Sound Signals Slides Sound Signals
Initials & Simple Finals
Linguistics Lab Mandarin Aural Skills
The Aspiration Challenge
1 Unaspirated (B, D, G)
No puff of air. Voiceless, but similar to English "b" in "spy" or "spin".
2 Aspirated (P, T, K)
A sharp burst of air. Stronger than the English equivalents.
Try the "Tissue Test"
B vs P
Can you hear the puff?
The Retroflex Family
ZH
Unaspirated
"dr" in "dry"
CH
Aspirated
"tr" in "try"
SH
Fricative
"sh" in "shoe"
R
Resonant
"r" in "leisure"
Position: Curl the tip of your tongue backward to touch the hard palate.
Pure Vowels
SIMPLE FINALS
a
"ah" (father)
o
"aw" (saw)
e
"uh" (up/earth)
i
"ee" (sheep)
u
"oo" (loop)
ü
"u" (French 'tu')
LISTENING WARM-UP
Identify the sound:
A
B
Your instructor will speak a syllable.
Initials Finals Drill Worksheet Initials & Finals Drill
Aural Discrimination Workshop • Lesson 01
Student Name:
Date:
Instructions
Your instructor will read one word from each pair below. Listen carefully for the presence of aspiration (puff of air) or retroflex tongue position. Circle the letter (A or B) of the word you hear.
1
Section A: The Aspiration Burst
bà Option A
pà Option B
dǎ Option A
tǎ Option B
gū Option A
kū Option B
zǎ Option A
cǎ Option B
2
Section B: The Tongue Curl
zhī Option A
zī Option B
shī Option A
sī Option B
chū Option A
cū Option B
rè Option A
lè Option B
3
Section C: Pure Vowel Quality
lù Option A
lǜ Option B
hé Option A
huó Option B
© 2026 Pinyin Phonetics Lab Sound Discrimation Drills • Worksheet 01
Initials Finals Script Guide Teacher Delivery Script
Lesson 01: Initials & Finals Discrimination
Instructional Note: Read each word clearly twice. Pause for 3 seconds between repetitions and 5 seconds between items. Emphasize the aspiration on the "B" options where indicated.
Item Read This Word Correct Key Phonetic Focus 01 pà B Aspirated P 02 dǎ A Unaspirated D 03 kū B Aspirated K 04 zǎ A Unaspirated Z 05 zhī A Retroflex ZH 06 sī B Dental S 07 cū B Dental C (aspirated) 08 rè A Retroflex R 09 lǜ B U-umlaut (ü) 10 hé A Pure E vowel
Discussion Prompts
Ask students which sound felt more "explosive" in their ears (P vs B).
For retroflexes, ask: "Where did your tongue go when you tried to mimic the 'ZH' sound?"
Challenge: Can anyone say 'lǜ' without moving their lips from the 'u' position?
Tone Landscapes Slides ā
á
ǎ
à
a
Tone Landscapes
Mastering the Four Tones
PITCH CONTROL
The Pitch Graph
5 (High)
4
3 (Mid)
2
1 (Low)
1st Tone: Flat & High
Robot voice, high and sustained.
2nd Tone: Rising
Asking a question: "What?"
3rd Tone: Dipping
Skeptical: "Really?" (Low and growly).
4th Tone: Falling
A firm command: "No!"
The Meaning of Pitch
mā Tone 1
Mother
"Stay high and level."
má Tone 2
Hemp
"The question mark sound."
mǎ Tone 3
Horse
"Dip low and stay low."
mà Tone 4
Scold
"Short, sharp, downward."
THE NEUTRAL TONE (Qīngshēng)
It has no tone mark.
māma
Mom
bàba
Dad
TONE MAPPING
On your Tone Mapper sheet, draw the contour line for each syllable you hear. Listen for the start pitch and the end pitch.
Tone Mapper Worksheet The Tone Mapper
Contour Discrimination • Lesson 02
Name:
Date:
TONE 1
High Flat
TONE 2
Mid Rising
TONE 3
Low Dipping
TONE 4
High Falling
Mapping Grid Draw the contour heard for each syllable
DRILL 01
DRILL 02
DRILL 03
DRILL 04
SECTION B: SYLLABLE ID (Circle the tone number)
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
Focus on pitch contour, not meaning. Practice active aural processing.
Nasal Maze Slides -n
-ng
ian
iang
The Nasal Maze
Compound Finals & Nasal Endings
FRONT vs BACK VOWEL GLIDES
The Nasal Boundary
-N (Front)
"The tongue touches the teeth."
an as in "pen"
en as in "fun"
-NG (Back)
"The vibration is in the throat."
ang as in "song"
eng as in "rung"
Compound Final Combos
ai
Eye
ei
Day
ui
Way
ao
Cow
ou
Go
iu
Yo
Watch out for the middle vowels! Some sounds change when combined.
MINIMAL PAIRS
Can you hear the difference between these twins?
Twin A
shān
Mountain
VS
Twin B
shāng
Injury
B!
PINYIN BINGO
Prepare your boards. The Nasal Maze begins now.
Pinyin Bingo Card B!
Pinyin Bingo
Nasal Discrimination Edition • Lesson 03
Student Name:
lán
láng
qīn
qīng
xiān
FREE
xiāng
gān
gāng
fèn
fèng
zhēn
zhēng
mín
míng
cān
HOW TO WIN
Listen for the pinyin sounds called by the instructor. Mark your board. Get four in a row (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) to call BINGO!
Precision Aural Training • Nasal Discrimination
Pinyin Bingo Caller Sheet BINGO CALLER SHEET
Nasal Maze Edition
Execution Protocol:
Choose words randomly from the lists below.
Check off each word as you call it to verify winner's cards.
Read each word twice with clear nasal distinction.
Minimal Pairs (Set A)
lán (Blue)
láng (Wolf)
qīn (Kiss/Dear)
qīng (Green/Light)
Minimal Pairs (Set B)
xiān (Fresh)
xiāng (Fragrant)
gān (Dry)
gāng (Steel)
Minimal Pairs (Set C)
fèn (Part/Angry)
fèng (Phoenix)
zhēn (True/Needle)
zhēng (Compete)
Minimal Pairs (Set D)
mín (People)
míng (Name/Bright)
cān (Meal)
(Bonus) cāng (Gray)
Tone Chameleons Slides Tone Chameleons
Tone Sandhi & Combinations
3 + 3 = 2 + 3
The Sandhi Secret
What is Tone Sandhi?
When certain tones are placed next to each other, they change their pitch to make pronunciation smoother.
Rule #1: The Double 3
If two Third Tones meet, the first one transforms into a Second Tone.
The Greeting Test
nǐ
(3)
hǎo
(3)
ní
(2)
hǎo
(3)
"Written as 3+3, spoken as 2+3"
Listening for Pairs
1+1 High Plateau
kāfēi (Coffee)
4+4 Double Hammer
zàijiàn (Goodbye)
1+0 High + Light
māma (Mom)
2+4 The Wave
xuéxí (Study)
The Listener's Paradox
What you hear isn't always what's written.
Pinyin Text
wǒ hěn
Tone 3 + Tone 3
Actual Audio
wó hěn
Tone 2 + Tone 3
READY TO DECODE?
?
?
We will play two-character words. Identify the tone pair for each.
Tone Combination Lab Worksheet Tone Combination Lab
Lesson 04 • Multi-Syllable Aural Decoding
Student Name:
Observer ID:
Part 01
The Sandhi Scanner
Task: You will hear a word. Based on the audio alone , write the tones you hear (1, 2, 3, 4). Then, note if a sandhi rule occurred.
Word 01
Audio Heard
Sandhi?
Word 02
Audio Heard
Sandhi?
Word 03
Audio Heard
Sandhi?
Part 02
Rhythmic Pattern Matching
Drill 04 Select One Pair
1 - 1
1 - 4
4 - 1
4 - 4
Drill 05 Select One Pair
2 - 3
3 - 2
2 - 0
3 - 0
Tone Decoding Laboratory • Institutional Resource
Pinyin Final Exam Assessment Pinyin Final Exam
Comprehensive Transcription Assessment • Lesson 05
Candidate Name:
Course ID:
Dictation Protocol
The instructor will read 10 single syllables and 5 two-character words. Transcribe exactly what you hear using full Pinyin notation. You must include correct tone marks above the appropriate vowel.
I
Phase 1: Phonemic Isolation
II
Phase 2: Rhythmic Context
End of Assessment • Mastery Demonstrated • Result Confidential
Pinyin Final Exam Key Assessment Key
Lesson 05 • Transcription Script
Part I: Single Syllables
01 bā (T1, unaspirated)
02 pó (T2, aspirated)
03 kǔ (T3, aspirated)
04 zhè (T4, retroflex)
05 míng (T2, back nasal)
06 lǜ (T4, umlaut)
07 xiāng (T1, compound)
08 rén (T2, retroflex)
09 quán (T2, complex)
10 cái (T2, dental)
Part II: Multi-Syllable Words
11 kāfēi
Tone Pair: 1 - 1
12 zàijiàn
Tone Pair: 4 - 4
13 nǐhǎo
Spoken: 2-3 | Written: 3-3 (Sandhi)
14 xuéxí
Tone Pair: 2 - 2
15 bàba
Tone Pair: 4 - 0 (Neutral)
Note: In item 13, students should transcribe the dictionary form (nǐhǎo) unless instructed otherwise, but credit should be given for recognizing the spoken tone change in aural discussions.
