Unfortunately in Singapore the test center only has paper based test for L1-L4. While I’ve written to them on possibility for an online test, what would be your best suggestion(s) to write and remember 汉字？
I found a cheaper app than Skritter called “Chinese Writer” which has both tracing and stroke order. I also have a PDF of a book called Reading and Writing Chinese Characters HSK 1-6 but this one explains what each radical or word means and how to visualize it for example, Tian or 田 is to be understood as a field split into 4 parts. While this sounds interesting it is difficult to make sense when using them in words or phrases.
Is the good old HSK writing sheets with stroke order the only best way out? Any suggested resources?
Radicals. It does not matter if you learn to read or write the important thing is to start breaking down characters into their building blocks. Once you can write the building blocks everything else becomes easy. From your example 田 is a very rarely used word unless you are into rice farming, however learning the radical is very useful. For example you will need 男 (man/male) a lot. When you break 男 down into its two radicals it consists out of 田 (rice field) and 力 (power).
And suddenly you can remember what a man was to the ancient Chinese: the power on the rice field (someone who works hard on the rice fields). Chinese Radicals // All 214 Radicals (with FREE Video, PDF & Quiz)
Get into calligraphy. It’s a very interesting part of Chinese culture and helps a lot with hand writing Chinese Calligraphy (AKA 书法) // Your Ultimate & Complete Guide
If you book a 1on1 class on Flexi you can ask the teacher to teach you. Make sure you write it in the Notes when booking so your Flexi Teacher can prepare.
And most importantly check out this brand new blog post on how to learn to memorize Chinese characters by this forums very own @Marco_Mandarin-HSK_4
Marco any further suggestions from you?
One way to definitely NOT learn how to handwrite quickly is the endless hand writing of a single character one endless pieces of paper. I did that at university and it’s a huge waste of time. Your wrists get arthritis before they learned enough characters to pass HSK 4. Use your brain not (only) your hands.
The first few columns were messy because I wasn’t wearing my reading glasses — I’m 48 and my vision has deteriorated a lot in the past few years! I’ve bought about ten of them on Temu; there are all sorts. Although I know about 5700 words (HackChinese says), there are quite a few I don’t recognise in these old, classical texts.
writing a daily journal. I use the little dark blue note books with vertical columns. This is a great habit that my partner suggested. If I have to look up a character, I circle it, then practise it again the next time I write in the diary, before writing the next entry.
Hi Hannah,
I started a Chinese calligraphy class on Domestika (online prerecorded classes) about a year ago, but only did about ten minutes. I watch lots of Instagram vids and drama series, so I pick up things here and there. Also, these scrolls already have the words very lightly printed, you just have to copy what’s already there. I hold the brush vertically, but I can’t do the classical brush hold with the index and third fingers or without resting my elbow on the surface. I think one isn’t supposed to lean any part of one’s arm on the table surface. That’s really difficult!
汉娜你好，
我一年之前在网上台一个中式书法课开始，但只十分钟左右看望了后放弃了。不过我看很多IG视频和中文电视剧,所以找得见相当多样的吩咐。也这些卷已经有轻轻的印象的词，某人只需要在已经在那儿写的词上写。我自己会正确地把刷但不会古典的手艺术用，比如，必须用第一个跟第三个指把毛笔，或者在桌子上必须放不下自己的胳膊肘子。我认为应该在桌子上把胳膊不必放丝毫，对我来说太难了！
I’ve just forwarded some of the links you gave to my class but I think there are mistakes
AH NO, it’s actually the mobile version that is all jumbled up. If I read the full list of radicals on my laptop, no problem, on my phone it’s all over the place
I worry a bit because I’ve forwarded it to my classmates and if they check it on their phones they’re going to be even more confused than they are already, and trust me, most of them are VERY confused
my wrists ache just thinking about it