VIP Class Notes (Nick)

Either write something about how you liked the Dragon Burn Festival (was it good or not? what was the best part?)

OR

Be ready to do a speaking about your favorite part of Dragon Burn.

Vocabulary

Have [someone’s] class / have class [with who] – to go to class, or to go to some teacher’s class
e.g. I have had class with Lily, Kyle, and Nicholas, but I haven’t had Nemo’s class yet.

Too bad! – 可惜

Specific – just one, we know which one 特定
General – true of many things, time, places 通用，一般

Foreigner – someone from another country

Art Installation – a large piece of art, usually not just painted 艺术装置

Simplified / Traditional Chinese – 简体/繁体
Traditional – something that is done in the same way it was done before, in the past, long ago 传统
e.g. The way that Mainland talks about the old form of characters is by calling them “complicated” instead of “traditional”
Complicated – very difficult, confusing
e.g. Chinese business law can be very complicated.

Simplify – the verb related to “simple”; to make easier 简化
e.g. The Mainland government simplified the traditional characters so that the characters would be easier to learn and to write.

Character – Chinese words, using symbols instead of an alphabet 字
Letter – symbols that don’t have meaning, but that show sound
e.g. English uses an alphabet of 26 letters to write words.
e.g. Chinese uses a system of characters to write words.

Vacation – to leave work and travel or relax
To ask for vacation / take leave – 请假
e.g. I asked for a week of vacation to go home to Chicago.

Chicago – 芝加哥

Grammar

I don’t have Nemo’s class – I didn’t have / haven’t had
— There are three different options here, and each option means something a little bit different.
– The first is in the present, now: I do not have
This means that something is not true right now.
e.g. I do not have a banana.
– This could also be in general, that something is usually or often true (or not):
e.g. I do not have class with Nemo (maybe we have different schedules so it is very difficult for me to choose his classes; I almost never go to class with Nemo (too bad!))
– The second is in the past: I did not have
This is specific in the past, something finished.
e.g. Yesterday I didn’t have a banana (but maybe today I bought one)
e.g. I didn’t eat your pasta.
– The last one is in the past, but a different type: I have not had
This is something connected to now, probably still happening; something you have never done
e.g. I have spoken English for five years (starting five years ago, and until now, I speak English)
e.g. I haven’t been to Germany (never) / I have been to Germany (at least once)

I have a lot of times to think – time
— When you use “time” like 时间 it doesn’t have an “s”
— When you use it like 次 you can use “s”

They are use – they use

How do you feel Shanghai? – How do you feel about Shanghai?
— When you want to ask about the topic, subject of some thought or feeling

If I don’t have English class, I already go there – If I didn’t have English class, (then) I would already have gone there
— “Will” is about something sure, certain in the future
e.g. I will go to Dalian tomorrow (this is certain; I have already bought the tickets)
— “Would” is something that can’t happen unless something else changes first
e.g. I would go to Burning Dragon if I were not going to Dalian.

Pronunciation

Foreigner -for – en – er (the “g” is silent; pretend that there is no “g” in this word)