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Parents, if you find your child needs more Mandarin practice, beyond the Better Immersion program the students are using at school, the following is a list of additional resources. There are many more resources available on various websites, but we’ve tried to limit the list to resources we’ve used and/or were recommended. If you find other resources of interest, check the reviews on Amazon and/or post a message in the WCMS families Google group to get input from other parents who may have used the resource. We’ll continue to add resources as we find more good ones.
FLASH CARDS
- Chinese Flash Cards: 186 Essential Chinese Characters for Beginners Available on Amazon
- Tuttle Chinese for Kids’ Flash Cards kit, Vol. 1, Simplified Edition (also includes an audio CD, poster, and learning guide) Available on Amazon
- Tuttle More Chinese for Kids’ Chinese Flash Cards, Simplified Edition (includes a poster an audio CD, which is the same as the CD included in Vol. 1) Available on Amazon
- Let’s Learn Mandarin Chinese Kit (flash cards, audio CD and wall chart) Available on Amazon
BOOKS
- Little Chinese Readers (online books) – Follow Little Chinese Readers on Facebook; they are currently offering a free 1-year membership
- My First Chinese Words (36 books and a CD) – check Amazon and ebay for best price
- Check the public library, Amazon, Asianparent.com, ebay and China Sprouts for more books and book sets; make sure any books purchased are written in simplified characters, not traditional
INSTRUCTIONAL DVDs
- Chinese for Children Vol. 1 – (** Excellent for teaching vocabulary and basic conversation) Available on Amazon or used copies on ebay
- Follow Jade Learn Chinese: Let’s Go to Market in China! (2005) – (for beginners) New and used copies Available on Amazon and ebay
- Follow Jade! Learn Chinese: Let’s Visit Chinese Kindergarten! (2005) – (for beginners) New and used copies Available on Amazon and ebay
- Play and Learn Chinese with Mei Mei, Vols. 1- 8 (for beginners; Vols. 1, 2 and 4 are best) – New and used copies Available on Amazon and ebay
MOVIES / TELEVISION (in Mandarin for listening & comprehension practice)
- AU on Science (TV Series) – Free on Amazon Prime
- Trail of the Panda (2011) – Available on Amazon for download or purchase
- The Swan Princess and the Secret of the Castle (1997) – Available on Amazon for download or purchase
- The Swan Princess: Princess Tomorrow, Pirate Today (2016) – Available on Amazon for download or purchase
- The Swan Princess: Royally Undercover (2017) – Available on Amazon for download or purchase
- The Monkey King Havoc in Heaven (1965) – Free on Amazon Prime or purchase download
(Note: There are many movies in Mandarin on Amazon and ebay. Make sure any others you purchase will play on a Region 1 DVD player or you have a multi-region player.)
MUSIC
- Baby’s First Words in Chinese (bedtime music for all ages) – Available for purchase or download on Amazon and on ebay
- Search youtube for playlist of Mandarin Pop
- Learn Chinese While You Sleep: Greetings Edition with Rain Background (for bedtime) – Free on Amazon Prime
APPS FOR TABLETS
- Kids Write Chinese (character stroke practice) – Search app store
- Lingokids Chinese for Kids – Search for Lingokids in apps
- Kids Learn Mandarin – Search app store
- Chinese Writer (Character writing practice and game; use standard word lists or customize word lists) – Search Chinese writer in apps
- Pleco Chinese Dictionary (search for English to Chinese translation or Chinese to English by typing word or drawing Chinese character; dictionary will also state the Chinese pronunciation) – Search for Pleco Chinese Dictionary in Apps
- I Learn Chinese Characters (introduces Chinese characters to non-native speakers or young kids in a fun and intuitive way) – Search for I Learn Chinese Characters in Apps
OTHER MATERIALS
- Magnetic Poetry – Kids’ Chinese Kit (Refrigerator character tile magnets) – Available on Amazon
BLOGS, BOOKS & VIDEOS FOR PARENTS
- Mandarin Immersion Parents Council (Blog by Elizabeth Weise)- Subscribe to blog or join the facebook group Mandarin Immersion Parent Support
- A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion (book by Elizabeth Weise) – Available on Amazon)
- Join the Mandarin Immersion Parent Support group on facebook
- Speaking in Tongues – Documentary follows four children through the language immersion experience (Marcia Jarmel and Ken Schneider Directors, 2009) – (*** See four clips on youtube and the behind the scenes clip) Available for purchase on Amazon , on Amazon’s Fandor streaming service, and on ebay
LOCATIONS OF SUPPLEMENTAL COURSES AND SUMMER CAMPS
- GrowingAcorn in Albany (after school and weekend Mandarin, abacus and math classes)
- Yu Ying Learning Center in Alameda (after school classes, weekend classes and summer camp)
- Kiki’s Chinese Learning Center in El Cerrito (after school classes)
- Keystone Chinese School in Berkeley (Saturday classes)
- Hanwen School in Berkeley (after school classes, private tutoring and summer camp)
- Shu Ren International School in Berkeley (Summer camp)
- East Bay Chinese School in Oakland (weekend classes)
- Shouren Chinese School in Oakland (weekend classes)
- Contra Costa Chinese School in Pleasant Hill (weekend and summer classes)