Is this the season to shop for presents? Yes! Are you wondering what gift would be educational and entertaining for kids learning Chinese language and culture? We are making holiday gift shopping easy for you. This holiday season, give the joy of Chinese learning to a child. Enjoy a cup of tea, relax and pick your favorite gift.
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Books
Books never go out of style.
Chinese books
Here are two books in Chinese – one that is great for beginner readers and one that is inspiring for animal lovers. Even with limited Chinese language background, the National Geographic Readers: Kids Edition is good for exposing young readers to Chinese characters.
- National Geographic Readers: Kids Edition (Chinese): For ages 6 and up. Simplified Chinese edition.
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Chinese Edition): For ages 2 and up. Simplified Chinese edition. Traditional Chinese edition.
Create a Chinese learning environment with these books in your home library.
Chinese English Bilingual Books
The three Chinese-English bilingual books that I have included in the list are for young learners. These are fun Chinese learning!
- Elmer’s Day: For ages 2 and up. Traditional Chinese edition.
- Gordon & LiLi Learn Animals in Mandarin: For ages 2 and up. English, simplified Chinese, and pinyin glossary included.
- Evie and Andrew’s Asian Adventures in Taiwan: For ages 5 and up. Traditional Chinese edition. Chinese phrases are introduced in English content.
Audio
Immersion in the Car with Music, Songs, Theme Lessons and Stories.
Here is an on-the-go, immersion in the car bundle. Some Cheerios and goldfish crackers will go well with these Chinese learning items.
- A Little Mandarin Chinese Children’s Classics by A Little Mandarin (CD/MP3): For ages 0 and up. There are 15 classic Chinese children’s songs on this beautifully produced album.
- Chinese Lullabies by Beijing Angelic Choir (CD): For ages 0 and up. There are 12 tracks from various regions in China on this soothing and dreamlike album.
- Let’s Learn Mandarin Chinese with Miss Panda (CD/MP3): For ages 3 and up. Theme-based Chinese learning introduces over 100 commonly used words, phrases and sentences. This program is created especially for children with limited or no Mandarin Chinese language experience.
- My First Chinese Words by Better Chinese (CD and books): For ages 3 and up. This is a Chinese curriculum for non-Chinese preschoolers and up. Available in simplified Chinese edition and traditional Chinese edition.
Chinese Learning DVDs
Turn screen time into Chinese learning time!
Here is a collection for your family Chinese program session in a movie night style with popcorn!
- Little Pim Chinese: For ages 3 and up. This set of DVDs adopts the total immersion approach with twenty 5-minute episodes covering eating, drinking, waking up, and playtime.
- Elmo’s World: The Great Outdoors (Chinese edition). For ages 3 and up. My young students are so surprised when Elmo speaks and sings in Chinese!
- Frozen (Chinese Edition): For ages 10 and up (PG). Multi region code free DVD player required. Region 6 DVD with English and Mandarin Chinese audio options.
Activity Book & Fun-Sheet Packet
Reinforce language and culture learning through activities.
Chinese learning continues outside of the classroom and school. Here are resources for fun reinforcement at home.
- My Fun Chinese Book: Animals by Daily Noodles. For preschoolers and up. There are 36 fun hands-on projects in this activity book. English, simplified Chinese characters and pinyin are used in this book.
- Miss Panda Chinese Fun-Sheet Packets: For preschoolers and up. Each packet has a theme with flash cards, games, activity pages and reading sheets in traditional/simplified Chinese, pinyin and English.
Chinese Learning Apps
Interactive Chinese learning through games, stories, and culture fun.
Interactive learning with Apps makes learning a new language and culture entertaining for children.
- Art of Chinese Characters: For ages 8 and up. Introduces Chinese character writing with paintings, stroke order, and the meaning of each word. Traditional Chinese, simplified Chinese, pinyin and English translation are included in this app.
- Ricki & Jacky: For ages 6 and up. This is an entertaining Chinese learning app. Join the carnival and learn basic words, phrases and sentences in Chinese.
- Chinese Folktales by Tinman Arts: For ages 6 and up. Tinman Arts has a good collection of interactive story books with beautiful illustrations and clear pronunciation.
Toys, Games & Cultural Experiences
Playing is learning.
Engage the five senses to learn about language and culture!
- Chinese Character Blocks by Uncle Goose: For ages 3 and up. Simplified Chinese characters, pinyin and English translation are included.
- Chineasy Memory Game by Chineasy: For ages 10 and up. Here is a good tool to learn basic Chinese characters with meaningful Chinese character illustrations.
- Chinese Yoyo by Flight Diabolo: For ages 12 and up. A chinese yo-yo is always a hit for older children. It is entertaining and challenging.
- Chinese Calligraphy Set by Oriental Furniture: For ages kindergarten and up. Writing with a Chinese brush is a beautiful cultural experience.
- San Francisco Chinatown Walking Tour by All About Chinatown: For ages 6 and up. This is a culture event the whole family can enjoy. This tour is located in the San Francisco area.
- Traditional Chinese dress for girls by Elite Dresses: For ages 0 and up. Qí Paó is the traditional dress that adult women wear on special occasions in the Chinese community.
Books about Chinese Culture in English
Books about Chinese culture prepare children to explore our diverse world with an open mind and respect for others.
- All About China: Stories, Songs, Crafts and More for Kids by Allison Branscombe: For ages 5 and up. This wonderful resource book touches on a series of engaging topics for young readers and the whole family.
- The Pet Dragon by Christoph Niemann: For ages 5 and up. This beautifully illustrated book has an interesting introduction to Chinese characters with an entertaining story.
Bonus Pick:
The Great Wall of Lucy Wu by Wendy Wan Long Shang: For ages 8 and up. Here is a humorous and heartwarming story about split cultural identities.
佳節愉快｜佳节愉快 – Jiā jié yú kuài – Happy Holidays!
Amanda Hsiung-Blodgett aka. Miss Panda blogs about methods and resources for teaching Chinese language and culture to children.
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Thank you for these suggestions! We already have some of them. I’ll have to look into a few of the others. Two of my daughters are Chinese.