Award-Winning Mandarin Chinese Courses & Classes in Ann Arbor, MI

Whether you're a student at the University of Michigan trying to fulfill your foreign language requirements, a seasoned speaker of the Chinese language hoping to fine-tune your skills, or a high school student at Greenhills School, Varsity Tutors offers an Ann Arbor Chinese course that could have a beneficial impact on your language learning experience. Learning a new language can be quite difficult, even if you already have some background in Chinese, and a standard classroom curriculum may not totally encompass the difficulties you will encounter when picking up the language. One of the more important factors in succeeding as a new language learner is regular opportunities to practice it in writing and in conversation. An Ann Arbor Chinese course will be able to offer you the tutelage of an excited and educated Chinese teacher who will be capable of helping to guide you towards an understanding of the language.

Chinese is largely considered to be one of the most difficult languages that you can learn, and you might benefit from the additional help we have to offer. While the language itself has very little in common with English, knowing how to speak, write, and understand Chinese provides an advantage to those looking for careers in international business and trade, those seeking exposure to Eastern philosophies, and even those planning to travel abroad. Whether you're a college student who's struggling to learn Chinese and is worried about completing their general education requirements, a professional looking to expand their business skill set, a student at Pioneer High School, or simply someone looking for more access to Chinese literature, history, and culture, Varsity Tutors can get you enrolled in an Ann Arbor Chinese class that's right for you.

What material will an Ann Arbor Chinese course cover?

Chinese is the most popular language in the world, with well over one billion native speakers globally, making it an important language to pick up if you are interested in international travel and business. The Chinese language features several dialects, the most popular of which being Mandarin, which is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Taiwan. Historically, however, most Chinese speakers in the United States speak Cantonese. Other dialects in this language include Xiang, Gan, Wu, and Hakka.

Written Chinese dates back to thousands of years ago, with evidence of Chinese characters going back to the Shang Dynasty. While there are different Chinese dialects, they all share the same writing system. There is no Chinese alphabet, but the language is made up of 50,000 different characters, making it a tough one to pick up. Each of these symbols represents one syllable, and around 20,000 of these characters are used regularly, though the overwhelming majority of written Chinese is communicated using about 2,500 characters. Chinese is also the only modern pictographic language, meaning that many of its characters are derived from ancient drawings of the items they are intended to describe. These symbols give no clues to pronunciation, however, and must be learned individually.

There are many key concepts that one can learn from a Chinese course. Chinese is a tonal language, and you will learn how the meanings of words change according to tone. There are four distinct tones in Mandarin Chinese including flat, rising, falling then rising, and falling. Other dialects have up to nine separate tones. Chinese also contains no articles, verb inflections, or even plurals. All words have only one single grammatical form. Unlike in English, where plural nouns end with an -s, Chinese nouns keep the same exact form despite whether or not they are in a singular form or a plural form. Chinese courses also cover Pinyin, which is a system for translating Chinese characters to letters in the English alphabet based on their pronunciation. Other topics of study include Chinese history, essential vocabulary, and common phrases.

How will an Ann Arbor Chinese class help me learn?

All of the Chinese classes that we can enroll you in include an educated and excited instructor as well as other students in a completely online, collaborative space. We have an intricate interviewing and vetting process for instructors to guarantee that they are very qualified and also great communicators. This will enhance your learning of the Chinese language through group work, but also through one-on-one time that you will be able to request from the instructor so that you can work on specific problem areas. Not only that, but the online nature of these courses brings the classroom right to you through a live virtual platform. You will be able to see, hear, and even interact with the instructor as if they were sitting right by you.

Collaborative lessons such as the ones available in Chinese classes have been proven to both deepen understanding of the language and more adequately prepare students. Busy schedule? Not a problem. Classes are offered in multiple sections, with new sections starting monthly. When you sign up, you are also able to choose between a two-week and four-week class. This way you will be able to get enrolled in the perfect new language learning class for you that fits your schedule as well as your current understanding of Chinese. Take advantage of the fantastic value these classes have to offer now. Not only does learning and working in groups such as this assist the learner, but it also helps you to save in your new language education.

How can I get signed up for an Ann Arbor Chinese class?

Understanding Chinese could be a very useful tool in achieving your academic, personal, and business goals. If you are a working professional, someone who is attempting to fulfill language requirements for college, or even a high school student looking to learn more about Chinese, Varsity Tutors can set you up with more information about what an Ann Arbor Chinese course will cover, our current class offerings, and how and when we will be able to get you enrolled in the best Chinese course for your needs. Contact us now, and you can find yourself making strides in your understanding of the Chinese language soon.