Tamarind Village

iPad/iPhone app for learning Chinese

2011-09-08T23:15:00.000-07:00

My hubby recently bought an iPad, and he installed this Pleco Chinese dictionary app that runs on both iPad and iPhone.

I find that this app is excellent for encouraging children to learn Chinese independently. When using a dictionary(book) to search for a Chinese word, a child have to first recognize the 部首, then count the number of strokes. Then he has to look through the index pages and scan many words with the same 部首 and strokes in order to find the right word. This process can take a few minutes.

When using this iPad/iPhone app, the child can simply write the word and he will be able to know the pronunciation and meaning of the word in English almost instantaneously. He will be more motivated to learn Chinese on his own since it is now so easy to look up difficult words.

Click the following link for more information :

Pleco Software

Progressing from picture books to long novels

2011-08-03T02:03:00.004-07:00

Many parents think that the way to learn Chinese is to make their kids do as many assessment books as possible and practice writing the same word many times. The fact is that no matter how hard the kids work on these, they are not going to do well in Chinese.

If you make a child write a Chinese character 10 times in one day, he will forget the word a week later. He also will not know how to use it in his compositions. However, if you let him read Chinese story books regularly, he reads the word in many different sentences which is the best way to learn how to use the word. He comes across the word everyday as he reads, after one or two weeks, the word will be retained in his long term memory and he will never forget it.

Many parents think that kids can learn Chinese by doing assessment books. This is a misconception. Chinese assessment books are useful only to gauge a child's standard of Chinese, they are not meant for kids to learn Chinese. Kids should learn by reading good Chinese story books.

A child who has read many Chinese story books will have no problem writing compositions, he naturally knows what words to use and how to form good sentence structures. In Singapore, Chinese composition becomes critical at P3, and if we want our kids to be well prepared, they must have read many Chinese story books by P2.

The result of forcing children to do tons of Chinese assessment books and to practice writing the same words over and over again, or by memorizing model compositions, is that once kids complete their last Chinese exams in secondary school, they will never want to read anything in Chinese again. I know a lecturer, age 30+, who studied Higher Chinese in school. When working in China, I found out that he could not even read shop signs or road signs written in Chinese.

The authors of the bestselling books 好妈妈胜过好老师 (尹建莉) and 四五快读 (杨其铎) both emphasized the importance of reading as many good books as possible. Reading extensively is the key to success. If we train kids to read good Chinese story books from a young age, they will continue to enjoy reading Chinese novels after they grow up and Chinese will always be a useful language to them for their entire life.

Before the age of 6, kids should read as many picture books as possible. Check out this page for a list of wonderful picture books for kids: How to raise a bilingual child

By 7 years old, kids should start to read chapter books. I know that many kids reject reading books with too many small Chinese words on a page. Parents can help by looking for books that have bigger words and some pictures so that kids don't find them too daunting to read. The best way to encourage kids to read, is to ask them to read every word out loud and help them with words that they don't know. You should aim to get your child to read out loud to you (do not read to them) for at least 30 minutes every day, even on weekends and holidays. If you can persist, your child will improve very quickly.

Both my kids start to read long chapter books in P1, thanks to the excellent 四五快读 series of books. If you have not been using these books, and your child is already in P1, it is not too late. Your child should be able to complete these books within 6 months. In fact, the 四五快读 books are all we need to give children the confidence to read long novels. After children have completed these books, they should read as many good Chinese books as possible. This is the best way to learn Chinese.

I found quite a number of good books in our National Library which can help primary school kids to transition from picture books to chapter books. All the books listed below can be found in our National Library. To search for the books, go to http://www.nlb.gov.sg/, click Search Catalogue, Advanced Search. For books with Hanyu Pinyin, I advise parents to cover up the Hanyu Pinyin like I did : Reading long Chinese novels by 7 years old. Hanyu Pinyin distracts the child from the Chinese characters and will significantly slow down their speed of learning Chinese words.

杨红樱 is currently the most popular writer of children's books in China. Her books are beautifully written, and she uses many 成语 and good vocabulary on every page. The library has a large collection of her books. The following book is very suitable for P1 kids :

小男生杜歌飞

My P1 boy enjoyed reading this book. There is another book 小女生金贝贝, about a girl who is the classmate of 杜歌飞. Both are highly recommended for P1 kids.

The following series of books with Hanyu Pinyin, all written by 杨红樱, are suitable for lower primary kids : 没有尾巴的狼, 我是马小跳, 最美的一课, 仙女蜜儿, 亲爱的笨笨猪, 金瓜汤银瓜汤, 最后的晚餐, 沙漠运动会, 流浪狗和流浪猫, 一只会笑的猫, 小蛙人游大海, 森林谜案

Search for Keywords : 杨红樱

For kids in upper primary, I highly recommend the 笑猫日记 series of books by 杨红樱. These books are very popular with kids in China. My girl has been reading these books since P1, and she enjoys reading these books very much. 杨红樱 writes beautifully and she truly understands how children think. However, many kids from P4 to P6 may not be able to read these books independently because there are many words which are not in the MOE syllabus. I advise parents to read these books with your kids, help them with words that they don't know, and they will develop a love for these books. 杨红樱 is currently the richest Chinese writer in China and there is a good reason why kids love her books.

笑猫日记 : 塔顶上的猫

Here is another book suitable for P1 kids, written by 王淑芬:
There is one book for each year from P1 to P6 in this series, all books are very well written and funny : 一年级鲜事多, 二年级问题多, 三年级花样多, 四年级烦恼多, 五年级意见多, 六年级怪事多

Search for Author: Wang, Shufen

A parent jedamum recommended books by 张秋生. I found some of his books in the library. His books are quite fun and easy to read, suitable for P1 to P3 kids. The words are big and there are not too many words on a page. Click on the photos to read the words :

玫瑰山谷里的强盗

Other books by 张秋生 : 浴缸里的泡泡熊, 野葫芦大院的巫婆, 十二个月的小巴掌童话, 顶呱呱的呱呱先生, 爱打扮的豹先生, 蓝天里的蜗牛, 有魔力的怪草莓, 哭鼻子的灰小狼, 打喷嚏的兔子

The following series of books is also written by 张秋生. There is no Hanyu Pinyin, but there are many pictures in between the words which make it more appealing for kids.

奇古拉国王的超长面条

Books in the series : 奇古拉国王的超长面条, 奇古拉国王和胖奶妈, 奇古拉国王和女巫姨妈, 奇古拉国王的猪朋鸡友, 奇古拉国王的趣事儿

Search for Author: Zhang, Qiusheng

The following series of books, 童话般的公主们, should appeal to girls. Suitable for P1 to P3 kids.

爱说"我不要"的公主

Other books in the series : 爱听恐怖故事的公主, 不像公主的公主, 骄傲的公主, 梦想当海盗的公主, 喜欢恶作剧的公主, 只关心自己的公主, 听了太多公主故事的公主, 被施了魔法的公主

Search for Keywords: 童话般的公主们

孙幼军 is a famous author of children's books in China. His books are humorous and easy to read. The following series of books are suitable for P1 to P3 kids : 小母鸡嘀嘀咕咕、小狼请客、胖小猪的春天,狮子大王和太阳

Search for Author : Sun, Youjun

I also found the 神奇树屋 (Magic Treehouse) series of books in the library. This series is originally written in English and translated to Chinese. Search for Author : Mary Pope Osborne

Each book includes the Chinese version first, then the English version. The original English version is too simple for my kids, but the Chinese version is quite challenging for P1 to P3 kids. My P1 boy has just finished reading one book, 与海豚共舞, and he enjoyed it. There are a total of 34 books in this series, and each book covers an interesting topic and kids will learn a good amount of general knowledge from these books.

Here's a series for kids who loves small animals, suitable for kids P3 and above.

Books in the series : 风雪中迷途, 和你一起回家, 孤零零的阿尔菲, 不想再流浪

Search for Author : Holly Webb

The Geronimo Stilton series of English books is very popular with kids. This series is originally written in Italian and translated to English. I did not buy the English version for my kids, because I find that the Chinese version is better written. The Chinese books may be difficult for kids below P3 because there are many challenging words. These are more suitable for kids above P3. Search for Keywords : Geronimo Stilton

For upper primary kids, I highly recommend books written by 张之路, another well known author of children's books in China. His books, like 霹雳贝贝, are highly imaginative and well written.

霹雳贝贝

Other books by 张之路: 魔表, 非法智慧, 羚羊木雕, 小猪大侠莫跑跑

Search for Author: Zhang, Zhilu

Note:

When looking for books in the National Library, their website may show that the books is not on loan, but you may not be able to find the book on the shelf. You can reserve the book and collect it at a branch near you at $1.55 per book.

Reading long Chinese novels by 7 years old

2011-06-23T19:32:00.000-07:00

My boy, now 6 years 9 months old, has finished reading this book by the famous author Yang Hong Ying.

There are a total of 141 pages in the book. Here are 2 pages from the book. I firmly believe that the best way for kids to learn Chinese, is to read books without Hanyu Pinyin. So I cut out slots in a piece of paper to make sort of a paper filter, to cover up the Hanyu Pinyin, as shown in the following photo. Click on the photo to view the larger image.

The paper filter looks like this. It is just a piece of paper with slots cut out from it. I had the idea and my hubby made it for me. He measured the height of the words on the pages, cut out the slots, then laminated it for me.

My boy reads every word out loud to me, and I help him with words that he does not know. I am very happy that he is able to read more than 95% of the words in this book. He is able to learn many new words as he reads, since some of the common words appear frequently throughout the book. By covering up the Hanyu Pinyin, he is able to focus on the Chinese characters, and the speed of learning new words is so much faster.

He is now reading this book, also by Yang Hong Ying. I also use a paper filter to cover up all the Hanyu Pinyin as he reads.

My girl, who is one year older than my boy, has been reading the 笑猫日记 series of novels (each novel is about 160 pages long) since she was in P1. Here are the pages from one of the books. Click on the photo to read the words.

She enjoys reading the books very much. She is able to read the books independently.

Many P5/P6 kids have difficulty read these books independently, because there are many words that are not in the MOE syllabus.

I have to thank the wonderful 四五快读 series of books : Teaching Chinese at home

I know that many parents complain that the 四五快读 books are boring. The fact is that if you used the correct methods to teach using these books, as described in the first 30 pages of book 1, then learning to read Chinese using these books should never be boring. In fact, my kids enjoyed learning from these books, all I have to do is to spend less than 30 mins a day teaching them. My older girl took about 3 months to finish learning 6 of the 四五快读 books, my boy took about 1 year. After that, I continue to read other Chinese story books (without hanyu pinyin) with them. I do not read to them, instead, I make them read every word out loud to me, helping them with words that they do not know. Within 1 year, both are able to read long Chinese novels confidently.

I firmly believe that the best way to learn Chinese, is by encouraging kids to read as many interesting Chinese story books as possible. Many parents think that the way to read Chinese is to make their kids practice writing many Chinese words, or memorizing model compositions, or make them do tons of assessment books. The fact is that all these methods are not only inefficient, they will only make the kids hate learning Chinese.

When kids are able to read long Chinese novels confidently, Chinese becomes very easy for them. When we find interesting and fun Chinese books for them to read, they will develop a life-long love for the language. I want my kids to learn Chinese not only to do well in exams, I want them to continue to love to use the language long after they stop taking Chinese exams.

Both my kids have been reading long English novels before they turned 5 years old, check out my phonics blog :

Reading confidently at a very young age

The importance of reading books

My boy is of average ability, had an attention span of less than 5 minutes when he was 3 to 4 years old. He is able to read very well in both English and Chinese before he turned 7 years old. I don't even need to spend many hours to teach him everyday. I am a full time working mother, and I can only afford to spend half an hour to one hour a day teaching him at home on weekdays.

I believe that if parents use the correct methods, any child of average and above ability, can learn to be very good in both English and Chinese by 7 years old.

Kids have an amazing ability to learn languages between the ages of 3 to 6. I advise all parents to read this excellent article : Balancing the debate on mother tongue

Before the age of 6, instead of making kids practice writing English and Chinese everyday, or make them do tons of assessment books, parents should focus on teaching them how to read very well in both English and Chinese.

Read this page for more information :

How to raise a bilingual child

From hating Chinese to writing 10000 word novel

2011-04-19T23:07:00.000-07:00

Click on the photos to read the text.

Lian He Zao Bao

20 April 2011

I am delighted to read about this story of an RGPS girl, 睿祺, who started to love Chinese, after her school teacher gave her a 卫斯理 novel. In P6, she even wrote a 10000 word novel in Chinese, which is amazing, considering that she used to cry when doing Chinese homework at P4.

This confirmed my belief that the best way to motivate a child to learn Chinese, is to let her read very interesting and exciting story books. This is also the fastest way for to improve, as proven by 睿祺.

I used to be a huge fan of the 卫斯理 science fiction novels when I was in secondary school. Each novel is highly original and imaginative, and you cannot put it down until you finish the whole book. These novels are available in the National Library.

Author : 卫斯理 (倪匡)

Titles:

老貓

蓝血人

透明光

支离人

不死药

There are many more books in the 卫斯理 series. these are also sold at www.dangdang.com. These books are suitable for P5 and above.

Read the following page for a list of excellent Chinese story books for younger children :

How to raise a bilingual child

Learning Chinese independently

2011-01-27T00:19:00.000-08:00

I bought this Chinese dictionary from Popular bookshop about one year ago. This is an excellent dictionary for children. It is extensive enough to cover all the words that we encounter when reading novels, while most Chinese picture dictionaries for children contain limited words only.

There are pictures on every page. The sequence of strokes is shown for every character, and it even includes the word's transformation from its earliest form thousands of years ago.

There are also many examples of how a word is used in different phrases (词汇) and idioms (成语). A Chinese character many have different pronunciation and meanings when used in different phrases, so these examples are important.

I am pleasantly surprised to find out that my girl, now in P2, has been using this book every day to search for words on her own.

I remember that when I was in P2, I bought myself a Chinese dictionary from the bookshop. My parents were not able to help me with Chinese. Thanks to my dictionary, I learned to read Chinese books independently. I read tons of Chinese story books and scored A in Chinese effortlessly, all the way to Junior College.

Of course, if we want our kids to learn Chinese independently, they must first develop a love for the Chinese language. Read this page :

How to raise a bilingual child

Besides teaching kids to read Chinese story books, the next most important thing to do is to teach them how to learn Chinese independently, and a good dictionary is essential.

How to raise a bilingual child

2010-09-14T05:54:00.000-07:00

We do not speak Mandarin at home, my kids speak only English and Cantonese. Both of them are able to read long English novels like Charlotte’s Web by 5 years old, check out my blog about how I taught them to read in English :
http://tamarindphonics.blogspot.com/

My girl, now 7 years old, is also able to read long Chinese novels of about 150 to 200 pages, with a few hundred words on each page. She is also able to write Chinese compositions of about 100 words, she is able to write most of the words without any help from me. My 6 year old boy is able to read Chinese passages of a few hundred words with no pictures or han yu pin yin.

I believe that any child of average and above ability are able to learn to read very well in both English and Chinese by the age of 7, if we use the correct methods. I have been working full time since my kids were born, and I can only spend about half an hour teaching them everyday. If we use effective methods, there is no need to spend many hours a day teaching our kids.

1. Teach both English and Chinese at the same time:
Many parents read English books diligently to their babies, they should also read at least one Chinese story book to their kids everyday. If parents focus only on English before the age of 5, kids will naturally dislike Chinese once they are very good in English.

2. If Mandarin is not spoken at home, you should send your kids to a good Chinese enrichment class like Berries, best to start at 4 years old. Revise the lesson with the child everyday. Kids have an amazing ability to learn languages between the age of 3 to 6, parents must try to teach as much as possible during this age. Read this very good article from the Straits Times : Balancing the debate on mother tongue

According to the experts :

The 'acquisition of a normal language,' he writes, 'is guaranteed for children up to the age of six, is steadily compromised from then until shortly after puberty, and is rare thereafter'.

3. Get good resources like the Si Wu Kuai Du series of books :
http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/12/teaching-chinese-at-home.html
My girl completed this series of books early this year, and she is able to read about 80% of the words in any Chinese story books. By August this year, she is able to read long Chinese novels fluently, she can read more than 90% of the words without any help.
Parents can teach the kids at home, or employ a private tutor to teach the kids using these resources. Note that parents must at least be able to read Chinese newspaper in order to understand the instructions in the books.

4. Do not make the child practice writing Chinese words every day before the age of 6. Between 3 to 6, kids have an amazing ability to learn new words. Parents should focus on teaching as many Chinese characters as possible at this age, they will have lots of time to learn to write from 6 years old.

5. Do not teach han yu pin yin until 6 years old. Kids should learn only English phonics between the age of 3 to 5, and focus on recognizing Chinese characters. If kids learn han yu pin yin first, then they will reject reading Chinese characters.

6. It is most important to develop the love for the Chinese language, between the age of 3 to 6. The best way is to find interesting Chinese picture books that kids will love. I have a list of excellent story books in the later part of this page. Note that even for very simple books, there may be some words that parents do not know. You may have to check the dictionary to find out how to read it first. Do not make the child check the dictionary for every word that she does not know. This will kill her interest.
My girl used to read only long English novels before 7 years old, now she tells me that she likes Chinese books better, thanks to the list of excellent books that I have bought for her.

7. Do not expect the child to be able to read independently before the age of 7. I believe that the most effective method is to sit with her, point to every word, and ask her to read out loud to you. When she does not know a word, just tell her how to read it and move on quickly. She will come across the same word again if she reads regularly. Reading out loud is also a very good way of improving her Chinese oral skills. Note that reading Chinese books to your child may not be effective, the best method is to ask the child to read every word out loud. I read in a Chinese forum that kids at about 7 years old should read at least 10000 words a week, that means she needs to read more than 1000 words a day. I have been asking my girl to read about 1000 words out loud to me, from interesting Chinese books which she enjoys. The results are amazing.

Here are the list of recommend books from my home library. The books are ordered in terms of difficulty. The first few books have very few words, while the books towards the end of the list are long chapter books with many words a page. I have grouped them under different age groups.

These books are available in the National Library. You can search for the books at their website : http://www.nlb.gov.sg/

Most of the books are also available at Maha Yu Yi bookshop at level 3 of the Bras Basah complex. You can call them to check the price of the books, click here for their contact number :

Bras Basah Complex Level 3 shops

If you are traveling to China, you can order directly from www.dangdang.com, make sure that you choose cash on delivery. I used to ship the books from China using direct shipping by www.dangdang.com, but it is not recommended to do so now, because the shipping process is too long and unreliable.

Click on the titles to view the details about the book in Chinese.

Ages 2 to 6:
Note that the standard of Chinese in China is very high, most of our P1 to P4 kids may not be able to read all these books independently. Kids age 6 to 10 should also read these books if they still cannot read fluently in Chinese.
Note: ** refers to books added on 12 Jan 2011.

谁藏起来了

噼里啪啦系列 (7 books)

小猫当当系列（10 books）

可爱的鼠小弟(全12册)

小熊宝宝绘本

快乐认知:创新低幼认知读物（全六册）

排排队系列

阿波林的小世界（全14册）

14只老鼠(6 books)

中国第一套儿童情绪管理图画书（1）（全四册）

鸡蛋哥哥（全四册）

好饿的小蛇

你真好

永远永远爱你

小真的长头发

神奇的水彩

阿秋和阿狐

我爱洗澡

小狐狸买手套

小马小熊系列（全4册）

团圆

德沃夫爷爷的森林小屋

花婆婆

小房子

是谁嗯嗯在我的头上

阿文的小毯子

我好担心

天空在脚下

青蛙弗洛格的成长故事(全12册) (Han Yu Pin Yin)

蹦蹦和跳跳的故事(全10册)

古利和古拉（套装）（全7册）

提姆与莎兰系列（全十册）

麦田精选图画书•大师典藏•狐狸村传奇（全八册）

凯蒂的名画奇遇（套装）（全七册）

小猪闹闹

These 3 excellent books are recommended by lizuan :

祝你生日快乐

妈妈心·妈妈树

动物绝对不应该穿衣服

Age 6 to 10:
The following books are suitable for kids age 6 to 10 in China, but since their standard is very high compared to ours, even our upper primary kids may not be able to read these books independently. P1 to P4 kids who are not reading well, should start with the Si Wu Kuai Du series of books, and some of the books in the 2 to 6 age group first, before reading the following books.

小北极熊(修订版)（1-9册）

小皮斯凯的第一次旅行

小皮斯凯的第一个朋友

悦读阅美绘本馆能干的小海狸

我最喜欢的经典传统故事精绘本--哪吒闹海 (Han Yu Pin Yin)
我最喜欢的经典传统故事精绘本--宝莲灯
我最喜欢的经典传统故事精绘本--后羿与嫦娥

西顿动物记（全5册）

露露和拉拉（4册）

什么都行魔女商店（全四册）

我和小姐姐克拉拉

Age 10 and above :
佐贺的超级阿嬷（亲子共读版）

爱心树纯美童话1：雾中的奇妙小镇

宫崎骏动画原著：魔女宅急便1-5

笑猫日记（12册）

雾灵三部曲（全3册)

窗边的小豆豆

狼王梦

斑羚飞渡

狼图腾·小狼小狼

For all ages :
This excellent series of books have many words on a page, but also many beautiful pictures. Younger kids will enjoy looking at the pictures.
自然图鉴（全5册)

The following is a comic series about a very cute cat. Adults will enjoy reading these books too. Note that the words are very small.

甜甜私房猫（1-2）
甜甜私房猫（3-4）

This picture book is inspired by Leo Tolstoy's short story "Three Questions". Adults will find the book very meaningful. Children may not completely understand the meaning, but they will enjoy the interesting story.
尼古拉的三个问题

Audio Books:

I think audio books are excellent for parents who cannot read, or have difficulty reading Chinese books with their kids. The mandarin pronunciation is perfect. Parents can ask kids to read along as they listen to the CD.

Each of the following audio book comes with a CD containing MP3 files narrating all five stories in the book. The book is quite thick, with many beautiful colour pictures, and there are over 200 words on each page (no hanyu pinyin). The vocabulary is challenging enough for students up to P3.

聆听经典·世界著名童话典藏系列：海的女儿（附光盘）

聆听经典·世界著名童话典藏系列：木偶奇遇记（附光盘）

聆听经典·世界著名童话典藏系列：三只小猪（附光盘）

In fact, I really enjoy reading all these wonderful books too !

When I was a student in RGS and RJC, I used to score the highest marks in Chinese. I enjoyed writing Chinese essays. I never attended any Chinese enrichment classes, and never had Chinese tuition. My parents spoke Cantonese and they could not help me with Chinese ever since I was in upper primary. I read Chinese books extensively on my own, thanks to all these books, I did very well in Chinese, and I only had to spend very little time learning the textbook and doing assessments. I do not consider myself as good in languages, because I did not do very well in English.

If we want our kids to do well in Chinese, studying the Chinese textbooks and doing assessments are definitely not enough. Kids must read as many Chinese story books as possible.

How about writing in Chinese ?

I do not advocate writing too many Chinese words before the age of 6. An early childhood expert wrote that kids before the age of 6 do not have the fine motor skills to write Chinese characters, it is cruel to force them to practice writing everyday.

In the case of my kids, my girl has excellent fine motor skills at 3 years old, she could copy an entire Tang poetry at 5 years old, on her own initiative. I did not make her practice writing at all. My younger boy could only write legibly after 5 years old, by 6 years old his writing is fine. I also did not make him practice writing everyday.

Every child is different, and we should let the child progress at his own pace. If he is ready to write, he will write well, if we try to make him write before that, we will only be very frustrated.

It is absolutely fine to start to practice writing Chinese at 6 years old. It is definitely not too late. At P1, the Ting Xie words are still very simple.

Also note that Chinese characters are made up of 偏旁, 部首, and simple characters. Parents should teach kids the names of the 偏旁, 部首. When learning more complex characters, teach the kids to remember the word by its individual parts. For example, take a look at these words :

弟第剃梯涕递

Once the child knows how to write 弟, just tell him to change the 偏旁, 部首 to make different words.

Personally I think it is easier than English spelling without knowledge of phonics.

Do not make the child remember the word stroke by stroke ! There are too many Chinese characters and you cannot possibly learn Chinese this way, this is the reason why kids hate Chinese. Many English educated parents think that the only way to learn Chinese is to remember the word stroke by stroke, this is a big mistake.

How to motivate a child to read Chinese books

2010-05-22T07:02:00.001-07:00

I recently bought the excellent 好妈妈胜过好老师 from www.dangdang.com.

The author writes about her real life experience of raising her daughter. I especially like the part where she wrote about how she enticed her daughter to read Chinese books. Click on the following photos to read :

The author wrote that she bought a very interesting Chinese book and started reading the book herself. Then she talked to her daughter about how good the book was, and described parts of the story to the girl. When she came to the very exciting parts, she told her daughter that she was going to stop there for the day. Her daughter wanted to know what happened next, so she picked up the book and started to read it herself.

I also like this section about selecting books that are interesting for the child to read :

The author has written a lot more about her experience in her book. She is a teacher so she also writes about her experience with other children. I think the author has given great advice.

I am a big fan of the Jin Yong (金庸) novels, and I read all of his novels when I was 14 to 15 years old. I also read all the Qiong Yau and Yi Shu novels. Thanks to all these books, I was able to do very well for Chinese right up to A levels, and I only had to spend very little effort learning Chinese.

Since the standard of Chinese in Singapore is very low compared to China, few kids here will be able to read 金庸 novels in primary school. We can try many other interesting books for our kids. Check out these pages for wonderful Chinese books :

http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/12/chinese-picture-books.html
http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/12/chinese-picture-books-2.html
http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/12/chinese-picture-books-3.html
http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2010/02/chinese-picture-books-4.html

Beading

2010-05-16T03:12:00.001-07:00

Chloe made this pair of earrings using tiny beads in a beading class at Jurong Point. It was very challenging for her. The size of earrings is only about 2 cm by 1 cm.

She felt really exhilarated when it was completed. When she returned home, she did 2 more pairs of her own.

I think that beading is an excellent hobby for girls. It is good for developing fine motor skills, concentration, as well as creativity.

The Flying Trapeze

2010-05-16T03:07:00.000-07:00

I have always loved to watch flying trapeze performances. Last Saturday I brought the kids to try out the Flying Trapeze at Sentosa for the very first time.

Jerome did not want to try it, he said he will try when he is older. Chloe hesitated at first. But after she watched a teenage girl doing it, she was very keen to try.

She climbed up confidently.

The instructor gave her some instructions, then she held on to the bar.

And swing !

It was exhilarating both for Chloe, and for myself as I watched her ! Chloe did a second swing, and this time she was able to put her feet up and hang upside down. But I did not manage to take a photo of that. We will definitely go and try it again !

I asked Chloe whether she was scared. She said : "I am wearing a safety belt tied to the safety lines, why should I be scared ? " :)

Balancing the debate on mother tongue

2010-05-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

Balancing the debate on mother tongue

Tue, May 11, 2010
The Sunday Times
By Janadas Devan, Review Editor

Many foreigners would have been baffled by the passion Singaporeans have displayed debating the place of the mother tongue languages in the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE).

Such intensity over an examination for 12-year-olds? Such furore over whether the mother tongues should have the same weight as mathematics or English for entry to secondary schools? Can the future of Chinese, Malay or Indian culture here really turn on the PSLE?

People are passionate about this issue because language equals identity. We use mathematics; we not only use but also are the languages we speak. Nobody is likely to feel justified knowing eight multiplied by eight is 64; we are justified by the culture that shapes our world-view and the language that gives us access to that culture.

The equation of language and identity, moreover, tends to be sharper in multilingual societies than in monolingual ones. A Chinese in Beijing, for example, wouldn't spend any time wondering if he is Chinese; he simply is. By contrast, questions of identity can become fraught for Chinese in Singapore precisely because one can choose between languages in multilingual societies - and with that, there is the possibility of particular identities atrophying.

Thus the fear among some Chinese Singaporeans that if the standard of Chinese language teaching were to decline, Chinese Singaporeans may cease being Chinese. Questions like what weight the mother tongues should have in the PSLE are thus treated as existential, not pedagogical, questions. There is no alternative but to treat such issues with sensitivity, tact and care.

Commentators have offered various proposals that might satisfy both sides on this particular question. The Prime Minister is due to speak to the press on the matter soon, after which it will be clearer how the Ministry of Education intends to proceed. If the weighting of the mother tongue languages in the PSLE is indeed to be changed, it will have to be done in such a way as not to de-emphasise the centrality of the mother tongues. But however the system is reformed, I would urge educators, community leaders and parents to bear in mind two things:

One: It is beyond doubt 'that it is much more difficult to learn a second language in adulthood than a first language in childhood', as Professor Steven Pinker of Harvard University notes in The Language Instinct.

The 'acquisition of a normal language,' he writes, 'is guaranteed for children up to the age of six, is steadily compromised from then until shortly after puberty, and is rare thereafter'.

A cognitive scientist and linguist, Prof Pinker cites a number of examples to substantiate this assessment. One is a test of Korean- and Chinese-born students and faculty at the University of Illinois who were given a list of 276 English sentences, half of them containing grammatical errors such as 'The farmer bought two pig', and asked to spot the errors.

Those who had immigrated to the US between the ages of three and seven performed as well as the US-born. Those who had arrived between eight and 15 did progressively worse the later they arrived. And those who had arrived between 17 and 39, no matter how gifted they were in other respects, did the worst.

Another more dramatic example is that of the so-called 'wolf children' - children found abandoned in the woods or imprisoned from young in homes by abusive parents. One such child, 'Genie', discovered in Los Angeles in 1970 at the age of 131/2, learnt to utter pidgin-like sentences like 'Mike paint', but remained 'permanently incapable of mastering the full grammar of the language', Prof Pinker reports.

By contrast, another child, Isabelle, rescued at the age of 61/2, acquired about 2,000 words within 18 months and was able to produce complex grammatical sentences like 'Why does the paste come out if one upsets the jar?'

No doubt, some exceptionally talented people can master a second language as adults. But even then, the mastery is not total, as the examples of Joseph Conrad and Vladimir Nabokov show.

Conrad, whose first language was Polish, became one of the great masters of the English novel. But he spoke an English that was so heavily accented that his English friends had difficulty understanding him. And Nabokov, whose first language was Russian, was so nervous about his spoken English, he refused to lecture off the cuff or to be interviewed. 'I think like a genius,' he wrote rather immodestly, 'I write (English) like a distinguished author, and I speak like a child.'

Six in 10 Chinese and Indian Singaporean Primary One pupils now come from English-speaking homes. (By contrast, only 3.5 in 10 Malay pupils do so.) If these children have not been sufficiently exposed to their mother tongue - more like 'Grandmother Tongue', truth be told - before the age of seven, they are going to be disadvantaged.

If Singapore is to remain committed to bilingualism, as it must, we should make a concerted effort to encourage parents to expose their children to their mother tongues before they begin their primary education. One way would be to expand mother tongue exposure in pre-schools - but please, without introducing a KLE, or Kindergarten Leaving Examination, and turning what should be a delightful experience into a chore.

The second point I wish to make is this: The languages we are asking our children to learn - English and Mandarin, Malay or Tamil - are not natural fits. They do not belong to the same language families. It is far easier to learn English and French (or even Latin) - all Indo-European languages - than English and Mandarin. For this reason, despite decades of trying, the Japanese, who do not speak an Indo-European language, have still not mastered English, whereas the Scandinavians, who do, have.

Whatever the shortcomings of bilingual education here, the fact is what has been achieved in Singapore, despite the odds, is closer to Scandinavia than Japan. There are many reasons for this but one reason is that language policy here has been rational and pragmatic despite the strong emotions. We are more likely to remain a bilingual nation if we treat the difficulties of bilingualism as pedagogical, not existential, problems.

janadas@sph.com.sg

The standard of Chinese

2010-05-04T18:41:00.000-07:00

I read this article in the Chinese newspapers 3 May 2010 (click on the image to read the text). I am quite sad to know that the standard of Chinese in our primary schools is so low.

We really cannot depend on the school teachers to teach Chinese.

I am glad that I send both kids to Berries to learn Chinese since 4 years old, and I found the excellent 四五快读 series of books from China. Chloe, now at P1, is able to read Chinese chapter books. Jerome, now at K2, is also reading Chinese quite well. The only way to be good in Chinese is to read as many Chinese story books as possible.

Basic Chinese 500

2010-05-01T18:38:00.000-07:00

I bought this series of 5 books from Popular Bookshop :

基础汉字500

I saw new stocks at Popular in Jurong Point today.

These books are very easy to use. They are similar to the Ladybird Peter and Jane series. Just point and read. They are suitable for kids 3 years and above.

Each lesson teaches only one word, with lots of repetitions :

New words are joined together with old words :

There are lots of repetitions of the words learned in different sentences, so kids have lots of practice.

Edited on 20 April 2011:

After completing the Beginner series of 5 books, kids are able to read sentences, but not good enough to read books independently yet.

After the beginner series, kids can move on to the Budding(萌芽) and Building(跃进) series, each series consists of 5 books. These 3 series are now available in Popular.

Books about filial piety

2010-03-29T17:20:00.000-07:00

We often talk about what parents should do for the kids. Most English books for children only teach them that their parents love them, especially The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein which is about parents' unconditional love for their kids.

I feel that it is more important to teach the kids how they can love their parents, and what they should do to repay the kindness.

二十四孝 is a very old series of stories. Each story is about a person who was very filial to his parents. Many people think that these stories are out of fashion and are no longer relevant in the modern world. However, I found the following series of books, in which the stories are re-written in a way that teach children the true meaning of love.

For example, one story is about a young boy who heard that deer milk was good for his parents' health, so he went through a lot of difficulty to get milk from a deer.

One story is about a boy who tried his best to make his father comfortable, by cooling his father's bed in summer, and warming the bed in winter.

Another story is about a woman who willingly walked long distances to a river, so that she could get fresh water and fish for her mother-in-law.

Some stories can be quite shocking. Like a man who insisted on washing his mother's 马桶 (bucket used as a toilet), because he knew that his mother loved cleanliness, and he did not trust others to clean it properly. I talked about this story to my mother, and she told me that one of our relatives took care of his elderly parent, cleaning and changing diapers, etc, which is equivalent to what the man did in the story.

I think that all adults and children should read these stories.

I was very happy when I saw this series of books selling at NTUC Hypermarkt (Jurong Point). Each book costs only $1.00 ! There are 2 stories in each book. There are a total of 12 books in this series. I found 5 books at NTUC. I really hope to find the rest of the series.

Hobbies - Sewing and Origami

2010-02-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

I taught Chloe how to sew a drawstring bag using a needle and thread. She is able to thread the needle by herself, which is not easy for her because we are using a very thin and sharp needle. She also did most of the sewing herself, with some help from me. Her fingers were poked by the needle a few times, but she learned how to avoid being poked very quickly. Sewing is really good for developing her perseverance and fine motor skills. She is very happy with the finished product.

We bought the pink string from Daiso, the package contains instructions for sewing a drawstring bag. The stars iron-on appliques are also from Daiso.

Jerome is crazy about Origami now. We have a book about Origami and he has been spending hours every day folding different objects. I am happy that he is able to fold complicated ones like these paper cranes. I have to teach him how to fold at first, but he is very keen to learn how to fold on his own. Origami is great for developing his concentration and fine motor skills.
Here is an excellent Origami web site with detailed instructions and animation :
http://www.origami-club.com/en/

Chinese Picture Books 4

2010-02-03T00:19:00.000-08:00

I just received more books from dangdang.

鸡蛋哥哥（全四册）
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20171574
This series is about a chick who has difficulty getting out of his egg, and he decides to stay in his egg shell for a while. It is a very cute and funny book.

小马小熊系列（全四册）
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20168870
This series of books is about the adventures of a little bear and a little house. There are pictures in place of words in the passages, quite interesting. These are some of the most beautifully illustrated books that I have seen.

可爱的鼠小弟(全12册)
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20646032
This series of 12 books are suitable for kids between 2 to 5 years old. Many words are repeated on every page which is good for teaching kids to read out loud. The stories are amusing and both my kids enjoy reading them.

Berries Chinese Class

2010-01-13T23:14:00.000-08:00

Jerome has been attending Berries Chinese enrichment class since he was 4 years old, he started with the N2 class. Here is his Chinese test by the end of his K1 class, when he was 5 years 3 months old. He certainly knows much more Chinese than I do when I was his age !

I also have photos of the Chinese test he did in May in his K1 class :
Jerome's Chinese Test at Berries

Here is what Chloe is able to do at the end of her K2 class in Berries. She can read a passage like this and answer the questions. I can only read like this when I was in P3 or P4 !

Berries start to teach Hanyu Pinyin in K2. Chloe learns Hanyu Pinyin very easily because she has a very strong foundation in phonics. She can easily read a passage entirely in hanyu pinyin :

Berries does not require the kids to write many Chinese characters. Here is something that Chloe did in her K2 class :

Chloe completed her K2 class in Berries and will not be attending classes there any more. I am glad that Berries has helped her to develop a very strong foundation in Chinese. I let her read as many Chinese books as possible. She is now able to read books like these :
Chinese Picture Books

I am also teaching her Chinese at home using excellent resources from China :
Teaching Chinese at home

Chinese Picture Books 3

2009-12-29T23:45:00.001-08:00

I have been searching for good Chinese chapter books that Chloe will love to read. I finally received these very nice books from www.dangdang.com today.

露露和拉拉（4册）

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20599286
This series of 4 books is very suitable for girls age 6 to 9. The reading level is equivalent to our P3 or P4. The stories are about 2 girls who operate a bakery shop. The pictures are very cute. Kids who cannot read independently will be attracted to the nice pictures of mouthwatering cupcakes, cookies, jelly, etc, and will be motivated to read the book with the help of their parents. Click on the photos to view the bigger image.

什么都行魔女商店（全四册）
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20469456
This series of 4 books is also very suitable for primary school girls. The reading level is equivalent to our P4 level, but I think with help from parents, lower primary kids should enjoy reading this series. It is about a 魔女, a girl with magical powers. She is eccentric, but kind hearted. The stories are interesting, and teach good values like helping people in need, perseverance, etc.

小猫当当系列（10 books）

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20717811

I bought this series for Jerome who is 5 years 3 months old. He is not reading as fluently as Chloe, so I want to get him books which have nice pictures and few words. The stories are suitable for 2 to 5 years old. Chloe, now 6 years old, like these books too !

Chinese Picture Books 2

2009-12-28T13:59:00.000-08:00

I just received these 2 set of books yesterday.

不一样的卡梅拉 is the all time best selling series in China. Click on the link to read the reviews. The series is targeted for kids of age 2 - 5 in China. Kids at this age in Singapore will not be able to read these books independently because the words are not easy. I think it is equivalent to our P3 level. I would advise parents to read to the kids. These books are also very suitable for kids age 6 to 9, parents can ask the kids to try reading out loud.

It is about the adventures of a little hen. It is rare to find children's books that have such clever plots, and at the same time very funny. Highly recommended for all kids in Singapore !

不一样的卡梅拉（全6册）
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9213954
Click on the photos to view the bigger image.

I also highly recommend this series. It is about a 小海狸 doing all sorts of work like carpentry, sewing, baking, etc, with detailed step by step instructions. Our kids can learn about the Chinese names of the tools, and also how to describe the instructions in Chinese. The words are not easy for Singaporeans, I advise parents to go through the words and check the dictionary if necessary.
能干的小海狸（共7册）
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20537521

I bought this book earlier. Chloe is reading it now. It is a very cute book about the adventures of a little pig.

小猪闹闹
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20468823

Chinese Picture Books 绘本

2009-12-25T17:35:00.000-08:00

Here are some very nice Chinese picture books that Chloe has been reading.

小皮斯凯的第一次旅行

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9115611

小皮斯凯的第一个朋友

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9115615

The books tell the story of a cute little squirrel, who had to leave her parents to live independently. She endured a lot of hardship before she found an ideal home. The story is wonderful and the illustrations are very beautiful. Chloe likes the books very much. The words are not easy for a 6 year old child, but she is able to read most of them. She needs help with about 10% of the words. Click on the photos to look at the bigger image.

Both Chloe and Jerome like the following book very much :

德沃夫爷爷的森林小屋

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9254957

We have this book long before they can read Chinese fluently, they have asked my mother to read this book to them countless times.

It is about an old man living alone in the forest. One day he decides to build a house for himself, but he cannot do it alone. He needs help from the animals, and to return the favours he has to build a room for each type of animals. The end result is a huge and complicated house. The story is very meaningful, about friends helping each other., and the illustrations are wonderful.

I really like this book very much. I love the illustrations, especially the details on the little girl's face. It is about a young girl and her toy fox traveling on a journey to visit her grandmother. Chloe is captivated by the story which is very endearing.
阿秋和阿狐

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20349132

The same illustrator of 阿秋和阿狐 also illustrated this book :
我爱洗澡
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20349131&ref=product-0-E
A very nice book about a boy taking his bath, and is visited by imaginary animals, from penguins, hippopotamus, and even a whale in his bath tub.

This is a very funny book :
是谁嗯嗯在我的头上
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9301030

A little mole wakes up one morning, and some poo poo (animal excrement) fell on top of his head. Then he goes about asking who poo poo on his head. Kids get to learn about how the poo poo of different animals look like !

The following book is about a woman who wants to make the world more beautiful. The illustrations are lovely.
花婆婆
http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9296427

I try not to let Chloe read books with Hanyu Pinyin. She has learned Hanyu Pinyin from her PCF K2 class as well as Berries enrichment class, and she is very good in it. I don't want her to become dependent on Hanyu Pinyin. However, sometimes I do come across books with Hanyu Pinyin that are really good.

I found this book in Popular Bookshop at Bras Basah.

Title : 大象大象鼻子长

This is translated from a story in "Just So Stories" by Rudyard Kipling. This is an excellent translation for kids, and it is really funny. Chloe kept laughing when she read the book.

The following books are also excellent :

能干的小海狸（共7册）

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20537521

彩虹鱼系列(全5册）

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20159211

小北极熊带我回家！

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=20096028

and also search for 小北极熊系列 to find all the books in this series.

Teaching Chinese at Home

2009-12-24T16:40:00.000-08:00

I have been looking for good resources to teach Chinese at home. A few days ago, I just received my books from www.dangdang.com. The following books are the best resources for teaching Chinese at home !

This series of 7 books are not available in Singapore. I ordered them directly from here :

四五快读——幼儿快速识字阅读法（全7册）

I highly recommend these books to parents who are :

1. Very passionate to teach their kids at home

2. Quite good in Chinese, at least able to read and understand Chinese newspapers (please click on the photos of the pages below and try to read them)

3. Hardworking enough to spend at least 15 minutes teaching Chinese every day

For parents who do not meet the above criteria, I suggest the 基础汉字 books :

http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2009/12/basic-chinese-500.html

Parents must be prepared to spend time and effort to teach the kids if they want to use the 四五快读 books. These books are not recommended for very busy parents. Before I found these books, my kids have been attending Berries enrichment classes. However, I find that even after Chloe has completed K2 classs at Berries, there are many words in the 四五快读 series that she has not learned before. Kids who can complete this series of books, will be even more proficient in Chinese compared to those who attended Berries class.

The first 30 pages of the first book explain to parents the effective methods of learning Chinese. It is very important to read all these pages before teaching. Here are some excerpts. Click on the photos to view the bigger images.

The author shares about her daughter who knew 1000 words at 3 years old, and is able to read very thick Chinese books at 4 - 5 years old. The little girl loves to read, she often laughs and cries as she reads.

There is an interesting section that explains what is the best method for kids to retain what they have learned :

Parents are advised to use different types of games to teach the words :

The very first lesson starts with these simple words. Parents should not just point and teach. There are word cards at the back of the book for parents to teach using games as described above.

On the second page of the first lesson, kids start to learn 词语，parents can point to the pictures and ask the kids to read out the correct 词语.

Most kids should take about one week to learn all the words in each lesson, with repetitions. Each new lesson introduces some new words, and also combines the new words and old words using 词语, so kids constantly repeat what they have learned. It is similar to the method used in the Peter and Jane books.

In the 4th lesson, kids already know enough words to read sentences.

By lesson 20 in the second book, kids are able to read pages like these :

One very good method in the book is to have a table of words like this :

Parents say a word, for example, 白，and kids have to point to all the 白 in the table. This method of learning by comparing the differences is excellent for kids.

By the end of book 6, kids will be able to read pages like this.

Book 7 is a revision and reference of what the kids have learned before.

The best thing about this series, is that it does not only teach individual words, it teaches kids to read sentences from book 1, and by book 6, kids will be able to read Chinese books independently. This series of books is targeted at teaching kids age 4 - 5, but the standard of Chinese is very high. By book 6, the standard is equivalent to our P3 level.

These books are from China, but I believe that kids in Singapore can benefit from using these books too, if parents follow the methods correctly.

Note that these books do not teach hanyu pinyin. They are from China so we should trust that they know the correct methods of teaching Chinese. Kids must learn to recognize hundreds of Chinese words first, before they start to learn Hanyu Pinyin. If kids are taught Hanyu Pinyin before they learn Chinese words, they will find Chinese difficult to learn, and will lose interest in the language.

How to buy the books :

Updated on 10 May 2011 :

These books are available at Maha Yu Yi bookshop at level 3 of the Bras Basah complex. You can call them to check the price of the books, click here for their contact number :

Bras Basah Complex Level 3 shops

I used to order direct from www.dangdang.com and use their direct shipping to Singapore. However, recently there are a few cases of missing parcels and dangdang.com is not willing to refund. I do not advise people to order direct from dangdang, unless you are traveling to China. dangdang delivers to hotels, and you can choose cash on delivery.

Another option is to use this website :

http://www.65daigou.com/

I have not used 65daigou before, you can read this blog for more information :

Chinese Books Purchased from 65daigou

Mini Platform Lifter

2009-12-20T14:55:00.000-08:00

I bought this set more than 6 months ago. We only have time to play with it now.

My hubby made the lifter together with the kids. And it works amazingly well !

I used to write software programs for complex machines using hydraulics, and this set really demonstrates how hydraulic machines work very well.

Scrapbook and other activities

2009-12-15T15:46:00.000-08:00

Both Chloe and Jerome like to do scrapbooks.

Here is a page that Chloe has done. The photos are taken at the Traders Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

We bought this from Ikea, a very big tub of beads for only $9.90. The beads are very small, about 3mm in diameter. When ironed, the beads stick together and we have a nice plastic mat.

A few days ago we bought the Roseart Weaving set. Chloe likes it so much, she spent the whole afternoon weaving, the finished products are quite nice. Basically there is no need to think, but it requires concentration, and develops fine motor skills.

ZOOB

2009-12-14T15:01:00.000-08:00

Both Chloe and Jerome like to play with ZOOB now. They build this bicycle without any help from me. ZOOB is more interesting than Lego.
http://www.fatbraintoys.com/toy_companies/infinitoy_inc/zoob_250.cfm

- Based on the 5 nucleic acids; the building blocks of life

- Mobility mirrors movement of people, animals, machines

- Improves visual/spatial relationships, motor skills, creativity, problem solving

- Includes 250 pieces (50 of each piece)

- Instructions for geometric shapes, weaves & 23 creations

- Zoob FO, Zoobasaurus, Zoobcycle, Zoob-Dactyl, The Crown, Zoob Rex, DNA Spiral, The Fly, Space Bird, Dino Bunny, Zoobamator, Zoob Raptor, Wily Hopper, Chicken, Scorpion, Zoobdude, Zoobot, Chopper, Cell Phone, Small Airplaine, Llittle Critter, Twirling Top

- Durable pieces snap, click, slide, pop together

- Free Lifetime Replacement Offer

- Ages 6+

Chloe's Drawings - Mouse, Rabbit, Lion, Koala

2009-12-13T14:23:00.000-08:00

Chloe does not draw only what she sees, she draws from her imagination. She likes to tell stories using her drawings.

Chloe drew this home for a little mouse in the ground.

This is a rabbit mommy and her baby.

Lion and cubs.

Koala bears taking a bath !

Chloe's Drawings

2009-12-08T16:58:00.000-08:00

Chloe loves to draw. She is into making bookmarks now.

This is a drawing of Chloe's grandmother, hahaha she is trying to be funny.

This is our maid, Siti.

This is Chloe herself.

This is a drawing of me, Mommy, eating Tang Yuan (rice balls).

This one is her brother Jerome.

Reading Chinese Books

2009-12-01T16:24:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Berries, Chloe is able to read Chinese very fluently. The 2 photos below shows the chapter books from her Berries K2 class.

Chloe has been in Berries since she was 4 years old. For more information about what she has learned in Berries, read the following webpage.

http://tamarindvillage.blogspot.com/2008/05/learning-chinese.html

At home, I try to find very interesting Chinese books for Chloe to read.

These are 2 of our favourite books at the moment :

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9115611

http://product.dangdang.com/product.aspx?product_id=9115615

The photo below shows the first page of her textbook.

I am surprised to find so many Chinese words ! The textbook teaches hanyu pinyin only on page 5, so that is not going to help. Kids who have not attended Chinese enrichment classes before P1 are going to find it very difficult to learn Chinese. I am glad that I have sent both Chloe and Jerome to attend Berries since 4 years old.

Then about a quarter through the first textbook, kids are required to read this :

For kids who do not have a strong foundation in Chinese, they will be relying entirely on the hanyu pinyin to read. In future they will refuse to read any Chinese books without hanyu pinyin. I realized that, and so I am now buying only Chinese books without hanyu pinyin for the kids. I believe that recognition of Chinese characters is most important and we must start teaching kids from a very young age.

Rose Cupcakes

2009-11-11T18:10:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful time baking cupcakes on Sunday. Chloe and Jerome each baked one batch of 10 cupcakes. The cupcakes were entirely made by the kids, I only help them to put the cupcakes into the oven. The cupcakes tasted heavenly. We also made the chocolate icing, and decorated with fresh strawberries and roses bought from a bakery shop.

Their travel bags

2009-09-16T16:48:00.000-07:00

I bought 2 4-wheel spinners, a black one for Jerome, and a red one for Chloe. I want them to push their own luggage when we travel.

Look at what Jerome put inside his bag !
This one is for Chloe.

Teacher's Day

2009-09-04T17:57:00.000-07:00

Chloe made these lovely roses using air dry clay, as gifts for her teachers (in her K2 class) on Teacher's Day. I asked her to make them because I think that handmade gifts are more meaningful.

Jerome writes his first story

2009-07-27T15:55:00.001-07:00

Jerome showed me this little story that he wrote on his own, without any help from me.

I am surprised that he is able to write in sentences now. He is able to spell all the words except "cage", which he wrote as "kage". This is common for phonics trained kids. I have not started to teach him to write in sentences yet. I am happy that he is able to form sentences like that, even though the grammar is not perfect He will be 5 years old in September. All thanks to phonics and the Ladybird Peter and Jane series ! A child who reads everyday naturally knows how to write No need for expensive enrichment classes !

Written and Drawn by Chloe

2009-07-15T15:15:00.001-07:00

I found these drawings while tidying up Chloe's things.

She drew them on her own intiative, I don't even know when she did it. The drawings are so funny and really made me laugh.

Signs of a young shopaholic?

Learning Maths

2009-06-23T01:07:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, I started teaching Jerome addition. I did not want him to do worksheets at first, so I used colourful cards as shown in the photos before.

Here is an example. I put 2 of his favourite dinosaurs next to the "2", then I asked him to imagine that there are 7 dinosaurs hiding in the cave. There are 2 more dinosaurs outside. So he must count 2 times forward from 7, that is, 8, 9. He touched the 2 dinosaurs and counted 8, 9.

Then I asked him to look for "9" from this stack of cards.

I actually started with +1 . I just swap the first card.
1 + 1 =
2 + 1 =
3 + 1 =
4 + 1 =
5 + 1 =
6 + 1 =
...
all the way to 20 + 1 only. After trying this a few times, I asked Jerome 89 + 1 = ?. He answered 90 ! This shows that he understood the concept that adding 1 means counting forward by 1, and he is not memorizing the answers. He can now +1 to any number between 0 and 100 !

Then I continued to
2 + 2 =
3 + 2 =
4 + 2 =
5 + 2 =
6 + 2 =
...
all the way to 20+2=, using the 2 dinosaurs as shown in the photo above. Now Jerome can also +2 to any number between 0 and 100 mentally. He did not like to use his fingers. I think he imagines 2 dinosaurs and counts them in his head !

I always try to use different objects to make it more interesting. Jerome has a lot of fun counting his toys.

+3 was more difficult for Jerome. He had to practice many times (over a few weeks). Now after a few months, he is able to do +7 and +8 to any number between 0 and 100. I have started to let him do some worksheets which he completed with ease.

This method is suitable for Jerome because he needs a lot of practice. I did not need to use this method with Chloe(6 years old now), she can add/subtract without the need of any drilling. She has been doing addition/subtraction of 2 digit numbers since 4 years old and she is now doing addition/subtraction of 3 digit numbers. I think the most important concept is that addition is counting up, subtraction is counting down. Chloe understands the concept very well without the need to be drilled at all.

Tang Poetry

2009-06-20T07:43:00.001-07:00

I have been teaching Chloe to memorize and recite Tang Poetry (唐诗) since she was 3 years old. She can now recite more than 30 唐诗 from memory. Her Chinese teacher at her kindergarten also taught her a few poems. She likes the beautiful rhymes of the poems, and she is interested to learn new poems. I have a few books with nice pictures to explain the the meaning of the poems. Here's the photo of a book bought from Popular bookshop which includes a CD containing songs of the 唐诗. Chloe likes to listen to the songs and she even sings the 唐诗 songs sometimes.

Those books have hanyu pinyin, so I printed out the poems without hanyu pinyin to encourage her to recognize the Chinese characters. Learning 唐诗 is a great way to appreciate the beauty of the Chinese characters, and also let her have a lot of practice pronouncing Chinese words.

I hang the poems on the cabinets, so that she can see them everyday.

Though she does not fully appreciate the meaning of the poems now at 6 years old, I hope that as she grows older she can relate to the poems.

I try my best to explain the meaing of the poems to her. For example :
云母屏风烛影深，长河渐落晓星沉。嫦娥应悔偷灵药，碧海青天夜夜心。

I explained : "There was a beautiful lady named 嫦娥, she stole the magical pill and ate it. Then she became very light, like a balloon, and flew all the way to the moon. But there is nothing on the moon except a rabbit. She felt very lonely and regretted taking the magical pill."

Chloe asked : "She has the rabbit. Why does she still feel lonely ?"

I said : "The rabbit cannot talk to her like a human being. And she is on the moon for a very long time."

She said : "She can just take the rocket and fly back to Earth !"

What they are reading now

2009-05-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

Jerome is reading book 10b of the Ladybird Key Word Reading Scheme now, the title is Adventure in the Castle. He is 4 years 7 months old. He reads a new page every day, and he is reading very fluently without any help. Here is a page from the book.

Chloe, now 6 years old, is reading the Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It is a wonderful book about a 5 year old girl, Laura, who follows her family to move to Kansas during the late 19th century. They settled on the prairie, and they have to build a new house and survive the wilderness. The book has detailed descriptions of how her father built their home entirely by hand, and all the hardships and dangers(wolves,etc) as seen through the eyes of Laura. This is a great book to make any child(or adult) appreciate what we have today. Chloe enjoys reading the book very much. We have this copy

Little House on the Prairie

This book includes lovely illustrations by Garth Williams. Chloe loves the pictures.

The book is written in such a way that young children can understand, perfect for children 5 years old and above.

While she is reading the book, I make it more interesting by making a real little log house with her. Here's a photo of the log house. I bought the set at the DIY shop at Jurong Point. We took about 3 hours to glue the pieces together. Chloe enjoyed the activity very much.

Here's another excellent book which she finished reading in less than 15 minutes, The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch. It is a story about a young princess who used her intelligence to rescue a prince who was imprisoned by the dragon. I love the twist at the end. A must read for every girl.

Here are the books she has finished reading :
Great books for confident readers

My blog on how to teach phonics and reading :
How to teach phonics

Clay Roses

2009-05-10T05:53:00.001-07:00

I taught Chloe how to make a rose using air dry clay today. Actually I just learn it myself yesterday. I found some instructions in the internet. It is surprisingly easy to make a rose using the clay which I bought from an arts and crafts shop at Ngee Ann city.

This is the first rose made entirely by Chloe while I instructed her.

Later she made this rose on her own while I was out. I like it very much !

Jerome's Chinese test at Berries

2009-05-04T16:32:00.000-07:00

Jerome had a test at his Berries K1 Chinese enrichment class on 2 May 2009. I am amazed since I did not expect him to get near perfect scores. K1 standard at Berries is not easy ! I am so happy ! I promised to buy him a nice present to reward him.

The teacher did not tell us about the test in advance. We did not prepare him for it. My mother let him practice reading the weekly Berries lesson only once everyday since he started going to Berries in May last year. I guess it is important to be consistent and study regularly.

Page 1 is an oral test. The child has to read every sentence on his own. I know that Jerome should know how to read those 2 words(underlined). He said that he read the words very softly so teacher thought he did not know how to read hahaha.

Page 1

The rest of the pages were done by Jerome independently.

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4

My birthday present

2009-04-01T15:49:00.000-07:00

When I returned home last weekend, I saw this white paper bag pasted on the main door grille.

I found this pair of earrings inside ! Chloe made this pair of earrings for me on my birthday.

I have been teaching Chloe to make earrings. We bought Swarovski crystals, hooks, clips, etc from a shop in Jurong Point. She has been making earrings for herself, me, her grandmother, our maid, and friends in her kindergarten.

Books Written By Chloe

2009-01-31T18:58:00.000-08:00

Chloe wrote this book on her own initiative. She did not ask me for help at all. I think her words and drawings are very cute and funny !

PCF Kindergarten

2009-01-17T05:00:00.000-08:00

Jerome's K1 class
Jerome is attending a PCF kindergarten which costs $107 a month. It costs less than Chloe's PCF kindergarten ($247 a month).

During the first half of the year, he has read 4 books like the one shown in the following photos. The teacher gives one to one coaching to every child. She trains the child to point to every word and read out loud.

His teacher checks to make sure that he can recognize about 15 - 20 words a book.

For Chinese, he is taught to read books like this.

Every child is taught to read each word on the book. There are many difficult words in the book, but the teacher only tests the child on some the simple words from each book.

He has done lots of worksheets, but there is no spelling yet.

_________________________________________________________________
Chloe's K1 class
Chloe is attending a PCF kindergarten in Jurong West.

The following is what she did in her K1 class in 2008. They have spelling tests every 2 weeks since the first half of the year. Here's some of the words she was tested on. Chloe has a very strong foundation in phonics, so she has no problem with spelling.

The teacher taught the kids to read a number of books throughout the year.

After the teacher completed a book, she gave the parents a list of words from the book, so that parents can practice with the kids at home. The kids will be tested in class to check how many words they can recognize (no need to spell).

The teachers encourage the kids to write in sentences.

Every week there is a cooking class. The kids learn to read the recipe and follow the instructions to cook.

The teacher also taught simple addition and subtraction in K1.

For science lessons, the kids learn about the digestive system, space, etc.

Chloe also has Chinese 听写 (or written test) once every 2 weeks. Here's the words she has to write.

The Chinese teacher taught the children to read a number of Chinese books.

The children also learn to recite 唐诗 (Tang poetry). Here are some of the famous poems :
清明时节雨纷纷，路上行人欲断魂。借问酒家何处有？牧童遥指杏花村。

慈母手中线，游子身上衣。临行密密缝，意恐迟迟归。谁言寸草心，报得三春晖。

Chloe's class also includes speech and drama and computer lessons. Starting in 2009, she has Chinese enrichment classes twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday (1 hour each), this is in addition to her daily Chinese lessons (1 hour every day). Her school fees including enrichment is about $250 a month, which I think is very good value.

Bear Jelly

2009-01-05T02:56:00.000-08:00

I made this bear jelly with the kids, using Konnyaku jelly powder and fresh blueberries. The nice coloring is only from the blueberries, no artificial coloring added.

Chloe loves to draw

2008-11-14T16:22:00.001-08:00

Chloe loves to draw pretty princesses and fairies. She has been drawing many pictures like the one above. The princess is about 10 cm tall. I am surprised that she can draw such details. I love the eyelashes and the flowers on the hair.

She is 5 years old this year.

Chloe the young jewellery designer

2008-09-01T06:34:00.000-07:00

Chloe designed and made these bracelets entirely on her own. I think it is a nice hobby. It develops her creativity, and trains her concentration as well as fine motor skills.

She made this butterfly as a gift for her teacher on Teacher's Day. We followed an existing design, and I taught her how to follow the instructions.

Chinese Books

2008-07-21T21:47:00.001-07:00

These are some of Chloe and Jerome's favourite Chinese books. My mother reads these books to them every night before they sleep.

My mother used to read this story to Chloe since she was 1 year old. It is about a little elephant who has lost his mother.

Jerome likes the story of Hua Mu Lan very much. I find that quite surprising.
I think it is because when my mother read the book to him, she will ask him to imagine himself as Mu Lan's little brother. That's the little boy standing beside the old man. Jerome wants my mother to read to him almost every night before he sleeps.

I bought this book last year at Bras Basah Complex.

It is a wonderful book, about an old man who designs and builds a house in the forest. He is injured while building the house, and all the animals came to help him. But in return, he must add a room for each animal. So the house becomes more and more complicated. The illustrations in the book are simply amazing.

I found this book at the Books Warehouse sale at Expo last year.

The book shows in detail how to do sewing.

This book has a series of stories set in ancient Chinese. It teaches children to be filial to parents. I think every child should know about these stories ! For example, the following book is about a boy who went to a frozen lake to find a koi fish for his parents.

This story is about a young boy who saved his friend from a big pot of water.

This book about Tang poetry costs only $9.90, and it includes an audio CD consisting of songs of Tang Shi. It is very good value for money.

Each page consists of one poem, and on the opposite page, a picture which shows the meaning of the poem. Every Tang poem is meaningful, and the best way to teach young children to appreciate Tang Shi, is using pictures. A picture tells a thousand words.

Learning Chinese

2008-05-07T23:45:00.001-07:00

Berries

Chloe is attending Berries Chinese class, once a week, since early 2007. She is now in the K1 class. Jerome is also attending Berries N2 class now. The class is once a week, 1 hour 45 minutes. Every week, they learn to read a new book. The following is a book for N2 class (4 years old).

Here is another book in the N2 class.

The emphasis is on Chinese character recognition. Hanyu Pinyin is only taught in the K2 class (6 years old). The children also learn one "cheng yu" (Chinese 4 letter idioms) every 2 weeks. The children learn to write the strokes at first, then very simple characters. The teachers try to make the class fun and enjoyable for the kids. They encourage the children to speak in mandarin through games. The teachers are generally very nice and patient to the kids. They will feedback to parents if the child is not able to follow up with the lesson, so parents need to practice with their children at home.

In the K1 class, the children continue to read books with more words. They also learn to write Chinese characters. Now at K1, Chloe can read and complete a passage as shown in the photo, done at her Berries class.

She is writing simple sentences every week.

Berries teach one 成语 every alternate week, since N2. By the end of K1, students already know many 成语。

Here is the website for Berries World of Learning.

http://www.berriesworld.com/

PCF Kindergarten

Chloe is attending PCF kindergarten every day. They have Chinese writing test at K1. Here are some of her tests. She is able to write these Chinese characters from memory.

Jerome writes his name: legibly, presentably :-)

2008-05-06T18:33:00.000-07:00

Dream House

2008-04-13T02:43:00.001-07:00

I bought the corrugated paper, cardboard and flowers from Daiso to make this flower house with Chloe. There are instructions on the packet of corrugated paper(5 colours), turned out to be very easy to make.

Jerome also wanted to make his own house. So I made this "Snow House" with him. I cut out the card board, Jerome helped to put the scotch tape and paste the "snow" (cotton).

Books they love

2008-03-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

Now I have about 300 books for Chloe and Jerome. Here are some books they love.

I bought this book for Chloe when she was only 3 months old.

When we pull the tab, the eyes of the giraffe move. It is really fun for the baby.

The following series of books is very very good for babies/toddlers. Both Chloe and Jerome love them since babies. Chloe actually tore the bunny book when she was a baby, and I had to buy a new one for Jerome.

The baby can push or pull something on every page, very good for their itchy fingers. I don't worry about them grabbing the book and not listening, because they know that they are allowed to touch the book ! By using opposites and comparisons, the baby learns words very easily.

They love Kipper's Balloon so much, I must have read at least 100 times to them.

The book has amazing pop ups, very captivating to both Chloe and Jerome. They love to listen to me read the book over and over again. The pop ups are fragile, so I only allow them to use one finger to touch it gently, they are happy doing so. The lollipop page is their favourite, I will ask them which colour they like, then let them touch it and pretend to eat.

This one is Jerome's favourite book. He was obsessed with excavators, bulldozers, etc at one time.

The pop ups are very interesting.

Chloe and Jerome also love this series of books when they were babies.

Every page has a different texture, and the baby is encouraged to touch. Like this page, the cats' paw prints are actually sticky. On other pages, the baby can touch the cat's furry tummy.

Chloe and Jerome love the bears at play book.

On every page, they are required to find a list of items from the picture. For example, they need to search for the toy boat in the picture. They find it very interesting.

Sadly, Chloe tore the book when she was 2 years old.

It was already out of print. I searched all over the internet, finally found a seller in ebay who had a brand new book, she mailed it to me all the way from London !

Here's another book they like.

They can turn the wheels to change the picture. Great for babies to develop their fine motor skills too.

They like this book too.

On every page, they need to find a tiny bear. Kids love to be involved when reading books, they love to have something to do !

Jerome likes this lift the flap book : Things that Go. There are lots of flaps on every page for his itchy fingers to lift.

This one is an interesting book : Wanda's Washing Machine

There is actually a pop up washing machine inside. The kids can take out the pieces of "clothes", throw into the washing machine and pretend to wash.

When Chloe and Jerome were babies, they knew that they have something to do on every page, and they are allowed to use their itchy fingers to touch the book. So they learn from a very young age to listen to me read every page, before they can touch it. They love some of the books so much, they will make me read to them over and over again, sometimes up to 10 times in one night !

So it is very important to find the right books for your kids, it will build up their interests in books.

Long Addition with Chloe

2008-02-29T17:29:00.000-08:00

Except ... let's not call it that. It's "Addition with Carry". Hence the little carry-bags that she drew in. Cute (her idea), and useful too, if it helps her to remember and understand better.

Reading

2008-02-29T17:08:00.000-08:00

If you are keen to teach your child phonics at home, check out my new blog
http://tamarindphonics.blogspot.com/2008/08/how-to-teach-phonics.html
The above blog includes detailed instructions and printable phonics materials. The following is about my experience teaching my kids to read.

I started teaching Chloe when she was 3 years old. I let her watch the Leapfrog Letter Factory DVD. This is the best DVD for teaching the letter sounds. Both Chloe and Jerome learn all the letter sounds from this DVD. It is very important for a child to know all the letter sounds very well before they learn to blend the letters into words.

At that time I tried to put Chloe in Zoophonics at Jurong West. But they required her to go through an assessment by the teacher. Chloe went but refused to speak a single word. I was told that she could only go to the lower level class where they spend 10 months to teach the letter sounds. But Chloe already knew all the letter sounds so no point putting her there. If she had passed the assessment, she could start at a higher level class where they start by teaching the 3 letter words. I decided not to put her there.

Actually during the same period of time, Jerome, who was 2 years old, was attending the toddler class at Zoophonics. I accompanied him in every class so I knew how they teach phonics. They relate each letter to an animal. For example, Allie alligator, Bubba bear, Catina cat, etc. I actually find that it is much more difficult to remember all the animal names. After 5 months (1 hour a week), Jerome still did not learn any animal names or letter sounds. Fortunately he was able to learn all the letter sounds by watching the Leapfrog Letter Factory DVD which was so much more effective.

I enrolled Chloe in the Montessori phonics class when she was 3 years 8 months old. She did not have to go through any assessment. The class takes in children from 3 years 6 months old to 5 years old. This class took only 4 weeks to teach all the letter sounds. It is best that the child already knows all the letter sounds before enrolling in the class. The teacher teach the sounds using songs and worksheets. The children sit on a chairs and practice reading throughout the 1 hour lesson, no singing/dancing/playing like in toddler classes. This class is more suitable for children who can sit still to learn. Chloe actually liked this class very much. Even before she turned 4 years old, she did not like to run around to play in the class, she prefers to sit down and learn.

She was first taught to blend 2 letters together like at,am,as, etc. Then 3 letters like cat, can, etc. Then she goes on to learn cl,bl,pl,st,str, etc. Once she understands the technique, it is easy for her to read any word. There is no need for her memorize the spelling of hundreds of words. She was also taught how to recognize the letters by listening to the sound. She can spell any 3 letter word just by listening to the word.

The advantage of learning phonics is that my girl can pronounce every letter sound clearly. For example, many Singaporeans pronounce "warm" without sounding out the "r". My girl automatically reads the word with a clear "r" sound.

Her phonics class also taught some of the exceptions. Like "ow" sounds different in "cow" and "own". "ea" sounds like "ee", "ai" sounds like "a", "oa" sounds like "o". Also how to read words with the silent "e" like "tape", "hide", etc, and phonograms like "tion","ture",etc. The class progresses very fast. Parents must teach the child at home as often as possible. I revised with Chloe at least 3 times every week, each time about 15 mins. The mommy of a boy who attended the same class, told me that she could not teach her boy, and she found that her boy did not learn much from the class. So parents really need to put in a lot of effort.

After she completed the course which took about 11 months, I found that she can read books like "The cat in the hat" and "Green eggs and ham" by Dr Seuss. At the beginning of this year, I bought her the Ladybird Keyword series. She jumped straight to series 8, and completed series 10 by February. The following photo shows book 10a.

The following photo shows book 11a. It gets progressively more difficult. The series introduces only one or two new words a page, so it is easier for the child to learn. Chloe just finished reading book 11. She is now 4 years 10 months old.

Recently I read from this web page Reading Schemes - What would be best for my child ? The Ladybird series is the "Look and Say" method. "Phonics" is the method where a child is helped to work out or 'decode' the sound of the word by building up an awareness of the patterns. I would say that combining the 2 methods is really very very effective.

Now that I have some experience with phonics, I am trying to teach Jerome myself, not sending him to any phonics class yet. I started when he was 3 years 3 months old. At first I wrote on a white board and asked him to repeat after me. Then I found that he was reading but his eyes were looking elsewhere. Later I print out the 2 and 3 letter words as shown in the photo, and ask him to listen to me and pick up the correct words. I find that he learns better this way. After 1 month he can read the following as shown in the photo, as well as 3 letter words ending with these letters. I am also teaching him to read the Ladybird series 1 books. Now at 3 years 5 months old, he can read book 1a and 1b. Now reading book 2a.

I try to teach Jerome every day, each time only about 15 minutes. I also try to make it fun for him.

For example, one Sunday I was teaching him all the words ending with "id", when it came to "hid", I asked him to go and hide and I would try to find him, and Chloe also played together. They enjoyed it so much, every time I read "hid", they laughed and ran to hide themselves.

Then when I taught him words ending with "ib", and when I came to the word "rib", I taught him to find his own ribs on his body. Another time when I taught him words ending with "in", I took out a real fish from the fridge and let him touch the "fin". I need to make it interesting for him, otherwise he will not pay attention.

Updated: 8 May 2008

I found a method which is very effective. First I arrange the am, an, ap, at in a row. Then I gave Jerome one word, for example, "cat", and I asked him to read the word and put below "at". Then I gave him another word, for example, "cap" and asked him to read and put below "ap". Then I mixed up the words, then say a word, like "can" and ask him to pick up the correct word to me. I will continue until he picks up all the words. In this way, I made sure that he is really learning.

Very quickly, he is able to put all the words correctly without my help, as shown in the following photo. He also enjoys this method, to him it is like a game Now he is also able to read most of the 3 letter words containing all the vowels a, e, i, o, u using this technique. He is also beginning to be able to spell the 3 letter words by listening to the sound. He is now 3 years 7 months old.

Updated 5 June 2008:

Jerome is able to read Ladybird book 3b as shown in the following photo on his own. He is now 3 years 8 months old.
Chloe finished Ladybird keyword series book 12a before her 5 year old birthday. I wanted to let her read other children's classics, but she insisted on reading book 12b, as shown in the photo.

I have started to let Chloe read Charlotte's Web, which used to be my english literature text book in secondary school. She reads only one page a day, takes only about 5 minutes. It is a wonderful book, and I hope that it will build up her vocabulary.

Updated 24 July 2008 :
Chloe has finished reading 50 pages of Charlotte's Web(total 180+ pages). It is a wonderful book, deeply moving and superbly written. It really helps to build up her vocabulary, with words like "desperately", "conversation", "appropriate", etc. I am happy that she can figure out how to read most of the difficult words herself, using phonics techniques. But what I really enjoy is discussing the story with her, about life and death and even about the anatomy of a spider.

Jerome is reading Ladybird keyword series book 4b now. He needs help with book 4a, but with book 4b, he is reading quite fluently. He is now 3 years 10 months old. Here's a page from book 4b. He can read it without any help. I am quite surprised by his progress, considering that I only taught him for about 8 months only, and only spend 15 minutes a day.

Updated 24 Aug 2008 :
Jerome completed Book 5a today. Here's a page from the book. There are about 100 words a page. He takes about 5 - 10 minutes to finish reading the page on his own, I only need to help him with a few words. He is very used to the routine now, since he has been reading one page every day for more than 8 months already.

Updated 9 Nov 2008:
Jerome completed book 6a and 6b. He is reading book 7a now. I am happy that he enjoys reading the book everyday. He likes to look at the pictures, and he asks many questions as he reads.

Chloe is now reading the second last chapter of "Charlotte's Web". We often discussed about what happen in the story. I want her to understand the true meaning of friendship from the book.

Updated 8 Feb 2009 :
Chloe completed Charlotte's Web in Nov 2008. She has just completed reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. She is able to read 3 pages every day, total about 600 words.
I am very happy, I bought her 3 packs of very cute stickers as a reward.

Jerome is reading the Ladybird key word book 8b now. He seems to be picking up new words much faster than before, and sometimes he can even read the new words before I even taught him. I think his foundation in phonics really helps !

Here is a page from book 8b. He is reading very fluently on his own. He is still reading one new page everyday.

Chloe the young entrepreneur

2008-02-10T02:19:00.000-08:00

I have been selling many of my old things on the internet, and Chloe is aware of it. One day she told me she will make some bracelets, and let me sell them. She made 8 bracelets, each of a unique design; one of them is show above. The beads are only 5mm in diameter, I did not expect her to be able to thread them without any help, she also tied the thread on her own.

My hubby took photos and I posted them on the internet, to my surprise, I found a buyer who bought all 8 bracelets ! I gave the money to Chloe, and told her she can buy anything she wants with it. I thought this was a valuable lesson for her. I wrote the process of making and selling on the board and explained to her. Guess what she bought with the money she earn ? Stickers ! Chloe earned her first money at only 4 years 8 months old !

Chloe's Drawings

2008-02-10T01:42:00.000-08:00

Chloe loves to draw now. She will think of something to draw everyday. Here are some of her drawings. She has improved very much since last year. She is able to draw details like eyes and eyelashes, even design different hairstyle and dresses. The drawings above were done when she was 4 years old.

Updated Jun 9 2008:

Here's another of Chloe's drawings. She is now 5 years old.

Cookies

2008-02-09T01:09:00.000-08:00

After trying to bake cookies unsuccessfully for the past 3 times, I finally got it right today !

I got this recipe from www.wilton.com. It is very easy to make. And the cookies turned out wonderful and yummy ! I think it is the best cookie I have ever tasted, simply because I made them ! Chloe and Jerome helped me to cut out the cookies with the cookie cutter.

* 1 teaspoon Vanilla
* 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
* 1 cup granulated sugar
* 1 large egg
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 3 cups all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 150 degrees celsius. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Beat in egg and vanilla. Mix flour and baking powder; add 1 cup at time, mixing after each addition. The dough will be very stiff, so blend last flour in by hand (if dough becomes too stiff, add water, a teaspoon at a time). Do not chill dough.

Divide dough into two balls on a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a circle approximately 12 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch thick. Dip Metal "Heart" Cutters into flour before each use. Bake cookies on ungreased cookie sheet on middle rack of oven for 6-7 minutes, or until cookies are lightly browned. Makes 3-4 dozen cookies.

Cupcakes

2007-09-02T06:43:00.000-07:00

I have made cupcakes many times with Chloe and Jerome, started when Jerome was less than 2 years old. They always enjoyed it. The cupcakes did not always come out nice. But today I finally figure out how to set the oven correctly, the cupcakes turn out wonderful this time.

I got a super easy recipe :
Butter 150g
Caster Sugar 150g
Self Raising Flour 180g
3 eggs
50 ml milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract.

Cream butter and sugar together till light and fluffy before beating in eggs, one at a time. Fold in half the sifted flour, add milk and vanilla and then fold in the remaining flour. Put into the oven (150 degree Celsius) bake until golden brown.

Cupcakes right out of the oven. Yummy !