Why you can't understand NATIVE speakers & How to improve your listening EFFORTLESSLY

[@言って-x1e]

from my language learning experience, I can say that there're 2 keys to help you quickly improve your listening. First, you must master pronunciation and learn how to move your mouth muscle, your tongue to pronounce each sound correctly. You have to record your sounds and compare them to the original, then try to correct your pronunciation. When you listen to native speakers and cannot completely understand a whole sentence, It helps you to identify which word you already know or do not know. Second, you have to choose appropriate resources that suit your level. It helps you to be able to focus on the content that you're listening to and be able to learn some new vocabulary from them . Otherwise, It will take a long time to have progress. It's not efficient.

[@SkincarewithAliKhalid]

We are our mouth we don't need to think about mouth muscles . We can speak what we can and want

[@JenningsJames]

@@SkincarewithAliKhalidthats bad advice. The reason why there’s even such a thing as “accent” is just certain languages and dialects all have set tongue and mouth positions that hypertrophy certain muscles in the tongue. If you can’t replicate it yourself it’s far harder to remember it when spoken

[@SkincarewithAliKhalid]

@@JenningsJames but why then we need to think about every time about tongue position?

[@JenningsJames]

@@SkincarewithAliKhalid you don’t, once you do it for awhile it becomes second nature to you. However, if you don’t care about clarity and accuracy by all means, you do you.

[@SkincarewithAliKhalid]

We don't need to think about tongue position or mouth muscle it can make us more confused. The way we want to learn just learn , remember speak .

[@KirillMavreshko]

I'm from Russia. Several years ago I began studying English and also discovered the incredible power of listening. You don't need grammar. You don't need to memorize words if you already know some. You don't even need to practice speaking that much if you spend your free time listening. The secret is to find something that you truly love to listen, even if the material is a bit difficult. This will help you stay motivated. As long as you can understand about 60% you are good! If the material is too tough but you like it, re-listen it again tomorrow, and again. At first you can look up unfamiliar words, but then you will start learning words by simply guessing their meanings. Just like a child does. Always have something to listen on your smartphone and use it at every opportunity. I suggest popular audio books, preferably series of 3-10 books, that can hook you up and keep your interest for months. About speaking. Find a really good narrator who's voice and accent you really enjoy. For me that was Stephen Fry. Then try repeating after him or her, mimicking the rhythm, the voice, everything. Record yourself if it helps. I ended up unintentionally memorizing two chapters of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. But it was worth it. My pronunciation has improved dramatically. And whenever I needed to switch my brain into the "English mode" I would just recite the a few paragraphs in my head. This helped me a lot during my IELTS examination later, where I got level C2. You don't need teachers, couches, special courses and grammar books. Listen, listen, listen! Eventually you will be able to correct your own mistakes. You will feel instantly if your speech "doesn't sound right".

[@grimnir2782]

Stephen fry is king and has a lovely accent.

[@clonkex]

If you hadn't said you were Russian I would have assumed you were an educated native English speaker. Your written English is extremely natural and polished.

[@channaichew3013]

LE.I'm going to use yr method as an idea n example to teach 👍 tqvm!

[@arya7893]

Indeed

[@evertspies3345]

I love listening to you speak. The speed is just right and is very clear. After listening to you speak I get renewed energy to carry on studying Mandarin. Wish I had a friend locally that spoke as well as you to help me with my Mandarin.

[@stevehuang-j6l]

I am a Chinese native person , I'm learning english , I'm seeking a person who want learning Chinese , we can teach each other😀

[@shepherdgumbo2684]

INTERESTED....im from Zimbabwe. How can i get in touch with you?

[@nauticoom]

I listen to Chinese every day in one form or another for the past 6 months. I can say that listening has improved to the point where I can hear what they’re saying and pick up new words and phrases. (Taiwan accent is a little harder. I listen to more Mainland Chinese.)

[@katyb2793]

I agree. I haven't listened to Chinese anywhere near as much as I meant to, but the little I did actually did cause a big improvement over time. Even though at first it didn't feel like it was helping at all, and my listening skills are the worst of all. Now I just need to be more consistent 😅

[@roberthewat8921]

非常感谢老师。我最近几天才发现你的内容，我真的很喜欢它。这正是我一直在寻找的材料。我断断续续地学习汉语很多年了，只达到了HSK三级。说实话，我学汉语很放任，总是忙着做很多其他的事情，包括学习很多其他的语言。去年我在马德望孔子学院学习HSK3，但在我最喜欢的老师回国后我退学了，我发现新老师难以理解。不管怎样，我最近决定是时候大幅提高我的中文可理解输入水平了。所以找到你的香奈儿真是一件幸事。

[@GraceMandarinChinese]

我後來英文聽力進步也就是這樣 一直聽一直聽一直聽 聽不懂也沒壓力😂 真的會學得很快樂而且會不知不覺進步哈哈

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

是的！还有就是有一群说英语的朋友一边玩一边听嘻嘻

[@balushang6006]

你们特别棒🎉，我很喜欢你们。你们对我学中文的影响非常大，我以前根据课本的句子交流，但一年之后我才发现不像跟你们每天用的口语一样😂。

[@balushang6006]

你们特别棒，我很喜欢你们。你们对我学中文的影响非常大，我以前根据课本的句子交流，但我才发现不像跟你们每天用的口语一样。

[@pandasan126]

I like how you speak long chinese, it's like calm and enjoy how to hear. Thankyou

[@StratosFair]

I think you totally nailed it, listening and being more immersed in the language is the only way to improve fast and get beyond the intermediate level. Ironically, watching this video without looking at the subtitles was good practice for me too :)

[@ohopin]

do you want to have a language exchange?I can teach you Chinese if you like🥰

[@TheAnimeq]

Completely agree with you! When I started learning there was literally no way to be able to understand living language... After few dramas and following few courses I can understand 50% of this vid effortlessly :)) Input is the key, in a year I will be amazed again :) Thanks!!!

[@invictuse8865]

I KNEW IT!!!! Every time I come to this channel I understand like 85% of what you're saying but then I go to a live room and understand a grand total of 5% of the conversation. And I think it's because of the "普通话“ they just like to skip syllables which throws me off completely. I usually try to understand everything, and so I spend too much time in my mind wondering what they said in one sentence while they're currently speaking, and through that I lose the conversation entirely. I'll try to follow your advice and keep working on my HSK vocab and get out of this lower intermediate level. Thank you and wish me luck!

[@shepherdgumbo2684]

we are in this boat together! im now on hsk2 but my listening skills are just terrible

[@elizabethfreed472]

This pairs perfectly with my own experience! You can do a lot of passively learning by doing your media in the target language. I watch mostly Chinese shows to begin with, but I recently watched a Disney show in the Chinese dub. I think I'll do that from now. Shuoshuo, your channel is the best Mandarin teaching channels out there. It's my favorite. You're practical and helpful and brief/not overwhelming! Thank you! 💜💜

[@ohopin]

do you want to have a language exchange?I can teach you Chinese if you like🥰

[@egcrazycool8793]

Hello shuoshuo 老师. I really wanted to thank you. I've been trying for a while to work on my listening and understanding fast-paced everyday speech. At my level (elementary) I'm much better with reading and slow speech. If it is spoken too fast, even while using words I already know, I wouldn't understand. But I've been going about it exactly as you described it: Intensively concentrated in every word that was being said. stopping the video and looking up every new word I didn't know or understand. I was getting really stressed and frustrated, because it would take a long time to get through a short video with the constant pausing and checking every new word to understand what was being said. Then I came across your video and tried your method. I decided to do as you suggested and just let a conversation play in the background, while I was cooking and cleaning, not stressing about trying to understand each word. I just relaxed and went about doing other things while it played it in the background. And to my surprise I understood a lot of what was being said. I recognize words and was able to deduce meaning by the context, because my mind was more relaxed and not pressured to learn. I found myself even interacting with things being said in the video. Answering questions posed by the speaker and smiling at things that were funny. It blew me away! Your method really worked. Again, thank you for your brilliant suggestion. It might seem crazy to think you will pick up anything but it actually worked! I just wanted to let you know that you are of great help to us learners. Thank you!

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you!

[@jayswing101]

The increasing input thing is so so true!! I was just playing videos in the background while sewing recently and suddenly I realised that even though I wasn't reading the subtitles, I knew what was happening. It also happened a few years ago with Ukrainian! I wasn't even trying to learn the language, but I was surrounded by so much Ukrainian that it just clicked and suddenly I started to understand what people were saying

[@yeroca]

I think that's increasing input, rather than output, right? Output would be speaking and writing.

[@raquelsospedra51298]

Gosh this moment is so magical!!!!

[@кусокводы]

What is your native language? Have a nice day❤

[@ปลาทูเรนเจอร์]

Never agree more , I am Thais who can speak English in somewhat level. Make sufficient dialogues with native speaker from my own learning way. I have to listen to English show or cooking show or varieties , Even though I can not catch a word early. But consistently listening and then the consequences are quite unbelievably impressive after 3 months. I can listen to wide branches of technology related issues, NEWS or even Talk show with no difficulties. My translation level is on par to standard interpreter. By now I can work as Oversea coordinator with competency. Therefore keep listening, can not understand just let it go. Keep listening always as hobbies.

[@random0404]

Basic vocabulary and listening without even understanding... worked for me for many languages.

[@KatnissGinnyMaxTally]

说说谢谢你给我们懒的人很好的方法提高我们的中文听力！

[@thomasmineo]

Great, video ! I would love more videos fully in Chinese, you make them very interesting, so it's also an "effortless" form of comprehensible input 😉.

[@yeroca]

Totally agree! Li Can's Eazy[sic] Mandarin channel has some similar content. You might want to check it out.

[@FitProVR]

Yes! More full Chinese videos!

[@EnnameMori]

I often have Chinese variety shows on in the background as well as podcasts etc. There is a mix of accents, speeds and excitement which gives me wider exposure.

[@tedcrowley6080]

Great video! Thank you. 我没听懂你说的一切, 但我几乎可也。Chinese accents are not a problem, to an English speaker. But all the other problems you mentioned are difficult.

[@MarkusBlue]

Love these videos where you speak Chinese! It helps so much

[@josephclark6133]

This is actually the way I've studied languages in the past, while I was never good at effortful studying, I would put my games into other languages, listen to things in other languages and speak to people from other countries. I even recommend this to my students - I never heard of anyone else doing this before. You made my day!

[@mahamaneatounkara4792]

非常好的中文课

[@simonm8221]

REALLY nice pace. 感谢你分享自己的经验，我得到启发！

[@GeoScorpion]

Thank you! The Fenway of Boston, MA USA is about 50% 普通话 (Mostly college students) and 50% 广东话 (Mostly older Immigrants or ABC or 'Chinatown' residents), so dialects even when everyone is speaking Mandarin (or thinks they are), it's really confusing. I'll try your suggestions! As always, great work!

[@AntiqueSparrow_07]

时间掌握的好！这周发现我口语水平比听力这么高，开始想一想怎么进步。我最近下载了Hello Talk和已经找到了一些播客。即使被动地做，从此我需要每天听到中文。 谢谢说老师！

[@nardleo1597]

Actually it’s “发布的时间很及时！这周我发现我的口语水平比听力好很多，我在想下一步要怎样做才能进步了。我最近下载了hello talk 并且在里面找到了播客”……

[@ted6462]

Great video and a very thoughtful analysis!

[@user-Korpan]

Even if i dont understand it, i just like listening to and watching you speak.

[@newinhtut7103]

You have just revealed all the secret of learning language. I mean any language. I don't know why but I feel that I could understand most of the words you said clearly and yet when I watch a Chinese movie or drama, I feel like I could understand only 50%. Learning Chinese is not new to me as I studied for about 1 year at Beijing back in 1999 or 2000; 22 years ago. but I moved on to Australia then Malaysia. Completely lost touch with Chinese language. I mostly use English or Japanese in my daily life. But now, listening your You Tube makes me feel like learning Chinese seriously again. Thanks Lao su .

[@cvetnojsad]

I'm so satisfied, as I can see now, that I can understand anything you're talking about even dough you're not my usual 中文老师, and therefore this is maybe just the 1st, 2nd (or so) time I'm listening to one Your video. But I'm persuaded that the reason why I can, of course is because of all the work I have been doing for 3-4 years all round by listening videos, by writing their content, by translating, examining and studying it, and repeating it aloud by following the teacher or the other Models. Otherwise, I think I could understand now no one of Your phrases! Later maybe I can adopt the method you're suggesting, as I already have got one solid Language basis, so I can more softly (轻松地) 听着母语人练习! Moreover I think anyone has to find one's own method to learn foreign Languages. I' m no more so young, and so I hardly can change my old method in studying Languages. My method is very hard, not anyone of course can succeesfully go on studying like that, but I'm quite determined, and I can see a few important to me results! 您说中文说得很清楚, 我超喜欢您的发音,尤其是北方的表达.... 谢谢您, 后来有时一定我要听听您的视频! 😊 I beg Your pardon, whether I didn't write so correctly, I'm out of exercise, all the time studying Chinese! (不好意思，我写错的话, 我最近不练习英语，而一直都学习汉语!)

[@thanapornj1392]

I watch Chinese series every day for 3 months and now I can understand some sentences. 😆 and love practicing by repeat after them till I get into a dream 🤣

[@lianneshi5360]

Wow this sounds great

[@carlosortegaalvarez2172]

Hi. For me the most difficult in Chinese is listening. I' have been studying Chinese for 7 years and I don't understand a word. Every day I listening to Chinese radio in a passive way as you said. Acording to experts, it takes 10.000 hours in order to learn a language. Saludos

[@EmilyMarais]

7 years and you can’t understand a word?! Look into finding some ‘comprehensible input’ - that is input which you can partly understand. I think you’ll learn a lot more quickly!

[@syasyaishavingfun]

Hmmm surely you are exaggerating. If you find it hard, you might want to try learning the way you learn English when you were young. By watching cartoons and listening to nursery rhymes. They have really easy vocabs and repeat them constantly so it's easier for you to remember.

[@yanzi8543]

This is a really good and helpful video. Thank you! :) I'm just trying to go back to reach a level which I used to have once but repeating old things is always less interesting than doing something new.

[@ThienThais]

我是越南人。很喜欢学习中文。所以我每天都努力学习中文。希望老师叫我们学好中文。谢谢你❤

[@liamliu9745]

太书面化了，推荐口语一点，反正汉语可以说是没什么语法的一门语言(直接套英语语法)

[@ThienThais]

@@liamliu9745 谢谢🙏

[@sammysam6390]

Thank you for all the awesome videos. It would be great if you could do more videos about native speaking style and listening tests in the future, it's super helpful.

[@paviad]

I wish this video would go on forever!

[@DancingShiva788]

Very nice, I found the video very helpful to listen to. Thank you!

[@karabogaz]

you will never get rid of your natural teacherness! :D

[@광동아재廣東大叔]

本人在華期間不止20年，一個國外人要學好中文，最大的難處就是這一點。課堂上和電視節目裡邊所聽到的通常都是正規標準的國語，但在外面並不如此。尤其是像我這樣常住廣州，深圳的話更不用說了。一天遇到10個，可以聽到10種不同口音。因為每個人在說話時都會多多少少摻雜自己的家鄉話的口音在裡面。有些還更嚴重，一半廣東話或潮州話，一半國語，真讓人頭痛的不得了。我發現標準普通話的流利程度一般跟文化水平以及年齡有關。 後來還是下了決心學會講廣東話和部分潮州話了，也主要是因為老婆是廣州本地的。

[@ggyubari5687]

Thank you, this is a very, very good video

[@derekeano]

I try to listen to Chinese all the time and sometimes shadow/imitate. It helps you find the the natural rhythm and intonation of the language. It’s a fun challenge to move your mouth in quick ways. And you learn how much you really need to enunciate (or not enunciate at all) certain sounds

[@NickvonZ]

EXCELLENT! Thanks always!

[@yeroca]

The relaxed way of talking between native speakers sounds very cool, but wow, I think it will take a lot of accustomization. Are there podcasts that have this kind of speech?

[@EmilyMarais]

This is my question too! I listen to a few podcasts but they’re all geared towards learners and everything is fully pronounced.

[@hanguangzun]

Thank you so much for this video! This is the kind of information I've been looking for that nobody talks about smh

[@yannill1413]

Shuo老师的学习方法对我学英文也很有启发。我看英文电视剧（不带字幕）大概能听懂20-30%。我是中文母语者想学英文，欢迎来找我当language exchange partner互相学习

[@LinhHa-ws1te]

Thanks for your effective suggestion! Besides, can you recommend some Chinese film/series/show that using daily vocabulary for beginners easy to understand and learn? Thanks again 😊

[@chandrasuhardiman]

Good teacher

[@pip6010]

I love your channel :) Thank you for uploading your content. Do you have recommendations for where to listen to podcasts, Chinese language radio, programs 什么的 to improve listening skills?

[@jasonreviews]

I read the subtitles. All chinese always need subtitles our accents are too thick depending on region or if we choose to create our own dialect.

[@FrankSun-p6q]

I am a Chinese native. I’m learning English, I know it is hard to learn a language so I’d like to help people who are learning Chinese. And if it is possible, we can teach each other. 😁

[@Guo.Li.Jing.]

I need more of this kind of video! This is so genius!!!

[@nardleo1597]

Well，i’m an English learner but my mandarin are pretty good·let’s practice？It’s a good opportunity

[@Guo.Li.Jing.]

@@nardleo1597 Sure!

[@nardleo1597]

@@Guo.Li.Jing. so，what do you want to practice oral？listening ？

[@Guo.Li.Jing.]

@@nardleo1597 Both, if possible!

[@nardleo1597]

@@Guo.Li.Jing. sure，so how can we practice ？youtube cant send voice message

[@addisonmock]

Thanks!

[@nendoakuma7451]

这位老师说的蛮有道理

[@tososhin]

Are there any fun/interesting podcasts in Chinese you recommend? I listen to One Call Away, but I haven't found any others I like.

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

I’ll consider making a video :)

[@katyb2793]

I find taiwanese livestreams to listen to since the pronunciation isn't so perfect. Like for instance the news may be. And sometimes there's older and younger people, so I get a mix of different generational words. Listening to taiwanese since I'm planning on going there and the accent is so different (😭).

[@chengabbay671]

I love listening to podcasts in Chinese, so I have a lot of suggestions!! (I tried to sort it out from easiest to most complicated, but it’s not 100% accurate) 1. TeaTime Chinese 2. MaoMi Chinese 3. 5 minute Chinese 4. Chinese podcast with Shenglan 5. Convo Chinese 6. Talk to me in Chinese 7. Dashu mandarin podcast Also, if you find any of them interesting but a little too easy, you can make the speed a little bit faster in settings, I started doing it recently and it’s actually a nice challenge😄

[@tososhin]

@@chengabbay671 thanks for the list!

[@gia7412]

@@chengabbay671 these are amazing! You can also check out: Chinese with Da Peng 听故事说中文 声东击西 Also, 早餐英语 and 早安英语, these two are 5-10 min long and they teach English slang to the Chinese native speakers, but you can use it to learn the Chinese equivalents of these expressions)

[@7seven160]

谢谢啊老师！

[@MeiMei_920]

谢谢你哦。❤

[@Honywood6]

嗨书硕，这个视频太棒了！ 只听你谈论你的生活或想法超过五分钟会很有帮助。 您可以定期写日记，与我们分享您的想法和经验。 除非您要求谷歌翻译或类似工具为您翻译，否则您需要很长时间才能转录所有字幕。 我认为还有其他应用程序可以帮助您。 谢谢你一千次。

[@jordangarcia91]

Watching your vídeos i found out something, if i only listen to you and not looking to subtitles i can understand 50-75% of the information, but i have dificults to anyone what you talking about even i understanding the content, but if i look to subtitles i can explain and understand the content far better.

[@mylesdedman]

Shuo is officially S-tier

[@АсяИгоревна-з9я]

感谢谢你！！！

[@nhmb760]

我喜欢你的心得🥰

[@aoikemono6414]

It's fine. Many Chinese can't understand each other. That's why there are subtitles in everything. 🤣

[@lorraineling6878]

I use language reactor Chrome extension when I watch Chinese tv dramas, movies or KZbin. However I find that I do get frustrated trying to understand each phrase, especially if it’s a crucial plot point. I will try your method of increasing input with passive listening . Xie Xie ni!

[@MediaBelajarKita]

谢谢您

[@umargul5644]

Great 👍

[@swpfranky]

Très bonne présentation !

[@LanguageWithEvan]

老师你的视频都很好用！想问一下，你用什么软件有三种字幕， 汉字，拼音 和英语？ 谢谢你！

[@Putmalk]

我朋友给了我推荐应该看《爱情公寓》，这部剧是中国的sitcom，在KZbin上能看看，然后觉得听力快点进步了。那部剧非常非常的好看

[@nardleo1597]

爱情公寓还可以

[@cafuvietnam]

汉语老师很可爱。

[@akgnag4601]

I love your videos! (what is the meaning or purpose of 去 as in 没有去使用.. at 1:31) PS: any reading material on the topic is also welcome, if it's not simple to explain =]

[@kangdu8561]

恰到好处的恰饭

[@rsainz1296]

I have been really trying to improve my listening skills. I find it frustrating when, as you say, some people speak in a “lazy” way because I can’t distinguish the words or learn the proper grammar. How can I get a solid foundation?? So I concentrate on listening to videos where they actually speak distinctly, pronounce each syllable. Once I feel like I understand that, I will start incorporating the “lazy “ videos. We all learn differently 😊

[@johnbould7544]

Interesting idea, but I can't get my head around how it helps to learn Chinese by listening to something you don't understand? How do the sounds become meaning? If I listened to it every day and even memorized the sentence sounds, without referring to a dictionary to get the translation I wouldn't know the meaning. So it seems you must do both. Agree lots of listening, and as you pointed out, talking, are important. But of course needs to be solidly supported by vocabulary training, no?

[@qaltaqa]

Yeah, I agree, to be honest. Because before I learned basic Mandarin, I was not able to find meaning in any words, even if I heard them repeatedly. Which meant that I had to study the vocabulary beforehand to be able to understand some words here or there and try to make meaning of the full sentence based on the words I do know. So relying strictly on listening to native speakers talk doesn't really help.

[@karolyfreiberger2220]

Dear ShouShou! I just love your videos! ❤ This one was also very interesting! So the clue is when chinese people (especially girls 😀 ) chat with each other they will unconsciously be more relaxed or lazy to say every character clearly... This happens in every language. But between 3:32 and 3:50 it was too much...😀😀😀

[@SarahConnor618]

Well I cant understand them because they speak Cantonese, Hakka, Hokkein or a combination of it mixed together... even if they speak Mandarin it is with a southern accent and southern way of talking... nothing like the text books.

[@Andreas-gh6is]

I think listening comprehension is an "all or nothing affair". You either recognize all the words or you understand virtually nothing of a sentence. There are some particles who can help you discern some structure, but mostly, you have to recognize a word to know what part of a sentence it is and what relationship it has to other parts. This seems worse in Chinese than in some other languages. But in any language, having blanks in a sentence overwhelms our working memory quickly. When reading a sentence, and we don't recognize a word, we can more easily go back and forth to guess the meaning. When listening, this is usually too hard.

[@HeyJD123]

yeah I 100% agree. When I don't recognise a word it throws off my entire understanding of a sentence. So even if I understand 99% of a sentence, it's the 1% that makes it so I understand nothing. If this happens with every sentence, then I don't understand anything in the video or podcast.

[@hiranaz5635]

Well explained,actually in chinese all words feel like same they have too much little difference all words are with xi,shi,qi,chi 😝

[@Antares2]

It's funny how all languages seem to have this. When we speak to foreigners who are learning, we try to speak correctly and slowly, but when we are amongst ourselves, we barely pronounce the words at all. I notice this a lot in my native language, norwegian, as well. If i speak to a person learning norwegian, I might say, for example: "Jeg kan ikke reise til Oslo", which means "I can't travel to Oslo". But if I speak to norwegians I will say "e'kan'kje'fær'te'Oslo" or something like that, making it sound like a single weird word instead of multiple. And most would understand it, no problem. The words are pronounced differently or cut to pieces, or even omitted entirely because they aren't needed in the context. Ofcourse, I also speak with a northern dialect which makes it even more different from "official" norwegian, so that doesn't help. I remember watching a clip of some mormon missionaries (of all things) that had studied norwegian to travel here and they described the culture shock of actually arriving in Norway and not understanding a word. Only listening to correctly spoken language, or only listening to your teacher and study materials will NEVER be enough. I agree that the best way to learn is to immerse yourself as much as possible in the target language: podcasts, music, videos, vlogs, tv shows, even video games. I learned a lot of my early english from video games, for example.

[@AljazFerenc]

The teacher: wo bu zhi dao. Me: 😄 Chinese friend: wbrhaoa. Me: 😳

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

Hahaha

[@lianneshi5360]

The reality 🤣 i also encounter like that he use word with R always and im answering to him in my mind omg why are you talking like that im only at hsk 2 level i cant tell to him that because he dont know what is hsk 2 level hahahahahaha

[@derekeano]

2:06 *rest

[@zaizeleiful]

How did you come across the language activity?

[@jimsmitherman7313]

hi, my name is Lee Sohlden. I am learning, and teach as I learn, 18 languages -19 if counting my native language of english. The way I learn languages, and the way I teach them, may interest you, as doing constant regular passive listening is one of three keys of my system. First thing I have my student do is to begin listening passively to a story in mandarin. This means they play it in the room they are in, but ignore it as they otherwise go about their normal schedule. I tell them to listen to mandarin several hours per day - half to the story they will be learning, half to whatever they can find in mandarin. In other words, what you did for english, but focusing a lot on that first story I will be teaching them. Passive listening takes zero time, as you just ignore the mandarin playing. You can be watching tv, in english mind you, while the mandarin is playing lightly. You can listen to music, again in english, while the mandarin is playing.You can be studying math, eating, etc. all while ignoring mandarin playing in the room you are in. So, passive listening to mandarin is the first habit you get into, and stay in, as long as you are learning mandarin, or wish to retain it well. Next habit to get into is ear tuning exercises. (second habit of three.)This is something you do a lot of initially - but less and less over time. For mandarin, the process is a bit longer, as first you just ear tune to tone marks alone, before ear tuning to the entire word. Now, I invented ear tuning exercises, so you probably never heard of them -it is associated with dictation, in that someone has to do dictation, to create the ear tuning syllables. But my student is not doing dictation; they are using the already created ear tuning syllables to do ear tuning exercises. Now, I give you the ear tuning syllables (after you have been doing the ear tuning exercises to tones alone for a while), which are a representation of mandarin, on a syllable by syllable basis, using english letters. I have you listen to a thirty second long stretch of the story, that matches the ear tuning syllables, over and over, and over -a total of an hour per day to start. Five times you try to follow the ear tuning syllables, with your eyes only. You never talk, ever, during any of my exercises. My exercises are all about listening.Further, note, you have not been taught a single word of mandarin yet, so these syllables are just a series of sounds you are hearing. Next step is to listen five more times, but with your eyes closed this time. Next, 5 more times while trying to follow the ear tuning syllables with your eyes. Next, five more times with eyes closed. Etc, until you have spent a half hour on this. Now, do your passive listening, then before bedtime, do another half hour of ear tuning exercises. Now, all this may sound boring, but it works so fast, the student gets quite excited at the fact the mandarin starts sounding so crisp and clear after just a few days. They still understand nothing, but the mandarin still sounds crisp, clear, and slow - not so challenging. Now, its time for the third habit, regular associations between the mandarin and english, verbally. This can be by watchng a video, where someone is telling you the story, going back and forth between mandarin and english, along with word by word translations, and quick grammer explanations; just enough grammar to understand the one sentence in front of you. Ok, those are the three habits. It is important that you never stop any of them. The ear tuning exercises can go down to 40 minutes total per week, but always be doing hours per day of passive listening, and always be doing something for associations daily. Not going into all the details on the reading end of mandarin -but it ties in to the ear tuning; you do a portion of your ear tuning exercises to the pinyin, some to the symbols. You never are told what a symbol means, or try to write one, until you know what that symbol sounds like, including the tone it carries,

[@Steppinkp]

You can speak to me in Chinese language all day long. I love your voice and expressions. Thanks for sharing and teaching you inspire me. ❤

[@Peng_Peng]

你说这个星期，我没想到就是今天。先评论再看，反正沙发是我的。

[@kokolexx]

Effortlessly 😍

[@saml5830]

老师好, 请你可以解释一下你视频中说的 ”下意识地“ 和 ”不自觉地“ 有什么差别呢 ? 谢谢🙏

[@ShuoshuoChinese]

哇 这是一个好问题。 “下意识地”后面接的动作常常是比较主动的、明显的动作，或者比较短期的动作。比如：事故发生的那一瞬间，我下意识地踩下了刹车。 “不自觉地”后面接的动作更多的是慢慢的、长期的。比如：人们总是不自觉地拖延。

[@hugomuller7349]

这个是一个很有效的提高听力水平的方法。可是，我觉得使用这个方法需要一个比较好的中文能力。不然的话，随便听中文内容可能是浪费时间的。还要记住汉字，所以要多写汉子，我估计没有别的办法。

[@katyb2793]

I thought the same too, but I tried anyway and it actually works! I still don't understand most of the words, but I can hear and recognise their pronunciation clearly and understand different accents better. I just need to listen way more since I haven't been very consistent 😅 Good luck! Any language is so hard!

[@silentwilly2983]

I think the problem is there are too many homophones is Chinese. I got frustrated with spoken lessons as I seemed to make no progress at all, till I started learning characters, then within a year I managed to read a Chinese book (余华,血商编年史), manage to speak and people seem to understand me. A lady I met wrote on wechat to her friends that my Chinese was very clear with only few errors. But 听力 remains a disaster. Dialect and speed certainly make a difference but it's hard to translate sound to meaning. If I watch a movie with sound only I understand maybe 1 or 2% no matter how hard I try, but with Chinese subtitles my understanding is mostly limited by my reading speed and suddenly I do recognize much more of the spoken words.... Chinese in the background seems to do very little for me.

[@lailaaiman5884]

我好想听您妈说的是：“不冷呢。今天好，当天也好。”我反复听了这篇录音三四次才能听出来😅

[@idogtv]

3:50 - "Did you find the last one quite easy to understand?": I have to be honest and say no, I really don't think I could tell it was the same at all :( To my ears, it sounded like "wo bu zhao an." Is it over for me? Am I too far gone to improve my listening skills if even that one wasn't simple enough for me?

[@Malins2000]

verz nice tips :) Hmm.. mission for upcoming days - find some chinese person to train with.. xD

[@SkincarewithAliKhalid]

What do you mean by dictating and imitating ? Well you mean focou? Or try to know the meaning of line ? Well if you do this in listening and do effort too you still can improve your listening too

[@parrotschool3466]

👍 真棒!

[@BohemianCocoNat]

at 2:09 is it to take a test or have a rest?

[@sasino]

6:55 "NOICE" 💀

[@uamdbro]

"EFFORTLESSLY" is a weird word to use when it takes literally thousands of hours of practice to reach advanced level listening comprehension, but alright

[@gnostie]

I don't know what to do. Yes, I'm a lazy person, and all the languages I know already I've acquired through lazy-person methods. But with Mandarin, I have a problem. I only enjoy the sound of Mandarin when I hear it in old poetry. But when I hear ordinary modern speech, I don't really enjoy the sound. Because of this, I listen to more and more old poetry and learn that language better and better, and I haven't yet found a trick to make myself learn ordinary mainland Mandarin. Maybe because my intuition knows that I don't really want to learn it. I just want the poetic language. Sigh...😞

[@alanlee3809]

A Can you do a video go to market shopping

[@sadfish1208]

Formulaic and idiomatic language is the answer! The "book knowledge" doesnt match the reality of spoken (and written) languages which is most idiomatic in nature

[@azamarabear]

Wow😮