Pimsleur Chinese (Mandarin) Levels 1-2

Pimsleur includes 60, 30-minute audio lessons, reading instruction, and culture notes as streaming or audio download, accessible using the Pimsleur Mobile App, or on your computer. In addition, audio lessons can be played using the Pimsleur Skill for Amazon® Echo® devices. The course also includes an integrated Reading Booklet for each level.

The Easiest and Fastest Way to Learn Mandarin Chinese
Did you know that Mandarin Chinese is the world’s most widely spoken language with over one billion native speakers? Once you get the basics down, you’ll be surprised how quickly you’re able to begin speaking it. And even knowing a little bit of the language will make travel to China far easier, and much more fun. Whether your goal is to travel, communicate with friends or colleagues, reconnect with family, or just understand more of what’s going on in the world around you, learning to speak Mandarin Chinese will expand your horizons and immeasurably enrich your life.

The best part is that it doesn’t have to be difficult or take years to master. Thirty minutes a day is all it takes, and we get you speaking right from the first day. Pimsleur courses use a scientifically proven method that puts you in control of your learning. If you’ve tried other language learning methods but found they simply didn’t stick, then you owe it to yourself to give Pimsleur a try.

Pimsleur Makes Learning Easy
• 30-minute core lessons you can take anywhere with the Pimsleur app, or do at home with Amazon® Alexa®, or on your computer.
• Sync progress across devices
• Stream lessons or download to use in offline mode
• Share course with up to 3 additional household members
• Car mode for easy driving and learning
• Compatible with Amazon® Echo® devices for doing lessons at home

Why Pimsleur?
• Quick + Easy – Only 30 minutes a day.
• Portable + Flexible – Core lessons can be done anytime, anywhere, and easily fit into your busy life.
• Proven Method – Works when other methods fail.
• Self-Paced – Go fast or go slow – it’s up to you.
• Based in Science – Developed using proven research on memory and learning.
• Cost-effective – Less expensive than classes or immersion, and features all native speakers.
• Genius – Triggers your brain’s natural aptitude to learn.
• Works for everyone – Recommended for ages 13 and above.

What’s Included?
• 60, 30-minute audio lessons
• Two hours and 15 minutes of pinyin reading lessons
• A digital Reading Booklet for each level
• Two hours of recorded Culture Notes
• A digital Culture Notes Booklet
• In total, over 34 hours of audio, all featuring native speakers
• Access to lessons through Pimsleur mobile and desktop apps or Amazon® Echo® devices

What You’ll Learn
This Mandarin Chinese program includes all of Pimsleur’s Mandarin Chinese Levels 1 & 2. With this program you start from zero, first learning survival phrases and vocabulary, and eventually progressing to a mid-intermediate level of speaking and understanding Mandarin Chinese.

Every lesson contains an introductory conversation, and isolated vocabulary and structures, as well as full practice for all vocabulary introduced. Emphasis is on pronunciation and comprehension. At the completion of this course, you’ll be able to speak comfortably about things that happened in the past and make plans for the future; you’ll speak confidently using your wide-ranging vocabulary, and experience the Mandarin Chinese language and culture with a deepening insight.

You’ll also learn to read Hanyu Pinyin (pinyin for short) the official phonetic system for transcribing pronunciations of Chinese characters into a Latin alphabet. Reading lessons for each level are included and will teach you to sound out written words with correct pronunciation and accent.

Learning the sound of each letter alone and in culturally distinct combinations allows your brain to process what you’re hearing in the audio lessons from a new and different perspective. It’s a powerful combination that makes Pimsleur different from every other method on the market.

There are recorded Culture Notes after the Reading Lessons for each level. These notes are designed to provide you with some insight into the Chinese language and culture. Culture Notes booklets are also included.

The Pimsleur Method
We make no secret of what makes this powerful method work so well. Paul Pimsleur spent his career researching and perfecting the precise elements anyone can use to learn a language quickly and easily. Here are a few of his “secrets”:

The Principle of Anticipation
In the nanosecond between a cue and your response, your brain has to work to come up with the right word. Having to do this boosts retention, and cements the word in your mind.

Core Vocabulary
Words, phrases, and sentences are selected for their usefulness in everyday conversation. We don’t overwhelm you with too much, but steadily increase your ability with every lesson.

Graduated Interval Recall
Reminders of new words and structures come up at the exact interval for maximum retention and storage into your long-term memory.

Organic Learning
You work on multiple aspects of the language simultaneously. We integrate grammar, vocabulary, rhythm, melody, and intonation into every lesson, which allows you to experience the language as a living, expressive form of human culture.

Learning in Context
Research has shown that learning new words in context dramatically accelerates your ability to remember. Every scene in every Pimsleur lesson is set inside a conversation between two people. There are no drills, and no memorization necessary for success.

Active Participation
The Pimsleur Method + active learner participation = success. This method works with every language and every learner who follows it. You gain the power to recall and use what you know, and to add new words easily, exactly as you do in English.

The Mandarin Chinese Language
Over one billion people speak Chinese. The two most common dialects are Mandarin and Cantonese. They are not mutually intelligible. Mandarin is the official language in Mainland China, Taiwan, and Singapore. The Mandarin dialect is used in most Chinese schools, and in most TV programs, movies, and radio stations throughout the country, even in Guangzhou (formerly Canton), where people speak Cantonese in their daily lives. Mandarin is one of the six official languages of the United Nations.

Tech Talk
• Audio lessons can be streamed or downloaded for offline use in the Pimsleur App for iPhone®, iPad®, and most Android™ devices.
• Audio lessons can also be played on Amazon® Echo® devices using the Alexa® Pimsleur Skill.
• A desktop version is available for Mac® or Windows® computers.
• All purchased courses are backed up in your Pimsleur.com cloud-based digital library account.
• Pimsleur is designed for use by one registered user, plus up to three household members, and may be installed on unlimited devices for your personal use.