Bright Star Chinese Education, Desa Sri Hartamas (Kuala Lumpur)

I have been bringing my child to Bright Star Chinese Education Center for more than a month now and I'm very impressed with their teaching methods. When we started, my child was a beginner and had no knowledge on how to read or write in Mandarin but now after 1 month, he can read many words in Mandarin and write some as well. Both my husband and I are very happy to see how well he has done so far. Our teacher, Ms Wang is very good with children and she is very experienced in her teaching skills. I highly recommend this Education Center to anyone who wants to learn how to read and write in Mandarin.

My 3-year old son loves and looks forward to his Brightstar Chinese lessons. After each session, he would often exclaim that time had gone by too quickly and he didn’t want the lesson to end. I am extremely happy that the programme has helped him to embrace Mandarin, which is his second language.

The Brightstar Chinese programme is excellent in terms of content and delivery. By incorporating catchy songs, stories, flashcards, art and craft, Chinese calligraphy and other interesting activities into each lesson, the programme effectively engages young children and helps them to develop a passion for the language. Children are also introduced to Chinese culture, which acquaints them with their roots; and encourages them to appreciate and understand why they should master the language.

Besides merely teaching the language, the programme emphasizes on character development and emotional intelligence.

Xiao Xian Laoshi is a highly gifted educator who loves children and has a knack for bringing out the best in them. She has taken much time and effort to intimately understand my son and build a strong bond with him. My son adores her and has blossomed into a confident, kind and loving child under her guidance. Thank you so much Xiao Xian Laoshi and Brightstar Chinese!!

I come from Singapore where my mother tongue, Mandarin, was being taught to me in School as a second language. Recognizing that Mandarin is vital not only for being part of and understanding our Chinese roots and culture but also an ‘economic necessity’ as China has become the second largest economy in the world.

With this mindset, my husband and I were determined to help our children establish a strong Mandarin foundation since young. Upon a friend’s recommendation, we started taking private lessons from Teacher Wang Xiaoxian (WXX) in July 2011. We chose her because:

Credentials of the teacher

Introduction of WXX requires no mention here. Before WXX, we had looked around for a qualified teacher for a while but truly qualified ones were hard to come by. She also practises positive reinforcements and is caring towards our children.

Systematic way of teaching

WXX does not follow any local syllabus. According to her, she created her own syllabus. She started my children with materials that focus on conversational and practical Mandarin. Some of her texts were written to rhyme to make it fun to read and easy to remember. In no time, my children were able to apply what they learnt in a practical way, holding simple conversations in Mandarin with their teacher and me. Having accomplished the basics, she then moved on to a higher level, with focus still on things that children can easily relate to on a day to day basis. Recognising that language learning is beyond academic, she tries to impart knowledge of the Chinese culture so that our children can appreciate their own cultural roots. WXX also enforces the correct way of writing Chinese characters from the very beginning, as it would take more time for one to unlearn mistakes and relearn in later years.

Fun and fruitful way of learning

In order to make the lessons interesting yet relevant to the lessons, the children get to do simple art and craft such as coloring, origami etc that relate to the lesson. Having music background is a bonus as she also composes songs incorporating her lessons so that the children have fun singing while learning. Music helps our children remember the things they learn.

Xiao Xian Lao Shi was my son’s mandarin speech and drama teacher. My son, who was 4 started attending her drama class, grew to love the mandarin language and became more confident. She later became my son’s mandarin private tutor when he was 5.

She took the practical approach in her mandarin syllabus. Her program begins with some daily concepts for example, “self introduction”, “family”, “friends”, “greetings”, subsequently concepts on “actions” and“opposites”. Children find her reading materials very “catchy” as some chapters actually rhyme like poems. She also sings her reading materials to her students so that it is easy for young children to remember.

After a year, she starts to introduce a very practical and important concept to my son, which is the concept of “quantifiable word”. This concept is hardly being emphasized in Malaysia’s local mandarin programs for young children, hence being a mandarin speaker myself, I noticed Malaysians tend to make a lot of mistakes while quantifying an object in mandarin.I strongly agree she introduces this concept during early childhood and set the right foundation for young children.

We look forward to her next level of materials to be introduced to my son, which are Chinese idioms. It is going to be another rarely emphasized topic in local schools but a useful topic for expanding the children’s vocabulary in writing.

Xiao Xian Lao Shi has the passion to teach young children and the creativity to develop mandarin programs which is suitable for them.