Chinese School Campus and Locations

Essential School Vocabulary (学校 - Xué Xiào)

• Buildings and Facilities:

  • 教学楼 (jiàoxué lòu): Teaching/Classroom building.

  • 科学楼 (kēxué lòu): Science building.

  • 一号楼 (yī hào lòu): Building No. 1.

  • 教室 (jiàoshì): Classroom.

  • 实验室 (shíyàn shì): Laboratory.

  • 美术室 (měishù shì): Art room.

  • 音乐室 (yīnyuè shì): Music room.

  • 电脑室 (diànnǎo shì): Computer room.

  • 图书馆 (túshū guǎn): Library.

  • 礼堂 (lǐtáng): Auditorium / Hall / PAC (Performing Arts Center).

  • 教堂 (jiàotáng): Church.

  • 体育室 (tǐyù shì): Gym/Physical education room.

  • 体操馆 (tǐcāo guǎn): Gym / Gymnasium.

  • 游泳池/馆 (yóuyǒng chí): Swimming pool.

  • 老师办公室 (lǎoshī bàngōngshì): Staff room / Teacher's office.

  • 校长办公室 (xiàozhǎng bàngōngshì): Principal's office.

  • 接待室 (jiēdài shì): Reception.

  • 医务室/校医室 (yīwù shì): Medical room / School clinic.

  • 更衣室 (gēngyī shì): Changing room.

  • 厕所 (cèsuǒ): Toilet / Restroom.

• Outdoor and Transitional Spaces:

  • 操场 (cāochǎng): Oval / Sports ground.

  • 运动场 (yùndòng chǎng): Oval / Athletic field.

  • 球场 (qiúchǎng): Court (for ball games, e.g., tennis or basketball).

  • 足球场 (zúqiú chǎng): Football pitch.

  • 玫瑰花园 (méiguī huāyuán): Rose garden.

  • 花园 (huāyuán): Garden.

  • 游乐场 (yóulè chǎng): Playground.

  • 停车场 (tíngchē chǎng): Car park.

  • 小卖部 (xiǎomài bù): Tuck shop / Canteen shop.

  • 食堂 (shítáng): Canteen.

  • 车站 (chēzhàn): Station / Stop.

  • 小学 (xiǎoxué): Primary/Junior school.

  • 九年级中心 (jiǔ niánjí zhōngxīn): Year 9 center.

  • 大门 (dàmén): Main gate / Entrance.

  • 正门 (zhèngmén): Main entrance.

  • 后门 (hòumén): Back gate.

Spatial and Location Vocabulary

• Primary Directional Words:

  • 上 (shàng): Up / Above.

  • 下 (xià): Down / Under.

  • 前 (qián): Front.

  • 后 (hòu): Back / Behind.

  • 左 (zuǒ): Left.

  • 右 (yòu): Right.

  • 里 (lǐ): Inside.

  • 外 (wài): Outside.

• Location Nouns (Combinations):

  • 上面 (shàng mian): Above / On top of.

  • 下面 (xià mian): Under / Below.

  • 前面 (qián mian): In front of.

  • 后面 (hòu mian): Behind / On the back of.

  • 左边 (zuǒ bian): Left side.

  • 右边 (yòu bian): Right side.

  • 里面 (lǐ mian): Inside / In.

  • 外面 (wài mian): Outside.

  • 中间 (zhōng jiān): In the middle of.

  • 对面 (duì miàn): Opposite to.

  • 旁边 (pángbiān): On the side of / Beside.

  • 隔壁 (gébì): Next door.

  • 附近 (fù jìn): Nearby.

• Vertical Levels:

  • 楼上 (lòushàng): Upstairs.

  • 楼下 (lòuxià): Downstairs.

  • 一楼 / 一层 (yī lòu / yī céng): Ground level / First floor.

  • 二层 (èr céng): Second floor / First floor (international numbering).

  • 三楼 (sān lòu): Third floor.

  • 四楼 (sì lòu): Fourth floor.

Grammar and Sentence Structures

• Structure 1: Describing relative position ($A + zài + B + (de) + \text{location}$)

  • Used to state where someone or something is located.

  • Example: 我的笔在哪儿? (Where is my pen?)

  • Example: 你的笔在书上面. (Your pen is on top of the book.)

  • Example: 游泳池在操场旁边 (The swimming pool is beside the oval.)

• Structure 2: Activity in a location ($\text{Person} + zài + \text{place} + \text{activities}$)

  • Used to describe who is doing what and where.

  • Example: 她在图书馆里面看书. (She is reading in the library.)

  • Related Activities to Revise:

    • 游泳 (yóuyǒng): Swimming.

    • 看书 (kànshū): Reading.

    • 看电视 (kàn diànshì): Watching TV.

    • 上课 (shàngkè): Attending class.

    • 做作业 (zuò zuòyè): Doing homework.

    • 吃午饭 (chī wǔfàn): Eating lunch.

    • 跑步 (pǎobù): Running.

    • 说汉语 (shuō hànyǔ): Speaking Chinese.

    • 打电话 (dǎ diànhuà): Making a phone call.

    • 听音乐 (tīng yīnyuè): Listening to music.

    • 睡觉 (shuìjiào): Sleeping.

• Structure 3: Existence of facilities ($\text{Place} + yǒu + \text{Facility}$)

  • Used to describe what a school site contains.

  • Example: 我们的学校有游泳池, 体操馆, 图书馆, 小卖部. (There are a swimming pool, gym, library, and tuck shop at our school.)

• Structure 4: Advanced Existence with 'Yǒu' or 'Shì'

  • Positive existence (Yǒu): A 的 [location] 有 B (A's [location] has B).

  • Example: 猫的前面有一只狗 (In front of the cat there is a dog).

  • Equative position (Shì): A 的 [location] 是 B (A's [location] is B).

  • Example: 狗的后面是一只猫 (Behind the dog is a cat).

Mnemonic Chant: Clap Hands ($Pāi shou$)

• 拍手, 拍手, 拍拍手 (Clap hands, clap hands, clap-clap hands)

• 上上下下 (shangshangxiaxia) - Up and down

• 左左右右 (zuozuoyouyou) - Left and right

• 前前后后 (qianqianhouhou) - Front and back

• 轱轳轱轳里 (gulugululi) - Rolling inside

• 轱轳轱轳外 (guluguluwai) - Rolling outside

• 中间是个丑八怪 (zhongjianshigechoubaguai) - In the middle is a monster/ugly person

Case Studies in Campus Layout

• Xiaoming's Family and the Car:

  • Family size: 6 people (Dad, Mom, older brother, older sister, younger brother, and Xiaoming).

  • Pets: One cat and one dog.

  • Positions relative to the car:

    • Younger brother ($didi$): On the car ($che shàngmian$).

    • Father ($bàba$): Under the car ($che xiàmian$).

    • Mother ($māma$): In front of the car ($che qiánmian$).

    • Xiaoming: Behind the car ($che hòumian$).

    • Older sister ($jiějie$): Right side ($yòubian$).

    • Older brother ($gēge$): Left side ($zuǒbian$).

    • Dog ($gǒu$): Inside the car ($che lǐmian$).

    • Cat ($māo$): Outside the car ($che wàimian$).

• School Map Scenario A:

  • Car park ($tíngchē chǎng$) is beside the main gate.

  • Swimming pool is beside the ball court.

  • Library is downstairs from the auditorium ($lǐtáng$).

  • Laboratory is behind the oval ($cāochǎng$).

  • Principal's office ($xiàozhǎng shì$) is next door ($gébì$) to the teachers' office.

  • Toilets ($cèsuǒ$) are beside the garden.

  • Teaching Building No. 1 is behind Building No. 2.

  • Art room ($měishù jiàoshì$) is between the music room and computer room ($zhōngjiān$).

• School Map Scenario B (Vertical Arrangement):

  • First Floor ($yī lòu$): Office, Music room.

  • Second Floor ($èr lòu$): Year 1 classrooms.

  • Third Floor ($sān lòu$): Year 2 classrooms, Library.

  • Fourth Floor ($sì lòu$): Year 3 classrooms, Computer room.

Detailed Campus Descriptions

• Xiao Hua's School:

  • Size: Large, many teaching buildings.

  • Xiao Hua's classroom: Upstairs from the science building.

  • Entrance: Main gate is in the front; reception and principal's office are beside the gate.

  • Garden: In the middle of the school; Xiao Hua eats lunch there. Front of garden: Year 8 classrooms. Behind garden: Teacher's office.

  • Library: On the second floor, above the Year 12 center.

  • Hall and Activities: Large hall is beside the music room. Opposite the hall are the swimming pool and gym.

  • Outdoors: Oval is outside the swimming pool; car park is beside the oval.

  • Toilets: 3 in total. 1 opposite the library, 1 behind reception, 1 on the left of the office.

• Xiaoming's School:

  • Facilities: Large oval, 5 teaching buildings, 1 teacher office building, hall, library, ball courts, canteen.

  • Layout: Oval is in the middle. Main gate is on the right side. Train station and car park are nearby the gate.

  • Teacher Office Building: 2 levels. Ground floor is reception and principal's office. Upstairs is the staff room.

  • Teaching Buildings: Located behind the offices. Xiaoming's classroom is upstairs in Building No. 3 (which is in the middle).

  • Eating: Large canteen where you can eat inside or buy food to eat outside.

  • Sports: Ball courts are on the right of the oval. Front court is tennis; back court is basketball.

Questions & Discussion

• Q: Where is Xiaoming's classroom?

  • A: It is located upstairs in Teaching Building No. 3, which is positioned in the middle of the five teaching buildings.

• Q: Where should Xiaoming go to see a subject teacher?

  • A: He should go to the teacher's office building, specifically upstairs where the staff room is located.

• Q: How many toilets are at Xiaoming's school and where are they?

  • A: Every floor of every teaching building has a toilet.

• Q: Does Xiaoming have to walk far for the train?

  • A: No, because the train station is located near the school’s main gate.

• Q: Conversation with Anna (Student Guide):

  • Guest A: Is the principal's office beside the reception?

  • Anna: Yes, it is on the right side of the reception.

  • Guest B: What is the building on the left of the gate?

  • Anna: That is a teaching building. We have four; two in front and two behind.

  • Anna's Favorite Spot: She loves the large oval where she does sports with classmates.

  • Toilets placement (Anna's school): To the left of the garden; the left side specifically is the female toilet.

Teacher and Room Directory

• 3rd Floor (三楼): Room 301 ($Kǒng Míng$), Room 302 ($Zhāng Yìfēi$), Room 303 (Unnamed).

• 2nd Floor (二楼): Room 2F ($Lǐ Kāimíng$).

• 1st Floor (一楼/一层): Room 1F ($Wáng Jīnbǎo$), Room 102 ($Lǐ Lǎoshī$), Room 103 ($Kǒng Lǎoshī$).

• Teaching/Staff specifically:

  • Teacher Wang ($Wáng Lǎoshī$): Office on the 1st floor.

  • Cheng Zhen ($Chéng Zhēn$): Classroom location context.

  • Shi Xiaohong ($Shǐ Xiǎohóng$): Classroom location context.