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As the age-old saying goes: Practice makes perfect. This is especially true when it comes to learning new languages like Chinese/Mandarin. While learning through Chinese learning apps or tuning in to Chinese podcasts is fun, it is only through constant practice that you can truly master the language.Â
To help you out, here are 10 of the best Chinese workbooks for language learners that even native speakers sometimes secretly use!
1. HSK Standard Course (Series)
When it comes to the best Chinese workbooks to help practice and improve your Mandarin, the HSK Standard Course is in fact, THE gold standard. After all, the Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi is literally the standardized test that is used to determine the efficiency of non-native speakers in China!
Start with the HSK 1 textbook and workbook. First, use the textbook to build a solid foundation in beginner-level Mandarin. Learn the basics of reading and writing, and expand your vocabulary with essential words and phrases using audio recordings.
Then, make use of the accompanying workbook to review the lessons and practice until you’re comfortable moving on to the next level. As a native speaker, there isn’t any Mandarin workbook that I recommend more than this series.
This workbook is best for:
- Building a holistic understanding of Mandarin
- Reading and writing practice
- Revising vocabulary
2. Chinese Made Easier
I’m not gonna lie, out of all the Chinese workbooks on this list, Chinese Made Easier reminds me the most of the workbooks I used to use during my childhood. As emphasized in the name, this textbook-workbook combo focuses on the most fundamental aspects of Mandarin.
Expect topics such as self-introduction, telling the time, and more in the textbook. You’ll pick up important vocabulary and certain grammatical rules as you flip through the pages of this elementary yet essential book.
Once you’re done, switch over to the activity sheets in the workbook to review what you’ve learned.
This workbook is best for:
- Building a strong foundation in basic Mandarin
- Learners who prefer a more simple, straightforward approach
- Practicing basic functional Mandarin
3. New Practical Chinese Reader
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New Practical Chinese Reader is another one of those Chinese workbooks that come attached to an accompanying textbook. As the name suggests, this Chinese textbook for beginners emphasizes the most practical parts of the language.
Over the six volumes of the textbook, you’ll learn the basics of Mandarin sentence structure, new vocabulary, conversational nuances, and even Chinese idioms. The lessons are designed to increase in difficulty as you progress in proficiency, providing a decent challenge even for intermediate learners.
This New Practical Chinese Reader workbook is, unsurprisingly, best used alongside the textbook as each exercise is connected with a corresponding lesson. They range from writing and reading comprehension to grammar exercises.
This workbook is best for:
- Learning and practicing functional Mandarin
- Progressing from beginner to intermediate proficiency
- Reviewing several aspects of Mandarin in one session
4. Integrated Chinese (4th Edition)
Integrated Chinese is another one of the most trusted Chinese textbooks on the market. The Integrated Chinese workbook is just as popular as a choice for non-native speakers to practice Mandarin.
Like the textbook which accompanies it, this Chinese workbook focuses on core language skills that are designed to help learners achieve fluency faster. There are plenty of reading and writing exercises, most of which come in the form of listening exercises.
More importantly, there are also exercises on Hanyu Pinyin and tone to help beginners quickly grasp the complicated nuances of speaking Mandarin. What’s more, some of the questions are open-ended ones, which helps learners personalize and internalize their answers in Mandarin.
This workbook is best for:
- Practicing Hanyu Pinyin and reading
- Learning how to think in Mandarin
- Getting used to writing Mandarin characters
5. Colloquial Chinese
Even though Colloquial Chinese isn’t strictly a Chinese workbook (it is a textbook with plenty of exercises), I have to include this one because of how well-rounded it is as a learning resource for beginners.
The main strength of the textbook is that it teaches you the most basic yet essential Chinese vocabulary that is commonly used in daily conversations. It also exposes the reader to fun facts about modern Mandarin slang terms.
The exercises in this book, on the other hand, focus on grammar and listening exercises. Since all these go hand-in-hand with each other, Colloquial Chinese presents itself as a practical Chinese workbook for beginners that helps learners quickly get accustomed to reading, writing, and speaking Mandarin.
This workbook is best for:
- Learning an array of essential Mandarin words
- Mastering the correct way to use certain phrases
- Honing your Mandarin listening skills
6. Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar Workbook
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Compared to vocabulary and writing, Chinese grammar books are quite rare. The same goes for Chinese grammar workbooks. However, don’t fret, because there is indeed one such book that can help meet all your Chinese grammar needs: Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar.
Known as one of the best Chinese textbooks to help learners break down complex topics like sentence structure, speech patterns, and more. The tie-in workbook reinforces the lessons in the textbook, providing ample opportunities for you to practice forming proper sentences in various scenarios.
If your goal is to speak proudly like a native speaker one day, then this is arguably one of the most essential Chinese workbooks you need to get!
This workbook is best for:
- Mastering Chinese sentence structure and grammar
- Practicing proper speech patterns
7. Fundamentals of Chinese Characters
- Yin, John Jing-Hua (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 401 Pages – 05/20/2006 (Publication Date) – YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS (Publisher)
As most native speakers will agree, the first step to mastering Mandarin is improving your vocabulary. One of the best Chinese workbooks in that regard is this gem from Yale University Press.
To be fair, it is not strictly a Chinese character workbook. Instead, it is an essential book of the most common Chinese characters in the language, and weaved in between the many lessons are interactive exercises that help you quickly learn and recognize these words.
As you better understand the morphology of Mandarin characters, the exercises help you get a practical sense of how to use these words better, helping you quickly expand your word bank.
This workbook is best for:
- Memorizing commonly-used Mandarin characters
- Learning how to properly use essential vocabulary
- Mastering how to write basic Chinese characters
8. Basic Mandarin Chinese – Reading & Writing
Even though there is in fact a Basic Mandarin Chinese textbook, this Chinese character workbook is actually one of the few of its kind that can actually be effectively used on its own.
There are plenty of practice guides, both in the form of written and audio exercises in the book. The aim is to get you comfortable with over 200 of the most basic Chinese characters and use them in the correct way.
You’ll learn to write each character, stroke by stroke, read it in the correct tone, translate it, and use it in the correct conversational context. By the end of the book, you’ll also be able to easily identify radicals (bushou) which will be a great help for looking up new words in the dictionary later on.
This workbook is best for:
- Learning the most important Chinese words in daily conversation
- Mastering the concept of Chinese radical
- Translation practice
9. Easy Peasy Chinese Workbook
While Easy Peasy Chinese is a holistic Chinese textbook for beginners, its corresponding workbook leans slightly more toward the vocabulary aspect of Mandarin.
It focuses on helping learners master different character strokes and memorize everyday words used in conversations. As you work on the exercises alongside studying with the textbook, you’ll find that Easy Peasy Chinese is actually quite a decent Chinese character workbook that makes it easy to remember what you’ve learned.
While it may be a little too elementary for intermediate learners, it’s certainly one of the best Chinese workbooks for those who are just starting out in the language!
This workbook is best for:
- Practicing writing Chinese characters in the right sequence
- Memorizing basic vocabulary and phrases
10. Practical Audio-Visual Chinese Workbook
- Practical Audio-Visual Chinese Student’s Workbook 1
- Practical Audio-Visual Chinese
Most Chinese vocabulary workbooks try to get learners to understand how certain words can be used in a sentence. This textbook/workbook tie-up, however, dives deeper by providing in-depth explanations about each character and teaching learners how to use every one of them in sample sentences.
Once you’re familiar with the range of vocabulary in the textbook, it’s time to transfer over to the activity sheets and try constructing sentences of your own. It’s a great challenge to help non-native learners quickly grasp sentence-making in Mandarin.
That said, take note that this book uses Traditional Mandarin characters. While it’s fun learning to transcribe between Simplified and Traditional Mandarin once you reach a certain level of proficiency, I do recommend beginners to look elsewhere for Chinese character workbooks.
This workbook is best for:
- A deep dive into Chinese vocabulary
- Learning to read Traditional Chinese characters
Bonus: Tian Zi Ge Books
Fun fact: Did you know that all Chinese characters, even the most complex ones, can essentially be broken up into four distinct sections? That’s why most Chinese workbooks that offer writing practice come with these boxes with intersecting lines in the middle.
The squares are meant to help you write Chinese characters using proper strokes and sequences and can be used for both normal writing practice and Chinese calligraphy. Rather than view them as workbooks though, I recommend getting one for some therapeutic Chinese writing practice. I suggest figuring out your Chinese name, and learning how to write that first!
And there you have it: 10 of the best Chinese workbooks for language learners. Of course, before you can even start practicing Mandarin, you need to learn the language first! I suggest starting with these Chinese textbooks or other books to learn Chinese! Better yet, check out this list of the best Chinese learning resources!