Studying Chinese in Yangshuo

Yangshuo is visited by people from around the world and has a very multi-cultural feel. You can study Chinese while visiting some historical relics and scenic attractions, countryside and local people's families. The courses will make your vacation a pleasant, meaningful and unforgettable experience. It is an ideal place to combine study with travel.




The intensive immersion course is well-suited for people who want to study Chinese seriously and devote enough energy to it. It is the best course for those who are really motivated to study Chinese in China. The course focuses on effective communication, not rote learning. Your personality traits and varied needs will be taken into consideration when choosing a textbook and planning the private lessons and teaching schedule with Janie. You can choose to learn only spoken Chinese or learn the written language as well.

The spoken Chinese course focuses only on speaking and listening skills, and improving your conversational abilities quickly.

The spoken and written course focuses on speaking, listening, reading and writing. By learning characters in addition to learning how to speak, you will create a stronger basis for remembering and improving your Chinese vocabulary. You will also gain greater cultural insight from it.

Learning Chinese by studying only the spoken language is faster than trying to remember and recognize the Chinese characters too. But if you have the time, the will and the patience to study the written language, you will eventually be able to better learn the language, and your pace will increase as you start to read and understand more and more characters

Students will use a textbook to structure and guide their learning process. It serves as a tool to be used when studying or reviewing alone. During the lessons, Janie will work on your pronunciation and you practice what you have learned so far in different situations. Outdoor lessons will be organized to help you study Mandarin in Yangshuo's streets, to practice your language skills with locals and give you more confidence.

One course has at most 4 students, but most of the time these are private lessons. Students with a positive learning attitude will benefit immeasurably from this and gain a valuable and unique insight into Chinese culture. It's an educational journey that's stimulating and enriching!

, 62, Australia - 26 October 2012

Patient, competent and experienced teacher

Rating 5/5 - 3-month intensive Chinese course


To whom it may concern:

During our recent stay in Yangshuo, China, I completed approximately 130 hours of one-to-one Chinese lessons with CHEN Janie (陈婧) as my teacher.

Prior to my arrival in China, Janie Chen had communicated with me in English via email. I knew very little Chinese and Janie Chen organised my course according to my needs and wishes. She chose a very useful textbook with various everyday themes to structure my lessons. Janie Chen arrived punctually each morning and was always neatly presented and well-prepared. She has good English and was able to explain even complicated grammatical points in a way that made them easy to understand.

At my request Janie Chen concentrated on developing my listening and speaking skills and within a few weeks I found my vocabulary and comprehension improving. Janie Chen speaks standard Mandarin in a very clear voice and at a pace neither too slow nor too fast but carefully calculated to facilitate understanding. As time went on and I became more familiar with simple Chinese, Janie Chen increased the pace to a level closer to normal conversation. Because she provided me with so much practice using key words and phrases, I found that my vocabulary increased naturally, almost without effort. She also provided me with typewritten notes after each lesson.

Janie Chen is an extremely warm, friendly person and clearly a very enthusiastic teacher. I found my enjoyment and appreciation of this very difficult language and of the Chinese culture rapidly increasing under her tutelage. I thoroughly enjoyed her lessons and found time passing so quickly each day that I was surprised when the lesson was over. Since my departure from China several weeks ago, I have already used my Chinese on several unexpected occasions and have been surprised and delighted with the results. I attribute this to Janie Chen's excellent teaching.

I have no hesitation in commending her services to anyone seeking a patient, competent and experienced teacher of Chinese.

Sincerely,

Rhonda N.

, 64, America - 24 June 2012

Made my stay in Yangshuo very special

Rating 5/5 - 2-week intensive Chinese course


I want to let people know of my fantastic experience learning Mandarin in Yangshuo. In fact, next year I will visit again and stay one month. This village in China is a popular tourist destination for Asians and others world-wide. The karnst mountains are incredible.

I took classes with Janie Qingyu Chen at a school called New Start where she rents a room. She accommodated my disabilty (broken neck complications). My classes were four hours in the morning and the last thirty minutes we walked through the fresh vegetable and fruit markets to buy produce using the phrases I had just learned. It was amazing!

The people in Yangshuo are very friendly and kind. Janie is a very talented teacher who has her certification from Beijing University teaching Mandarin as a second language. She made my stay in Yangshuo very special. Her teaching methods provide modes of retaining the language via immediate use with the locals. I was understood in shops, restaurants, street vendors, and my hotel. Of course, many in Yangshuo speak English, but they enjoyed talking with me in Mandarin. Janie brings Mandarin language to life and you learn the emotions behind the words.

I requested to learn Hanyu Pinyin and not the Chinese characters. I wanted to learn to converse quickly. Janie accomplished that for me!

Beautiful village, talented teacher, kind locals, delicious foods, and many tours and activities to take part in, make Yangshuo, China an ideal vacation or study location!

Feedback from Mike, 56, Australia : "As a quick summary, your classes were EXCELLENT!" Read detailed feedback



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Practicing what you study

Trouble finding language partners to practice what you have learned? Let me help!
(find a partner in HK, or let me organise a city trip to Shenzhen or Guangzhou for immersive supervised practice... )

Study in Hong Kong

Business Mandarin

Adapted to your job's specific needs. Possible even for beginners! Specialise your vocabulary.

Intensive course

Study seriously with a custom-tailored course. Improve your skills day by day even while focusing on the long-term results.

Survival Mandarin

Learn some basic words and expressions or focus on a few precise topics. A few hours or a few days, it's up to you!

Small groups

Though I mostly teach 1-on-1, it is of course possible to study with a small group of students.

1-on-1 facts

Faster

  • Learn fast by having someone focus most on what is most difficult for you
  • Study at work or near your home to save time and money

Better

  • Single teacher up-to-date with your progression at all times
  • Customized materials + book for structuring self-study and practice

Affordable

  • Small groups make private lessons even more affordable
  • No extra costs, unlike institutes

Professional

  • 7 years experience teaching expats
  • Certified by BLCU (best for training language teachers in China!)