Ladybird Languages offers a fun, play-based Mandarin language program to children aged 2 to 5 years in pre-schools, child-care centres and one-on-one at home.
Our program immerses the children 100% in the language through a combination of songs, poems, puzzles, art and craft, and musical activities - all developed with the support of early learning experts.
Our teachers use very little English and encourage participation with the help of our puppet friend, Xiong Mao, who interacts with the children, leading the lesson and activities.
The gift of a second language truly does give confidence and provides priceless advantages and benefits. In just 2 years your child could be using Mandarin as easily as they do English.
Why learn a second language at an early age?
Linguistic skills
The study of foreign languages has a positive effect on memory and listening skills.
Bilingual children have been shown to have advantages over monolinguals, particularly in understanding others, problem solving and being open to different interpretations of a situation.
Young learners can acquire native-like fluency as easily as they learned to walk.
The young brain is inherently flexible and uniquely hard-wired to acquire a second language naturally in the same way as the first. This means the child will speak, read and write the second language naturally rather than with the extra step of translating it from English.
Cognitive value
A second language appears to develop stronger minds.
When a child is fluent in two languages they know more than one word for the same object or concept. They know, for example, a foot remains a foot and performs the function of a foot, whether it is labeled a foot in English or ‘jiao ’ in Mandarin. This means they are more flexible in how they think and more creative.
Foreign language learning enhances cognitive development.
Because the children learn there are many ways in which to refer to one object their problem-solving skills are enhanced and this improves their overall school performance.
Window of Opportunity.
Between birth and adolescence the brain is hard-wired to acquire language naturally. As a child reaches puberty, the nature of language learning and storage changes, becoming less flexible.
Lifetime benefits
The gift of language is an investment that lasts a lifetime!
Young learners enrich their lives and open up doors to their future by gaining:
- an expanded world view;
- a greater intercultural appreciation and sensitivity;
- an ability to learn additional languages more easily;
- a competitive edge in future markets and the global marketplace.
Students of foreign languages have access to a greater number of career possibilities and develop a deeper understanding of their own and other cultures.
