Learn the English alphabet. The English alphabet is based on Latin alphabet and so you probably already know the letters from math or science.
Hire an English tutor or enroll in an English class for Mandarin speakers. Formal lessons will make your learning of English more disciplined and organized. Still, it is possible to learn the language on your own, provided you work hard and regularly.
Learn simple English words, such as "father," "table," "house" and "dog." Stay away from abstract nouns, such as "democracy," or "unionization." Also, learn verbs such as "get," "have" and "take" as they are among the most popular words in the English language.
Learn English tenses. First, learn Present Simple. "I live in Beijing," is an example of a sentence in Present Simple. Learn its usage--the action takes place in the present time--and how to form sentences in this tense. Also, learn how to make questions and negative sentences in Present Simple. After you feel comfortable with this tense, move on to other tenses (Past Simple and Future Simple, for example).
Read simplified English-language books. Abridged literature starts with a vocabulary of 200 to 300 words. Popular simplified book series are published by Penguin, Oxford and Longman. Many simplified books come with an audio recording. Listen to the audio and read the text to learn how English words and sentences are properly pronounced. Use an English-Mandarin dictionary to help you understand the unknown words.