Orthographic learning via self-teaching in Chinese: The roles of phonological recoding, context, and phonetic and semantic radicals.

•Children demonstrated robust orthographic learning across all conditions.•Phonological recoding via Pinyin is a key mechanism in orthographic and semantic learning.•Context interacts with phonological recoding, phonetic regularity and semantic transparency.•Regular phonetic radicals facilitated children’s learning of print-to-sound mapping.•Transparent semantic radicals benefitted children’s learning of print-to-meaning mapping.