Mandarin for Kids

[azzurra]

Does anyone one where to start looking for Mandarin tutors specialised to work with young kids? We are based in N.E London. Many thanks

Most Chinese community centres run classes for children on Sundays but often they are Cantonese rather than Mandarin. Ours does both but we aren't in London.

Thanks Stomping. I was thinking one-to-one playful introduction to the language to start off with. Do you think it is stil worth contacting the local Community Centre?

The classes are usually for older kids who are native speakers isn't it? I'm guessing the OP isn't a speaker or I'd suggest doing OPOL first. But the community centre can probably point you to tutors in your area.

I would try the community centre as even if they don't have anything suitable then they should still be able to point you in the right direction. Ours start at age 5 and are a mix of 1st and 2nd generation migrants and 'English' people (kids and adults). When I was little everyone was Chinese with Chinese speaking parents but now there is lots of ethnic Chinese kids who only speak English at home so they are taught alongside the English kids.

Thanks for all your advice. In my case the story is slightly different: neither of us is of Chinese origins. I have tried (unsuccessfully) to learn Mandarin. I spent some time working in China and keep in touch with friends over there. I would love DS to learn Chinese and thought the best would be to expose him to the language from an early age. We have some "agreement" with my friends back in China that in summer when their children grow older will come over here to learn English and DS to Beijing to Mandarin.... hope it will happen. Thanks again for your advice!