Mandarin Learning Notes

[snowazalea]

Right now, I'm using the following three apps to learn Mandarin:

• Rosetta Stone (currently Unit 5, Travel)
• Reword: Learn Chinese (currently 100% HSK 1, 80% HSK 2)
• Du Chinese (Newbie level, but I only have access to one story since I don't have a subscription)

I think many people would not recommend Rosetta Stone. That is cool. It is pinyin-only, and feeling its limits is what inspired me to explore the latter two apps. I like Rosetta Stone because it's a jumping-off point, and by accident or design, the vocabulary and grammar it introduces roughly corresponds with Reword, so that pretty soon after I learn the pinyin, I learn the characters. I like Rosetta Stone, because it's easy to step into for 10 or 15 minutes at a time, even if I'm tired or not having a big brain day. Plus the accompanying pictures and content always lift my spirits with the sunlight and warmth. 

Du Chinese is the coolest but also the most formidable of the apps. In terms of price, I'm keeping Du Chinese on the back burner until I'm getting close to done with the Rosetta Stone course, because the cost of subscribing to all three apps at once is going to feel a little insane. 

My goal right now is to keep going with Rosetta Stone and maintain daily progress on Reword. It would be cool if I finished Rosetta Stone in 2 years. If I stay consistent, I'm able to get through a unit a month and attend to all the little details in the unit, and there are a total of 20 units.