"I am thrilled with the program. It is a new and powerful tool
in my study of Chinese."
—Jos Spapens
"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.
Xiezi: Chinese Character Trainer for iPhone and Android
Learning to write Chinese characters is probably the hardest part of learning the language, but it is essential in achieving even basic literacy in Chinese. While there is no avoiding the extensive practice that is required, the Xiezi app can make your practice sessions much more efficient and enjoyable.
Combining stroke-by-stroke animations that show you how to write each character with a variety of drawing options that let you practice what you've learned, this new app will help you master 79 of the most commonly used characters in the language.
Product Description
The Xiezi Chinese Character Trainer app for iPhone and Android is based on the popular Stepping Stones lesson series for beginning learners on the Clavis Sinica website.
The current version of the app includes all 79 characters in the first three lessons of the series, which cover numbers, cardinal directions, and dozens of essential nouns and verbs.
In Training Mode, you can view a stroke-by-stroke animation of each character and then practice drawing it yourself using the character outline provided. The app checks every stroke you draw, helping you recognize and correct mistakes as you go along. Once you've memorized the form of each character, you can practice drawing it without the outline.
As you continue to progress, you can drill yourself on the characters you've learned using the app's Flashcards Mode, which returns character cards back to the deck if you get them wrong. And you can measure your progress over time using Test Mode, which gives you just one chance to write each character correctly.
Feature Summary:
- App includes 78 essential characters. Periodic updates will provide additional character sets.
- Character set is based on Lessons 1-3 of the free online Stepping Stones lesson series, which provides audio, vocabulary notes, exercises, and a simple reading based on these same characters.
- User can select any character from the set to practice at any time, or work through a series of characters in one of three learning modes.
- In Train Mode, control buttons allow you to view the next stroke of the character, all remaining strokes, or a hint for the next stroke just to get you started. Once you've learned the order of the strokes, you can try drawing the character yourself. If you get a stroke wrong, the app will erase it and invite you to try again. When you've completed the character, you can wipe your slate clean and start over.
- In Drill Mode, you are prompted to draw each character in turn from memory. If you get a stroke wrong, the app shows you the correct version, and then returns the character to the flashcard stack so you can try it again later.
- In Test Mode, you get one chance to draw each character correctly. Your score is reported at the end of the test, so you can measure your progress over time.
- In all modes, the app evaluates each stroke as you draw it, giving you immediate feedback so you can correct mistakes and learn to draw each of the characters accurately.
- Pinyin romanizations and concise English glosses are provided for each character.
- Settings page lets you set the drawing speed and choose whether or not to display placement lines, character outlines, and character definitions.
- Works with all iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad devices running iOS 4.0 and above
- Works with all Android smartphones and tablets running Android 2.2 and above
- No additional Chinese language software required
To download the app, just click on the link for your device on our Ordering page.
