<p>Full Disclosure: I haven't tried this for studying Chinese but in English it seems to work quite well. I haven't a Doctorate in Educational Sciences or the like but have been teaching grammar to all ages and many nationalities of close to 10 years.</p>
<p>The method is based on Cuisenaire rods(coloured rods of differing lengths, the smallest being 1cm long(white) and the longest being 10cm(orange) the intermediate rods increasing in length one cm at a time.) While originally these rods were used to explain complicated mathematical concepts visually, Caleb Gattegno brought this concept initially to teaching literacy, and then to learning foreign languages. It came to be part of a teaching system called the Silent Way(since then has largely fallen out of favour.)</p>
<p>OK, done with history. Gattegno used these rods to replace parts of speech(or syllables for sentence stress) and then would drill the students on proper placement. With my students, and a handful of different colour pens, we would construct sentences based on colour. The learning curve was steeper than many educationalists had claimed and I finally found it worked for extremely visual learners, and those with ADD(in my experience two boys 13 and 15 years old).</p>
<p>As an example take the sentence:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我想买几个方形的扣子</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Since we already would have established the parts of speech as having corresponding colours, for the sake of the example.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我 is blue
想买 is green
几个 is orange
方形 is orange
扣子 is red</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So when you see this sentence your mind should automatically associate the part of speech/colour with that position and by imagining other words of the same colour inhabiting those regions reinforces the structure(drills).</p>
<p>Perhaps these structures will help to the explanation:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>他把他的报纸给我</p>
<p>他给我他的报纸</p>
</blockquote>
<p>把has no colour as a participle.(In English, I left the prepositions, articles and conjunctions, etc. black(vid. no special colour)) Because I am familiar with these colours I can easily see the grammatical difference. My tutor can explain the difference semantically.</p>
<p>I don't believe I can add colour here and I haven't found an organization online that is using the same methodology. I am currently training my Chinese tutor in this method because I find I know it very well and it works for me. Also, I have helped many adults pass government exams on grammar and writing using this method. As you said, I feel textbooks hinder rather than help and have slowly been building my own &quot;textbook&quot; according to this and other methods I like for myself.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-26T17:09:08.147Z
2012-08-26T17:09:08.147Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
tao
<p>Your question is a little related to <a href="https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/91/techniques-for-learning-and-retaining-characters">this question</a></p>

<p>In @dusan's answer, it is recommended to try <a href="http://www.memrise.com/home/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Memrise</a>.</p>

<p>I have just started to try it, and have decided to use it for a long time. (all the more so that it also supports Spanish, Latin, German, Russian, and many other languages).</p>

<p>It is sheer visual learning, backed with Space Repetition. Lessons goes like a breeze...</p>

<p>When the tests covered the some words that I already knew... I really like/preferred their combination of visual and mnemonics. I won't give up my lesson books, but this site looks really great, and as long as i'll learn new sinograms with it, I'll continue using it.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.memrise.com/home/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Try it.</a></p>

<p><strong>Edit</strong>: and I have discovered there are dozens of sets of lessons !</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-27T12:26:03.423Z
Actually, memrise does not really teach grammar, only vocabulary, as far as I am aware. Even if it is a good tool, I am not sure it answers the question.
Xavier T.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-25T12:39:47.540Z
2012-08-25T14:55:14.513Z
2017-04-13T12:48:06.457Z
Stephane Rolland
<p>I want to learn Chinese grammar (e.g. sentence structure), however, <strong>I am a highly visual person</strong> and feel a visual learning process would help me the most.</p>

<p>I have already taken a beginner Chinese Mandarin class in school but somehow feel it could've been taught visually and I might have learned better. I feel the way my teacher has gone about it with reading textbooks full of text is hurting me. </p>

<p>Anyway, wondering if <em>similar visual thinkers</em> have found ways they've used to understand the grammar faster and better.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-25T11:50:55.620Z
You're asking about both grammar and characters... That's quite broad. I suggest you only ask about grammar, because [there is already a question about characters](http://chinese.stackexchange.com/q/91/43). Also [another related question](http://chinese.stackexchange.com/q/116/43).
Alenanno
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-25T12:20:19.143Z
I guess your teacher has to notice this fact about you and adjust their teaching programme accordingly. If they don't, it's a bad teacher! :)
Be Brave Be Like Ukraine
CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-08-25T16:38:24.003Z
@Alenanno ah I see. Will update question and ask only about grammar. Thanks. 

there's lots of students and I'm a quiet student. I imagine it's difficult to tailor to everyone's way of learning.
damx
<mandarin><grammar><learning>
What effective methods exist for visual learners to get Chinese grammar?
# What effective methods exist for visual learners to get Chinese grammar?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-08-25)

I want to learn Chinese grammar (e.g. sentence structure), however, **I am a highly visual person** and feel a visual learning process would help me the most.

I have already taken a beginner Chinese Mandarin class in school but somehow feel it could've been taught visually and I might have learned better. I feel the way my teacher has gone about it with reading textbooks full of text is hurting me.

Anyway, wondering if *similar visual thinkers* have found ways they've used to understand the grammar faster and better.

**Tags:** mandarin, grammar, learning

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: You're asking about both grammar and characters... That's quite broad. I suggest you only ask about grammar, because [there is already a question about characters](http://chinese.stackexchange.com/q/91/43). Also [another related question](http://chinese.stackexchange.com/q/116/43).  
> **username_2**: I guess your teacher has to notice this fact about you and adjust their teaching programme accordingly. If they don't, it's a bad teacher! :)  
> **username_0**: @username_1 ah I see. Will update question and ask only about grammar. Thanks.   there's lots of students and I'm a quiet student. I imagine it's difficult to tailor to everyone's way of learning.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2012-08-26. Score: 3

Full Disclosure: I haven't tried this for studying Chinese but in English it seems to work quite well. I haven't a Doctorate in Educational Sciences or the like but have been teaching grammar to all ages and many nationalities of close to 10 years.

The method is based on Cuisenaire rods(coloured rods of differing lengths, the smallest being 1cm long(white) and the longest being 10cm(orange) the intermediate rods increasing in length one cm at a time.) While originally these rods were used to explain complicated mathematical concepts visually, Caleb Gattegno brought this concept initially to teaching literacy, and then to learning foreign languages. It came to be part of a teaching system called the Silent Way(since then has largely fallen out of favour.)

OK, done with history. Gattegno used these rods to replace parts of speech(or syllables for sentence stress) and then would drill the students on proper placement. With my students, and a handful of different colour pens, we would construct sentences based on colour. The learning curve was steeper than many educationalists had claimed and I finally found it worked for extremely visual learners, and those with ADD(in my experience two boys 13 and 15 years old).

As an example take the sentence:

> 我想买几个方形的扣子

Since we already would have established the parts of speech as having corresponding colours, for the sake of the example.

> 我 is blue
> 想买 is green
> 几个 is orange
> 方形 is orange
> 扣子 is red

So when you see this sentence your mind should automatically associate the part of speech/colour with that position and by imagining other words of the same colour inhabiting those regions reinforces the structure(drills).

Perhaps these structures will help to the explanation:

> 他把他的报纸给我
>
> 他给我他的报纸

把has no colour as a participle.(In English, I left the prepositions, articles and conjunctions, etc. black(vid. no special colour)) Because I am familiar with these colours I can easily see the grammatical difference. My tutor can explain the difference semantically.

I don't believe I can add colour here and I haven't found an organization online that is using the same methodology. I am currently training my Chinese tutor in this method because I find I know it very well and it works for me. Also, I have helped many adults pass government exams on grammar and writing using this method. As you said, I feel textbooks hinder rather than help and have slowly been building my own "textbook" according to this and other methods I like for myself.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2012-08-25. Score: 0

Your question is a little related to [this question](https://chinese.stackexchange.com/questions/91/techniques-for-learning-and-retaining-characters)

In @dusan's answer, it is recommended to try [Memrise](http://www.memrise.com/home/).

I have just started to try it, and have decided to use it for a long time. (all the more so that it also supports Spanish, Latin, German, Russian, and many other languages).

It is sheer visual learning, backed with Space Repetition. Lessons goes like a breeze...

When the tests covered the some words that I already knew... I really like/preferred their combination of visual and mnemonics. I won't give up my lesson books, but this site looks really great, and as long as i'll learn new sinograms with it, I'll continue using it.

[Try it.](http://www.memrise.com/home/)

**Edit**: and I have discovered there are dozens of sets of lessons !

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: Actually, memrise does not really teach grammar, only vocabulary, as far as I am aware. Even if it is a good tool, I am not sure it answers the question.  

---

