{"id":15793,"date":"2022-03-14T22:08:58","date_gmt":"2022-03-14T21:08:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/?p=15793"},"modified":"2022-08-06T23:42:12","modified_gmt":"2022-08-06T21:42:12","slug":"how-to-start-learning-chinese-again-after-a-break","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/how-to-start-learning-chinese-again-after-a-break\/","title":{"rendered":"How to start learning Chinese again after a break"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-scaled.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-15800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/ruins-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>So you\u2019ve learnt some Chinese, but then you took a break. Maybe you become too busy, maybe you lost interest, maybe something else, it doesn\u2019t matter, but now you want to get started again. So how do you get back into Chinese after a break?<\/p>\n<p>Picking up a language anew and learning it from scratch are clearly not the same thing. It might feel the same at first, though, because there will be many things you\u2019ve forgotten.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>When trying to speak,<\/strong> ghost traces of words you knew will insert themselves into your sentences, but instead of the words smoothly popping up when you need them, they\u2019ll betray you and leave holes in your ability to communicate.<\/li>\n<li><strong>When listening,<\/strong> things will sound familiar, but even speech you would have been able to deal with before your break will feel like an onrushing torrent of semi-familiar gibberish; it means <em>something<\/em> but there\u2019s too much of it too quickly.<\/li>\n<li><strong>When it comes to the written language,<\/strong> you\u2019ll probably recognise many characters, but handwriting seems to be the first thing that goes when you stop reviewing, so don\u2019t expect to be able to write anything but the simplest characters by hand.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Tune in to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/podcast\/\">the Hacking Chinese Podcast<\/a> to listen to the related episode:<\/em><br \/>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/anchor.fm\/hackingchinese\/embed\/episodes\/84---How-to-start-learning-Chinese-again-after-a-break-e1fndou\" width=\"400px\" height=\"102px\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<em>Available on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/hacking-chinese-podcast\/id1536284827\">Apple Podcasts<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy8zODhlYjllOC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw==\">Google Podcast<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/overcast.fm\/itunes1536284827\/hacking-chinese-podcast\">Overcast<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/5iCRv1jg3j3yJZGJlYVYaO\">Spotify<\/a> and many other platforms!<\/em><\/p>\n<h3>How long was your break? How much did you use to know?<\/h3>\n<p>Naturally, when discussing getting back into Chinese after a break, many factors are important and your mileage may vary. How long your break is matters, for instance. I recently started learning French again after a twenty year break, which is clearly different from taking a few months off. In this article, when I say &#8220;break&#8221;, I mean anything from months up to years, but I don&#8217;t include shorter breaks such as a summer or w inter vacation.<\/p>\n<p>How much you once knew also matters, so native speakers who don\u2019t write by hand anymore will be able to pick that up fairly easily because their foundation is built on thousands of hours of writing in school. If you only practise characters for dictation tests, your ability to write characters by hand will fade very quickly, and you\u2019ll need more than some refreshing to bring it back.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/chinese-language-logging-part-2-a-healthy-balanced-diet-of-mandarin\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-14718\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2-300x235.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"235\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2-300x235.png 300w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2-1024x801.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2-768x601.png 768w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2-1536x1201.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/language-logging-square-2.png 1964w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>That being said, I think it\u2019s still meaningful to talk about some general strategies for getting back into learning a language after a break, so that\u2019s what I\u2019ll do in this article. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/chinese-language-logging-part-2-a-healthy-balanced-diet-of-mandarin\/\">When discussing how to balance language learning, I think Paul Nation\u2019s four strands are helpful<\/a>. In the case of getting back after a break, they are extra useful, and the order is worth considering:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Meaning-focused input<\/li>\n<li>Meaning-focused output<\/li>\n<li>Fluency development<\/li>\n<li>Language-focused learning<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>This is the order I think you should approach these when picking up Chinese after a break. Let&#8217;s have a look at each to see what activities you can engage in to reclaim your lost ability.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Meaning-focused input<\/h3>\n<p>The first thing I did when picking up French again was simply to listen. The problem wasn&#8217;t that I didn&#8217;t know any French, it was that the memory traces and patterns had lain dormant for so long that they weren&#8217;t accessible. Sometimes, they were accessible, but it took much too long to access them. I knew a word, but it took me ten seconds to come up with it. Or I heard a word and only figured out what it meant five seconds later. This clearly doesn&#8217;t work, as such long delays blocks any attempt at communicating or understanding. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listening-strategies-improving-listening-speed\/\">I wrote more about this here<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"mDPjSwbIOL\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listening-strategies-improving-listening-speed\/\">Chinese listening strategies: Improving listening speed<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Chinese listening strategies: Improving listening speed&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listening-strategies-improving-listening-speed\/embed\/#?secret=7mB2juFBpG#?secret=mDPjSwbIOL\" data-secret=\"mDPjSwbIOL\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Listening should be your starting point,because it allows you to activate what you already know in a convenient and practical manner. Try to find listening material you think you\u2019d been able to deal with before your break, then listen as much as you can for at least a few weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, it can be hard to know what you would have understood before the break unless you have saved the resources from back then, so you need to guess and estimate. Listen, and listen again, as much as you can. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listen-before-you-read-improve-your-listening-ability\/\">Look at transcripts if you must, but do not read before you listen, since that spoils the listening practice<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Bkm9OjKme7\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listen-before-you-read-improve-your-listening-ability\/\">Listen before you read: Improve your listening ability<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Listen before you read: Improve your listening ability&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/listen-before-you-read-improve-your-listening-ability\/embed\/#?secret=BEHFcOEs1s#?secret=Bkm9OjKme7\" data-secret=\"Bkm9OjKme7\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>The point is that your listening should be focused on meaning<\/strong>. Don\u2019t care about details, don\u2019t care about minor issues or subtleties; as long as you understand roughly what\u2019s going on, that&#8217;s okay. A good way to know when you\u2019re done with a specific piece of audio is when you don\u2019t understand more when listening again. If you hear new things every time, keep listening until you don&#8217;t, not necessarily in one go, of course; spreading it out is fine!<\/p>\n<p>You should also do the same for reading. Again, the goal isn\u2019t to learn anything new, it\u2019s simply to put your brain back into Chinese mode. You can look things up, but if you do, make sure it\u2019s really easy, such as by using a pop-up dictionary. Don\u2019t look up anything unless it\u2019s really important.<\/p>\n<p>This process is actually quite simple, but it does require a certain amount of courage and persistence. It will feel awful to not understand things you used to understand. You might start blaming yourself and feeling bad for taking such a long break. This is not helpful. Stop it. All you need to do is to listen and try to understand; let the language work itself into your brain until it connects with the knowledge that\u2019s buried there.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Meaning-focused output<\/h3>\n<p>Once you\u2019ve focused on meaning-focused input for a while, you can start the reverse process: meaning-focused output. Exactly how long you wait depends on many things, such as if you have easy access to speaking practice and how bad you feel about your weak speaking ability. If it&#8217;s convenient and you feel like it, by all means start speaking immediately, but I would still strongly suggest to you put the emphasis on input when you start out.<\/p>\n<p>Meaning-focused here means that you speak and write Chinese with the main goal of conveying meaning to another person. At this point you might frown and wonder if that isn&#8217;t the point of all speaking and writing, but that is certainly not the case in most classroom settings.<\/p>\n<p>Something that can help here is to consider what real communication is and engage only in activities that focus on that. One way of putting it is to say that real communication is when the language is used to convey unknown information. If you don\u2019t know my name and where I\u2019m from, my telling you about that in Chinese is real communication, but reading a sentence in a textbook where it says how old \u738b\u670b is and where he is from is not (unless the listener doesn\u2019t know the answer, of course). There needs to be an information gap between you and the person you speak to, and you need to use Chinese to bridge it.<\/p>\n<p>This type of practice is normal when conversing with people you don\u2019t know in real life. People rarely spend their days saying only thing both parties already know, although this does happen (\u201cit&#8217;s a nice day&#8221; or \u201cyou&#8217;re very tall\u201d or &#8220;oh dear, you seem to have fallen down a thirty-foot hole&#8221;). If you have friendly conversion partners around you, this is great, just talk to them, but if you hire someone, you\u2019ll quickly realise that this type of practice isn\u2019t\u2019 as easy as it ought to be. Many teachers see it as their main duty to correct your mistakes, teach you new words and new grammar, but this doesn\u2019t count as meaning-focused output!<\/p>\n<p>If you do hire a tutor, be clear that your goal is not to learn new words, improve your pronunciation or practise grammar, but to simply talk. Tutors can still be immensely helpful, especially if you find someone who is encouraging, makes it feel safe for you to practise and who is good at adjusting their language to your level. They can rephrase things until you understand, and help you out when you speak as little as possible, but enough that you can move forward. For more about getting the most out of a tutor for speaking practice, see <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/training-your-chinese-teacher-part-2-speaking-ability\/\">Training your Chinese teacher, part 2: Speaking ability<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"j0VGCHDU8S\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/training-your-chinese-teacher-part-2-speaking-ability\/\">Training your Chinese teacher, part 2: Speaking ability<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Training your Chinese teacher, part 2: Speaking ability&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/training-your-chinese-teacher-part-2-speaking-ability\/embed\/#?secret=r9Dx3EM6tm#?secret=j0VGCHDU8S\" data-secret=\"j0VGCHDU8S\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>3. Fluency development<\/h3>\n<p>In Nation\u2019s model, fluency development essentially covers the difference between knowing something and knowing something well. It\u2019s about using what you already know, improving the speed at which you can understand spoken and written language, as well as fluency in speaking and writing.<\/p>\n<p>Depending on how you look at it, getting back into Chinese after a break can either be considered to mostly be fluency development (you do know these things, just not very well), or not at all (you have forgotten so much that it\u2019s more akin to not knowing them). I don\u2019t think it\u2019s worthwhile to debate which it is here, but I think meaning-focused input and output discussed above already cover the activities you want to engage in, so I&#8217;ll leave it at that.<\/p>\n<h3>4. Language-focused learning<\/h3>\n<p>Language-focused learning is when you focus deliberately on language features such as grammar or pronunciation (i.e. the bits that you were not supposed to focus on in the other strands). Traditionally, this used to make up a very big part of what learning a language meant, but many more modern, input-heavy approaches downplay or even deny the benefits of explicitly focusing on language features in this way.<\/p>\n<p>Still, explicit focus on language features can be helpful to direct your attention, study systematic features in the language and sometimes also to contrast these with other languages you know. Another example of language-focused learning would be studying vocabulary itself,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/my-best-advice-on-how-to-learn-chinese-characters\/\">so much of the Chinese-specific challenges related to characters and handwriting<\/a>\u00a0belong in this strand.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Uadj1xFaoj\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/my-best-advice-on-how-to-learn-chinese-characters\/\">My best advice on how to learn Chinese characters<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;My best advice on how to learn Chinese characters&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/my-best-advice-on-how-to-learn-chinese-characters\/embed\/#?secret=36T5I5kgMK#?secret=Uadj1xFaoj\" data-secret=\"Uadj1xFaoj\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>As I have already said, this is not something you should focus on until you feel you&#8217;re back in shape. What\u2019s the use of learning about grammar patterns if you struggle to find the words to use in those patterns? What\u2019s the point of spending time with details in handwriting when it\u2019s hard to even recognise common character?<\/p>\n<p>However, I do think it&#8217;s worth talking about vocabulary specifically, as many students ask about this particular problem.<\/p>\n<h3>Learning Chinese characters and words after a longer break<\/h3>\n<p>One of the most visible signs after taking a break, even a short one, is that any app that keeps track of your learning will let you know that you&#8217;ve been slacking off. It differs from app to app how this is presented to you, but most flashcard apps will simply show you a large number of words overdue for review. If you log in to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/skritter-chinese-review-boosting-your-character-learning\/\">Skritter<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/anki-a-friendly-intelligent-spaced-learning-system\/\">Anki<\/a> och <a href=\"https:\/\/hackingchinese.com\/pleco\">Pleco<\/a> after a long break, you might face thousands, maybe even tens of thousands, of reviews, depending on how much you used these apps before your break and how long you&#8217;ve been neglecting them.<\/p>\n<p>Some apps will try to make you feel better by hiding the true extent of how much you\u2019ve fallen behind. If you don\u2019t see a huge number of overdue flashcards, you\u2019re being misled. Taking a long break has consequences for learning, that\u2019s just a direct result of how our brains and memory work; there\u2019s nothing an app can do about that. This is important to realise, because all you or an app can do is help you manage the situation. The only way to solve the underlying problem is to engage with the language itself!<\/p>\n<p>Faced with a huge queue of overdue flashcards, there are a couple of things you can consider doing:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Steadily chip away at your queue of flashcards.<\/strong> Use whatever functionality the app has to help you do this, be it a limit of cards per day, a goal of how many cards to study per day, or anything else. If you can break the queue up in segments, that also helps. For example, maybe you added 500 words just before your break that you didn\u2019t really have time to learn. Ignore those! If possible, follow the same sequence I suggested above, so try to catch up on input (listening and reading) first. Liberally delete anything you don&#8217;t think you truly need. Many of the suggestions I gave in the article about managing a large flashcard deck are useful: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/overcoming-problem-many-chinese-words-learn\/\">Overcoming the problem of having too many Chinese words to learn<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"0InvNrolOg\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/overcoming-problem-many-chinese-words-learn\/\">Overcoming the problem of having too many Chinese words to learn<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Overcoming the problem of having too many Chinese words to learn&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/overcoming-problem-many-chinese-words-learn\/embed\/#?secret=wO9Vro36I9#?secret=0InvNrolOg\" data-secret=\"0InvNrolOg\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<ol start=\"2&quot;\">\n<li><strong>Reset everything and start from scratch.<\/strong> I have changed my mind regarding the nuclear option over the years. I used to think that resetting everything was not a good idea, but I have now done so several times and never regretted it. Spaced repetition software and apps are simply tools with a specific application. They don\u2019t have a value in and of themselves, so if they become a burden or a chore, just start over or find a tool better suited to your needs. Naturally, your goal when you start over shouldn\u2019t be to recreate your old flashcard deck exactly as it was, then you might as well use option 1 above. Instead,\u00a0 add only things you need <em>now<\/em>. This can be incredibly refreshing! And don\u2019t worry about deleting important things, because if they really are important, you\u2019ll encounter them again soon enough. Read more here: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/is-your-flashcard-deck-too-big-for-your-own-good\/\">Is your flashcard deck too big for your own good?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"Y30g0gVOYf\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/is-your-flashcard-deck-too-big-for-your-own-good\/\">Is your flashcard deck too big for your own good?<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Is your flashcard deck too big for your own good?&#8221; &#8212; Hacking Chinese\" src=\"https:\/\/www.hackingchinese.com\/is-your-flashcard-deck-too-big-for-your-own-good\/embed\/#?secret=k6T1Vyv73z#?secret=Y30g0gVOYf\" data-secret=\"Y30g0gVOYf\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>How to start learning Chinese again after a break<\/h3>\n<p>To summarise, the best way to get back into Chinese after taking a break is to start with meaning-focused input (listening and reading), then turn to meaning-focused output when you feel ready to do so. Only add language-focused activities such as grammar and pronunciation once you have caught up a bit.<\/p>\n<p>While it can feel frustrating and difficult to get back to where you were, keep in mind that it&#8217;s much easier than learning from scratch, and if you blame yourself for not starting earlier, remember that at least you have started now and didn&#8217;t postpone it even longer! You&#8217;ll get very far with some optimism and loads of input!<\/p>\n<h3>What&#8217;s your experience of picking up Chinese again after a break?<\/h3>\n<p>If you have started learning Chinese again after a break, what was your experience? Which areas were hard and which did you find easier to deal with? Please help making it easier for other people by sharing your thoughts and strategies in the comments below!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you picking up Chinese again after a break, and struggle to find the words and characters? Does spoken Mandarin sound vaguely familiar but incomprehensible? Then this guide will help you get back on track!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15800,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,10,14,15,16,17,21,22,23],"tags":[1159,213,1106,1160,1105,1100,1163,1162,484,1161],"class_list":["post-15793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advanced","category-attitude-and-mentality","category-intermediate","category-learning-outside-class","category-listening","category-organising-and-planning","category-reading","category-speaking","category-vocabulary","category-writing","tag-break","tag-flashcards","tag-four-strands","tag-hiatus","tag-paul-nation","tag-podcast-episode","tag-recover","tag-refreshing","tag-reviewing","tag-study-break"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How to start learning Chinese again after a break<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Are you picking up Chinese again after a break, and struggle to find the words and characters? 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