From newbie to elementary
lordgolem
January 25, 2010, 02:30 PM posted in General DiscussionAccording to your experience, after how many newbie lessons one should step up to elementary series lessons?
jckeith
January 25, 2010, 06:33 PMI think it took about 20-30 for me. I had no experience with learning Chinese prior.
lordgolem
January 26, 2010, 06:55 AMI've listened about 16 lessons by now, I think I'll stick with newbie a little more. I feel quite ready for elementary, but maybe building stronger foundation is better. Maybe I should do the placement test...
Purrfecdizzo
January 26, 2010, 10:19 AMOne other thing to consider is that there are some elementary lessons that are easier than others. Some really give a workout, while others seem to be more gentle. For example, the Hungry Traveler series seems to be less difficult than other elementary lessons. This is true for newbie lessons as well. There are some newbie lessons that are very easy, whereas there are others that are more difficult.
WillBuckingham
January 26, 2010, 10:44 AMIt's always worth giving lessons at a higher level a go from time to time, even if you are a bit bewildered. It can be bracing! And when, in a few months time when you've advanced a level, you come back to the lesson and realise that what seemed baffling is now comprehensible, then it's a good feeling.
Purrfecdizzo
I have experienced this myself. I also like it when I learn a new word in a Chinese lesson, then hear the word spoken in the 'wild', then see it in my Character studies in the same day. This seems to happen a lot.
Purrfecdizzo
January 26, 2010, 10:53 AMI have experienced this myself. I also like it when I learn a new word in a Chinese lesson, then hear the word spoken in the 'wild', then see it in my Character studies in the same day. This seems to happen a lot.
BEBC
January 26, 2010, 06:24 PMThere are also some relevant suggestions for you at:
http://chinesepod.com/community/conversations/post/6585#comment-145638
pretzellogic
January 25, 2010, 05:22 PMI had experience with Pimsleurs Mandarin CDs before cpod. I think I listened to the first 2 sets (30 lessons each set) before I ended up with cpod. When I signed up for cpod, I think I was into about 20 newbie lessons before I got bored, and moved up to elementary.
Newbie lessons provide great vocabulary, but for me the problem was that Newbie lessons seemed to give me like 1, 2 or 3 new words to learn, not 5-10 new words. For me, 5-10 new words in a lesson feels more challenging (and less boring), but not overwhelming.
Your mileage may vary.