If your children are in the fifth grade of primary school this year, after 1 more year, they will take the PSLE exam, Chinese is a big challenge for many students, so now, please pay more attention to primary 5 Chinese tuition!
What is PSLE? PSLE is the English abbreviation of Primary School Leaving Examination (Primary School Leaving Examination) in Singapore, also known as the Primary School Leaving Examination, and assign students to appropriate secondary schools.
Every Primary 6 student is required to sit for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE). This test will assess students’ academic ability in order to place them in a secondary school that suits their academic progress and abilities.
After the reform, there will be two grades of standard and foundation for each subject.
The PSLE has started to implement a new points grading system. The results of the four subjects are divided into 1 to 8, with 1 being the best and 8 being the worst.
After the implementation of the new points grading system, the points grades obtained by candidates for each subject range from AL1 to AL8, with AL1 being the most outstanding grade.
PSLE’s Triage System
Students will be assigned to different secondary schools according to their PSLE results. Those with the best grades will enter the “prestige schools” through trains and do not need to take the senior high school entrance examination.
When enrolling in secondary school, there are five courses: express, general (academic), general (technical) and specialty education, IP through-train program, Chinese Special Program (Chinese Special Programme).
Students of both courses can take the Singapore “O” level examination in the fourth year of secondary school. Exam results will determine progression to Secondary, Junior College and Polytechnic.
PSLE Admission Rules
The PSLE score requirements for various secondary school courses in Singapore are as follows:
Express class 4-20;
Express/regular class (academic) 21-22;
Ordinary class (academic) 23-24;
Ordinary class (academic) or ordinary class (craft) 25;
Ordinary class (craft) 26-30;
Situation with the same score:
With the grade points system, it is inevitable that there will be more students with the same grade points. If this happens, places will be allocated as follows.
Students who choose the school as their first choice will be given preference.
Advanced native language:
If the school you choose is a special school, such as advanced Chinese, then the advanced Chinese level (divided into three levels: pass, excellent, and special) will become a priority factor beyond status.
draw lots:
If all of the above are the same, it will be decided by lottery.
For students whose mother tongue is Chinese, PSLE Chinese is an important opportunity to assess their mastery and application of their mother tongue.
It directly affects their subsequent ability to use Chinese in academic and professional development. Test scores can help students better assess their strengths and weaknesses in learning Chinese, so they can make better progress.
The PSLE Chinese test is also important for students with non-Chinese background and other language backgrounds.
Singapore focuses on cultivating students’ bilingual ability, and the PSLE Chinese test provides these students with the opportunity to demonstrate their efforts and achievements in Chinese learning.
In general, the PSLE Chinese test is of great significance to students’ academic assessment, secondary school admission, and the mastery and development of the Chinese language.
It reflects students’ language ability and academic performance, and lays the foundation for students’ future study and career development.
For students who are about to take the PSLE Chinese exam, primary 5 Chinese tuition help children understanding the structure of the PSLE Chinese exam, knowing the content of the inspection, and then making targeted preparations are the keys to successfully coping with the PSLE Chinese exam!
The following are the PSLE Chinese test tips shared by Hantu’s Chinese teachers.
Preparing for the Singapore Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) requires thorough planning and preparation and primary 5 Chinese tuition. The following are the test preparation tips brought by Hantu, I hope it can help you!
So how to prepare for PSLE for primary 5 students? Develop a detailed Chinese learning plan
formulate a detailed
The study plan lists the content and tasks that need to be studied every day. Arrange time reasonably to practice listening, speaking, reading and writing, and make sure you have enough time to review each part of Chinese.
Understand the PSLE Chinese test requirements
Learn more about the PSLE Chinese exam requirements and exam format. Understand the structure, test time and score allocation of the Chinese language test so that you can prepare accordingly.
Review early
Don’t wait until before the exam to start revising, it’s better to start revising months in advance. The review should include reviewing the knowledge learned in class, completing practice questions and doing mock test papers. This can deepen the understanding of Chinese knowledge, improve problem-solving and time-management skills.
Focus on accumulating basic Chinese knowledge
Ensure a solid grasp of the fundamentals of each Chinese component. If any concept is unclear, ask the teacher for help or refer to other learning resources in time.
Do mock test papers
Doing some practice papers can help you become familiar with the format and requirements of the PSLE Chinese exam. With PSLE Chinese practice papers, you can assess your weaknesses and have the opportunity to practice answering questions.
Practice Time Management
The PSLE Chinese exam is a time-limited exam, so it is important to have good time management skills. In daily practice and mock exams, try to complete the questions according to the time stipulated in the PSLE Chinese exam, so as to develop good time allocation skills.
Effective use of Chinese learning resources
Utilize various Chinese learning resources, such as Chinese textbooks, Chinese reference books, online Chinese learning platforms, etc. A variety of Chinese learning resources can help you better understand knowledge.
Keep a positive attitude
It is very important to maintain a good attitude during the preparation period, not to be overly nervous or too relaxed~ Primary 5 Chinese tuition will help children enhance the ability to withstand stress to help cope with the PSLE Chinese exam.
Helen is a teacher in a school in Hong Kong. Her daughter is about to enter primary 1 mandarin tuition, but she was eliminated in the first round of Chinese interviews. Her daughter has good grades, definitely above average.
Although lively, but also know the measure. In addition, the teacher’s children apply for further education, and they themselves have employee benefits (not through the back door), so the result of the first round of failure can imagine how shocking she was.
As far as she knew, there were six other students interviewing with her daughter, all of whom passed the interview. After many inquiries, I learned that all the six students had participated in the primary one interview class.
Among them, there were two Hong Kong treasures in the mainland, and the interview counseling course was arranged by the service organization in the mainland.
Only my daughter did not participate. Because of this, she feels depressed. As a teacher, I have always warned myself not to fall into the educational trap of the tiger mother, but I have to accept the fact that I have lost some advantages because I did not force my children.
She also felt confused: how should she educate her youngest son in the future? Start enrolling him in classes, taking tutoring, and let him “race” with other children?
If everyone in the society is challenging the limit, hoping to seize a better position and get more resources at the earliest time and in the shortest time, this kind of anxiety is like participating in a speed race, if you are not crazy When you get up, you will inevitably fall behind the majority of people, or take another path and suffer the loneliness of being behind.
Such loneliness and helplessness are not acceptable to every parent.
I said at the beginning that I would not force my children to attend any tutor school, and we should respect their wishes. I only hope that my children will be healthy and happy, and I don’t want to be the first.
But in the face of setbacks, these words will become less firm. Instead, it turned into a sense of being at a loss as to whether I was wrong.
Two weeks later, the teacher’s daughter had a second round of interviews. Looking at her anxious appearance, I also seem to understand how the parents’ anxiety spreads and why the tutoring market can continue to flourish.
This is the case in Hong Kong, and the same is true in the Mainland. All extracurricular primary 1 mandarin tuition and interest classes are in full swing. Although there are endless voices criticizing this trend in the society, when it comes time to fight for some scarce resources—such as places in prestigious schools, parents can’t calm down.
Hong Kong people will be anxious, as will Hong Kong treasure families in the mainland. As we know, compared with the mainland, Hong Kong degree is not something that can be obtained by sending money. Helen is a teacher and does not have any privilege or help for the whole degree application.
This is fair to every child, but Hong Kong Bao in the Mainland wants to enter a prestigious primary 1 mandarin tuition school in Hong Kong? Is it more difficult?
Applying to a prestigious school in Hong Kong is really not as simple as simply filling out the information and submitting the form. In addition to carefully preparing the information, each school of different types has different requirements for materials, so it is necessary to “prescribe the right medicine” for different schools.
If you are not familiar with the many years of examination questions and corresponding difficulties of each school in Hong Kong, the interview will be more difficult, so this is why even parents in Hong Kong will send their children to attend interview remedial classes.
According to the evaluation results of the child’s current level, we will provide the child with a tailor-made improvement counseling plan and targeted interview counseling, so that the child can stand out in many interviews and pass the interview smoothly, so as not to become that A member of the losing team.
No one wants their child to be the one who loses the election, and everyone wants their child to be the lucky one to be selected by the school of their choice. Is it really just luck?
Let’s take a look at the application experience of Candy Gangbao:
Zhang Sheng found our consultant teacher of Diocesan Education in Hong Kong in May 2015.
01
Preliminary school district
Mr. Zhang works in Beijing. Although his child is Hong Kong treasure, he has been studying in kindergarten in Beijing, and he doesn’t know much about the specific situation of Hong Kong schools.
Mrs. Zhang knew that Hong Kong’s places are tight, especially in primary one, so she thought about giving candy in advance. Solve the problem of primary one degree. After learning from friends around me, I still felt helpless. After many inquiries, I found our outstanding consultant teacher. Because Zhang Sheng has a house in Yuen Long, he hoped that his daughter could go to school nearby.
After understanding the specific situation, the teacher gave a detailed explanation of the school. Zhang Sheng combined his own educational philosophy and had a preliminary understanding of some Hong Kong schools with the consultant teacher. basic situation.
02
Assess and develop school choice options
After confirming the primary one degree application service, the consultant teacher gave Candy an evaluation for her further studies. Candy has a lively and lovely personality. During the chatting process, she will take the initiative to greet the teacher politely.
At the same time, after class, Mrs. Zhang also attaches great importance to children’s education and training, allowing children to participate in painting and Taekwondo interest classes.
However, the child does not speak Cantonese, the English level is relatively weak, and the ability to recognize traditional Chinese characters needs to be improved, so the evaluation situation is not very satisfactory.
However, because the parents are far-sighted and prepare one year in advance, the time is relatively loose. Based on the ability test and comprehensive evaluation of the students, the outstanding teachers have formulated a professional school selection plan for the children. This plan is based on the parents’ selection of schools. requirements and the results of the child’s assessment.
03
Improve training to ensure success in further studies
After finalizing the school, our teacher team, based on the rich experience accumulated in previous years, arranged for Candy to register and interview for direct-funded private primary schools on time, and also filled in suitable volunteers for Candy according to the gradient during the official allocation period.
At the same time, the teacher also maintains close contact with primary 1 mandarin tuition. Parents will be notified to participate in the admissions briefing meeting of the relevant school, so that parents can further understand the school’s educational philosophy, which plays a very good role in assisting the child’s later interview.
Mike is in Primary 3 this year. Every day after school, he would take his favorite bus to go to primary 3 Chinese tuition. The center is located in Jordan and specializes in serving non-Chinese speaking students.
Today, his Chinese homework was to make sentences. There were two questions on the worksheet. The first question had to use the word “friendly”, and the second question had to use the words “busy” and “care”.
The tutor explained the words first, and then let Mike make up the sentences by himself. At the same time, the teacher was preparing another girl’s Chinese silent book for the next day. Mike stared at the two black lines in front of his eyes, holding a pencil, unable to start.
Why is it so difficult to make sentences? “I know the meaning of these words, but I don’t know how to put together a sentence.” Mike, who originally spoke fluent English, suddenly spoke intermittently.
Too much, too much, too much dissatisfaction poured out all at once, like a pile of colorful building blocks, and he couldn’t find the shape he wanted.
“I hate dictation,” he said. Over the years he had learned many words, but he never knew how to use them. “I hate Chinese,” he said. Strange structure, rote memorization of homework once, meeting the same sentence three months later, is like a stranger.
Since entering primary 3 Chinese tuition for 1 year, he often gets “A” grades in homework, but he always thought it was “B” grades.
For five years, every Monday to Friday, Mike has spent an hour and a half at the tuition center every day. He remembers that when he was still in kindergarten, he sang songs and read stories in the tuition center, and he did learn a lot of Chinese.
Later, when he entered elementary school, the one-and-a-half hour tutoring time was usually only enough for him to complete his homework, and sometimes he could barely read a few pages of storybooks.
Mike thinks that instead of preparing silent books and doing homework, it is better to spend more time learning Chinese. “But I know that silent reading is very important. Parents ask tutoring teachers like this.”
If you had three wishes to change the school and make you happier in school, what would you do? “I love primary 3 Chinese tuition! Sports days and travel days are my favorite,” Mike said. When he goes to school on weekdays, he looks forward to the break most, running around the campus and playing with his classmates In class, Mike also has favorite activities. For example, he can play Scrabble on the whiteboard in English class, and he can raise his hands to answer questions in math class, and strive for opportunities to solve problems on the whiteboard. “Only in the Chinese hall, I can only sit in a daze.”
“I think one wish is enough.” Mike said suddenly, “No more Chinese homework, dictation, quizzes, and exams.” He was promoted to primary two last year, and he had already complained to his parents that he didn’t want to learn Chinese.
“They ignored it. Is it normal? Adults usually ignore children’s complaints.”
“I don’t want my son to face the same difficulties in life as I do in the future,” said Anjali, who is Mike’s mother. As a child, she grew up and studied in Nepal to gain professional qualifications.
After coming to Hong Kong, due to language problems, she can only work in the catering industry, and her husband is currently a construction worker. “If we know how to speak Chinese, others will look at us differently, and we can get more opportunities.”
She believes that Mike was born and raised in Hong Kong, so he needs to learn Chinese well and understand the local culture.
Anjali has always been nervous about Mike’s studies, but she couldn’t help him with his Chinese, which he needs help most. She used to find private tutoring for Mike, but the tuition was too expensive to afford.
Through word of mouth, she learned from relatives that an education center was dedicated to serving non-Chinese speaking students, and that it was a charity organization with affordable fees. As if she had found a treasure, she immediately took Mike, who was still in kindergarten at the time, to sign up.
The Integrated Brilliant Education Center (Integrated Brilliant Education Center) was founded by an Indian couple. They found that the social welfare institutions provided insufficient learning support for ethnic minorities.
The children had to go to school every day, but the homework tutoring class was only two days a week. Six years ago, the couple founded a tutoring center with their own funds, providing non-Chinese speaking students with homework tutoring classes five days a week, with a teacher-student ratio as low as one to three or four.
The monthly tuition fee is 1,000 yuan, which is half of the average tuition fee.
In the first month of establishment, there were only eight students in the center; after two months, the number of students increased to thirty. Two years later, the center is providing homework assistance to 80 students every day. The founders, Geetanjali and Manoj, sometimes serve as volunteer teachers and hire part-time teachers.
They also offer Chinese classes on Saturdays, hoping that students will have more class hours to improve their Chinese proficiency.
Paying 1,000 yuan a month is an expense for Anjali, but she knows it is well spent. “Mike likes to go to the tutoring center. He said that the teachers are friendly and enthusiastic. After attending the remedial class, his Chinese writing has improved.”
However, the improvement does not mean that he is interested. Mike’s motivation to learn Chinese is still very low, and Anjali is helpless. .
Not long after Mike was born, Anjali chose English as the “mother tongue” of the family, hoping to help the child use it in school in the future. “Among the Nepalese parents I know, even though everyone wants their children to learn Chinese well, most of them will not send their children to Chinese schools.
They are worried that they will not be able to help their children with revision in the future.” As a result, many children start attending English schools from kindergarten .
Take Mike as an example. Most of the friends and teachers he met at school are also from ethnic minorities, and they communicate in English in daily communication.
Only primary 3 Chinese tuition class can let your children win at the starting line, don’t hesitate, come on!
How can we increase children’s interest in learning? In other words, how can primary 3 Chinese tuition start with my child’s interests? Immersion opens the door to Chinese learning.
An English teacher’s journey of letting her daughter learn Chinese.
In this four-part series, former New York professor and “ang moh pai” (Western education) English teacher Dr Yanyan Hu goes from tearing up Chinese textbooks to writing Chinese comics and a giant musical touring China 25 cities.
She shares her journey and how she enabled her American-born daughter with zero Chinese to thrive in a Taiwanese public school with all Chinese instruction.
This lecture series was produced for the Singapore Ministry of Education’s Mother Tongue Symposium 2020 and is supported by the Speak Mandarin Campaign.
How to stimulate children’s learning interest in primary 3 Chinese tuition? Why is free time important for kids? When learning music or language, we often think that we have to start from the basics, step by step, and only move on to the next stage when we have mastered the basic level.
That’s why there are graded readers in classrooms, why we have grades and exams in music, and why kickboxing has different ribbons.
Have you also noticed that many children practice and learn to play the piano for years until 8th grade and then never play music again in their life? Have you ever noticed that many of us living in Singapore may have studied Chinese for many years but never read Chinese novels?
My speculation as to why this happened is that these learners never really felt ownership of the subject matter, and the process and lessons never really sparked their interest. It’s a “what my parents want me to do” or “I have to study to pass a test” kind of thing.
While we always assume we have to start with “the basics,” I think that focus is misplaced. I think we have to start with “interest”, what is “interesting”!
It’s not that the foundation is not important, but that we must first engage in interest. This will take us further. Because studying is for living, not just for passing exams.
The father of progressive education, John Dewey, told us in Experience and Education (1938) that there must be experiential fireworks—those that arouse enough “curiosity,” strengthen “initiative,” and make learners “
It is enough that the experience of “desire and purpose” is aligned so that that spark can carry the learner through those difficult parts of learning when we have to work very, very hard to acquire new knowledge. This means effective learning starts with interest!
What does it mean to start with an interest? Her curiosity and creativity will have to give way to mundane homework.
This is probably the most important point. What is the goal of learning anything – Chinese or any other subject?
Isn’t it about making our kids smart, creative, and innovative?
Especially when we know that in our current and future world, most jobs will be replaced by artificial intelligence, and the only thing that will allow our children to survive in the age of artificial intelligence is human intelligence, a major component of which must It’s creativity!
This means effective learning starts with interest! What does it mean to start with an interest?
Curiosity and creativity will have to give way to mundane homework. This is probably the most important point. What is the goal of learning anything – Chinese or any other subject?
Traditionally, the outside world’s impression of private schools is that there are many classes, many exams, and heavy schoolwork. This is indeed the case during the reporter’s on-site visits. But other than that, we also see some different changes in the current Weidao curriculum.
The day of my visit happened to be the regular class running time on Friday, and all the freshmen and sophomores in the school were busy taking “multiple elective courses”, walking faster than many public high schools.
During the interview, I observed a class called “Science for Playing Beauty”, which was co-taught by art, biology, physics, mathematics and other teachers, leading students to design websites and computer graphics.
Principle, draw many lively patterns and color them, and also design multi-color QR code, which is both beautiful and practical. Every Saturday morning, students can also choose to deepen and broaden the “characteristic courses”.
Some courses focus on the analysis of previous exam questions and the strengthening of problem-solving skills, but there are also electives that are not related to exams, such as “AI programming” in the middle school The course has entered its fifth year.
The teacher who started the course, Cheng Weixiang, said that it can be combined with science exhibitions, and it is interesting, and is very popular among students. “I often think about what is the purpose of elite education?
It should be practiced and contribute to society.” Cheng Weixiang even combined with public services, leading students to exchange courses with Namasia Middle School in a remote village on weekends, encouraging those who take courses Junior high school students must learn mathematics and programming well before they can teach others.
As for the more complicated characters, they are expressed in the form of building blocks. According to the shape and meaning of the characters, they are transformed into the most basic and simple elements.
Through the prompts, the images are formed in the brain, and the concept of the characters is established, and then the image text is read. To understand the meaning of words, deepen the understanding and impression of words.
Thomas pointed out that word forms and meanings are unique features of Chinese characters. When designing font-related pictures, they must be simple, easy to understand and easy to remember.
In addition, this learning method can also inspire creativity. Taking “birth” as an example, “the cow’s first birthday” was used as a prompt sentence. Later, a teacher proposed another interpretation method of “three-layer birthday cake”.
Thomas said: “The creative process allows learners to think carefully about the various elements of each character, and to experience the beauty of Chinese characters.”
Chinese learning needs to be done step by step, starting from learning single characters, and then combining single characters into words, using different character cards to form different characters or words, such as “日” and “月” become “明”, which can be associated with the sun and the moon are very bright the meaning of.
“Even nonsensical words, as long as they make sense, create associations, and understand them, that’s how Teochew comes from. Just like the compound word “Mingtian” I created, it means a luminous field.”
Summary: We often hear “go with the child’s interests” but don’t know how to do it. I’ve demonstrated several methods:
“Symbiosis” with primary 3 Chinese tuition Find ways to get our kids to contribute their knowledge Most importantly, we need to protect and value free time because it is actually very productive time.
Many parents are worried about their child’s Chinese learning, and they will attach more importance to primary 1 Chinese tuition; Let’s start with some questions first…
(If you want to know more information about Chinese learning, please click here^^) “Why can’t my child learn Chinese well after enrolling in a course to learn Chinese?” “Why do children learn Chinese all the time, but the more they learn it, the worse it becomes?” “I bought a lot of textbooks for learning Chinese, and my child’s Chinese ability still hasn’t improved!”
Parents obviously invest a lot in their children’s Chinese learning, but the children’s Chinese level is still at the initial state, and repeated learning is still unsatisfactory, and some primary 1 children will even become more and more resistant to learning Chinese.
I also received some similar feedback in our study group, and found that most parents are also facing these problems. After communication, I found similarities in the parents of these children.
In fact, parents must avoid these misunderstandings if you want your children to learn Chinese well!
1.Chinese is too difficult, and children don’t have to force it if they can’t learn it well. I can understand my parents’ thinking, after all, they use foreign languages most of the time abroad; So primary 1 Chinese tuition is necessary;
Learning Chinese is not easy, and learning it abroad is even more difficult. If this concept is instilled in children, then when they learn Chinese, they will also think: Chinese is so difficult to learn, why should they learn Chinese? Why do you still have to take up your playing time to learn Chinese?
In fact, there is no child who is not playful. Coupled with the difficulty of Chinese, it is also difficult for children to learn.
Many parents will not bear to compromise after seeing their children fail to improve after studying for a long time.
I think: as long as you can speak, you don’t have to force your child to learn well. So many children have the same problem: “It can be said, that they are illiterate and unable to write.” You can learn Chinese well if you learn Pinyin well
Many parents teach their children in the domestic way when they start to learn Chinese, speaking first, and then learning Pinyin. In fact, foreign children cannot be taught in this way.
Because all sentences and articles in a foreign language are composed of letters, it is very important to learn alphabetic words well. However, Chinese characters are different.
Chinese characters are not composed of pinyin. Chinese characters are mainly based on form. To truly learn Chinese well, you must not only learn pinyin, but also understand the meaning and learn how to write.
Moreover, Chinese characters have their own particularities, and it is impossible to learn Chinese in the way of “just learn pinyin well”.
After taking primary 1 Chinese tuition, many children are able to speak Chinese, but when they are allowed to read and write Chinese characters, they find that they can’t and don’t know them at all.
When children start to have their own memorization ability, they can also learn Chinese characters while learning pinyin, starting from some simple characters.
Step-by-step learning method The way of learning is also a very important part. When the child is young, parents can guide the child to speak Chinese through ordinary conversations, and try to speak Chinese as much as possible in life. Learning Chinese through life is also a subtle influence. Such learning The method will not be particularly deliberate.
When children show unwillingness to learn Chinese, what parents should do at this time is not to press every step of the way, let alone use some extreme methods to force children to learn.
Instead, we should think about how to make children like learning Chinese. Moreover, when studying, you should not be limited to some dry books. You should change your teaching methods and methods, and guide them from the perspective of children.
You can let children recognize them through some simple text cards. When children are young, parents can guide their children to take primary 1 Chinese tuition through stories and poems. It’s okay if they can’t speak, at least they have been exposed since childhood.
When the child is slowly able to speak Chinese, parents can guide the child to read through the method of identifying Chinese characters at this time, which is an excellent method of unconscious cognition!
You can also choose the corresponding learning method according to the child’s interest. If the child likes the learning method with more interaction, at this time, the parents can arrange a simple drama based on the story and learn while playing. There is also a strong sense of participation.
I am afraid that my child will learn two languages, and neither of them will be able to learn well. Many parents should have had this thought: they are worried that their children are still young, and they are afraid that their children will not be able to learn two languages.
In fact, there is no conflict between learning Chinese and learning foreign languages. When children start to babble, they can slowly teach them to speak some simple Chinese.
Although they are two different languages, there is no conflict between children’s learning. If you want to learn Chinese well, you must use it frequently in your life.
Children use more foreign languages abroad, and they are exposed to foreign culture and education. In fact, this will make the child form a fixed way of thinking. After the child has formed this kind of thinking, it will be more difficult to learn Chinese.
If parents want to cultivate their children’s bilingual thinking, it is best to learn Chinese at the same time when their children start learning foreign languages. In this way, it will be much easier for children to learn Chinese in the future.
In fact, the potential of every child is unlimited, and parents and the environment have a great influence on children.
Come and join in primary 1 Chinese tuition, I believe that children can learn Chinese well!
The most exciting time in any child’s life is when they start school. Primary 1 Chinese tuition serves as a starting point, and their ever-expanding minds are constantly progressing, eager to learn and absorb all the knowledge and experience they can acquire.
Although learning can be hard work, new technologies that facilitate progressive learning make learning Chinese easier for children.
From live teaching and real-time feedback and interaction, to engaging online Chinese classes using software and multimedia, it is now easier than ever to have a comprehensive learning experience.
Provide your child with immersive mini-online lessons to complement learning at home. A new wave of modern educators are fully prepared to take students’ Chinese proficiency to a new level.
But why are our young learners still struggling to learn Chinese?
The best way for children to learn Chinese is to start by developing the habit at home Did you know that your habits and behaviors can positively engage your child’s learning abilities and make a big difference?
By watching your responses to the language and learning it, your child can learn if he or she appreciates Chinese.
The way parents shape behavior is key. Parents can make a big difference by demonstrating the behavior they expect from their children.
Here are some habits you can start to make learning Chinese a part of your child’s daily life:
Habit 1: Make your child’s Chinese learning a fun family experience! Kids love to have fun, so learning Chinese should be no different. Learn Chinese in a fun way by turning the experiences they encounter in their daily lives into a gateway to the world of Chinese language and culture.
Don’t make it boring, let them enjoy the learning process by trying these fun learning-by-doing methods:
Print Chinese phrases and pronunciation Printing words and phrases in Chinese characters can help your child develop an interest in Chinese.
Children learn better when they don’t feel that their Primary 1 Chinese tuition is a burden, which often happens when the focus is only on grades.
If you treat class as a chore, Chinese will quickly become tedious and become a chore. Instead, let it be a simple introduction to Chinese culture.
These repetitive actions of seeing, using and hearing Chinese words and accompanying sounds in everyday life help your child learn language more naturally.
Have them look at objects around the house through a Chinese lens. Label the bowls, utensils, tables, and chairs they use every day. Print out Chinese characters and their pronunciations.
For example, you can label items around your home, such as putting a “door” sticker on your door. That way, every time your child opens or closes the door, they also learn the Chinese word. Seeing Chinese characters during a fun activity like eating will put your child in a good mood while their brains are actively learning new Mandarin vocabulary.
Your child will remember these “triggers” later, making it easier for them to learn.
Let your kids learn Chinese while having fun! Another fun activity is scheduling a weekly call in which you can entertain your child to play with their playmates while practicing their Mandarin together.
Everyone has to speak at least some Mandarin to each other during the allotted time.
While they may need to rely on English as a crutch at first, that’s okay. Start with small steps until speaking Mandarin with their friends becomes more and more natural.
The idea is to standardize the use of Mandarin. The more they use it, the more natural it becomes.
Ask children simple questions in Chinese to build their confidence As your child becomes more confident, ask them questions in Chinese and have them answer you in Chinese too.
When you see them doing various things at home, have them describe what they are doing in Mandarin.
It will be a welcome mental boost as they do mundane tasks like packing, making beds, folding laundry, washing dishes, sweeping floors, etc.
Throughout the day, Primary 1 Chinese tuition started asking them simple questions in Chinese, such as did they have dinner or how was their day.
Remember, it’s not how much they can remember, but to make them curious and think about the language.
Habit 2: Talk about their difficulties in learning Chinese
A deep-rooted fear of embarrassment often prevents children from learning Chinese. As your child begins to develop a sense of self, they may also experience emotions they are not ready to process or communicate.
Children may feel awkward or frustrated when they try to speak Mandarin or write in Chinese.
When they see a little progress after trying a few times, they may even feel that they can’t learn. However, they may not know how to properly digest and channel them in a constructive manner.
This is a great opportunity to guide them through challenges that require a long-term commitment. Encourage your child to express their feelings and thoughts about learning Chinese.
It’s not a question of learning Chinese or not, it’s about shaping how you want them to behave in the face of challenges, both academically and in life. Be sure to turn this into a conversation, not an interrogation.
Habit 3: Teach children Chinese by learning with them. In a guest panel on the Education and Enrichment webinar at Parenting Singapore 2021, 58% of parents said their children had difficulty learning languages in the poll.
62% of respondents also said they did not speak Mandarin enough at home, speaking it less than 50% of the time. The home language environment can be classified as monolingual, bilingual or multilingual.
To be bilingual, 50% of the conversation in each language, including in social settings, such as at school, must be achieved.
One of the best ways to get primary 1 Chinese tuition for your children in Primary 1 is to study with them. Try to use Chinese more in your family life.
Make it a family activity by addressing your children by their Chinese names and interacting with them in Mandarin. This shows them that you are trying too.
You might be thinking “oh, but my Chinese is terrible” and think that you might rather leave it to the educators to take on this role. But remember, you are irreplaceable in your child’s eyes.
Leading by example helps them see the value of learning Chinese. This will touch them more than telling them why learning Chinese is important.
It may be difficult at first, but your child’s education is a rewarding journey in which you can be an active part.
Teaching your child a language such as Chinese can be extremely challenging, so it’s best to make learning as fun as possible. There are no quick fixes to helping your child learn one of the world’s most difficult languages. The good news is that you can start small.
Go out the east gate and cross the bridge; there’s a jujube tree under the bridge; take the pole to strike the jujube; many green ones, few red ones; one jujube, two jujubes; three jujubes, four jujubes; five jujubes, six jujubes; seven jujubes, eight jujubes; nine jujubes, ten jujubes; this is a tongue twister; it only counts if you say it all in one breath!
四是四，十是十 (sì shì sì，shí shì shí) – Four Is Four And Ten Is Ten
