As children, playing games is the most exciting part of our lives. Learning with fun makes the lessons easier in school or out of it. As a parent, an exciting activity helps children develop new skills and helps the child understand the concept better.
As a parent, helping children learn outside of school has become a fundamental norm. US-based immigrant mothers want their children to learn Mandarin Chinese as it allows them to get the best of both ethnicities. It has become essential to include games in learning the Mandarin Chinese language for your children. It will enable them to learn the language and even have fun.
Games and activities to develop reading Mandarin Chinese in children
Learning a few words now and then helps them improve vocabulary and stand out. Below are some games to learn Mandarin Chinese characters and words to enhance their language and encourage reading.
1. Tracing characters
Children between 3 to 5 years old can trace Mandarin Chinese characters by using small objects. Many things are available at home like mini stickers, leaves, seeds, pulses, and more that can make brilliant Mandarin Chinese learning games for children. You can also use macaroni, beans, cherries, or other foods that can be eaten later as a reward snack.
2. Tactile characters
Another Mandarin Chinese learning game for children can be making tactile Mandarin Chinese characters. These can be made with the help of glue or puffy paint. After the paint has dried up, children can easily touch their texture and work on remembering the Mandarin Chinese words.
3. Fishing
Mandarin Chinese words can also be learned by fixing flashcards with the help of paper clips. A fishing rod can be made with the help of a stick, magnet, and some string or by using a fly swatter. This interesting Mandarin Chinese learning game for children will help in enriching their vocabulary.
4. Clay play
Young children can be given hands-on learning with the help of clay or dough, which can be easily prepared at home. This can be used to create different characters and words using hands and fingers, helping them read tricky spellings.
5. Mandarin Chinese Lego
When the child becomes a little older, 5 to 9 years old, Lego or blocks can be converted into a fun Mandarin Chinese learning game for children. Children can be given the challenge to make different shapes of different characters with the help of Legos. You can also encourage your children to create words in Mandarin Chinese to help them understand the characters better.
6. Memory
Children can be shown various objects for a certain period of time, and they have to remember as many objects as they can and share.
7. Vocabulary match
Write a word on a post-it note and its definition on a second note until you have built a collection of notes containing different words. Your child then needs to correctly match the words with their definitions.
8. Jumbled sentences
In this fun Mandarin Chinese learning game for children, different sentences will be written on strips of paper, and the children have to read and place them to make sense of the story.
9. Coloring the character
Different Mandarin Chinese characters can be traced on paper, and the children may be asked to color them.
10. Object puzzle
Here, you have to create an outline of physical objects and write their names in Mandarin Chinese. The children will then place the correct object on the correct name, helping them learn the language better.
Fun games to learn the Mandarin Chinese language and culture
To help children maintain their interest and concentration, the learning process can be combined with entertainment in the form of games, puzzles, and more that also has a sense of healthy competition and interactive learning. Some games to help you build confidence in learning Mandarin Chinese are:
1. Mandarin Chinese crossword
Language skills can further be enhanced through Mandarin Chinese crosswords. These can be played individually as well as in a group. Multiple clues guide them to find the correct word in the puzzle, making the crossword a fun game for children.
2. Picture composition
Children can be shown a picture and asked to describe what they have learned in Mandarin Chinese in their own words.
3. Dumb charades
Another fun Mandarin Chinese learning game is dumb charades. One of the parents or family members can give their child a word to enact, and the other parent or family member can help the child with the enactment.
4. Chinese whispers
This fun Mandarin Chinese learning game for children is a group game where children can sit in a circle or a queue making two teams. The elders in the room pass a message to the two teams, starting from the first child in both groups. The message is then whispered to the next one till the last child. The team that finishes passing the correct message first is declared the winner.
5. Chinese treasure hunt
This fun Chinese learning game for children can be played in two groups where there will be different clues written in the Mandarin Chinese language. These clues will help the children find the treasure that can be the prize for the winning team.
6. Just a minute
You can ask your child to pick a chit from various topics and speak a few sentences on them.
7. Spell bee
Parents can give a word that the children have to write on a board. The scores are provided for the correct spelling.
8. Scrabble
The children have to pick Mandarin Chinese characters and create words using them. This makes a great Mandarin Chinese learning game.
9. Role Play
Children will be divided into teams, and each group will be given a situation that has to be enacted by them. This game will help develop practical communication skills and learn Chinese culture effectively.
10. Simon says
This is a great game to learn various actions in Mandarin Chinese as one child will take the role of Simon and others will follow the instructions by him.
11. Hot and cold
In this game, children will choose an object, and the adults or the other team has to identify it. The clues shared will be the word “hot” if you are closer to guessing the object and “cold” if you are farther away.
12. 20 questions
In this fun game, one child chooses an object familiar to all the other children that participate. The other players then take turns asking yes-or-no questions to help them guess what the object is.
Effective video games and apps to learn Chinese for kids
Mandarin Chinese can be learned effectively through video games where the children can learn about Chinese cultural history through the characters in these games. Some of them are:
1. Mindsnacks Chinese
This app consists of eight mini-games and more than 1000 different words and phrases that can be learned. These games have been designed by language professors who are experts in their field.
2. Influent Chinese
In this video game, your child learns about a Chinese character and the words associated with that character, building an interest in the traditions and culture of China.
3. Kahoot
There are Chinese words challenges of different topics on Kahoot. Parents can compete with their children to see who answers accurately and quickly.
Games are an excellent way of developing language and communication skills in a fun-filled way. These Mandarin Chinese learning games for children are great for parents to help their children learn about the different aspects of the Mandarin Chinese language and culture by also exploring their learning styles.
A great way of getting your child started on their Mandarin Chinese learning journey is through LingoAce’s engaging classes. At LingoAce, each lesson your child takes with us is a product of over 100 hours of curriculum creation, courseware production, mock teaching, teacher training and quality control (QC) rounds.
Experience a redefined Mandarin Chinese learning experience first-hand through a free trial lesson with us today.
