- Are you trying to learn Chinese, but are frustrated by boring textbook lessons?
- Do you struggle with pronouncing Chinese words correctly?
- Would you like to speak like and understand native Chinese speakers?
Become a FLC Firecracker member to gain access to the beautifully diagrammed translation and pronunciation guides of the Fun Learning Chinese Podcast episodes. These podcast recordings are posted on the website for convenient listening while using the guide. Episodes include
- real-life stories
- conversations about things that matter
- travel adventures
- prayer and miracles
- Chinese idioms
- recipes
- Christmas carols.
Studying the fun and engaging translation and pronunciation guides will help you absorb the Chinese language in ways that make sense to an adult learner. There are many explanatory notes included.
Join me and my good friend and Chinese tutor, Vesta, to:
- Get simple, but very practical learning tips
- Gain insight from a native speaker (Vesta)
- Find out why characters are optimal for the Chinese language and how they can help you learn
- Be able to ask specific questions on the private forum
- Meet other people who are learning the Chinese language
- Become aware of important regional differences in language usage
- Receive helpful encouragement
- Discuss the Fun Learning Chinese stories with others
Vesta and I have unique experiences that will enhance your learning of Chinese.
My tutor, Vesta Huang, is a native of Taiwan who lived there most of her life, except for going to college in Utah. She has lived in the US for about 15 years now. Her two grown children live in Taiwan, as do many in her extended family.
She taught Chinese professionally full time for many years, but now enjoys a more relaxed pace of life and, of course, teaching me Chinese. We laugh so much!
Vesta is very involved in everything I post and emails that I write. She is the Chinese voice you hear on the podcast almost all of the time, though sometimes for the Chinese Lesson Blurbs, she encourages me to speak the Chinese and makes sure it is correct, even though I have a bit of an English accent.
She currently speaks three languages fluently (Taiwanese, Mandarin Chinese, and English). She understands Japanese (because her parents spoke it due to the 50 year Japanese occupation of Taiwan), and she is teaching herself Korean and loves watching Korean soap operas to help her practice!
She says I am very good at explaining things and says “I think even Chinese people would like your blog to help them understand English!”
I began studying Chinese several years ago when we lived in Taipei for a few months. Growing in my understanding of the Chinese language has opened up the world for me in unexpected ways!
I have nearly 30 years of experience helping my 7 children learn foreign languages, even though I didn’t even know the languages myself!
The language they studied the longest was Spanish and they all became fluent in it, surprising many a Mexican soccer player when some of them were referees for children’s soccer leagues!
We added Chinese to the repertoire when we went to live in Taipei, but only 3 of the 7 of them were still being taught at home.
Yes, we used tutors, but it takes more than just meeting with a tutor an hour a week to learn well. That is why it was important that I coordinated their involvement with the language the rest of the week and made it fun for them!
My youngest daughter went on to take Chinese in college, where she was her teacher’s star pupil, because she already knew so much about the language. (All of the kids signed up for advanced Spanish at the college level)
I am very happy that I decided to learn Chinese myself as well! I think I can inspire you the same way I inspired my children as you and I have fun learning Chinese together.
Studying Chinese will increase your brain power!
- Learning a foreign language helps you understand the way you think and gain insight into the world around you, all while gaining an extremely useful skill.
- Learning through stories and real life situations makes the Chinese language more interesting and memorable.
- Chinese is one of the growing power languages of the world.
- Learning the very picturesque Chinese language will bring beauty to your mind and creative connections to your thoughts.
When you become a FLC Firecracker Member you be on your way to:
- Learning the Chinese language to open up the world to you in new and exciting ways –
- Making your brain stronger –
- Smiling when your friends say you are amazing –
- Impressing your boss with your enviable language skills –
- Understand how a native speaker uses their mouth and lips to make sounds important for clear Chinese pronunciation –
- Be encouraged to continue learning –
- Engaging with the Chinese language in ways that will stimulate your continued learning –
- Increase your comprehension by understanding how language affects thinking –
- Increasing your opportunities for meaningful communication with a large percentage of the world’s population –
- Having fun as you continue to enjoy learning as an adult in useful ways.
- Being able to talk to people in unexpected places.
No one has more fun than we do learning Chinese! And you can be part of that –
If you think you can handle that much fun and excitement while learning Chinese, we invite you to enter the FLC Firecracker world!