June 3, 2025

In this episode, I take you inside my real, raw language learning process where I aim to show you that language learning includes mistakes, feeling pressure, and beating the bell curve to make progress

I’ve felt my language ability has been decreasing over the past year or so and so today I step outside my comfort zone and (try to) learn new vocabulary on camera (yes, really), using the day out as a new environmental package.

The real-world context around me to boost my understanding and confidence. We can have  a bit of fun with this and learning doesn’t always need to be so serious, this is a way to get away from the textbook approach I’ve fell into recently that I find challenging to keep a routine with at times, and keep things fresh and engaging.

This episode is all about embracing mistakes and pushing past perfectionism. Recording my usually private progress felt intense and I definitely broke a sweat, but it’s all part of growing.

I’ve got a long way to go! So come see where I’ve started from and see what we can share.Watch, learn, and maybe cringe along with me, then go out and make your own language learning breakthroughs (and let me know any tips that you think would be helpful for me to improve too!).

#5 LaowaiLunches: An authentic Language learning experience using vocabulary packages and environments

Category	English	Mandarin (中文)	Pinyin
Weather & Nature	Waterproof	防水	fángshuǐ
	Cloudy	阴天	yīntiān
	Rain	下雨	xiàyǔ
	Tide	海潮	hǎicháo
	Wave	浪潮	làngcháo
	Sun	太阳	tàiyáng
	Shadow	倾影	xìngyǐng (note: 常用词 is 影子 yǐngzi)
	Pattern	模式	móshì
	Appearance	模样	móyàng
	Sand	沙子	shāzi
	Dunes	固沙	gǔshā (lit. fixed dunes)
	Moving dunes	沙丘	shāqiū (means sand dune in general)
	Wild	野蛮	yěmán
	Seaside/Coast	海边	hǎibiān
	Windmill	风车	fēngchē
Travel & Activity	Hiking	徒步旅行	túbù lǚxíng
	Climbing	爬山	páshān
	Take off shoes	脱鞋	tuōxié
	Feeling	感觉	gǎnjué
Objects & Places	Ceiling	顶棚	dǐngpéng
	Hanged (object)	挂着	guàzhe
	Lifeguard	救生员	jiùshēngyuán
Food & Drink	Snack	小吃	xiǎochī
	Wheat flour	麦粉	màifěn
	Waffle	华夫	huáfū
	Brownie	布朗尼	bùlǎngní
People	Waiter/Attendant	服务员	fúwùyuán

#LanguageLearning #BigEducationPodcast #LearnByDoing #ProgressNotPerfection #VocabularyInContext #LanguageJourney #MakingMistakes