Chinese: Background Language Learner F–10 Sequence / Levels 3 and 4 / Understanding / Systems of language
Content description
Identify the form, composition and spacing within characters, relating components and their positions to their meaning and sound
Elaborations
developing fine motor skills appropriate to Chinese writing conventions (方块字), and learning about Chinese writing conventions, including direction of text and punctuation
applying rules of stroke direction and stroke order when writing characters, paying attention to details such as length of a stroke to discriminate similar forms, for example, 土 and 士
developing skills in identifying the structure and components of a compound character, for example, 学 has two components and they are of top-and-bottom structure
categorising characters with common components (such as 花、草、菜), and making connections between meanings and sounds of components and meanings and sounds of characters, for example, 目 (eye) in 看 (to look at)
recognising the use of traditional and simplified characters in the local community (for example, 《大洋时报》 uses traditional characters), exploring texts in both forms of characters and analysing differences in orthography, for example, 门 and 門
identifying personal connections with one or both forms of characters, for example, 我妈妈教我写简体字，因为妈妈是从北京来的
inferring meaning of unfamiliar words from known morphemes, for example, 学生、学校、小学
understanding that a character might have multiple meanings, for example, that 冷 means ‘cold’ in 冷水 and ‘quiet’ in 冷清
