Learning foreign languages is far easier if the new skills are acquired «in passing»: in situations in which the student’s primary intention is focused on something else than the the language lesson. This way the process of learning the language tends to fade into the background, becoming a secondary focus that takes place automatically. An interesting conversation will implant vocabulary more efficiently and lastingly on the mind than hours of boring study.
Chinese characters can be remembered more clearly and correctly if they are practised while solving a puzzle. This method avoids unconscious resistance against learning and, instead, addresses the brain’s emotion centre which in turn activates the memory triggering the production of new brain cells and neurological connections. While the students are fully engaged in solving the puzzle, they not only unconsciously memorise the Chinese charcaters but also entire sentences themselves, including complex sentence structures. This process has been demonstrated to be an effective learning method that is highly enjoyable, providing as a coincidental outcome long-term achievements.
