Yuwenbon Language Services

I was a student and a student teacher here for about a year. The place is very homely, both in curriculum and in the building itself; you can tell the teachers care very much for their students! I got to be privy to a lot of the planning as well; they were were very careful about balancing the conversational studies with the written and verbal technique of students (being able to hold a conversation vs understanding the grammar and dialect context underneath are different concepts!) A few things to note for their Chinese lessons: - They use the Zhuyin translator language instead of Pinyin, which is actually much better for eventually learning written Mandarin, but it is a little more difficult to start out in. - They post free online copies of the textbooks on the Google Classroom you join if you sign up. Take advantage! - I believe they usually only do 3 classes a week or so for the conversation classes, but allow for as little as one class a week for attendance. You absolutely cannot get by on only one class a week! Do at least two to keep refreshing your vocabulary. I highly recommend for anyone who finds the local colleges lacking and really wants to learn a new language for true conversation (especially Chinese)! It's also good for young kids, especially in the summer (they have a summer camp), and given the available student-teacher instructors (supplement one-on-one classes where a student-teacher is paired with a student to help them learn Zhuyin).
May 7th, 2023

Yuwenbon is absolutely an awesome school for your language learning needs! I came to Mrs. Wanda a year and a half ago and she along with her amazing staff have helped me really improve in my journey of learning Chinese-Mandarin. They are very patient with your learning pace but also push and challenge you in ways to help your learning process. Im very appreciative of how much they have helped me and I plan to continue to make Yuwenbon my home school for learning languages! Very professional and high quality teaching thats personalized to help you reach your goals.
Apr 9th, 2022

Mandarin Chinese is largely one of the hardest languages for English speakers to learn. Language learning is a journey, and in order to succeed and progress, you must be guided and taught on the right path, starting with the basics. Under the instruction of Mrs. Shaw and Mrs. Gen, I was able to grasp a firm understanding of the basics of learning Chinese and gain several tools to help me thrive along my journey to learning Chinese. At Yuwenbon, I wasn't only taught how to speak, read, and write Chinese but I was trained on how to learn Chinese. Learning Chinese goes far beyond learning lots of new vocabulary, grammar, and characters. The first step is to learn the tones and how to use them correctly. Tones are essential as they are a foundation of the Chinese language. Although I have much room to improve, my Chinese professors and tutors at college are often amazed at my pronunciation. They ask, how did you learn to speak so well? The answer is simple, Yuwenbon Language Learning Center! At Yuwenbon, I didn't learn Chinese using Pinyin but instead Zhuyin Fuhao, which is a much better phonetic system for learning Chinese. To help English speakers pronounce Chinese words, Pinyin uses the Latin alphabet. Hence, this phonetic system is easier and faster to learn; however, it can bind the language learner to an English frame of pronunciation and inhibits them from unlocking a more premium level of Chinese pronunciation. Zhuyin Fuhao, on the other hand, is more effective and immersive as it allows the language learner to learn Chinese pronunciation through Chinese phonetic characters. Although it may take longer to learn, the Zhuyin Fuhao enables language learners to learn Chinese pronunciation from a Chinese frame of pronunciation. With Yuwenbon instructors and much practice, you will be reading Zhuyin Fuhao as fluently as Pinyin in no time (I learned the Zhuyin Fuhao in about two weeks). More importantly, the instructors at Yuwenbon are deeply invested in fostering a relationship with their students. I grew tremendously in Chinese and established a close relationship with my Chinese instructors, who are incredibly welcoming. I learned so much about Chinese culture and history through learning Chinese and having a great relationship with my instructors.
Mar 17th, 2022

Great place. Great teachers with a welcoming environment.
Mar 8th, 2022

Fantastic language instruction!
Jan 23rd, 2022