your Chinese will become very "healthy" and very "strong."
Wow, that's a great analogy!
Learning is like eating; you need to be consistent,
but you can't eat too much at once. I love that!
Starting today, I'm going to feed my Chinese brain every day!
Haha, exactly.
So, don't be afraid of new words.
Think of them as a new flavor in your food that you don't recognize.
Try a little taste first, then decide if you want to study it more closely.
Okay, Li Ming.
We've talked so much, and now I really feel that "reading ten pages of Chinese a day" is a good method that I can do and am willing to try.
That's wonderful to hear.
I'm thinking now, what if... what if I really do it? I stick with it for a month, or three months, or even a year. My Chinese... how good would it be?
That's a question that can give us a lot of motivation. Let's imagine. The benefits are huge.
The most obvious first benefit is that the number of Chinese characters you know will increase dramatically.
That's for sure. If you read every day, even words you don't know will start to look familiar.
Right. In the beginning, you might have ten new words on a page. After a month, maybe only five.
After half a year, maybe only one or two.
Eventually, you'll pick up a book and realize you know every word on the page. That feeling...
how do you think that would feel?
That feeling... I would feel so accomplished! I would be incredibly happy and have such a sense of achievement!
It would be like climbing a very tall mountain and finally reaching the summit!
That's beautifully put! That sense of achievement will give you more confidence, making you willing to challenge harder books and learn more things.
Mhm! Besides knowing more words, are there other benefits?
Of course. The second benefit is that your reading speed will increase.
Reading speed?
Yes. In the beginning, it might take you five minutes to read a page because you have to look at each character one by one.
But if you practice every day, your eyes and brain will get used to Chinese sentence structures.
Slowly, you might be able to read a page in just two or three minutes, and understand it completely.
Really? Just like when we read our native language, we can just glance at a sentence and know what it means.
Yes. You can reach that level.
When your reading speed increases, you can read more content in the same amount of time,
and learn more information.
That's so appealing! Is there more? Is there more?
Haha, take it easy, there's more.
The third, and what I think is the most important benefit, is that you'll start to develop a "Chinese mindset."
A "Chinese mindset"? That sounds a bit abstract. What does it mean?
It means you'll start to get used to thinking and expressing yourself in the way Chinese is structured.
Many learners, when they speak Chinese, have a habit of first thinking in their native language and then translating it into Chinese.
Yes, that's exactly what I do! That's why I speak so slowly, and sometimes what I say sounds strange.
But if you read extensively, you will see many, many authentic Chinese sentences.
For example, how Chinese people say hello, how they express gratitude, how they describe things.
The more you see these patterns, the more they will enter your brain.
And then?
And then, when you want to express an idea, a Chinese sentence will pop into your head directly, instead of your native language.
You won't need to translate anymore. Your Chinese will become very natural, very authentic.
Wow! That's exactly what I want! I dream of speaking authentic Chinese!
I never thought that just reading a book every day could be so helpful.
Yes. Reading is input. Without enough input, you can't have good output.
If you want to speak well and write well, you must first read a lot and listen a lot.
That American friend of mine, he stuck with reading ten pages of Chinese every day for a year.
How is he now?
He can now easily read Chinese news articles online, and even some simple web novels.
When he chats with us, the words and phrases he uses are very authentic.
That's so impressive! He's my role model! I want to be like him.
I'm so motivated now! I'm going to go online tonight and buy a few Chinese graded readers!
Haha, excellent. I hope to hear your good news in a month.
Alright, listeners, today we talked about the topic of "reading ten pages of Chinese every day,"
and I've really learned a lot.
Yes, time flies.
Before we wrap up, let's briefly summarize the key points we discussed today, okay?
Sure! You do the summary, Li Ming. You're better at explaining things clearly.
Alright. First, we discussed the goal of "reading ten pages of Chinese a day."
The focus isn't on "ten pages," but on "every day." Consistency is the most important thing.
We can start with a simpler goal, like three or five pages a day.
Right, the habit is what matters most.
Second, we discussed what to read.
For beginners, the best options are "Chinese graded readers,"
Chinese "children's picture books," or Chinese versions of stories you're already familiar with.
Choosing the right material will help you stay motivated and stick with it.
Mmm, definitely choose something simple that you enjoy.
Third, we talked about how to read.
When you see a new word, don't immediately stop to look it up in a dictionary.
Try to keep reading and use the context to guess its meaning.
After you've read it once, then you can choose a few important words to study.
Right! Guess! Don't be afraid!
Finally, we talked about the benefits of consistent reading.
It not only helps you learn more characters and improve your reading speed,
but most importantly, it helps you develop a "Chinese mindset" and make your Chinese more authentic.
That was a perfect summary! Very comprehensive.
I learned some very useful words today,
like "graded reader," "picture book," "to persist," "habit," and "to guess." I think these words will be very helpful for my future studies.
We hope they're helpful for everyone, too.
Okay, dear listeners, now it's your turn.
We'd like to ask you a question: Do you like reading Chinese books?
Do you spend time reading Chinese every day?
Or, do you have your own special, effective method for learning Chinese?
We would love to hear your story.
Yes, please leave us a comment in the comments section,
and share your thoughts and experiences with us.
We're really looking forward to interacting with you.
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