Big changes are coming to the HSK, the most widely used proficiency test for Mandarin Chinese for non-native speakers. The new standard takes effect on July 1st, 2021, and in this post we take a deep dive into what changes are coming, what they mean for you as a student. We also present vocabulary lists for HSK 1-9, including lists specifically for handwriting.
How to Write Chinese Characters: The Beginner’s Guide
In this blog, Jake gives you 5 top tips on how to approach character learning for Chinese (or Japanese). This method will ensure the ultimate long term retention of characters and boost your vocabulary long-term.
Learning a lot of Chinese characters in Skritter
How many Chinese characters do you need to learn to be able to understand normal texts written for native speakers? 2,000? 3,500? 5,000? 7,000? This question is hard to answer for two reasons. First, in …
Mid-Autumn Festival: The Chinese Moon Festival Explained!
The Mid-Autumn Festival is a harvest festival celebrated by Chinese people and other East Asian cultures. It falls on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, which usually corresponds to late …
Mandarin Blueprint: Video Courses to Study Chinese
For those of you in search of an online Chinese course, Mandarin Blueprint may be for you. First, let’s look at a video where Jake and Phil discuss MB, Skritter, language learning and so much more: …
Learn Chinese with Cartoons: 5 Movies
Intro: Getting Comprehensive Input with Chinese Cartoons Comprehensive input is a useful method for language learners. According to Krashen’s I+1 theory, students should be exposed to language that is slightly above their current level. So in …
Chinese Radicals: The Beginner’s Guide
It’s common for beginners and sometimes even more advanced students to lack an understanding of how Chinese characters are structured. This includes misconceptions about components and radicals. In this article, I’m going to address some …
Mandarin Chinese Polyphones
This is a guest post from That’s Mandarin. Find out more at the end of this article. Having trouble distinguishing between when to use a certain pronunciation for the same character? Ever not understood a sentence …
Du Chinese Integration: Link with Skritter
You can now link your Du Chinese and Skritter accounts. Once your accounts are linked, words you save while reading on Du Chinese will automatically be added to a custom study deck! What is Du …
Year of the Tiger Auspicious Phrases
It’s the Year of the Tiger which means that aside from the usual phrases like 新年快乐 xīnnián kuàilè – Happy New Year, you can also learn some lucky phrases to wish people well during the …
Making Tangyuan for the Winter Solstice
The Winter Solstice 你听过“冬至”吗？冬至是一年里白天最短、黑夜最长的日子。冬至在古代被当作过年，虽然在台湾冬至没有放假，但还是一个很重要的节日。 Have you heard of the Dongzhi Festival? It is also known as the Winter Solstice in Taiwan – the shortest day and the longest night of the year. Traditionally, Dongzhi was …
LTL Flexi Classes: Language Classes for Busy Learners
LTL has a big surprise for Skritter users. Find out more at the end of this article! What are LTL Flexi Classes? LTL Mandarin School is a language learning platform that offers different programs and …