BLS Adult Autumn Term Language Courses 2019
Complete Beginner’s Course: [Tutor TBC]
Tuesday, 6.20-7.50pm, 10 x 90 min. lessons [on 08, 15, 22, 29 October & 05, 12, 19, 26 November & 03, 10 December] £145 Course Programme
There are 22 provinces in China. Each province has its own customs, culture, food, language and landscape. The 1.3 billion population of China comprises 56 ethnic groups and there are many regional languages spoken across the country, amongst which Mandarin Chinese is considered the official Chinese language in China.
Despite the beyond-imagination-looking written characters, Chinese is not as unapproachable as one imagines. Its word order and grammar are of the simplest amongst many languages. For example, conjugation (the inflection of verbs according to the number of subjects and tenses) and declension (the inflection of nouns, adjectives and pronouns) do not exist in Chinese. In order to learn the language efficiently, students are encouraged to focus on expanding their vocabulary and mastering the tones correctly (Mandarin Chinese is a tonal language). With the sufficient knowledge of vocabulary and simple grammar, you will soon be able to communicate with Chinese people on many topics!
As for the written characters, there are two types: traditional and simplified characters. Students at Bristol Language School will learn simplified characters. They are easier to learn and, most importantly, are more widely used and accepted than traditional ones in China!
written by May Kay Yau