“Easy
Steps to Chinese for Preschool and Kindergarten” is specifically designed
for non-Chinese background children, who are learning Chinese as a
second/foreign language. The series is suitable for preschool children aged 4
to 6.
This series
serves as an “enlightenment course” for the children who use “Easy Steps to Chinese”. It aims to plant
the seeds of the idea that “Chinese is not difficult” and “I like learning
Chinese” in the minds of young children, laying the foundation for their
systematic learning of Chinese in primary and secondary schools.
The goal of
this series is to help children naturally acquire Chinese pronunciation, become
familiar with Chinese character writing, and master the most basic words and
sentence patterns in a relaxed and enjoyable environment. Furthermore, this
series also focuses on cultivating their interest in learning Chinese,
fostering a positive attitude, and developing good writing habits.
This series
consists of two levels, with each level including a textbook and a workbook. In
addition, it comes with PowerPoint slides, word cards, downloadable worksheets
for tracing characters, and various digital teaching resources.
Keeping the
characteristics of young children learning languages in mind, the series
integrates materials and resources, such as word cards, picture cards, and
interactive game cards, with their functions while compiling the textbooks and
workbooks, making it convenient for teachers to plan and organize classroom activities.
The textbook
focuses on teaching basic language knowledge of Chinese, such as Chinese
numbers, simple characters, simple words, and short sentences, while the
workbook provides diverse, age-appropriate, and interesting exercises and
activities in order to consolidate the content of the textbook. The recurrence
of words and repetitive exercises are designed accordingly.
There are four units
in each book: numbers, my family, daily life and school life. The course
progresses gradually, helping children understand and master vocabulary and
short sentences while cultivating their ability to communicate using the Chinese
they have learned on the topics in the course.
Ms. Yamin Ma has an M.Ed. in Curriculum Design and Instruction from Queen’s University, Canada. She used to teach English at both secondary and university levels in Shanghai (China), Hong Kong (China) and Kingston (Canada) for over 10 years and has taught Chinese at primary and secondary levels in Hong Kong (China) for more than 20 years. Ms. Ma has been the Head of the Chinese Department in Island School (located in Hong Kong, China) for over two decades and has taught IGCSE, AS/A-Levels and IB Language B courses.
After years of studying relevant second language acquisition
theories and gaining insight from the experiments and results of teaching young
children Chinese and English, the author has developed a new approach to
teaching Chinese as a second/foreign language to young children.
Based on the results of the successful teaching experiments,
this series has been developed, ensuring that the teaching materials are
scientific, systematic, and practical, while aligning with classroom teaching principles.
The course is designed with reference to the preschool education
guidelines of China and other countries. It covers five themes: language,
mathematics, society, science and art, with the hope to inspire children’s
curiosity about the world around them, guiding them to explore confidently and
exposing them to learn some basic knowledge. The course also aims to cultivate
children’s observation skills, hands-on skills, and develop their independent
and logical thinking abilities.
Starting with simple characters is an easy and effective way to
learn Chinese for young children. Mastering a certain number of simple
characters will pave the way for learning compound characters in later stages.
The rhymes, created with the newly learned simple characters and
new words from each lesson, not only can strengthen the repetition and practice
of vocabulary and language points but also cultivate children’s sense of
Chinese language and rhythm.
Systematic study and repeated practice of Chinese numbers will
lay a solid foundation for memorizing the times table in elementary school.
The course also
emphasizes the importance of cultivating children’s correct pen-holding posture
and promotes the development of arm, wrist, and finger muscles through
activities such as connecting dots to form straight lines, zigzag lines and
arcs, as well as tracing and writing Chinese characters. This approach ensures
that children can write Chinese characters neatly from the very beginning.
This series is specifically designed for preschool children.
Generally speaking, a four-year old child can use Book 1 (including 1A and 1B) and
a five-year old child can use Book 2 (including 2A and 2B).
If there is a 30-minute Chinese lesson every day, most children
can finish one book in one academic year.
After completing “Easy
Steps to Chinese for Preschool & Kindergarten” of this series, children
can continue with “Easy Steps to Chinese
for Kids” (2nd Edition).
Since the content of
this series is continuous and ongoing, teachers can flexibly adjust the
teaching pace according to children’s Chinese proficiency.
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