Li Wen's self-introduction

Reading strategy

Grasp the text's purpose first from its title and type.
Do not stop at unknown words; follow the flow. Hover the underlined key words to jump to the vocabulary track.
Find the clue each question asks about directly in the passage.

Passage

大家好，我叫李文，今年二十八岁，是一名汉语老师。

我在一所语言学校工作，已经教了五年书了。我的性格比较活泼，说话也很幽默，所以学生都很喜欢上我的课。

对我来说，当老师最重要的不是知识多，而是认真和耐心。每个学生的情况都不一样，有的学得快，有的学得慢。学生有问题的时候，我总是慢慢地给他们解释清楚，一直到他们完全明白。

我觉得，教别人其实也是在帮助自己。通过教学生，我自己的中文水平也提高了不少。看到他们能用中文跟别人聊天，我就觉得自己的工作很有意义。

工作以外，我喜欢旅游和看书。每年放假，我都会去一个新的地方，了解那里的文化和生活。我觉得认识新朋友、看到新风景，能让生活变得更有意思。

我希望以后能教更多的外国学生，让他们爱上汉语，也爱上中国。

Hover the underlined words for their meaning and a link to the vocabulary track.

Sentence structure

Key sentences split into meaning units, showing the role of each part.

当老师最重要的不是知识多，而是认真和耐心。

Clause当老师being a teacher (dang = to work as)

Subject最重要的the most important thing (de = nominalizer)

Predicate不是知识多is not having much knowledge

Connective而是but rather

Complement认真和耐心being earnest and patient

"bu shi A er shi B" is a paired structure meaning "not A, but rather B", spelling out both halves explicitly. In "zui zhongyao de", the "de" turns an adjective phrase into a noun ("the most important thing"), a typical Chinese way of freezing a modifier into a noun.

通过教学生，我自己的中文水平也提高了不少。

Modifier通过教学生means (by teaching students)

Subject我自己的中文水平my own Chinese level (de = possessive)

Modifier也also (adverb)

Predicate提高了rose (le = change)

Complement不少quite a lot (degree complement)

"tongguo + verb phrase" expresses the means ("by doing ..."), and it comes at the front of the sentence. A possessor plus "de" plus noun can stack up, as in "wo ziji de zhongwen shuiping" (my own Chinese level). "tigao le bu shao" combines "le" (change) with the degree complement "bu shao" (quite a lot): "rose quite a lot".

Questions

Q1What is Li Wen's job?

Q2Why do the students like his classes?

Q3What does he think is most important for a teacher?