r/learnmandarin • u/StrawberryOne1203 • 3d ago

Ideas needed

大家好!

I have the HSK 1 test coming up in two weeks and I've just realized why my listening comprehension is still subpar, even though I'm positive that I'll pass the test.

I think my problem is that I've watched lots of C dramas and listened to music in Mandarin, so my brain filed the language under "don't bother, you don't understand it anyway" and I'm just not able to snap out of this. I've made a conscious effort to really listen and not just let it wash over me, but there's pretty much no improvement.

Does anyone have an idea what else I can do besides lots of conscious listening? Any magic tricks? Because I'm kind of getting frustrated by now.

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u/PuzzleheadedTune1359 3d ago

I think listening to appropriate material is important to begin with. If you listen to things with overly complicated language it’s impossible for you to pick out any meaning. Start with some cartoons where you can pick out a few words at a time and build from there! I did this and even cartoons seem difficult at first but eventually you’ll get there. I find podcasts amazing once you get up with your listening. Now I can listen to pretty much anything and understand … except history. History is still so difficult with all the names and archaic words.

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u/StrawberryOne1203 3d ago

Thanks for your reply. That's what I do actually. I listen to podcasts and watch YouTube specifically labeled as "beginner-level" or "HSK 1-level" but I don't feel any improvement, so that's what's frustrating me. Because I love the language and I really want to become fluent. Maybe I'm too impatient but... idk

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u/PuzzleheadedTune1359 2d ago

Are you actively listening or just using it as “immersion”? You won’t make any progress if you’re not actively engaging. Engaging doesn’t have to be anything more than mentally making note of new sounds/words and ones that you’re able to pick out. Also, yes, progress is slow for sure. Day to day you might not notice any progress but over long periods it accumulates.

I also try to avoid “learning” podcasts / audio. They’re usually slowed down and dumbed down meant for foreigners. While at the beginning that might seem good, eventually you find native speaking too fast and impossible to understand - how do I know this, the people who only took Chinese classes and were in the “advanced” classes with me (in China) all had pretty abysmal conversational skills and very low listening comprehension. That’s why cartoons are great because less vocabulary but they are still meant for native speakers. I think getting use to natural speaking speeds is important. Use subtitles if watching something but not English ones, only the Chinese. Someone mentioned peppa pig and while that can be great it’s kind of painful to watch as an adult. lol. 喜洋洋 is a little better and 蜡笔小新 is actually quite enjoyable.

Anyhow, everyone is different for sure and one person’s strategies may not work for another. This was just the approach I used! I hope you can find something that works for you.

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u/Resident-5771 3d ago

Learning mandarin needs to be patient and hardwork (especially for writing). Learn slowly from children books, choose an easy song- repeat after it, you will find a lot of easy song in youtube. Good luck on your learning !

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u/lyfxxxx 3d ago

你可以用小猪佩奇中文版来适应听力 因为我学英语就是先用小猪佩奇英文版练的听力🤗

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u/One-Survey-7727 2d ago

I like your description of how your brain has filed Mandarin away. 😊

Here's a little experiment you might enjoy: instead of listening to more Chinese, try working on how you pronounce the words you already know.

Take two words like bā (八, eight) and bà (爸, dad). Listen to them, say them aloud, record yourself, and compare.

Sometimes we struggle to recognize a sound because we haven't quite learned to distinguish or reproduce it yet.

It might not be your problem, but it's worth a try. You may be surprised how much more you start hearing!