When I taught Chinese at U3A (University of the Third Age) for retired people, one problem was the lack of appropriate resource materials. Many textbooks focus on the lives of university-aged students. Of course, there is also a plethora of books on practical vocabulary such as ” what time is the next train?” and “can I please have the bill? While these are useful, they are not very engaging in content. I sought to find materials that could provide stimulating thoughts and discussions. I decided on writing short passages based on biographies. The vocaculary in biographies often relates to a person’s family, school and working lives. The stories are engaging, not only because they are true, but also because they are about some remarkable persons. The following is work-in-progress – the ones I have done to date. I will continue to add to this collection.
To cite these, please use
Wu, M. L. (2018). Learning Chinese from Biographies. Available from: https://learningchineseforpleasure.com/resources-for-learning-chinese/learning-chinese-from-biographies/
Lang Lang : Journey of a thousand miles 郎朗：千里之行
Ang Lee： A 10-year Movie Dream 李安： 十年一觉电影梦
The Last Emperor, Puyi: The first half of my life 溥仪： 我的前半生
Learning Chinese For Pleasure 