Sean couldn't mask his dismay at the literal exactitude with which his Chinese lecturer approached her teaching duties. Even after months of parroting back her sentences like a trained parrot, he still struggled with spontaneous communication. It struck him as absurd that anyone expect a student to reach fluency this way, but that was why he'd finally taken the plunge and hired a local tutor. Even if his new teacher wasn't professionally trained, at least his time with her would afford the chance for some genuine conversation.

On the off-chance that this is your first lesson, don't be scared: while this is the longest dialogue we've ever produced at the Elementary level, the vocabulary is not terribly complex and we think you can handle it. And if you have any questions or comments? Feel free to write us anytime at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.