Mandarin Meadow
A little Mandarin, every day.

Help & FAQ 常见问题

Practising Mandarin

How do Listen, Record, Play mine and Compare work?

Listen plays the example. You can skip listening and record straight away. Tap Record, say the item, then tap Stop. A successful recording completes that item’s task. Play mine plays your voice; Compare plays the model, then your voice.

“Recorded” means you practised; it is not a pronunciation score. Listen for tones, rhythm and light syllables. You can record again. Try a few items at a time and take a break when needed.

Where do my recordings and completed tasks go?

Voice clips stay in this browser tab. Reloading, closing the tab or leaving the website clears them. Opening this help page keeps your clips available. Completed tasks remain saved even when a voice clip is gone, so Play mine and Compare become available after a new recording.

Learners have separate progress. Use the learner’s progress backup or sign-in sync to carry supported learning progress between devices. Voice clips are not included in backups or sync.

How can I read a longer text?

Use the Listen button beside each part. Pause or stop with the audio controls, then continue when ready. Pinyin + English and Useful expressions provide optional support. Short texts have one Listen button.

How do character animations and tracing work?

Flip a character card to see the writing controls. Replay shows the strokes; Trace lets you try them. The lesson’s writing focus identifies which characters to practise first. Printable pages are available in Practice.

Choosing a course & reviewing

How do I choose a starting point?

Each course page lists what to know before starting and what you will practise. Choose by what you can understand and do in Mandarin. Later literature and social themes are intended for teenagers and adults ready for extended reading and discussion; language support remains available.

How do the cumulative reviews work?

Open Review & connect on a course page, or use the extra review in the Review tab after each study block. Earlier vocabulary, sentence patterns and readings return in short recall questions, followed by a written response. First choices and retries remain saved. The written reflection is self-reviewed, with room for different supported answers.

Can I spread a long reading over several days?

Yes. Open Goals & study plan for reading sessions linked to each part. Read one part in a sitting, then connect the parts and complete the reading tasks when ready. The short Course 7 bridge readings have optional longer versions; the longer version is not required.

Chinese typing

How do I type Chinese and use written responses?

Add a Simplified Chinese Pinyin keyboard in your device’s keyboard or language settings. On iPhone/iPad, look under Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards. On Android, use your keyboard’s Languages settings. On Windows or Mac, use language or input-source settings. Select the Chinese keyboard, type pinyin, then choose the intended characters.

Later readings include a short written response. Drafts are saved to the active learner’s progress as you type. You can save a response, compare it with a possible supporting detail, and revise it. These responses are not automatically graded; different reasoned answers can work. Progress backup and supported sign-in sync include saved responses.

Microphone setup

What if microphone access is blocked?

Tap Record and allow microphone access when your browser asks. If access was denied, change this website’s microphone permission to Allow or Ask. Your device must also let the browser use its microphone. Return to the lesson and try Record again; reload only if your browser requires it. Reloading clears voice clips in this tab.

Open Mandarin Meadow directly in your browser if recording is unavailable in an embedded window. If the microphone is busy, close other apps using it. For children, a parent or carer can help with permission settings.

iPhone or iPad · Safari
  1. Open this website in Safari, then tap Record and allow the request.
  2. If blocked, open Safari’s page menu beside the address, find Website Settings (or More, then Website Settings), and change Microphone to Ask or Allow for this website.
  3. You can also check Settings → Apps → Safari → Microphone; older versions may show Safari directly in Settings. Return to Safari and try again.

Menu names vary by version. Apple’s Safari settings guide

Android phone or tablet · Chrome
  1. In Chrome, open Settings → Site settings → Microphone. Allow this website or remove its blocked permission, then try Record again.
  2. If still blocked, check Android Settings → Apps → Chrome → Permissions → Microphone, and allow access while using the app.

Google’s microphone guide for Android

Mac · Safari or Chrome

In Safari, use Settings → Websites → Microphone and choose Ask or Allow for this website. In Chrome, open the controls beside the address → Site settings → Microphone → Allow.

If the browser is blocked by macOS, check System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone and allow the browser if listed. Relaunch it if requested; relaunching clears current voice clips.

Safari website settings · Chrome microphone settings

Windows · Chrome or Edge

Open the controls beside the website address and allow Microphone in this site’s permissions. In Windows Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone, check microphone access and permission for desktop apps. On older Windows versions, look under Privacy.

Microsoft’s microphone settings guide

Firefox

Use the permissions icon beside the address to remove a blocked microphone permission, then tap Record and allow the new request. You can also review Microphone under Firefox Settings → Privacy & Security → Permissions. Check your device’s microphone permission for Firefox too.

Mozilla’s permission guide

Zheng He: voyages and the questions maps raise

Name a fleet, ports and voyages.

Goals & study plan
Zheng He: voyages and the questions maps raise

A route map shows places, while the text explains roles and shared work. Follow preparation, departure, port visits and the return rather than treating travel as scenery alone. You can pause after any study block and continue later.

  • Name a fleet, ports and voyages.
  • Retell the journey’s stages.
  • Find evidence of coordinated work and exchange.

Poems, practice & discovery · Lessons 9–12

History · reading focus

Follow the sequence and context. Distinguish what this account states from an inference or judgement about the past.

Reading sessions · 3 parts
  1. Session 1 · Part 1

    Read this part, identify the main event or idea, and note one useful detail.

  2. Session 2 · Part 2

    Read this part, identify the main event or idea, and note one useful detail.

  3. Session 3 · Part 3

    Read this part, identify the main event or idea, and note one useful detail.

  4. Connect & respond

    Link the parts, try the reading checks, then write or explain a supported response. Complete the dialogue recordings in short blocks.

Words & sentences

5–8 minutes

Learn the core expressions and record in short blocks.

Reading & dialogue

10–15 minutes per sitting

Read one part per sitting. Use the reading sessions in this plan, then connect the parts and practise the dialogue in short blocks.

Practice & review

5–10 minutes

Practise the writing focus and revisit your first-choice answers.

Help with self-study

Try each item in a short block. Listen when needed, record when ready, and use the hints to retry. Pinyin and English can be turned off independently.

Show support:
Pronunciation & learning options

Pinyin shows how to say a word. The mark above a vowel shows its tone.

mā1. High and level
má2. Rising
mǎ3. Low, then rising
mà4. Falling

Watch the tone marks and listen for the rhythm of the whole phrase. Light syllables are short; pauses belong between meaningful groups.

Characters0 / 18 tasks
Task checklist · 0 / 18 complete

Characters · 生字

Flip each card for stroke order. This lesson’s writing focus: 航 · 口 · 队 · 远 · 船.

Lesson text · words, sentences and reading

Words & phrases

远航

yuǎn háng

long-distance voyage

船队

chuán duì

fleet

港口

gǎng kǒu

port

交流

jiāo liú

exchange

航线

háng xiàn

sea route

记载

jì zǎi

record; account

Model sentences

郑和率领船队多次远航。

zhèng hé shuài lǐng chuán duì duō cì yuǎn háng。

Zheng He led the fleet on several long voyages.

庞大的船队带着水手、货物和生活用品出发。

páng dà de chuán duì dài zhe shuǐ shǒu、 huò wù hé shēng huó yòng pǐn chū fā。

The large fleet sets out with sailors, goods and daily supplies.

船只在沿途港口补给淡水和食物。

chuán zhī zài yán tú gǎng kǒu bǔ jǐ dàn shuǐ hé shí wù。

The ships replenish fresh water and food at ports along the way.

远航促进了不同地区之间的交流。

yuǎn háng cù jìn le bù tóng dì qū zhī jiān de jiāo liú。

The voyages encouraged exchange between different regions.

水手根据季风和海图选择航线。

shuǐ shǒu gēn jù jì fēng hé hǎi tú xuǎn zé háng xiàn。

The sailors choose their sea route according to the monsoon winds and charts.

历史文献记载了船队到达过的一些地方。

lì shǐ wén xiàn jì zǎi le chuán duì dào dá guò de yì xiē dì fang。

Historical documents record some of the places reached by the fleet.

郑和远航

十五世纪初,郑和率领船队从中国出发,开始了漫长的海上航行。

shí wǔ shì jì chū, zhèng hé shuài lǐng chuán duì cóng zhōng guó chū fā, kāi shǐ le màn cháng de hǎi shàng háng xíng。

Early in the fifteenth century, Zheng He leads a fleet from China on long sea voyages.

出发前,船员准备物资,检查船只,还要安排每个人在航行中的工作。

chū fā qián, chuán yuán zhǔn bèi wù zī, jiǎn chá chuán zhī, hái yào ān pái měi gè rén zài háng xíng zhōng de gōng zuò。

Before departure, crew members prepare supplies, check vessels and organise their duties at sea.

大船驶离岸边,岸上的人影慢慢变小,前方只剩下宽广的海面。

dà chuán shǐ lí àn biān, àn shàng de rén yǐng màn màn biàn xiǎo, qián fāng zhǐ shèng xia kuān guǎng de hǎi miàn。

As the ships leave shore, the figures on land grow smaller until only the wide sea lies ahead.

在船上,工作有不同分工:有人留意方向,有人照看物资,有人检查船只。海面宽广,看不见熟悉的路标,大家便更需要按安排互相联系,不能把航行只当成欣赏远处的风景。

zài chuán shàng, gōng zuò yǒu bù tóng fēn gōng: yǒu rén liú yì fāng xiàng, yǒu rén zhào kàn wù zī, yǒu rén jiǎn chá chuán zhī。 hǎi miàn kuān guǎng, kàn bú jiàn shú xī de lù biāo, dà jiā biàn gèng xū yào àn ān pái hù xiāng lián xì, bù néng bǎ háng xíng zhǐ dāng chéng xīn shǎng yuǎn chù de fēng jǐng。

Different crew members attend to direction, supplies and vessels. With no familiar landmarks at sea, coordinated communication matters more than admiring the view.

有时海面平静,有时风浪很大,船员需要留意天气,也需要彼此配合。

yǒu shí hǎi miàn píng jìng, yǒu shí fēng làng hěn dà, chuán yuán xū yào liú yì tiān qì, yě xū yào bǐ cǐ pèi hé。

Sometimes the sea is calm and sometimes rough, so crews watch the weather and cooperate.

到达不同港口以后,他们与当地人交流,带回关于地方、物产和生活的见闻。

dào dá bù tóng gǎng kǒu yǐ hòu, tā men yǔ dāng dì rén jiāo liú, dài huí guān yú dì fang、 wù chǎn hé shēng huó de jiàn wén。

At different ports, they meet local people and bring back accounts of places, goods and daily life.

这些航行到达亚洲和非洲的一些地区,把相距很远的地方联系起来。

zhè xiē háng xíng dào dá yà zhōu hé fēi zhōu de yì xiē dì qū, bǎ xiāng jù hěn yuǎn de dì fang lián xì qǐ lai。

These voyages reach parts of Asia and Africa and connect distant places.

每到一处,陌生的声音与景物都会引起好奇,船员也要听清当地人的说明。记录地名、物品和所见的生活,使一次停留不只留下模糊的印象,也留下以后能够交流的见闻。

měi dào yí chù, mò shēng de shēng yīn yǔ jǐng wù dōu huì yǐn qǐ hào qí, chuán yuán yě yào tīng qīng dāng dì rén de shuō míng。 jì lù dì míng、 wù pǐn hé suǒ jiàn de shēng huó, shǐ yí cì tíng liú bù zhǐ liú xià mó hú de yìn xiàng, yě liú xià yǐ hòu néng gòu jiāo liú de jiàn wén。

At ports, crews listen and record places, goods and daily life, preserving experiences they can share rather than vague impressions.

归航时,船上不只有物品,也有船员在旅途中积累的经验和记忆。

guī háng shí, chuán shàng bù zhǐ yǒu wù pǐn, yě yǒu chuán yuán zài lǚ tú zhōng jī lěi de jīng yàn hé jì yì。

On the return voyage, the ships carry not only goods but also the crews’ experiences and memories.

辽阔的大海仍在起伏,航线上的港口却已经不再只是地图上的陌生名字。

liáo kuò de dà hǎi réng zài qǐ fú, háng xiàn shàng de gǎng kǒu què yǐ jīng bù zài zhǐ shì dì tú shàng de mò shēng míng zi。

The vast sea still rises and falls, but the ports along the route are no longer merely unfamiliar names on a map.

Conversation

A 航线图能告诉我们什么?

háng xiàn tú néng gào su wǒ men shén me?

What can a route map tell us?

B 船队大致经过的地区和港口。

chuán duì dà zhì jīng guò de dì qū hé gǎng kǒu。

Broad regions and ports visited.

A 它能告诉我们每次谈话吗?

tā néng gào su wǒ men měi cì tán huà ma?

Can it tell us every conversation?

B 不能,谈话内容需要其他可靠的记载。

bù néng, tán huà nèi róng xū yào qí tā kě kào de jì zǎi。

No; conversation details need other reliable accounts.

A 远航只靠郑和一个人吗?

yuǎn háng zhǐ kào zhèng hé yí ge rén ma?

Did the voyages depend on Zheng He alone?

B 不是,船队成员承担不同工作。

bú shì, chuán duì chéng yuán chéng dān bù tóng gōng zuò。

No; fleet members had different roles.

Sources & image credits

Curriculum references: 幼儿汉语 1–4 and 中文 1–12. Lessons are organised by learning themes and include original texts and graded adaptations.

Scene illustrations: Twemoji, © Twitter and contributors, CC BY 4.0. Pilot word-card illustrations are original AI-generated images.