Chinese III

Course Overview

This course focuses on enhancing students’ interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational skills by expanding their knowledge through interactive activities including discussion, debates, translation, contextualized reading, and listening and speaking assignments that were designed based on authentic resources such as films, TV series, documentaries, and interviews, and comic series.

Objectives

Student learning outcomes include attaining approximately the Intermediate-Mid level on the ACTFL proficiency scale; comprehending authentic and original listening and reading materials; being able to discuss in depth topics including campus life, dining, shopping, academic planning, in both oral and written forms; and being able to use presentational skills to narrate and discuss a feature length movie.

Course Content

Unit 1: Starting a New Semester

This unit focuses on teaching students to talk about the pros and cons of different topics. Topics include the pros and cons of living on and off campus, travelling by car and airplane, eating at home and in a restaurant, going to a college close to home and far from home, and renting an apartment alone and with roommates. Students will also learn to express a dissenting opinion politely.

Unit 2: Dorm Life

In this unit, the students will learn to name basic pieces of furniture and appliances, describe the arrangement of the furniture at their houses and in their bedrooms or in their dorms, and comment on the neighborhood. They will describe the neighborhood in terms of whether it is quiet and convenient, whether it is close to schools, student activity centers, grocery stores, subway stations or bus stops, parks, libraries, restaurants, and other nearby resources.

Unit 3: At a Restaurant

In this unit, students will learn cultural knowledge about Chinese regional cuisines. They will also learn to order food and drinks in a restaurant and to describe their dietary restrictions and preferences.

Unit 4: Shopping

In this unit, students will learn to name basic clothing, bedding, and daily necessities, describe their shopping preferences and criteria, talk about discounts and learn to bargain in appropriate contexts.

Unit 5: Choosing Classes

This unit will teach students to name some common college majors and some required core courses for those majors. They will also learn to discuss their plans after graduation and talk about their criteria for choosing a college major.