Chinese News is a series of 12 courses covering 1,220 common Chinese words and expressions that you need to know in order to read Chinese newspapers and magazines. Most of the sample sentences focus on the kind of social commentary you see in today’s press, both in style and content. Mastering these items will give you a solid foundation in written Chinese and the more formal side of spoken Chinese.

The series is aimed at students who have studied Chinese for at least one year. Second-year students of Chinese at the university level should start with the first course in the series, Chinese News: Step 1. Third-year students should probably jump ahead to Step 4.

Note: All characters in this series are in simplified Chinese.