When out daughters were 7 and 4, we decided it was time to start Mandarin lessons. We found a Chinese school in the Orlando area and asked if our children could attend or more like if they were old enough to attend. Kayla loved it. She would participate and would try to retain what she learned. Michelle, on the other hand, would have good days and bad days. On the bad days, she did not want to participate.
Every Saturday, they would go for a couple of hours. The pace of learning was slow. It was gaged to the younger children. So, there was a lot of repetition. They mainly went over numbers, colors and other words.
Unfortunately, the school was not free. We had to pay $100 per child per semester. When we got Qin Qin, it was just too much. Then, they expected the parents to go over the material during the week with the children. That is easier said then done. What you see in Mandarin is not how you pronounce it. An example would be Qin dynasty. In America, we'd say the Q with a kw sound. In Mandarin it sounds more like ch, I'd say tch but that is hard to sound out. We heard it in China, since our daughter's name is Qin Qin. At this point, we could not continue. So, we stopped.
Going off on a tangent, Ping Pong Playa is a great film set around a Chinese school. My daughters love it.
Now we have Rosetta Stone. I have listened to it. I sort of like it. It's a lot of repetition. They computer grades how you say it. I have to go back, but I think I may retain it if I do it every day. I just wish I could do like the Matrix and plug the language into my brain and instantly know it. Maybe one day!
As for heritage, we did some things in the school. We now just try to find events around our city. This week, they will be celebrating the New Year. Later in the year, they have a dragon boat festival. Of course, we have the Chinese group we still do things with.
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