Mandarin for Kids: Kongrong Sharing the Pears

If kids learn Chinese stories, they can not only learn the language itself but also some implied meaning and some philosophies in life. Today, we will come to a popular Chinese story named “ Kongrong Sharing the Pears”. It is also an important text in many Chinese language classes especially in our primary school.

The content of the story is like the followings. 

In ancient China there was a smart boy named kongrong. He was so clever that he was able to recite many poems even when he was four. But he was known not especially for his intelligence but for his respect and love for his brothers.

 Kongrong had five older brothers and a young brother. One day his father bought some pears and he picked out one of the biggest and best pears and gave it to Kongrong. Seeing this, the boy shook his head and instead chose the smallest one. His father was surprised and asked: “why did you take the smallest one?” He answered: because I am a younger brother. The biggest one should be for my eldest brother.” His father asked again: “But you have a younger brother. You are older than him.” Again the lad replied: “Yes I am older than he, so I should leave the bigger ones for him.” On hearing these words, the father was greatly satisfied and smiled happily.

“孔融让梨(kong3 rong2 rang4 li2)” belongs to the Mandarin for kids. When we comes to learning Chinese for kids, we should not only let them know what the story is but also they should be aware of how did it happen why should it be. That is the real meaning of the story.

Actually, The story of Kongrong sharing the pears in Qufu spread quickly throughout the land and has been handed down from generation to generation. Many Chinese parents still use it as a perfect example when they are teaching their children thoughtfulness. Anytime and any where, you should try to be a considerate and thoughtful man. 

source:http://smile123xia.snack.ws/mandarin-for-kids-kongrong-sharing-the-pears.html 

   

Mandarin for Kids: La4 Bi3 Xiao3 Xin1

As we all know, kids learn Chinese quickly in many ways. Watching cartoon may be a good choice for them. Today, we will get to learn a very popular cartoon both in China and in Japan that is “蜡笔小新(la4 bi3 xiao3 xin1)”, the English name of which is “Crayon Shin-chan”. It is introduced from Japan but it has arouse many Chinese kids’ interests. When it comes to the most impressive cartoon in their childhood, “蜡笔小新(la4 bi3 xiao3 xin1)” must be one of the answers. By watching it, we can learn some Mandarin for kids.

First of all, let us see who is “小新(xiao3 xin1)”. He is a 5-year-old boy studying in a kindergarten. He is featured by his thick eyebrows and humorous voice. So many people like to imitate his voice. They usually say 妈妈，我回来了(ma3 ma3 wo3 hui2 lai2 le5)”. “，妈妈(ma1 ma1)” is previously pronounced as “ma1 ma1”, but it has changed the tones from 小新’s mouth.

小新is just a child who is leaning language like you. So he always makes jokes when he speak to others. It is a good chance of learning Chinese for kids. Once, one of his mother’s friend came to visit them. And there was only 小新 at home. At first he was not willing to open the door. Later on, the woman said her name was “镜子(jing4 zi5)” and 小新 delightedly said “影子阿姨，快请进(ying3 zi5 a1 yi2 kuai4 qing3 jin4), which means aunt Ying, come in please”. So he mistook “镜(jing4)” for “影(ying3)”. Actually, these two characters are of the similar shapes but totally different meanings and usages.

To know more about this interesting cartoon, you can visit our other Chinese language classes. 

source:  http://smile123xia.bloggets.net/mandarin-kids-la4-bi3-xiao3-xin1/

Mandarin for Kids: Lang2 Lai2 Le5

“狼来了(lang2 lai2 le5)” is one of the most popular Chinese story for kids. It has been presented many times in Chinese language classes especially in primary school.

As we all know, it is often the case that kids learn Chinese fast. By learning a short story, they can get to learn many new Chinese characters and also the important moral in it.

The following is the main plot of the story.

Long long ago, there was a boy who usually raised the goats on the hill alone. One day, he felt it a little boring and an idea came to his mind. He shouted “狼来了(lang2 lai2 le5), which means the wolf is coming” towards the foot of the hill. After a while, several villagers came to the hill with hoes and axes in their hands. When they arrived at where the boy stood. Nothing happened and all the goats were in safety. The villagers went downhill later. And after a while, the voice of asking help of the boy came into villagers’ ears. They came to the hill at once only to find they were cheated by the boy again. These villagers made a sigh and went down the hill disappointedly. Unexpectedly, as soon as the villagers went down the hill, a real wolf rushed towards the boy and his goats. He shouted again in panic but with no response. And then his goats were all eaten up by the wolf. That is the general idea of the story. Because we are learning Chinese for kids, we need to know some implied meaning in it.

Do you know why the villagers did not appear in time? Apparently, they had thought the boy was telling a lie again so they did not trust him. The story gives us an important lesson that is we should be a honest child.

To know more mandarin for kids or stories for kids, you can search them on the internet. 

source:  http://smile1xia.jigsy.com/entries/education/mandarin-for-kids-lang2-lai2-le5

Mandarin for kids: learning children’s song “Yi4 Fen1 Qian2”

Generally speaking, children’s songs or nursery rhymes play an important role in the learning Chinese for kids. You may have already attended many Chinese language classes. In this one, I will introduce a Chinese popular children’ song to you that is “一分钱(Yi4 Fen1 Qian2)”.

It is almost known to all the Chinese children. It is taught in kindergarten in China, because the song itself consists of some basic Chinese mandarin for kids. That is to say, the words and sentences in it are simple and easy to understand. So, let us have a look.

“我在马路边捡到一分钱(wo3 zai4 ma3 lu4 bian1 jian3 dao4 yi4 fen1 qian2)”. The meaning of it is “I picked a cent on the roadside.”

“把它交到警察叔叔手里边(ba3 ta1 jiao1 dao4 jing3 cha2 shu1 shu5 shou3 li3 bian1”. It means “I handed the cent to a policeman”.

“叔叔拿着钱对我把头点(shu1shu5 na2 zhe5 qian2 dui4 wo3 ba3 tou2 dian3”. It can be interpreted as “The policeman took the cent and nodded his head towards me”.

“我高兴的说了声叔叔再见(wo3gao1 xing4 de5 shuo1 le5 sheng1 shu1 shu5 zai4 jian4”. It means “I delightedly said goodbye to the uncle police.”

These are the four lines of the lyrics of this song. When we have a close observation of these lines, we will find the last characters of each line are with the same compound vowel that is “ian”. We can call it a rhyme. Besides, this song also tells the kids to be an honest person who should give back the things that do not belong to him or her.

It is an efficient and good way in which kids learn Chinese. If you are interested in it, just join us and you will gain a lot from it. 

source: http://smile1xia.jigsy.com/entries/education/mandarin-for-kids-learning-children’s-song-“yi4-fen1-qian2”