GRADE 8 Mandarin Chinese My Body- LISTENING AND SPEAKING – Listening for Information Notes
My Body — LISTENING FOR INFORMATION (Mandarin Chinese) — Age 13 (Kenya)
- a) mention keywords and phrases in the depicted context
- b) examine verbal and non‑verbal cues to comprehend information
- c) acknowledge the importance of listening actively to retain information
- d) address categories: listening for information, comprehension, and verbal/non‑verbal cues
头 / tóu
head
眼睛 / yǎnjing
eyes
耳朵 / ěrduo
ear
鼻子 / bízi
nose
肚子 / dùzi
stomach
手 / shǒu
hand
腿 / tuǐ
leg
- 你哪儿不舒服？ / Nǐ nǎr bù shūfú? — Where do you feel unwell?
- 我肚子疼。 / Wǒ dùzi téng. — My stomach hurts.
- 我头疼。 / Wǒ tóuténg. — I have a headache.
- 你怎么了？ / Nǐ zěnme le? — What happened to you?
- 你能说得慢一点吗？ / Nǐ néng shuō de màn yīdiǎn ma? — Can you say it more slowly?
- 请告诉我哪里疼。 / Qǐng gàosu wǒ nǎlǐ téng. — Please tell me where it hurts.
- 他正在吃药。 / Tā zhèngzài chī yào. — He is taking medicine (ongoing action).
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Question words and particles
- 哪儿 / 哪里 (nǎr / nǎlǐ): location. Example: 你哪儿疼？(Where do you hurt?)
- 怎么 / 怎么了 (zěnme / zěnme le): how / what happened. Example: 你怎么了？
- 吗 (ma): yes/no question particle. Example: 你觉得疼吗？(Does it hurt?)
Listening tip: when you hear 吗 or a rising tone at the end, expect a yes/no answer — focus on verbs and nouns that follow. -
Aspect markers (how they show time/state)
- 了 (le): change or completed action. Example: 我的脚肿了。(My foot has swollen.) — important to show that something started.
- 过 (guò): experience. Example: 我吃过这种药。(I have taken this medicine before.)
- 着 (zhe): continuous state. Example: 他躺着。(He is lying down.)
Listening tip: hearing 了 often signals a new condition — mark it and check what changed. -
Negation and ability
- 不 (bù) / 没(有) (méi / méiyǒu): not / not have — affects whether action occurred.
- 能 / 会 / 可以 (néng / huì / kěyǐ): can / will / may — expresses ability or permission. Example: 你能走路吗？(Can you walk?)
Listening tip: these words change possible next steps (treatment, help). -
Imperatives & polite requests
- 请 + verb: polite instruction. Example: 请躺下。(Please lie down.)
- Verb + 一下: soften a request. Example: 说一下哪里疼。(Say where it hurts.)
Listening tip: recognize requests vs. statements to know whether speaker asks for information or gives instructions. -
Pronouns & reference
- 他 / 她 / 我 / 你 / 我们: identify who is affected. Example: 他头疼 vs 我头疼 — different listeners must respond differently.
Listening tip: first identify the subject (who) then the verb and place (where).
- Tone and particle cues: 吗, question words, and rising intonation signal the type of grammar you must expect in the answer.
- Stress & lengthening: stressed noun or verb often carries the key info (e.g., 我 肚子 疼 — focus on 肚子).
- Gestures & pointing: when a speaker points to a body part while saying 哪儿疼, the location clarifies the noun and reduces ambiguity.
- Facial expression: pain + past particle 了 often means the state changed recently (e.g., 哎呀，疼了!).
Transcript (characters / pinyin / translation)
A: 你哪儿不舒服？
Nǐ nǎr bù shūfú?
Where do you feel unwell?
Nǐ nǎr bù shūfú?
Where do you feel unwell?
B: 我肚子很疼，还发烧了。
Wǒ dùzi hěn téng, hái fāshāo le.
My stomach hurts a lot, and I also have a fever.
Wǒ dùzi hěn téng, hái fāshāo le.
My stomach hurts a lot, and I also have a fever.
A: 你吃了什么？
Nǐ chī le shénme?
What did you eat?
Nǐ chī le shénme?
What did you eat?
B: 我吃了快餐，可能吃坏肚子了。
Wǒ chī le kuàicān, kěnéng chī huài dùzi le.
I ate fast food; maybe it upset my stomach.
Wǒ chī le kuàicān, kěnéng chī huài dùzi le.
I ate fast food; maybe it upset my stomach.
Listening tasks (focus on grammar)
- Underline the question word(s) and particle(s) in A's sentences. (Answer: 哪儿, 吗 not used but question form; 吃了 — 了 indicates completed action.)
- Which aspect marker tells you that the action already happened? (Answer: 了 in 吃了 / 发烧了.)
- What modal or possibility word shows uncertainty? (Answer: 可能 kěnéng.)
- Who has the problem? (Answer: B / 我.)
- Listening gap-fill: teacher reads health announcements about common school problems (headache, stomachache). Students listen and fill blanks for particles/aspect markers (了, 着, 过).
- Doctor/nurse role-play: one student describes symptoms; partner listens and writes the exact WHO, WHERE, WHEN using question words (谁, 哪儿, 什么时候). Emphasize using 请 + verb for polite instructions.
- Audio discrimination: play pairs of sentences that differ only by particle (e.g., 我吃了 vs 我没吃) — students mark whether event happened (use yes/no and explain the grammar).
- Non‑verbal practice: students listen to a short sentence while the speaker points to body parts; students must write the body part and the aspect marker heard.
Active listening helps learners catch small grammatical markers (了, 过, 吗, 哪儿) that change meaning. For example, missing 了 can confuse whether something already happened or not. Paying attention to particles, question words and modal verbs lets you understand facts (who, what, where, when) quickly.