Review of what it’s like to be part of the Dim Sum Warriors Bilingual Club, where Chinese is learnt through creativity, stories, and doodling.
Author Archives: lahlahbanana
Maomi Stars: review of the best Chinese literacy app for preschoolers
What is Maomi Stars? Maomi Stars is a Chinese literacy app for children, perhaps an equivalent to the English kindergarten literacy apps like Starfall, ABC Mouse or Reading Eggs. It’s been meticulously researched, and tested on children, and offers several great advantages over other Chinese learning apps out there. My kids have road-tested A LOTContinue reading “Maomi Stars: review of the best Chinese literacy app for preschoolers”
Book Review: Zorori series in Simplified Chinese
Zorori 怪杰佐罗力) stories are a, great blend of comedy and mystery. A superb Simplified Chinese reading book for a P3 or P4 child.
Review: Vitamin M – a fun dose of Chinese online
What it’s been like learning online with Vitamin M for the last five months, with an innovative concept targeted at primary school students, blending online modules with weekly live teaching sessions.
Chinese Graded Novels: Books for not-quite-beginners
Easy-to-read graded novels in Simplified Chinese. Which ones are great and why?
Youdao Dictionary Pen 3 Review
有道 Youdao Dictionary Pen 3.0 offers quick translation between Chinese, English and Spanish! This is an honest comparison between the 3.0 version and earlier versions.
Review: Youdao Pocket Printer for Chinese home learning
Super cute little thermal printer, which is ink-less and wireless, and connects to your phone. You can print notes, photos, flashcards, invitations, and much more, including Simplified Chinese character range, with OCR text extraction.
Book Review: Magic Tree House in Simplified Chinese 神奇树屋
A good book set for a child who knows at least 1500 characters, and is ready to read novels. Historical adventure fiction., making is an appealing genre.
Are phonics or pinyin needed to learn Chinese?
Hanyu Pinyin is a contentious topic among non-native Chinese speakers (and no, I’m not referring to any politics here either). This is my take on it, and some observations about how different countries tackle literacy and phonics in Chinese.
Online Chinese language courses for kids that you might not have heard of (yet)
7 new online Chinese language classes to suit learners and budgets, both big and small. All with free trials available!