How to use Mandarin Mosaic for sentence mining
In this article we'll cover how to get the most out of Mandarin Mosaic when sentence mining, but first we'll start with the basics and cover what sentence mining is for those unfamiliar with the concept.
What is sentence mining?
Sentence mining is a very powerful technique for language learners which allows you to learn new words in context.
Sentence mining involves two main steps:
- Gathering sentences from various sources such as:
- TV and movies
- Conversations with native speakers
- News articles
- Books
- Websites
- Reviewing the sentences on a regular basis in order to learn:
- New words
- New grammar structures
- New phrases and Idioms
The reviews should be conducted using a spaced repetition algorithm to get the best use of your study time and make sure that information is re-shown at just the right interval to maintain your memory.
The main advantage of sentence mining is that the new words and grammar structures are learned in whole sentences so that your learning is more context rich.
Compared with studying word flashcards in isolation, sentence mining massively reduces the occurence of the problem where you learn a new word but don't know how to use it in a sentence.
Mandarin Mosaic keeps track of your vocabulary so that each sentence it shows you contains at most one unknown word. This allows you to gather a large amount of sentences, or import large decks and not be overwhelmed by sentences that are too difficult for you.
This kind of approach is known as i + 1 sentence mining, as each sentence shown contains at most 1 new piece of information, allowing you to much more easily pick it up.
How to best use Mandarin Mosaic for sentence mining.
One of the most important things to do while sentence mining in Mandarin Mosaic is to keep track of your vocabulary.
This means marking words known if you feel you know them, and marking words unknown if you don't.
You can do this by tapping on any word and marking it as known or unknown in the word definition dialog.
Doing this helps Mandarin Mosaic keep track of your vocabulary and show you sentences which are personalised to your level.
It's also important to regularly study your review packs. Mandarin Mosaic tracks how often you've seen words and uses a spaced repetition algorithm to suggest when it's time to review a word.
What to study?
Mandarin Mosaic comes with a wide range of sentence packs, of which every sentence has been verified by a native speaker.
The HSK decks are great if you want to learn new words from the HSK and you can pick the deck that's appropriate to your HSK level.
You can also make your own sentence packs. This is a great way when sentence mining to learn new Chinese vocabulary that's relevant to you.
If you already use Anki for sentence mining, you can easily import your Anki decks in order to transfer over and gain the additional features Mandarin Mosaic offers like vocabulary tracking and lifelike text to speech.
More on sentence mining
Thanks for reading! Check out our Usage Guide for more articles on sentence mining in Mandarin Mosaic or subscribe to our email list to get early access to the app.