| If you're able to think in Chinese and stop translating words in your head, you can answer questions faster and converse more fluently! Fortunately, thinking in Chinese is a skill that you can develop. And it doesn't matter what your current Mandarin level is...  Technique 1: Narrating A great way to start thinking in Chinese, is to narrate your daily activities in your head. When you wake up in the morning, think '我起床了wǒ qǐchuáng le' (I got up). When you're eating breakfast, think '我在吃早餐wǒ zài chī zǎocān' (I'm eating breakfast). You can practice narrating what you do or see anywhere. So, what are YOU doing right now? Narrating helps reinforce words and sentence patterns you already know. It also makes you aware of what you don’t know, so you can learn what you need. Technique 2: Naming A simple version of narrating is to just name what you see (or hear, smell, taste, feel…) with single words. This could be nouns (things), adjectives (words that describe nouns) or verbs (actions). You’re going to look around you and describe what you see. It can be single words or longer phrases. The more often you do this type of practice, the easier it gets! And when you notice that there’s an important word you don’t know, that’s a great opportunity to look it up and learn it! More Tips: Before we wrap up the lesson, here are 3 simple tips to help you stop translating in your head. Tip #1: When you learn a new word or phrase, don't just memorize the translation. Instead, associate it with an image, or a situation. For example, when you learn the word "猫 māo" (cat), don't think of the English word "cat". Instead, picture a cat in your mind. Tip #2: The second tip is to immerse yourself in the language. Listen to Chinese music, watch Chinese TV shows, read Chinese books. The more you expose yourself to the language, the more natural it will feel. Tip #3 : Finally, the more you use Chinese, the easier it will be to think in Chinese. So, start speaking as much as you can, even if it's just to yourself. |
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