Mandarin

Mandarin | Chinese Cultural Arts | My First Mandarin

Mandarin

Julia Gabriel Preschool's Mandarin programme is designed to inculcate a love for Mandarin, and nurturing a high standard of spoken and written Chinese to prepare your child for entry into Chinese Primary One, or to build a solid language foundation for a lasting language mastery. Our Mandarin teachers converse only in Mandarin providing excellent language role models for the children.

At the Pre-Nursery/Nursery level, our work is entirely oral, developing ear training and an awareness of sounds. Vocabulary is built through songs, language games, drama activities and stories. Our curriculum incorporates both a formalised language learning programme as well as planned conversational opportunities to develop the practical use of the language. This is done through our teachers’ involvement in daily routines such as Snack Time, playground, games and the use of technology.

In Nursery Two, with the use of Picture Talk and Show and Tell, the children will further develop their expressive language to enable them to communicate using short phrases and sentences. They also begin to learn basic Chinese strokes through tracing and other fine motor activities.

In Kindergarten One, the emphasis will be on expressing themselves in sentences, and developing early reading and word recognition through the use of rhymes and games. Written work begins in earnest in Kindergarten One as vocabulary builds and extends to story writing in Kindergarten Two. In writing, the children work on word formation (counting and naming the strokes) and writing their names, and will also start to learn to write some simple characters.

OurKindergarten Two Mandarin curriculum focuses on the children’s ability to read phrases, sentences and short passages with understanding. The children are introduced to spelling and writing in sentences through the use of activity sheets and other resources. We introduce Hanyu Pinyin to our Kindergarten Two children through a collection of enjoyable and interactive activities.

Mandarin Speech and Drama along with Show and Tell sessions are conducted once a week. At the Kindergarten Two level, the children will participate in the Mandarin Moderation examined by Julia Gabriel Singapore's Head of Mandarin.

Chinese Cultural Arts by Chengzhu

The Chinese Cultural Arts programme by Chengzhu is introduced to provide additional exposure to focused language activities and regular immersion within the Chinese culture as further encouragement and support for the children to develop confident Mandarin communication skills. Music, dance, drama, art, stories, and specific cultural activities such as preparation of traditional Chinese festival foods, are essential in helping the children develop an appreciation and understanding of the Chinese culture.

Chinese Cultural Arts is also offered as part of our After School Care programme for the Pre-Nursery and Nursery One students.

My First Mandarin

My First Mandarin is offered under the After School Care programmes for the Pre-Nursery and Nursery One students as an additional Mandarin component to extend their exposure to the language in school.

They will explore specially curated themes to ignite their interest in Mandarin, engage in a variety of fun, hands-on art and craft activities, and participate in music and movement activities, sing along to nursery rhymes, and introduced to interactive stories.