The exercises constitute the core of this book. They are varied in nature and in intended purpose. Some items take half an hour to complete and some require a couple of days or longer. Students may find that they must invest much time and energy, and it may be necessary for their instructors to spend an equal amount of time, or longer, to go over corrections and assist in student presentations. But we hope that the work will be rewarding.

Some of the themes of the exercises are borrowed from Western language pedagogy and some are indigenous to Chinese culture. We understand that students or instructors will not find all the exercises beneficial or practical. Variations of themes are therefore encouraged. For instance, 'role play' may be impractical for a very large or a very serious class, but suggested topics can be easily adapted to controlled composition. Some light-hearted items, such as cross-word puzzles, can be skipped. But none of the exercises are to be taken as 'games'. There is a linguistic intent behind each type of exercise.