I recently got the opportunity to review Dino Lingo's Chinese program for kids. Dino Lingo offers more than 40 different languages for children! This review was perfect timing for us, as it gave the little girls something to work on while Hannah is off track from school.
My girls are ideal reviewers because Dino Lingo is designed for kids age 2-7. Hannah is 7, and Katie is 3.
These guys are the dinos in Dino Lingo! Hannah colored them, cut them out, and glued them onto the paper. There's a whole coloring book full of fun included in the kit.
It's so important to me for the girls to maintain some familiarity with Mandarin, because I want to take them back to China for a visit in a few years. I want them to maintain their "ear" for the different tones, so if they choose to take Mandarin later on, they'll have an easier time with it.
A main component of the program is the 5 DVDs included in the set. You can see from the girls' faces how interactive these are! They're repeating back what they're hearing!
As an aside, I knew the word for "hair" in Mandarin, but I would never have guessed how to spell it in Pinyan if I hadn't been snapping pictures when it appeared on the screen. So, thanks, Dino Lingo. I'm learning, too.
In addition to the DVDs and the coloring book, there's a stuffed dino. Dino Lingo generously sent us 2 of them, so each of the girls would have one.
Aren't they cute? Katie has been taking hers to bed with her.
The kit also comes with 10 sturdy color posters, a world map, and a Chinese flag!
I like to hang them at the girls' level so they can see them as we go about our day. Hannah is pointing at xi gua, or watermelon, which was her absolute favorite thing to eat when we met her.
We even used the number poster to copy the Chinese character for "7" onto Hannah's birthday cake last month.
Having 5 different discs to watch meant there was enough variety to hold their attention.
The girls like to watch one mid-morning, while I'm doing school with the big kids.
We also put up posters over the girls' beds, so they can look at them at nap time.
I used to only be able to count to 6 in Mandarin, but hearing the DVDs in the background, I'm up to 8 now. Hannah also likes to listen to the Chinese Children's Songs CD at nap time, too.
The kit even includes flash cards, which can be used in a variety of ways. In this picture, I would call out a Chinese word, and the girls would look for the picture of that object.
This full set sells for $159.95, but you can also buy just the DVDs, or just the posters. Right now, they're having a Memorial Day SALE, 25% off with the code SAVE25. You can also connect with Dino Lingo on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest.
Wow! This looks like a very comprehensive language program.
ReplyDeleteI tried taking Mandarin classes about 8 years ago with my husband. It's a hard language to learn. My husband did wonderfully and still knows quite a bit of basic Mandarin. Me? My brain is like a sieve.
Thanks for sharing!
xoxo
Mandarin is SO hard. I tried to pick some up before we adopted Hannah, and it's a pretty pitiful amount that stuck. I can say apple and watermelon and "no want" (useful in touristy areas!) and not much else. I hope to return to China with the girls when they're around 10, so it would behoove us to learn some more!
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