I have been actively working to increase my vocabulary. One of the methods that I have decided to use to accomplish my goal is creating a list of words that I do not know as soon as I come across them. Just yesterday night, I finished reading The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. The book is an easy ready but I did come across some terms and words, that I was not familiar with so I typed them up in a spreadsheet. Below is a list of 51 words that I have extracted from The Lost Symbol in order to add them to my mental data bank of words.

Langague Lyon

January: yi(1) yue(4)

February: er(4) yue(4)

March: san(1) yue(4)

April: si(4) yue(4)

May: wu(3) yue(4)

June: liu(4) yue(4)

July: qi(1) yue(4)

August: ba(1) yue(4)

September: jiu(3) yue(4)

October: shi(2) yue(2)

November: yue(4) shi(2) yi(1)

December: yue(4) shi(2) er(4)

Month: yue(4)

Year: nian(1)

Zero: ling(2)

One: yi(1)

Two: er(4)

Three: san(1)

Four: si(4)

Five: wu(3)

Six: liu(4)

Seven: qi(1)

Eight: ba(1)

Nine: jiu(3)

Ten: shi(2)

Eleven: shi(2) yi(1)

Twelve: shi(2) er(4)

Thirteen: shi(2) san(1)

Fourteen: shi(2) si(4)

Fifteen: shi(2) wu(3)

Sixteen: shi(2) liu(4)

Seventeen: shí(2) qi(1)

Eighteen: shí(2) ba(1)

Nineteen: shí(2) jiu(3)

Twenty: er(4) shi(2)

Twenty one: er(4) shi(2) yi(1)

Thirty: san(1) shi(2)

Thirty one: san(1) shi2) yi(1)

Forty: si(4) shi(2)

Forty one: si(4) shi(3) yi(1)

Fifty: wu(3) shi(2)

Fifty one: wu(3) shi(2) yi(1)

Sixty: liu(4) shi(2)

Sixty one: liu(4) shi(2) yi(1)

Seventy: qi(1) shi(2)

Seventy one: qi(1) shi(2) yi(1)

Eighty: ba(1) shi(2)

Eighty one: ba(1) shi(2) yi(1)

Ninety: jiu(3) shi(2)

Ninety one: jiu(3) shi(2) yi(1)

One hundred: yi(4) bai(3)

One thousand: yi(4) qian(1)

Days of the Week

Sunday: xing(1) qi(1) tian(1)

Monday: xing(1) qi(1) yi(1)

Tuesday: xing(1) qi(1) er(4)

Wednesday: xing(1) qi(1) san(1)

Thursday: xing(1) qi(1) si(4)

Friday: xing(1) qi(1) wu(3)

Saturday: xing(1) qi(1) liu(4)

Day tian(1)

Week: xing(1) qi(1)

Weekend: zhou(1) mo(4)

Today: jin(1) tian(1)

Tomorrow: ming(2) tian(1)

Birthday: sheng(1) ri(4)

The Chinese Zodiac (sheng xiao in Chinese) is depicted by twelve animals, which are representative of a 12year calendar cycle. This cycle is common throughout East Asian but some of the animals may differ depending on which country is using it. Regardless of the country, each animal in the Chinese Zodiac are characterized by different character traits. The traits of the animals are listed below

The Rat is characterized by being forthright, tenacious, systematic, meticulous, charismatic, hardworking, industrious, charming, eloquent, sociable, shrewd, and awesome. Additionally, it can be manipulative, vindictive, mendacious, venal, selfish, obstinate, critical, over-ambitious, ruthless, intolerant, scheming.

The Ox is characterized by being dependable, calm, methodical, a born leader, patient, hardworking, ambitious, conventional, steady, modest, logical, resolute, and tenacious. Additionally, it can be stubborn, narrow-minded, materialistic, rigid, and demanding

The Tiger is characterized by being unpredictable, rebellious, colorful, powerful, passionate, daring, impulsive, vigorous, stimulating, sincere, affectionate, a humanitarian, and generous. Additionally, it can be restless, reckless, impatient, quick-tempered, obstinate, selfish, aggressive, and unpredictable.

The Rabbit is characterized by being gracious, a good friend, kind, sensitive, soft-spoken, amiable, elegant, reserved, cautious, artistic, thorough, tender, self-assured, astute, compassionate, and flexible. Additionally, it can be moody, detached, superficial, self-indulgent, and opportunistic.

The Dragon is characterized by being magnanimous, stately, vigorous, strong, self assured, proud, noble, direct, dignified, zealous, eccentric, intellectual, fiery, passionate, decisive, pioneering, ambitious, generous, and loyal. Additionally it can be tactless, arrogant, imperious, tyrannical, demanding, intolerant, dogmatic, violent, impetuous, and brash.

The Snake is characterized by being a deep thinker, wise, mystic, graceful, soft-spoken, sensual, creative, prudent, shrewd, ambitious, elegant, cautious, responsible, calm, strong, constant, and purposeful. Additionally, it can be a loner, a bad communicator, possessive, hedonistic, self-doubting, distrustful, mendacious, suffocating, and cold.

The Horse is characterized by being cheerful, popular, quick-witted, changeable, earthy, perceptive, talkative, agile – mentally and physically, magnetic, intelligent, astute, flexible, open-minded. Additionally, it can be fickle, arrogant, childish, anxious, rude, gullible, and stubborn.

The Ram is characterized by being righteous, sincere, sympathetic, mild-mannered, shy, artistic, creative, gentle, compassionate, understanding, mothering, determined, peaceful, generous, seeks security. Additionally, it can be moody, indecisive, over-passive, worrier, pessimistic, over-sensitive, a complainer, and weak-willed.

The Monkey is characterized by being an inventor, a motivator, an improviser, quick-witted, inquisitive, flexible, innovative, a problem solver, self-assured, sociable, polite, dignified, competitive, objective, factual, and intellectual. Additionally, it can be egotistical, vain, selfish, reckless, and snobbish,

The Rooster is characterized by being acute, neat, meticulous, organized, self-assured, decisive, conservative, critical, perfectionist, alert, zealous, practical, scientific, and responsible. Additionally, it can be over zealous, critical, puritanical, egotistical, abrasive, and opinionated,

The Dog is characterized by being honest, intelligent, straightforward, loyal, attractive, amicable, unpretentious, sociable, open-minded, idealistic, moralistic, practical, affectionate, and self justice and fair play. Additionally, it can be cynical, lazy, cold, judgmental, pessimistic, worrier, stubborn, and quarrelsome.

The Pig is characterized by being Honest, gallant, sturdy, sociable, peace-loving, patient, loyal, hard-working, trusting, sincere, calm, understanding, thoughtful, scrupulous, passionate, and intelligent. Additionally, it can be naive, over-reliant, self-indulgent, gullible, fatalistic, and materialistic.

So if you were born in the year of the pig, then you would have those characteristics that are associated with that year, right? Well, Somewhat. It is not that simple; just as there are animals are assign to a year they are also attributed to the month and even the hour in which you were born. While keeping this in mind we can realize that there are thousands upon thousands possible (8, 640) combinations that can exist, so one person is not just born in the year of the pig, but in the month of the dragon, and the hour of the rat.

One of the best things a parent or caregiver could do for a child is to help them learn a second language. Learning an additional language is crucial in today’s world because more than ever we are coexisting, communicating and trading with an array of people from various cultures. Being able to communicate in a different language will be beneficial socially, academically, and career wise, so giving a child a leg up will put them in a prime position to further excel in life.

First off, learning an additional language is easy for a child then it is for an adult; this is because a child’s brain is more malleable than an adult’s brain. Adult’s brains are programmed to recognize their own native tongue and any new sounds are difficult to replicate accurately, whereas with children their brain are not fully programmed. This allows the children to be more receptive to new sounds and if they hear them and are engaged with the sounds enough they will be comfortable replicating them with the accuracy of a native speaker. Acquiring new languages is already easier for children so why not expose them to a new language so that they can partake in its benefits. According to research the best age to introduce a language to a child is from one year of age to about when they are six years old or so. This does not mean that that they are incapable of learning a language after the age of six, it just means that your child’s affinity to acquiring language is best at that age range.

The advantages of learning a second language at a young age are endless, but those advantages can be categorized by their social, academic or career implications. Socially, if your child learns a second language they will be able to network with more individuals and have diverse friends regardless if they speak your child’s native language or not. Having the ability to understand different people will grant them the opportunity to learn about different cultures and retain that firsthand experience. This firsthand experience will do your child well when they enter the work force in whatever profession she chooses. Regardless, if she choose to be an entrepreneur and develop foreign business contact, a doctor and is able to communicate with an array of linguistically different patients, or a teacher and share her love of language, the additional language that she develops an affinity for at a young age will aid him throughout his life.

The advantages to learning a second language are limitless. The leg up you will be giving your child will aid them in their personal lives, as well as in their academic and post graduate pursuits. When beginning to learn a language the rule of thumb is usually the younger the better, but the prime time period for beginning to become accustomed to a new language is between one to six years of age.

If you have any language learning stories about you, your child or a child you know feel free to post a comment below.

History of Chinese Writing

The tools used to communicate in the Chinese language have drastically changed over time, thus affecting how the characters are written and look. The earliest form of Chinese writing occurred on pottery and on oracle bones. These characters where written with sharp angles. Eventually the Chinese began to use brushes to write characters, which allow them to be formed with much grace. These characters were written in books that consisted of bamboo sticks and eventually on paper in a column formation from right to left. Despite the fact that oldest bamboo books no longer exist we can track the development of the Chinese writing system through paintings, seals and many other types of objects with Chinese inscriptions.

Nowadays, Chinese characters have transformed in structure over time and are currently written with all types of modern writing instruments, such as pens and brushes. If you are interested in learning how to write Characters then I would recommend that you start of using things you have most accessible to you. If you feel you want to take writing characters to the next level, and begin creating calligraphy, then I would suggest you use brushes.

Radicals: Foundation of Characters

When Chinese characters were created they were used to portray their physical counterparts, such as human, water, fire, moon, and tree. In order to depict more complicated objects and ideas combination of radicals are put in a logical manner. If you look closely you will be able to depict the meaning of a single or even a combination of characters. The basic characters are called radicals and are used to construct even more complex characters. Below there are characters listed in chronological order from up to 4000 years old to present day.

Pull: This character is depicting a hand pulling an ear. The character pull has two different radicals in it.

Rocket Chinese will give you the tools to enhance your Chinese writing skills. It is a full comprehensive program that has helped thousands of people. If you would like more information about Rocket Chinese then click on the link below.

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If you have any question feel free to email me at info@languagelyon.com

Here at Lanauage Lyon I strive to help other with there language learning needs. I want to help you with the questions you may have about your language learning journey, so feel free to post a question and I will respond ASAP. No matter the language we will strive to get you an accurate and reliable answer. We look forward to your post and inquires.

Sincerely,

LanguageLyon

P.S. You can also email us at info@languagelyon.com.

Learn and Understand Tones

The Chinese language is centered on the usage of tones. If you do not produce the tones that are associated with each word correctly, then you will not be able to communicate in the language effectively. The Mandarin dialect has 5 tones, which are neutral, first, second, third, and fourth tone. For people who are use to speaking and learning one of the romance languages, then it may be difficult to adjust to the major differences between Chinese and a language like English. The main difference between a language like Chinese and the romance languages is that Chinese is a tonal language and Chinese does not use an alphabet.

Practice your Pronunciation

When one begins to learn the sounds that compose the Chinese language they may become confused because certain sounds in the language actually sound similar, and to an untrained ear they may sound exactly alike. Beside similar sounding sounds, the language has sounds that are difficult for some non-native Chinese speakers simply because those sounds may not present in their native tongue. The key is to listen to an audio file with Chinese words and try to repeat what you hear exactly as it is said. If you continue to do this then your pronunciation of the characters will drastically improve.

Learn Pinyin

Taking the time out to learning pinyin is essential to having a well-round Chinese learning experience. Pinyin is simply the romanized form of the sounds that compose the Chinese language. Pinyin put a Chinese character into the alphabet by using the characters sounds. Pinyin is used in mandarin speaking homes to assist children connect spoken words that they know with characters they don’t. Pinyin is an effective tool to help people who are not native Chinese speakers learn the language.

Practice Speaking

Simply put, if you do not vocalize what you are learning then you will never completely be comfortable with the language. It will even become difficult for you to speak the language when you need to because you won’t be use to it, so do yourself a favor now and become comfortable speaking. The best way to practice the language is to speak with people that know Chinese. If you do not know any then politely ask people you do not know if you and them can speak in Chinese when you around each other. Even if you don’t know a lot of words in Chinese that is fine, the trick is just to speak and the person you are communicating with will fill in the blanks. Communicating in Chinese will allow to remember your new word and pick up the language faster. Another way to communicate while you are a beginner learning Chinese is to be crafty and try to express yourself despite the fact that you may not know the exact word for something.

For example: (You don’t know how to say table)

Instead of saying: I put the glass on top of the table.

You could say: I put the glass on top of the thing/ I put the glass on top of that.

In doing this you are setting up the other person to fill in the blanks for you allowing you to retain the word because you are actually speaking and know how to apply it.

Practice Writing

Writing in Chinese is not as difficult as one may think. There are a set of rules, stroke order, that one must follow, and once those rules are learned writing using characters becomes a lot easier. It just becomes a matter of memorizing characters in order to be able to express your thought in writing, which is not too difficult.

If you don’t know how to begin journey to learning Chinese or just want addition information to help you become proficient in the language then Rocket Chinese is a great program to help you accomplish that. If you would like more information on Rocket Chinese then click the link below to learn more about this great program.

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If you have any question feel free to email me at info@languagelyon.com