Curriculum
Learn path
Sixteen ordered beginner lessons. Mark complete in this browser and keep going.
- 01 How Mandarin works A clear map of sounds, tones, characters, and word order so beginners know what to learn first. Open
- 02 The four tones (+ neutral) Hear and produce the four contour tones and the light neutral tone with reliable beginner cues. Open
- 03 Tone sandhi essentials Learn the beginner-critical tone changes for 不, 一, and two third tones in a row. Open
- 04 Pinyin initials Master Mandarin consonant starts, including sounds English does not have. Open
- 05 Pinyin finals Learn simple and compound finals so you can build real syllables. Open
- 06 Pinyin spelling rules Tone marks, ü spelling, y/w forms, and common beginner spelling traps. Open
- 07 Greetings and courtesy Hello, thanks, sorry, and polite daily openers you can use immediately. Open
- 08 Pronouns and 是 I/you/he/she/we/they and identification sentences with 是. Open
- 09 Numbers 0–100 Digits, teens, tens, and phone-friendly number reading. Open
- 10 有 and 在 Existence/possession with 有 and location with 在. Open
- 11 Questions with 吗 and question words Turn statements into yes/no questions and ask who/what/where/how many. Open
- 12 Negation with 不 and 没 Choose 不 for habits/futures/adjectives and 没 for past actions and 有. Open
- 13 Measure words Number + measure word + noun—the default counting pattern. Open
- 14 Time and days Clock time, days of the week, and putting time before the verb. Open
- 15 Food and ordering Restaurant and café language: ordering, preferences, and polite requests. Open
- 16 Study habits that stick A beginner routine that balances tones, words, patterns, and short reading. Open