Bill Belew has raised 2 bi-cultural kids, now 34 and 30. And he and his wife are now parenting a 3rd, Mia, who is 8.
Learn Fake Chinese
I am a Chinese-American little girl. I speak English at home. But I also speak Chinese with my mommy and Chinese grandpa and grandma. I want to grow up and be both bilingual and bi-cultural. Since I am going through this firsthand I want to tell my dear readers what materials I have learned are the best for English speakers who are studying at home to use if they want to learn the Chinese language – reading and writing.
1. Learn Chinese – Flash Cards for Beginners – very basic. Cheap. Great starting point. Good for adults, too – travelers.
2. BABY LEARNS CHINESE Blue Box Set Flash Cards. – Good for babies. Nursery rhyme music. About 100 words. Not so interesting 3-4 times through.
3. Learn Chinese: Flash Cards for Beginners – good variety. Cheap. Great for travelers. To learn characters.
4. My Chinese Coach – record yourself! And hear how you sound compared to the original. Great replay function to work at your own pace.
5. BABY LEARNS CHINESE Green Box Set – DVDs are ‘cute. But no pictures in the flash cards. Maybe teaching a baby is too early to start anyway?
6. Learn Chinese: Flash Cards for Beginners. Book 2 – good complement to book 1. Cheap.
7. Magnetic Poetry Kids’ Chinese Kit – 140 magnets. Young people enjoy it, too. Pinyin on same side as characters.
Not a lot to choose from if you want to save money.
Old adage – you get what you pay for.
