Mandarin Chinese

Tones and Pinyin

Produce all four Mandarin tones accurately enough to be understood by a native speaker in a live greeting exchange.

Core Survival Phrases

Handle a basic face-to-face social exchange — greeting, asking someone's name, and saying goodbye — entirely in Mandarin.

Characters and Radicals

Read and write 20 high-frequency characters by recognising their radical components and stroke order.

Nouns and Classifiers

Name 30 everyday objects and people using the correct measure word so that a native speaker understands the quantity without ambiguity.

Sentence Architecture (SVO)

Build grammatically correct Subject-Verb-Object sentences and understand why time and place words go before the verb in Mandarin.

Adjectives Without Shì

Describe people and objects using adjectival predicates correctly, never using 是 (shì) with adjectives.

Possessives and 的

Use the attributive 的 (de) particle correctly to show possession and modify nouns in everyday speech.

Telling Time and Dates

State and ask for the time, day of the week, and date accurately enough to make or confirm a simple appointment.

Wants, Needs, and Requests

Express desires and make simple requests in a shop or café using 想, 要, and 请 so a transaction can be completed without switching to another language.

Aspect Markers and 'De' Particles

Signal whether an action is completed, ongoing, or experienced using the three aspect markers and distinguish the three 'de' particles in natural sentences.

Places and Directions

Ask for and give basic directions to a location in a city using prepositions and the verb-of-motion pattern.

Active Listening and Mimicry

Reproduce a short native-speaker audio clip at near-identical intonation by using the pause-transcribe-record-compare method.

Daily Routines Talk

Describe your daily routine using time expressions, common verbs, and frequency adverbs in full STPVO sentences.

Eating Out

Order a complete meal, ask about the menu, and pay the bill at a restaurant using natural Mandarin.

Shopping and Bargaining

Browse a shop, ask about items and prices, and complete a purchase or negotiate politely in Mandarin.

Getting Around the City

Ask for and give directions, use public transport, and navigate urban spaces entirely in Mandarin.

Talking About People

Describe people's appearance, personality, and relationship to you using accurate adjective and modifier structures.

Home and Living

Describe where you live, name rooms and furniture, and discuss housing preferences in Mandarin.

Work and Study

Talk about your job or studies, describe tasks and schedules, and make simple workplace or classroom requests.

Health and Body

Describe symptoms and body parts, visit a pharmacy, and make a simple doctor's appointment in Mandarin.

Hobbies and Free Time

Talk about hobbies, suggest activities, and respond to invitations using appropriate verb and modal structures.

Weather and Seasons

Talk about current weather, seasonal changes, and weather preferences in natural conversational Mandarin.

Past Events and Experiences

Narrate a past event or trip using completion and experience aspect markers in coherent multi-sentence accounts.

Future Plans and Intentions

Talk about upcoming plans, make predictions, and express intentions and obligations in Mandarin.

Character Expansion

Read and write 40 additional high-frequency characters by linking them to radicals and visual memory strategies.

Fluency Consolidation

Combine A2 grammar, vocabulary, and character knowledge to handle unprepared real-life conversations with basic fluency.

Opinions and Discussion

Express and defend personal opinions on familiar topics in conversation.

Complex Time Expressions

Describe actions in precise time relationships including duration, sequence, and frequency at B1 level.

Result and Potential Complements

Describe outcomes and capabilities using result and potential complements in real conversations.

Talking About Quantity

Use precise quantity expressions including approximation, fractions, and comparison amounts in daily speech.

Hypotheticals and Conditions

Construct conditional and hypothetical sentences to discuss possibilities and consequences.

Formal and Polite Register

Switch between casual and polite Mandarin registers to suit formal social and professional contexts.

Describing Processes and Instructions

Give and follow step-by-step instructions and procedural descriptions in Mandarin.

Emotions and Reactions

Describe emotional states and react to news or events using a broad emotion vocabulary.

Extended Character Reading

Read and interpret short authentic Chinese texts including signs, menus, and social media captions.

Spoken Fluency Strategies

Maintain conversation flow using repair, filler, and hesitation strategies in real spoken Mandarin.

Making Comparisons

Make nuanced comparisons between people, places, and things using a range of comparison structures.

B1 Consolidation Sprint

Integrate all B1 grammar and vocabulary in extended, realistic conversations across multiple topics.

Abstract Topic Discourse

Discuss abstract social and cultural topics in Mandarin using nuanced vocabulary and cohesive discourse markers.

News and Media Language

Comprehend and discuss Mandarin-language news articles and broadcasts on current events.

Professional Communication

Handle professional Mandarin interactions including meetings, emails, and workplace negotiations with appropriate register.

Academic and Formal Writing

Produce a structured formal written text in Mandarin expressing a coherent argument with evidence and conclusion.

Extended Character Mastery

Read and write an expanded set of high-frequency characters at B2 level, covering abstract and formal vocabulary domains.

Complex Grammar Patterns

Produce grammatically complex sentences using advanced B2 structures including pivotal constructions, serial verb phrases, and extended modification.

Idiomatic and Figurative Language

Understand and use common Chinese idioms (成语) and figurative expressions in conversation and reading.

Spoken Fluency at B2

Sustain extended spontaneous spoken interaction on familiar and abstract topics with minimal hesitation and near-native prosody.

Cultural and Contextual Nuance

Navigate culturally specific communication situations in Mandarin with awareness of pragmatic norms and social context.

B2 Consolidation Sprint

Integrate all B2 skills across listening, speaking, reading, and writing in authentic multi-modal tasks at near-independent proficiency.

Spoken Precision

Deliver extended spoken monologues on abstract or professional topics with precise vocabulary and natural prosody.

Abstract Vocabulary Expansion

Use high-frequency abstract and academic vocabulary to discuss societal, cultural, and intellectual topics fluently.

C1 Grammar Refinements

Deploy advanced grammatical structures including 是…的 focus, concessive constructions, and double negatives in natural connected speech.

Persuasion and Debate

Argue a position on a complex topic in Mandarin using evidence, counterargument, and formal rhetorical devices.

Nuanced Reading Strategies

Extract implicit meaning, authorial stance, and rhetorical structure from C1-level texts including editorials, essays, and literary prose.

C1 Writing Craft

Produce coherent, well-structured written Chinese at C1 level including analytical essays, opinion pieces, and reflective writing.

Spoken Interaction at C1

Sustain and navigate complex spoken interactions including negotiations, sensitive topics, and multi-party discussions in Mandarin.

Listening at C1 Depth

Extract precise information, implied meaning, and speaker attitude from fast, unscripted C1-level spoken Chinese.

Professional Chinese in Depth

Communicate with full professional effectiveness in Mandarin across meetings, reports, presentations, and workplace relationships.

Character and Hanzi

Recognise and write 300 additional high-frequency characters and decode complex compound words and rare components.

C1 Chengyu and Idioms

Use at least 10 additional chengyu and figurative expressions accurately in spoken and written Chinese for nuance and cultural fluency.

C1 Immersion and Self-Direction

Build and sustain a self-directed C1 Mandarin immersion routine that accelerates vocabulary, character, and spoken accuracy simultaneously.

C2 Spoken Mastery

Sustain a fully native-paced, spontaneous spoken exchange on any topic with no communication breakdowns.

C2 Vocabulary Depth

Deploy low-frequency, domain-specific, and stylistically marked vocabulary with native-like precision across spoken and written registers.

C2 Grammar Subtleties

Control rare and stylistically marked grammatical constructions with the same confidence as common patterns.

C2 Listening Mastery

Extract full meaning, speaker stance, and implied subtext from any native audio without needing repetition.

C2 Reading Precision

Read any written Mandarin — literary, academic, or bureaucratic — extracting precise meaning, authorial stance, and structural logic on a single pass.

C2 Writing Craft

Produce polished, stylistically appropriate extended writing across literary, persuasive, academic, and professional genres without revision support.

C2 Character Mastery

Read and write any standard Mandarin character encountered in educated native contexts, and decode unfamiliar characters through component analysis.

C2 Chengyu and Classical Allusions

Use and interpret chengyu and classical literary allusions with the naturalness and precision of an educated native speaker.

C2 Cultural Intelligence

Navigate the cultural, political, and social subtexts of Mandarin communication with the sensitivity and accuracy of an educated native interlocutor.

C2 Academic and Professional Pinnacle

Perform at native professional standard in academic presentations, high-stakes negotiations, and formal written submissions.

C2 Immersion and Self-Direction

Design and sustain a fully self-directed Mandarin immersion practice that maintains and advances native-adjacent proficiency indefinitely.