Real World Chinese

I'm still waiting to hear back from BLCU, although the program adviser said it would be a couple weeks until I heard from them... so maybe this time next week?

In the meantime, I thought I would post some information about the program.

I will be in class between 4 and 6 hours a day. If I take the intensive class, which I'm planning on, I will be in class 6 hours a day. The extra two hours for the intensive program are one-on-one tutoring, how super is that?

I'm going back to the beginner class since my character writing is not very strong and I think it will be good to review the basics.

Textbooks are included in the $1200 program fee. There are no additional fees (besides my own personal spending and $800 for housing).

In order to ensure your Mandarin skills are developed in the best possible way, the classes have been divided into the five key language developing areas: reading, writing, listening, speaking (oral), and grammar.

Reading: Classes will focus on building vocabulary and strengthening reading comprehension, with a focus on accuracy and speed.

Writing: Classes will introduce and develop the composition of characters and stroke orders of radicals, or bushou.

Listening: Classes will focus on improving listening comprehension of spoken Mandarin at regular speed. At the beginner level the primary focus will be understanding basic facts; at the advanced level the primary focus will be developing implicit comprehension and drawing inferences from complicated passages.

Speaking (Oral): Classes will facilitate the development of proper pronunciation and intonation, and will help students recognize common stress patterns in Mandarin.

Grammar: Classes will introduce and develop proper sentence structure, word order, spelling and colloquial expressions.

After school there is complimentary tutoring and a partnered language exchange.

They also have free electives, whee!

Language: Chinese Character Writing and Chinese Song Classes

Chinese Character Writing: A supplementary class to writing classes. Focus is on further development of characters and the radical system.

Chinese Song Classes: An introduction to both traditional folk and modern (pop) Chinese songs. Lyrics are written in both pinyin (Romanized letters) and hanzi (Chinese characters) in order to further strengthen reading and speaking skills.

Non-Language: Chinese Painting, Calligraphy, Traditional Chinese Massage and Medicine, and Taiji Quan (Tai Chi)

Chinese Painting: An introduction to one of the most popular traditional Chinese painting techniques - water colour painting, taught by a professional artist.

Calligraphy: An introduction to the ancient and sublime art form of Chinese calligraphy. Learn the eight styles, how to hold the brush, and the proper order of strokes. Students will select one style and develop their skills.

Traditional Chinese Massage and Medicine: An introduction to the ancient Chinese view of the human body and the causes of illness. Remedial techniques will include herbal medicine and massage.

Taiji Quan (Tai Chi): An introduction to the softer and more fluid martial arts, with a focus on internal power to improve health and wellness, both physically and mentally.

Aaaaaaand, they even have social activities set up, along with a welcome lunch:

• The Peking Duck Feast
• Bowling nights
• Karaoke nights
• Movie nights
• Friday Bar and Club nights
• Bowling
• Paintball
• Snowboarding trips

Once a month Real World Chinese will also host a dinner and social evening where you will have the opportunity to share your experiences and stuff yourself silly with all the rice, soup and assorted Chinese dishes you can imagine.

Plus: Our Real World Chinese include Emergency Travel and Medical Insurance, which covers emergency medical and dental treatment, pro-rata return of program fee in case of curtailment, personal liability and more.

This summer is going to AH-MAZING!

P.S. I've already saved up all my tuition money and dorm money. Now I'm just saving up for living expenses for the summer. Yay!