Primary School in Chinese 小学
xiǎoxué
Primary school in Chinese is 小学 (xiǎo xué).
Also searched for as: elementary school, primary school, pupil.
What kind of school comes first? 15 essential primary school words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
The word for primary school in Chinese is 小学 (xiǎo xué), literally 'small school', and a primary pupil is a 小学生 (xiǎo xué shēng). In mainland China children usually start at six or seven and stay for six years, moving up through each 年级 (nián jí), year group. These words cover school life, from 语文 (yǔ wén), Chinese lessons, and 数学 (shù xué), maths, to playing on the 操场 (cāo chǎng) and the 家长会 (jiā zhǎng huì), parents' evening.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 小学 | xiǎo xué | primary school |
| 小学生 | xiǎo xué shēng | primary school pupil |
| 年级 | nián jí | year; grade |
| 班 | bān | class (group) |
| 班主任 | bān zhǔ rèn | form teacher |
| 校长 | xiào zhǎng | head teacher |
| 写字 | xiě zì | to write characters |
| 数学 | shù xué | maths |
| 语文 | yǔ wén | Chinese (school subject) |
| 拼音 | pīn yīn | pinyin |
| 课间 | kè jiān | break between classes |
| 操场 | cāo chǎng | playground |
| 午饭 | wǔ fàn | lunch |
| 家长 | jiā zhǎng | parent (of a pupil) |
| 家长会 | jiā zhǎng huì | parents' evening |
Usage tips
- Year groups are counted with 年级 (nián jí): 一年级 (yī nián jí) is the first year of primary and 六年级 (liù nián jí) the last.
- 语文 (yǔ wén) is Chinese as a school subject for native speakers, covering reading, writing and literature; lessons for foreign learners are usually called 中文课 (Zhōng wén kè) or 汉语课.
- The 班主任 (bān zhǔ rèn), form teacher, is the main contact for parents, and many classes keep in touch through a parents' WeChat group, 家长群 (jiā zhǎng qún).
Common mistakes
- 'I'm in Year Three' is 我上三年级 (wǒ shàng sān nián jí); learners often leave out 级 or the verb, as in 我三年.
- 家长 (jiā zhǎng) is mainly used for parents in a school context, so 我的家长 sounds odd in everyday chat; say 我父母 (wǒ fù mǔ) or 我爸妈 (wǒ bà mā).
Mini dialogue
- A你女儿上几年级了？Nǐ nǚ ér shàng jǐ nián jí le?What year is your daughter in now?
- B二年级了。她最喜欢数学课。Èr nián jí le. Tā zuì xǐ huan shù xué kè.Year Two. Maths is her favourite lesson.
- A语文呢？Yǔ wén ne?What about Chinese?
- B拼音学得不错，就是写字有点儿慢。Pīn yīn xué de bù cuò, jiù shì xiě zì yǒu diǎnr màn.She's doing well with pinyin, but her character writing is a bit slow.
- A明天开家长会，你去吗？Míng tiān kāi jiā zhǎng huì, nǐ qù ma?It's parents' evening tomorrow. Are you going?
Example sentences
- 我弟弟在上小学。My younger brother is at primary school.
- 小学生要早点睡觉。Primary school pupils should go to bed early.
- 她今年上三年级。She's in Year Three this year.
- 我们班有二十个人。There are twenty people in our class.
- 我们的班主任很温柔。Our form teacher is very gentle.
- 校长在开会。The head teacher is in a meeting.
- 爷爷教我用毛笔写字。Grandad teaches me to write characters with a brush.
- 我最喜欢上数学课。Maths is my favourite lesson.
- 今天的语文作业是写日记。Today's Chinese homework is to write a diary entry.
- 一年级的孩子先学拼音。Year One children learn pinyin first.
- 课间我们去操场玩。We go to the playground during the break.
- 孩子们在操场上跑步。The children are running in the playground.
- 我们在学校吃午饭。We have lunch at school.
- 老师给家长打了电话。The teacher phoned the parents.
- 明天晚上开家长会。Parents' evening is tomorrow night.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Primary school speaking island has 8 everyday questions about primary school to prepare your own answers to.