Category Archives: Primary school-age readers

Chinese Bridging Book Review: I Love Reading Collection (Set of 20)

This post is about a set of twenty Simplified Chinese picture books called the “I Love Reading Collection”, written and printed in Singapore, which are appropriate for lower primary school age readers. They’re mainly fun, and great for learning new vocabulary, aligned to the MOE syllabus. The books are written by the Chou Sing ChuContinue reading “Chinese Bridging Book Review: I Love Reading Collection (Set of 20)”

Book Review: 16 Chinese Picture Books Celebrating Families Ties and Grandparents

16 Chinese picture books on the topic of families and celebrations. The picture books selected in this post teach children about family values and bonds, especially with grandparents.

Book Review: Crow Bakery 乌鸦面包店 (Set of 5)

This endearing set of 5 books (translated from Japanese) centres around the humble beginnings of a mom-and-pop bakery business, opened by two crows in the Spring Forest. It’s an intriguing story following the progression of the bakery – and various other enterprises around the forest – and how the family go about their daily life, through ups and downs, innovating and being resilient. Click link to read my full review including photos.

Little Brother Mouse Series: Chinese Book Review 可爱的鼠小弟

Name: Little Brother Mouse Series Sets 1 and 2 可爱的鼠小弟Author: Yoshio NakaeNumber of books in set: 22~ Number of pages: around 30 (varies between titles, but only half the pages have text)~ Number of lines per page:  0 – 4~ Total length of the book: ~300 characters per story~ Characters required by child to readContinue reading “Little Brother Mouse Series: Chinese Book Review 可爱的鼠小弟”

Chinese bridging books for children: What to read after your child knows 1000 characters

This post summarises Simplified Chinese bridging books, arranged by length and character complexity. These are the ideal early chapter books to move onto AFTER your child has finished up graded reader sets like Sage, Le Le, Odonata or 四五快读. Get reading to read, read read!

Is reaching Chinese fluency a realistic goal for non-native children?

This post compares the different schooling approaches to learning Chinese in Singapore (local school vs bilingual immersion), and how this translates into learning outcomes from a native-speaking perspective. It also lists good bridging books to encourage bilingualism and biliteracy.

Bilingual Chinese Books that teach Kindness and Peace to Inspire Children

8 bilingual Chinese-English books on the topic of kindness, peace and unity. The picture books selected in this post teach children about kindness through a variety of approaches – such as stories, poems, use of metaphors, or profiling peacemakers.

Review: Luka Idioms Smart Flashcards 哆学成语智慧卡

If you have a Luka Reading Robot, you shouuld consider getting the Luka Idioms Smart Flashcards 哆学成语智慧卡. Chinese idioms, or 成语 (chéng yǔ), are short (generally) four-character Chinese phrases which offer gems of wisdom – usually accompanied by fascinating origin stories.  They are really meaningful for children to learn, especially as can be common kindsContinue reading “Review: Luka Idioms Smart Flashcards 哆学成语智慧卡”

Books About Mid-Autumn Festival To Read With Your Kids

Mid Autumn Festival (中秋节 Zhōng qiū jié)  is just around the corner, and it’s one of our favourite festivals of the year! Here’s a review of what’s on our bookshelf this month, including books across a range of reading abilities, for pre-schoolers to read by themselves, through to books which can be enjoyed by readingContinue reading “Books About Mid-Autumn Festival To Read With Your Kids”