I love book signings. So when my friend Tracey told me about a book signing last Sunday with author Chris Lin, who writes bilingual Chinese-English children’s books, I was game.
The Mandy and Pandy board book series is colorful, educational, and fun. And each book includes a CD of the stories so children and adults can hear the correct pronunciation.
I wish these books had been available when my oldest son was a toddler. But as Lin’s books are marketed to all ages, it’s not too late for Jake to enjoy them and see how much Chinese he already understands from years of Saturday and after school Mandarin classes.
I certainly could have gained something from books like these when I started learning Mandarin more than 20 years ago, toiling away with characters, pinyin (the mainland Chinese romanization), and tones. Again, it’s never too late to brush up.
Fortunately, my two youngest kids can benefit from an early exposure to Mandarin. I bought four of the six Mandy and Pandy books at the signing for the discounted price of $8.88 each (the discount is also available online for a limited time):
- Mandy and Pandy Say “Ni Hao Ma?”
- Mandy and Pandy Play Sports
- Mandy and Pandy Visit the Zoo
- Mandy and Pandy Visit China
There is also a book about counting and one about colors.
My kids love them and I’m sure I’ll get quite a bit of use from them too, refining my vocabulary and tones.
Tai hao le. Wonderful.
I blog on Introducing Kids to Foreign Languages at http://pragmaticmom.com so I am pleased to learn about more great books to help kids learn Chinese! My kids are learning Chinese and Spanish and need a flow of new materials (books, games, dvds, cds, etc) to keep them interested. I just blogged on Kingka, a bi-lingual memory and match game, and Chinese and English Nursery Rhymes, a book and CD combo; both products are new to us.
Pragmatic Mom
Type A Parenting for the Modern World
I blog on parenting, children’s literature and education at http://pragmaticmom.com
Thanks so much! I love your blog!
Xie Xie, Susan. It was a fun afternoon. There definitely are more choices for our children to help them learn Mandarin and have fun while doing so!
Xie Xie Ni!! I’m so glad you told me about it and let me use your photo!! The kids love the books and I’m getting a lot out of them, too!!
although i never learned mandarin i had cantonese classes as an extra activity at school – just look at our book!!! we could have done with a bit of colour back then 😉
http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?pid=2143448&id=689768775
http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?pid=961758&id=689768775&fbid=24570073775
I don’t suppose there was any use for Mandarin in the 60s and 70s. Even in the 90s, it wasn’t easy to hear it there. I think only on Hollywood Road, in some of those antique shops where they sold Mao busts and Mao pins. I never got the Cantonese romanization and all those tones.