Elmo Speaks Mandarin Chinese

We just found lots of new Elmo DVDs in Mandarin Chinese (they have bilingual audio and subtitle options). These shows are superb because your child can watch them in either language, making them accesible and interesting for both beginners as well as near-native Chinese speaking children.

Visit our site Popping Pandas to see the Elmo selection -- we have a brand-new sale for Elmo, too, a set of 4 Elmo DVDs for $54.99!

Cute Kid Singing Video

I know, he's Korean, but I love his rendition of the English language Beatles song here!

We posted songs in Chinese on our site PoppingPandas.com (free to listen or download). Sing them with your child!

I think this little boy learned the song from a non-native English speaker. Bet his pronunciation would be near perfect otherwise. Still, quite impressive.

Two New Sesame Street DVDs -- Bilingual Mandarin Chinese & English

Two new Sesame Street DVDs arrived! They are "Wake up with Elmo" and "Heads, Hand, Feet," the latter is an adorable introduction to words such as head, hands, and feet in Chinese. These Sesame Street shows are bilingual with Mandarin Chinese and English audio and subtitle options, making them great for an introduction to Chinese as well as a fun show for children who already speak a lot of Chinese.

As you use these DVDs (or any DVD), you can play them in the computer and use the "print screen" (or any other print option) to print a page that you want. This is very useful for learning characters! Just print the first introductory page and let your child practice writing the characters. Then go to the second page, and so forth. Join your child in writing the characters, so he or she has company, too.

For everyone who is collecting the set, please let us know which shows you still need. We will be bringing back another five to six new Sesame Street DVDs in May, but we can also bring back a few extras if you email us with specific titles.


Sesame Street Bilingual Mandarin and Chinese DVDs on PoppingPandas.com

African Singer in China...in Chinese

This is cool, so I wanted to share it!

Chinese TV Online: Super Practice for Listening Comprehension

Now we finally have a good reason to watch TV: Language practice. Get hooked on your favorite drama or comedy, and practice Mandarin. I use these two links: youku.com and tudou.com

Nciku: A Great (Free) Online Bilingual Mandarin & English Resource

I use Nciku's site all the time! You can use the dictionary functions, hear the Chinese character, see it drawn, and see various uses. The best thing is that you can use your mouse to draw a character -- you do not even need to draw it well -- and options for that character come up, so you can find it easily, and then look up the translation.

My best recommendation for learning to read Chinese? Use a computer! Mac users have it easy, Windows users need to install the language pack (it is on your installation disk). Typing is really easy, so it helps you remember the characters. This goes doubly for kids, too!

Bilingual Sesame Street DVDs in Mandarin Chinese and English

Brand-new and absolutely beautiful! These feature a full-length TV episode with a choice of English or Mandarin Chinese.

Check out our Sesame Street collection on our Popping Pandas site.