"Thank you for the great software! It makes learning Chinese an awesome experience!"
—Robin Yeh



"I have let my reading skills lapse since the last time I was in China, mainly because I can't enjoy reading when I have to stop to look up characters. Clavis Sinica takes the dictionary-induced eyestrain and boredom out of reading Chinese; it's made it much easier for me to read online news articles, and has really improved my reading."
—Eric Hayot, State College, PA



"My compliments to you for offering a product of such high quality and relevence for Americans now and in the foreseeable future."
—David Stanley, M.D.




"I have been using the program for about 5 months now and I have moved from knowing a little over 2,000 characters to consistently scoring 3,000 or more on your on-line character test. More importantly I have finally moved from reading intermediate texts to on-line news I find on the WWW. Your program has turned out to be an amazing aid. I am now a huge fan."
—Brent Nelson



"It's a great program, containing just about every option that a student could want. Steve Coffin"
—Paul Fendos



"I received my copy of Clavis Sinica already, and after looking at it must say that it is as good as I hoped: a very useful piece of software at a very affordable price. Thank you again for your quick service and this fine learning tool."
—Paul Fendos



More User Comments

 


Resources for Chinese Language Teachers

If you are a teacher of Chinese interested in web-based teaching and learning tools, you have come to the right place. Clavis Sinica offers a wealth of innovative resources for both you and your students.

Create Custom Learning Materials

Many teachers like to supplement traditional textbook assignments with their own reading materials, but are frustrated by the time required to prepare them for student use. We have developed a pair of powerful free tools to allow teachers easily to assemble complete customized learning modules for their students on any topic:

  • Chinese Text Annotator - Display and print any Chinese text with line-by-line pinyin annotation keyed to your students' skill level. You can annotate your own text or choose from our Chinese text collections, below.
  • Vocabulary Extractor - Automatically create a printable vocabulary review sheet from any Chinese text.

Both of these tools can be used for free on our website. They are also included on the Clavis Sinica program CD, or they can be purchased as a separate downloadable package on our ordering page.

Find Supplementary Readings

You can use the above tools with your own texts, or you can choose an appropriate text from one of our extensive, graded collections of free student reading materials:

  • Chinese Voices Project - A collection of over 100 short, accessible mini-essays with accompanying MP3 audio on topics having to do with life in modern Beijing. Students can listen along as they read!
  • Chinese Text Sampler - An annotated selection of 85 well-known and useful texts including stories, poems, song lyrics, historical documents, jokes, common idioms, and film scripts.

Encourage Vocabulary Practice

We offer a variety of free flashcard and dictionary resources to help students review vocabulary and assess their progress:

  • Chinese Character Test - This popular web-based tool helps students estimate out how many characters they recognize and measure their progress over time.
  • Chinese Flashcards - Our online flashcards tool allows students to drill themselves on the 800 most commonly used characters and all 189 radicals.
  • Chinese Flashcard Sets - A collection of 50 thematically arranged flashcard sets that help students learn groups of related words together. Can be used with the Clavis Sinica software's built-in flashcard tool or printed out using our Vocabulary List Converter.
  • Chinese Dictionary - Need a quick translation? Search the full Clavis Sinica dictionary by English, characters, or pinyin.

Encourage Intensive Reading Practice

Our popular Clavis Sinica software is used at dozens of schools and colleges to help students read unfamiliar texts and study the new vocabulary they introduce. The software combines three key components in a single, easy-to-use package:

  • The Text Reader provides one-click access to the pronunciation and meaning of any unfamiliar word in any Chinese document or website. Students can read any text you assign without the need for a print dictionary!
  • The Analytical Dictionary reveals the underlying structure of Chinese words and generates lists of other words using the same parts. Once students learn why a character is written the way it is and how it relates to other characters in the same character family, it becomes much easier to remember. Of course, they can also search the 40,000-word dictionary by English, pinyin, or character strokes.
  • The Vocabulary List Builder helps students create customized vocabulary lists from any Chinese document. They can convert these lists into flashcards for review with the program's powerful built-in flashcards tool. Or they can print them out as study sheets using the free Vocabulary List Converter in our Chinese Toolbox.

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