Overview
Duration
12 weeks
Tuition
Under $14/hour
Level
Beginner
Class Time
2.5 hours/week
Prerequisites
None
Group Size
4-10 students
Location
ILC, Carmel
Details
Dates:
3/9/26 - 5/25/26
Time:
Mondays, 6:30pm-9:00pm
Cost:
$430.00
(Does not include text books and optional tuition insurance)
What You’ll Learn
By the end of this Mandarin A1 course, students will be able to…
Pronounce Mandarin accurately using Pinyin, tones, and correct syllable structure.
Recognize and write basic characters using proper stroke order and common radicals.
Build simple sentences using core structures (S+V, S+V+O, linking verbs, modifiers).
Ask and answer essential questions using 吗, 呢, and basic interrogatives (谁、什么、几).
Introduce themselves and others, including names, roles, family info, and basic identity details.
Use foundational grammar such as 是、不、也、的、有/没有、这/那 + 个, and measure words.
Participate in short beginner-level dialogues about names, identities, family, and everyday topics.
Weekly Itinerary
Each week includes speaking practice, games, cultural context, and real-world role-plays. You’ll use everything you learn — right away.
Week 1: Pinyin foundations — initials, simple finals, syllable structure, and basic pronunciation.
Week 2: Compound finals & tones — tone accuracy, finals + tones, full-syllable pronunciation.
Week 3: Character basics — stroke order, radicals, component structure, pictophonetic types.
Week 4: Parts of speech & sentence building — nouns/verbs/adjectives + basic sentence constituents.
Week 5: Simple sentences — S+V, S+V+O, linking verb patterns, and basic statement formation.
Week 6: Review & consolidation — pronunciation drills, stroke order, sentence structure practice.
Week 7: Question forms — 谁, interrogatives, particle 吗, elliptical 呢, and question structure.
Week 8: Names & introductions — verbs 姓/叫, “What’s your name?”, attribution, and self-intros.
Week 9: Identity statements — using 是 / 不 / 也 for nationality, profession, roles, and yes/no questions.
Week 10: Review — integrated practice with dialogues, listening, writing, and all six sentence types.
Week 11: Possession & demonstratives — 的 for modifiers, 这/那 + 个, 有/没有, and 谁 questions.
Week 12: Measuring people & family — 几, 两 vs 二, MW 口, 都 (all/not all), and family descriptions.
Meet Your Instructor
Sharon
Languages: Mandarin
Sharon Yang is a native Mandarin speaker with more than 14 years of experience helping students develop confidence and fluency in Mandarin Chinese. She holds a Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics from Teachers College, Columbia University, where she deepened her expertise in language acquisition, curriculum design, and effective instructional strategies. She has worked with a wide range of learners, from young beginners to high school students and adult professionals, tailoring her approach to meet each student’s unique goals and proficiency level. Her strong foundation in linguistics allows her to deliver structured, high-level instruction that is both academically rigorous and accessible.
As a Mandarin educator, Sharon is passionate about creating purposeful, engaging learning experiences that connect directly to real-world communication. She thoughtfully integrates authentic materials, cultural insights, and technology into her student-centered lessons, ensuring that students not only build strong language skills but also gain cultural understanding. Her supportive and encouraging teaching style helps learners grow in confidence and genuinely enjoy expressing themselves in Mandarin.