Before the stories: a summer trip to the mountains
HSK 3 Unit 8: Festivals and stories · Lesson 6 of 7 · About 22 minutes
Preview version — Chinese review in progress.
Your mission: By the end of this lesson, you can plan a summer trip, follow the weather forecast, say you are afraid, and describe the view from the top, with the travel words of the HSK 3 stories.
Audio preview uses your device’s Chinese voice. It is not a recording.
Warm-up: do you remember?
Two quick questions from earlier lessons. Recalling before you learn makes the new material stick.
Meaning
What does 杯子 mean?
That is 香 (xiāng).
That is 月亮 (yuèliang).
Show the answer
Answer: B, cup, glass.
杯子 (bēizi) means cup, glass.
Characters
Which word means “article, piece of writing”?
传说 (chuánshuō) means legend, it is said.
一直 (yìzhí) means all along, always.
Show the answer
Answer: B, 文章.
“article, piece of writing” is 文章 (wénzhāng).
Listening
From an earlier unit. Listen. What does the word mean?
Cannot listen? Read it instead
方法 fāngfǎ
That would be 抱歉 (bàoqiàn).
That would be 秋天 (qiūtiān).
Show the answer
Answer: B, method, way.
You heard 方法 (fāngfǎ): method, way.
New words
Travel words
暑假 (shǔjià) is the summer holidays, and 旅行 is to travel. 天气预报 is the weather forecast.
这个暑假我想去海边旅行。
Zhège shǔjià wǒ xiǎng qù hǎibiān lǚxíng.
These summer holidays I want to travel to the seaside.
天气预报说明天有雨。
Tiānqì yùbào shuō míngtiān yǒu yǔ.
The forecast says it will rain tomorrow.
正好 (zhènghǎo) means just right, or as it happens: something fits the moment exactly.
我们上车的时候，正好有两个座位。
Wǒmen shàng chē de shíhou, zhènghǎo yǒu liǎng gè zuòwèi.
When we got on, there happened to be two seats.
害怕 is to be afraid. 别怕 or 别害怕 means don't be afraid.
冲 is what fast water does: it washes things away. With 把 and a result: 把路冲坏了.
大雨把山下的路冲坏了。
Dàyǔ bǎ shānxià de lù chōng huài le.
The heavy rain washed away the road at the foot of the hill.
Characters
- 座 = 广
- 顶 = 页
- 害 = 宀
- 怕 = 忄
- 虹 = 虫
- 冲 = 冫
Open a character to see how it is written, stroke by stroke, with its meanings and words.
To the top
Liu Fang and Sophie spend a day of the summer holidays climbing a mountain outside the city.
Listen first
Play the whole conversation and answer the questions before you open the transcript.
Listening
Listen first. What did the forecast say about tomorrow?
Show the answer
Answer: A, sunny.
明天是晴天.
Listening
How does Liu Fang feel near the top?
Show the answer
Answer: B, a little afraid.
我有点儿害怕.
Listening
Why do they go down early?
Show the answer
Answer: B, Heavy rain is coming in the afternoon..
天气预报说下午有大雨.
Show the transcript
苏菲
暑假我们一起去旅行吧！我想去爬山。
Let's travel together in the summer holidays! I'd like to climb a mountain.
刘芳
好。我看了天气预报，明天是晴天。
OK. I've checked the forecast: tomorrow will be sunny.
苏菲
火车上人真多。你看，那儿正好有两个座位！
So many people on the train. Look, there are two seats over there, just right for us!
刘芳
我们快到山顶了，可是路很不好走，我有点儿害怕。
We're nearly at the top, but the path is hard going and I'm a little afraid.
苏菲
别怕，我们慢慢走。
Don't be afraid, let's take it slowly.
刘芳
快看，彩虹！太美了！我们拍照吧！
Look, a rainbow! It's so beautiful! Let's take photos!
苏菲
天气预报说下午有大雨。上次的大雨把山下的路都冲坏了，我们早点儿下山吧。
The forecast says heavy rain this afternoon. Last time the rain washed the roads below away, so let's go down early.
Speak: listen, record, compare
Listen to each model, record yourself, then play both and compare: the rhythm, the tones, the vowels. No automatic score: your ear is the judge.
Recordings stay in this browser tab: nothing is uploaded, and they disappear when you leave the page unless you save a copy of a task recording to your device yourself. Your browser asks for the microphone first.
Recording is not available in this browser. Listen, then repeat aloud and compare by ear.
快看，彩虹！太美了！我们拍照吧！
Kuài kàn, cǎihóng! Tài měi le! Wǒmen pāizhào ba!
Look, a rainbow! It's so beautiful! Let's take photos!
暑假我们一起去旅行吧！我想去爬山。
Shǔjià wǒmen yìqǐ qù lǚxíng ba! Wǒ xiǎng qù páshān.
Let's travel together in the summer holidays! I'd like to climb a mountain.
火车上人真多。你看，那儿正好有两个座位！
Huǒchē shàng rén zhēn duō. Nǐ kàn, nàr zhènghǎo yǒu liǎng gè zuòwèi!
So many people on the train. Look, there are two seats over there, just right for us!
Practice
Meaning
What does 暑假 mean?
That is 喜欢 (xǐhuan).
That is 提高 (tígāo).
Show the answer
Answer: C, summer holidays.
暑假 (shǔjià) means summer holidays.
Characters
Which word means “to travel, a trip”?
拍照 (pāizhào) means to take photos.
彩虹 (cǎihóng) means rainbow.
Show the answer
Answer: C, 旅行.
“to travel, a trip” is 旅行 (lǚxíng).
Pinyin
How do you read 预报 (forecast)?
Show the answer
Answer: A, yùbào.
预报 is read yùbào. Check the tone mark on every syllable.
Listening
Listen. What does the word mean?
Cannot listen? Read it instead
正好 zhènghǎo
That would be 空 (kòng).
That would be 好 (hǎo).
Show the answer
Answer: C, just right, as it happens.
You heard 正好 (zhènghǎo): just right, as it happens.
Pinyin
Type the pinyin of 座位 (seat). Tone marks or tone numbers are welcome.
Show the answer
Answer: zuòwèi
座位 is zuòwèi in pinyin.
Listening
Listen. Which sentence did you hear?
Cannot listen? Read it instead
别怕，我们慢慢走。 Bié pà, wǒmen mànmàn zǒu.
Show the answer
Answer: B, Don't be afraid, let's take it slowly..
You heard 别怕，我们慢慢走。 (Bié pà, wǒmen mànmàn zǒu.): Don't be afraid, let's take it slowly.
In context
Your friend is scared on a high bridge. What do you say?
Show the answer
Answer: B, 别害怕，慢慢走。.
别害怕，慢慢走。: 别害怕: don't be afraid.
Grammar
Which sentence means the rain washed the road away?
Show the answer
Answer: C, 大雨把路冲坏了。.
大雨把路冲坏了。 把 + object + verb + result.
Fill the gap
Complete: there happened to be two seats.
＿＿有两个座位。
Show the answer
Answer: A, 正好.
正好有两个座位。 正好: as it happens.
Reading
Read: 这个暑假我和朋友去旅行了。我们爬到了山顶，看到了彩虹，拍了很多照片。 What did they see on the top?
Show the answer
Answer: B, a rainbow.
看到了彩虹.
Your turn
Type the Chinese for summer holidays
Show the answer
Answer: 暑假
暑假: summer holidays.
Plan a summer trip
Plan a one-day trip for your next holidays and say it out loud, including what the weather forecast says.
- Say when and where you want to travel.
- Say what the weather forecast says and what you will bring.
- Say what you want to do at the top: 拍照, 看….
Sentence frames
这个暑假我想去＿＿旅行。
Zhège shǔjià wǒ xiǎng qù ＿＿ lǚxíng.
These summer holidays I want to travel to ...
天气预报说＿＿。
Tiānqì yùbào shuō ＿＿.
The forecast says ...
Record your attempt (three and a half minutes at most) and listen back:
Review and finish
Can you do this? If a line feels shaky, go back to that part before you move on.
- I can plan a trip and talk about the weather forecast.
- I can say I'm afraid, and comfort someone with 别怕.
- I can use 正好 and 把…冲坏了.
Review works best spaced out: answer these exercises again tomorrow, then after a few days. Your progress is saved in this browser.
Completing records that you finished the lesson. Mastery is separate: it grows as reviews bring the exercises back and you answer them correctly.