For the last 6 months, I've been following the 5Q Channel. This innovative resource offers audio Ebooks for Ipad and Iphone. Books are available in Traditional, Simplified, with Zhuyinfuhao or pinyin. The content is suitable for children/students at the ACTFL Novice High to Intermediate High levels.
The animation is charming an the content features traditional Chinese folktales, Idiom stories and children's stories from other cultures. Each story is ranked by level (level 1 is suitable for ACTFL Novice High or Intermediate Low) and age. Note: these stories do require a base in Chinese. If you are unfamiliar with the ACTFL (American Council for Teachers of Foreign Language levels, you can read the proficiency level definitions here: ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines.
In a nutshell, a student at the Novice High level is one who has mastered memorized vocabulary, is beginning to "create with language" but cannot sustain conversations beyond predictable social situations. Students at the Intermediate level are able to begin creating with language - or utilize vocabulary to talk about topics they do not yet possess specific vocabulary for. This is a fancy way of saying the student can talk around a topic where they lack specific or appropriate vocabulary. They create rather than utilized memorized words and phrases.
Strengths:
a. Appropriate content for young children
b. Great audio that is easy to listen and understand
c. Engaging illustrations
d. Cost is fabulous - US$ .99-2.99 per book (higher priced books are sets of 4-6 books)
e. New content is added frequently giving you ample opportunity to build an E Library.
f. Content contains cultural depth presenting an excellent opportunity to study Chinese culture through reading.
g. This is the best Chinese Children's EBook site in the Apple IStore at this time. Highly recommended.
Weaknesses:
a. Students/children must have a strong base in Chinese to use these Audio Ebooks - Novice High or better. This is not a product for absolute beginners but IS suitable for children in native speaking homes.
b. Not all books are available in both Traditional or Simplified Chinese.
c. Not all books are available with Zhuyinfuhao (bopomofo) for those who prefer this to Pinyin.
d. If you do not know the vocabulary, you must look it up in a dictionary - the applications lack built-in tappable dictionary functions or comprehensive vocabulary lists in the back of each EBook.
5 Q Ipad & Iphone apps
or visit them in the IStore.
Happy reading!
Because characters are easily forgotten, it's important to keep even the basic ones that you first learned fresh in your mind, or you'll have to relearn them. Integrate new ones into sentences using ones you already know. Chinese grammar is relatively simple, so you can become quite proficient in writing simple sentences if you invest the time and patience into consistently reviewing old characters as you memorize new ones. Thanks.
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