I’ve finally decided to send Little Edison for Chinese enrichment class. Although I’ve been putting a lot of efforts to teach him Chinese at home, I’ve to admit that our progress is rather pathetic.
First of all, the language itself is already a hurdle for me, as I don’t actually have any formal education on it. V, on the other hand, dislikes tutoring him at home even though he has a better command on the language than me (please don’t ask me why).
Little Edison likes English a lot; he views it as a language for entertainment (TV programs), for education and for interaction (we speak English at home). Chinese seems to be a language of struggle for him. Perhaps, it is all our fault – we should have spoken more Chinese at home when he was younger.
I told V that we must be realistic with our own “limited” ability and our expectations of him when it comes to Chinese. Since we intend to enroll him in a SAP school with strong emphasis on bilingualism, we have to help him to build a strong foundation and interest in the Chinese Language.
I’ve shortlisted a few Chinese enrichment classes – that is near to our place.
1. Hua Language Centre
2. Berries
3. Beijing Language School
4. Tien Hsia Language School
5. Eduplus Language Centre
Personally, I prefer a fun-learning environment rather than academically-driven. I’m also looking for some feedbacks on these schools. So, please drop me a comment – especially if you’ve any experiences with these schools or any recommendations.
Appreciate it and Thanks! 🙂
berries is the best..my 3 yr old starting berries in jan..he can recognise some words oredi…he recognised more words than his non chinese educated dad…!!
Hi Jaime,
Thanks for your recommendation. Personally, I like Berries too. Seems to be a fun-learning school to me. I just called them to arrange for a trial class for Edison. Let’s see how is his response after the trial class. If he has no objection, we will enroll him straightaway.
Hi Emily,
You can try Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan Arts & Cultural Troupe. Don’t be mistaken by their english name as they are very established in teaching Chinese.
My son has been with them for one term and he can read more than 100 words now with home practice. My son is 2 and a half now.
I have seen classes with for elder kids, and they are all very vocal.
Their classes are usually full. You might want to visit their centre at Toa Payoh. Their number: 63541972
Cheers,
Hi Erina,
Thanks for your recommendation. I really didn’t know that these Huay Kuan conduct Chinese classes. However, we’ve just enrolled our boy with another Chinese Language Center last weekend.
Hi Emily
My daughter is at the Tien Hsia at Kovan Mall and I do agree with your comments. I was thinking of Berries which her cousin is attending but Tien Hsia offered better timing. Honestly I feel that even with enrichment class we must revise at home or they will just forget it. I am still exploring other options like the Huay Kuan and also Yuquan Language School some forums have recommended. Keep you posted of my “research” later!
Sabrina
Hi Sabrina,
Thanks! We put his enrollment at Hua Language Centre on ‘KIV’ now due to conflict of schedule. Still hope that Berries will call me, I am on waiting list. Called them several times, but still no luck.