In Mandarin learning courses teachers can tell students a brief and interesting story or news which is good for importing new teaching contents and then start teaching.
This method can draw the attention of students and make them excited so that they can devote themselves into learning new contents.
One teacher from a school to study Mandarin prefers this teaching approach very much. He set a model for all the other teachers of Chinese language school in effective teaching.
Here we will give an example that he used this teaching approach in the Mandarin language courses in China.
When teaching the word “提心吊胆”, the teacher firstly told a piece of news from Reference News to the students who study Chinese in China:
英国某公寓的数名住户在自家卫生间上厕所时，三番五次发现一条三米长的大蟒蛇从马桶中窜出来，又钻进去。自从这条大蟒蛇出现后，该公寓的很多住户再也不敢在家中上厕所了，他们担心自己屁股刚坐在马桶圈上，那条恐怖的蟒蛇就会蹿出来。直到上周六晚，这条大蟒蛇才终于被逮住，而结束了该公寓居民的“噩梦”。尽管大蟒蛇被逮住了，但该公寓的住户仍然无法彻底放下心来，因为皇家动物协会官员临走时说：这条大蟒蛇是条母蛇，它有可能在下水道中留下了一些蛇卵。
Teacher: 这样的消息你们听过吗？
Students: 从没听过。
Teacher: 如果你遇到了这样的情况你会怎么样？
Students: 害怕、可怕……
Teacher: 大蟒蛇最后抓走了吗？
Students: 抓走了。
Teacher: 那么该公寓的主人可以放心了吧？
Students: 哪儿啊！下水道里可能还留下了一些蛇卵，过不了多久，会……
The teacher then asked the students: 如果你是该公寓的居民，有这样的卫生间，你会怎样？
After the students discussed their opinions, the teacher brought the new word “提心吊胆”and started the teaching.
A teacher of the school to study in China used this teaching approach to teach the new word “巧合”.
He asked the students who study in China to learn the relevant materials about the earthquake happened in Sichuan before the class and told them a story in the intensive Mandarin courses in China:
成都彭州市一农民家的大肥猪，地震后被埋在废墟下36天，6月17日被解放军战士刨出来时，还活着。6月22日，建川博物馆馆长用3008元将这头猪买下来，并给它取了个名字，打算将它养到自然死亡。
Teacher: 你们知道地震后的最佳救援时间是几天吗？
Students: 7天
Teacher: 也就是说如果超过7天，废墟下就很难再有生命存活了，是吗？
Students: 是的。
Teacher: 地震后，这头猪被埋在废墟下多少天？
Students: 36天。
Teacher: 这头猪创造了生命奇迹。所以建川博物馆馆长用3008元将这头猪买下来，并给它取了个名字。
Teacher: 你们知道它的名字是什么吗？
Students who learn Mandarin had a discussion. The teacher then wrote down the name “朱坚强”on the blackboard and explained the meaning of the name to the students who study Chinese.
After explanation, students easily understood the new word “坚强” and the teaching was quite effective.