1. This edition retains many features from the first edition, including: a concise structure with practical language; a focus on conversation, phonetics and characters at the elementary level; an emphasis on well-structured grammar and the unique features of Chinese characters; a vocabulary based teaching method?2. In Volume 1 of this edition, ?lesson? is changed into ?unit?, with each unit including three lessons; this allows a clearer structure and more concise texts. 3. Scaffolding instruction and exercises were added to keep in line with the actual teaching process; while individual activities and supplementary materials are added to fully embody our process-oriented, task-based and interactive teaching concept. 4. We have corrected some mistakes of the first edition and updated some of the texts and cultural notes