I personally find that I can draw more inspiration and motivation from people in my life, the ones that I have connections with, whether it was a short or a long-lasting connection. I am very blessed to have a chance to be Maureen’s Chinese Mandarin tutor. Maureen is a polyglot who speaks 8 languages fluently (which doesn’t even include the languages she is studying!).
Maureen is an active participant in the Add1Challenge. She has completed several Add1Challenges. She was the winner of Add1Challenge #15, where she did 90 days of Mandarin! She won a trip to China!
Our Lessons
Maureen knew exactly what she needed to accomplish at the end of the challenge – hold a 15-minute conversation in Chinese Mandarin. So, I prepared conversational topics and phrases. Maureen was very consistent with her studying. We were able to accomplish our goal 😀 How can you not feel motivated when your student is studying so hard? During the 90-day challenge, several fun things happened.
Maureen’s cat Mario speaking Chinese Mandarin
See, Elly is always with me whenever I have classes. However, she doesn’t speak a word of Chinese Mandarin. Maureen’s cat Mario, however, responds to Maureen when she says “cat” in Chinese!
Maureen teaches her niece Chinese Mandarin
Maureen’s niece is also interested in languages!
Inspired to Travel
I am 110% a staycation person. One, I have motion sickness. Anything that moves will make me sick, but luckily, I am ok with bicycles. Two, traveling is troublesome (not to mention the costs). However, lately I have become more interested in traveling. I think a big reason is because a lot of my students are travelers. They share so many interesting stories and experiences with me.
Through Maureen, I have learned about language events, and I am determined to go to one of these language events one of these days (ok, scratch that, let’s say within 2 years). Maureen is going to an event called LangFest in Canada, AS A SPEAKER!!! 😀 😀 😀 Unfortunately, I am not going this year, but I hope in the next year or two I’ll be able to go.
I remember Maureen told me, “I am an introvert at work, an extrovert at language events.” It resonated with me. I have noticed that I am much more talkative with my students, but I am dead quiet when I meet people in real life or go to a social event. Though it helps a lot that my students are very friendly, nice, and inspiring. Maureen is one such individual.
If you want to learn more about Maureen or get in touch with Maureen, you can find her contact information on her blog Mo’s Language Learning Journey.