Chinese Course 2A Lesson 1: Where Has Tian Fang Gone

Lesson 1: Di-yī kè (Tián Fang qu når le)

1. Text (Kèwén) - Part 1: Where has Tian Fang gone?

Scenario: Zhang Dong calls Tian Fang; Tian Fang's mother answers the phone.

Zhang Dong: Wei, shi Tian Fang ma? (Hello, is this Tian Fang?)
Tian Fang's Mother: Tian Fang bu zai. Shi Zhang Dong ba? (Tian Fang is not in. Is that Zhang Dong?)
Zhang Dong: Ayi, nin hao! Tian Fang qu nar le? (Auntie, hello! Where has Tian Fang gone?)
Tian Fang's Mother: Ta si dian duo jiu qu tongxue jia le. Ta de yige zhongxue tongxue yao chuguo, ta qu kankan ta. (She went to a classmate's house just after $4$ o'clock. One of her middle school classmates is going abroad, so she went to see her.)
Zhang Dong: Ta shenme shihou neng huilai? (When can she come back?)
Tian Fang's Mother: Ta mei shuo, ni da ta de shouji ba. (She didn't say; why don't you call her mobile phone?)
Zhang Dong: Wo da le, kěshi ta guānjī le. (I did, but her phone is turned off.)
Tian Fang's Mother: Shi ma? Ni guo yihuir zai da ba. (Is that so? Call again after a while.)

Scenario: Zhang Dong calls again.

Zhang Dong: Ayi, Tian Fang huilai le meiyou? (Auntie, has Tian Fang come back yet?)
Tian Fang's Mother: Hai meiyou ne. (Not yet.)

2. Text (Kèwén) - Part 2: He called again

Scenario: Tian Fang returns home.

Tian Fang: Ma, wo huilai le. (Mom, I'm back.)
Tian Fang's Mother: E le ba? Kuai chifan ba! A, duile, Zhang Dong gei ni da dianhua le meiyou? (Hungry? Eat quickly! Oh, by the way, did Zhang Dong call you?)
Tian Fang: Meiyou a. (No.)
Tian Fang's Mother: Ta lai dianhua zhao ni, shuo da ni de shouji, ni guānjī le. (He called looking for you; he said he tried your mobile, but it was off.)
Tian Fang: A! Duile, wo wang kaiji le. (Ah! Right, I forgot to turn it on.)
Tian Fang's Mother: Kuai! Dianhua you xiang le, ni qu jie ba. (Quick! The phone is ringing again; go answer it.)

Scenario: Tian Fang answers the phone.

Tian Fang: Wei, Zhang Dong, xiawu ni gei wo da dianhua le ba? (Hello, Zhang Dong, did you call me this afternoon?)
Zhang Dong: Da le, ni zenme guānjī le? (I did, why was your phone off?)
Tian Fang: Duibuqi, wo wang kaiji le. Xiawu ni zuo shenme le? (Sorry, I forgot to turn it on. What did you do this afternoon?)
Zhang Dong: Wo qu ti zuqiu le. Jintian women gen liuxuesheng daibiaodui bisai le. (I went to play football. Today we had a match against the international students' representative team.)
Tian Fang: Nimen dui you shu le ba? (Your team lost again, didn't they?)
Zhang Dong: Meiyou. Zheci women ying le. (No. This time we won.)
Tian Fang: Ji bi ji? (What was the score?)
Zhang Dong: Er bi yi. ( $2:1$ )
Tian Fang: Zhuhe nimen! Ai, ni you shenme shi ma? (Congratulations! Hey, did you have something to discuss?)
Zhang Dong: Wo xiang wenwen ni, ni bushi yao shang Tuofu ban ma? Baoming le meiyou? (I wanted to ask you, didn't you want to attend a TOEFL class? Have you registered yet?)
Tian Fang: Yijing bao le. Ni shibushi ye xiang kao Tuofu? (I've already registered. Do you also want to take the TOEFL?)
Zhang Dong: Shi. Wo xiang mingtian qu baoming, ni pei wo yiqi qu, hao ma? (Yes. I want to go register tomorrow; can you go with me?)
Tian Fang: Haode. (Okay.)

3. New Words (Shēngcí)

喂 (wèi): (Interjection) Hello (mostly used on the phone).
阿姨 (āyí): (Noun) Aunt.
了 (le): (Particle) Used at the end of a sentence to indicate change or a new situation.
中学 (zhōngxué): (Noun) Middle school.
出国 (chū guó): (Verb) To go abroad. (出 chū: to move from inside to outside).
打(电话) (dǎ diànhuà): (Verb) To make a phone call.
关机 (guānjī): (Verb) To turn off a mobile phone (关 guān: to turn off/switch off).
饿 (è): (Adjective) Hungry.
对了 (duìle): (Expression) By the way; and.
忘 (wàng): (Verb) To forget.
开机 (kāi jī): (Verb) To turn on a mobile phone (开 kāi: to turn on/switch on).
又 (yòu): (Adverb) Again.
响 (xiǎng): (Verb) To make a sound; to ring.
接 (jiē): (Verb) To pick up/receive (a call/person).
踢 (tī): (Verb) To kick; to play (specifically football).
比赛 (bǐsài): (Noun/Verb) Match; game; to contest.
队 (duì): (Noun) Team.
输 (shū): (Verb) To lose (a game/contest).
赢 (yíng): (Verb) To win (a game/contest).
比 (bǐ): (Preposition) In a score (ratio).
祝贺 (zhùhè): (Verb) To congratulate.
哎 (āi): (Interjection) Used as a reminder or to get attention.
上 (shàng): (Verb) To attend (a class, program, etc.).
托福 (Tuōfú): (Noun) TOEFL.
已经 (yǐjīng): (Adverb) Already.
考 (kǎo): (Verb) To take a test.
陪 (péi): (Verb) To accompany.

4. Grammar and Language Notes

Modal Particle "吧" (ba)

In the sentence "Xiawu ni gei wo da dianhua le ba?" (Did you call me this afternoon?), the particle "吧" indicates an inquisitive tone, suggesting the speaker has an assumption and is looking for confirmation.

Rhetorical Question Structure: "不是……吗?"

"Ni bushi yao shang Tuofu ban ma?" (Didn't you want to attend a TOEFL class?). This is a rhetorical question used to emphasize an affirmative tone. It does not strictly require an answer because the speaker already believes the statement is true.

Affirmative-Negative Question: "是不是" (shibushi)

This structure can be used before the predicate, at the beginning of the sentence, or at the end.

Ex 1: Ni shibushi xiang jia le? (Do you miss home?)
Ex 2: Women shu le, shibushi? (We lost, didn't we?)

The Modal Particle "了" (le) - Part 1

Located at the end of a sentence, it carries an affirmative tone and completes the sentence. It primarily indicates:

Occurrence of an event: Anna gen waimao daibiaotuan qu Shanghai le. (Anna went to Shanghai with the trade delegation.)
Completion of an action: Tian Fang de shouji guānjī le. (Tian Fang's phone turned off.)
Emergence of a circumstance: Ta yijing shui le. (He has already slept.)
Change of state: Ta jinnian $20$ sui le. (She is $20$ years old now.)

Interrogative Form: The structure is: [Sentence] + 了没有? or [Sentence] + 了吗?.

Example: Ni qu yiyuan le meiyou? (Did you go to the hospital?)

Negation with "还没(有)……呢": Used to indicate that an event has not yet begun or finished, but is expected to happen soon.

Example: Ta hai meiyou huijia ne. (She hasn't come home yet.)

Grammar Warning:

If using "没(有)" to negate a verb, do not use "了" at the end of the sentence.
- Correct: Wo zuotian mei qu shangdian.
- Incorrect: *Wo zuotian mei qu shangdian le.
Do not use "了" for recurring or habitual actions.
- Correct: Meitian zaoshang ta dou qu da Taijiquan. (She goes to do Tai Chi every morning.)

Adverbs "再" (zài) vs. "又" (yòu)

Both express the repetition of an action, but they differ in timing:

再 (zài): Refers to a repetition that has not yet occurred (future/intended repetition).
- Example: Mingtian wo xiang zai qu. (I want to go again tomorrow.)
又 (yòu): Refers to a repetition that has already occurred (past/completed repetition).
- Example: Wo zuotian qu le, jintian you lai le. (I went yesterday, and I came again today.)

5. Reading Comprehension: Jiang Ping's Story

Narrative Summary: The narrator visited Jiang Ping today. Jiang Ping was a middle school classmate and is a friend to the whole class. She is a dedicated student and the top of the class. Recently, she took an entrance exam for a university abroad. The exam was extremely difficult, but she achieved a full mark (满分 mǎnfēn). Reportedly, only $3$ people achieved full marks. The university awarded her the highest scholarship (奖学金 jiǎngxuéjīn).

Specific Details:

Location: Jiang Ping's house is in 东城 (Dōngchéng - East City), which is far from the narrator's house.
Time Sequence: Narrator departed at after $4:00$ ( $4$ dian duo), and arrived at $5:30$ ( $5$ dian ban).
Atmosphere: When the narrator arrived, the classmates were already there. They talked and laughed (又说又笑 yòu shuō yòu xiào).
The Departure: Jiang Ping is going abroad next week. At the time of saying goodbye, both Jiang Ping and the narrator cried (哭 kū).
Reflection: The narrator muses on how "Goodbye" (再见 zàijiàn) is often said easily, but sometimes actually seeing someone again is very difficult.

6. Supplementary Vocabulary and Writing

Supplementary Reading Words:

最 (zuì): Most; to the highest degree.
考试 (kǎoshì): To take an exam.
得 (dé): To get/obtain.
满分 (mǎnfēn): Full marks.
奖学金 (jiǎngxuéjīn): Scholarship.
送行 (sòng xíng): To see someone off.
热情 (rèqíng): Enthusiastic.
见面 (jiàn miàn): To meet/see.
一路平安 (yílù píng'ān): Have a safe trip.
哭 (kū): To cry.

Key Characters for Writing Practice:

喂 (wèi)
饿 (è)
忘 (wàng)
托 (tuō)
响 (xiǎng)
接 (jiē)
队 (duì)
考 (kǎo)
陪 (péi)
输 (shū)
赢 (yíng)
赛 (sài)
踢 (tī)
贺 (hè)