Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this question from the Onion? Unless you are Chinese, a Mandarin tutor for toddlers seems like a spoof. Have you checked out Harvard day care?

+ 1. Or an SNL spoof about people who live in Washington DC.

You are obviously an idiot who knows nothing about learning Mandarin. Just try learning the language for two weeks, then come back and tell us why it's a spoof to teach Mandarin to toddlers.

Anonymous wrote:Is this question from the Onion? Unless you are Chinese, a Mandarin tutor for toddlers seems like a spoof. Have you checked out Harvard day care?

+ 1. Or an SNL spoof about people who live in Washington DC.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I knew a family that hired a Chinese college student to be their live-in nanny from birth-age 4. Then did it again with another Chinese college student for ages 4-8. Their kids were fluent Mandarin speakers

I am quite impressed. I am Chinese and my son won't say a word in Chinese ever since he went to preschool at 3.

PP, maybe it's because your son notices that English is dominant in the environment around him? I'd still continue speaking to him in Chinese at home. Even if he doesn't say the words himself, he is picking up on structure and sounds of the language. There is a peak period for language absorption and after about 6 or 7, it goes down hill. Even if he only stays in the receptive language phase, he will be far ahead of kids who don't hear the language at all until they're older.

Anonymous wrote:I knew a family that hired a Chinese college student to be their live-in nanny from birth-age 4. Then did it again with another Chinese college student for ages 4-8. Their kids were fluent Mandarin speakers

I am quite impressed. I am Chinese and my son won't say a word in Chinese ever since he went to preschool at 3.

Anonymous wrote:Is this question from the Onion? Unless you are Chinese, a Mandarin tutor for toddlers seems like a spoof. Have you checked out Harvard day care?

Mandarin is a highly tonal language. That means just a slight variation in the pitch or tone of a sound can change the meaning of what you say. It's very difficult to pick up the subtle differences in sound by the time you're 10 or so. It's a language that is best picked up in early childhood.

I speak another Asian language and I can hear the tones of Mandarin, but cannot reproduce them well in speech.

This is why parents who are at all interested in their kids learning Mandarin are interested in doing it early.

Is this question from the Onion? Unless you are Chinese, a Mandarin tutor for toddlers seems like a spoof. Have you checked out Harvard day care?

I knew a family that hired a Chinese college student to be their live-in nanny from birth-age 4. Then did it again with another Chinese college student for ages 4-8. Their kids were fluent Mandarin speakers

Anonymous wrote:Don't know of any play-based tutors, but I'm wondering if there are any families who have hosted a Mandarin-speakigg au-pair? if so, did it help your DC gain fluency?

We are thinking about hiring a Mandarin-speaking au pair when our children are older, but wonder how an au pair's desire to strengthen their English meshes with the parents' desire that their children learn Mandarin. Maybe set aside alternate days as English-only vs. Mandarin-only? Would love to hear experiences with this.

Bump

Don't know of any play-based tutors, but I'm wondering if there are any families who have hosted a Mandarin-speakigg au-pair? if so, did it help your DC gain fluency?

We are thinking about hiring a Mandarin-speaking au pair when our children are older, but wonder how an au pair's desire to strengthen their English meshes with the parents' desire that their children learn Mandarin. Maybe set aside alternate days as English-only vs. Mandarin-only? Would love to hear experiences with this.

Can anyone recommend me one? (objective to teach Mandarin -play based approach- to a toddler and a little kid)