Learning Mandarin Chinese 🇹🇼 : A Practical Guide for Parents
- hummblylife
- Jul 6
- 8 min read
Updated: Jul 8
Moving to Taiwan or raising bilingual children? Whether you're an expat parent or returning family, helping your kids learn Mandarin can feel like a challenge, but it doesn’t have to be stressful or overwhelming.
It’s been seven years here in Taiwan for us, and as non-native parents, helping our kids learn a completely new language felt daunting at times. There were moments I felt helpless—when I didn’t see much progress, or when I worried I wasn’t truly helping because my own pronunciation wasn’t native.
But honestly, all the extra work is worth it! So we just want to encourage you: don’t give up—even on those tough days when you’re struggling with tones or characters!
Here's a list of fun, effective, and family-friendly ways to support your child’s Mandarin learning journey in Taiwan (or abroad).
Books & Learning Tools
We have linked some online shops where you can get the books / resources we mention, these are not sponsored links.
Usually we try the local public library first and see if we can find the books there. If they are not, you can also do an online search on their website or App and "reserve" them, they will then forward it to your closest library of choice and notify you once it has arrived (usually 3-5 working days). You can read more about this service here. We have done this in Taipei public library, not sure if this service is available elsewhere.
We recommend this Facebook group to find 2nd hand books and learning tools:
Recommendation: If your kids are still little, and you are planning to stay long-term in Taiwan (3 years or more), we recommend to learn bopomofo Zhuyin. All the books for primary school kids come with this phonetic aid, so it will be very helpful to know how to read it to help with the learning process.
巧虎 qiao hu Learning Sets
Qiaohu used to offer monthly subscription books for different stages of learning. Unfortunately, they stopped producing these monthly magazines in March 2025. You can still find them on Shopee.
親子天下 Parenting Editorial Books | For 3-6yo Online Shop | For 7-12yo Online Shop
Teaching materials | Parenting Audiobook App (Paid Subscription)
ALL the books by the author 賴馬 lai ma | Eslite | 親子天下 Online Shop
No matter how many new books we bring from library or buy, our kids always go back to the Lai ma books. (I love them too!). If we, and when we leave Taiwan, these are some of the books that we would be taking with us as they are now part of the childhood memories of our kids!
This book is about "Ban jie ming", he is a zebra. He and his family just moved to a new city. The school he transferred to is one full of horses! They explore the topics of how we can all be different (in appearance), yet so similar in essence!
It's such a great book for kids that are also going through transitioning to new environments or who just happen to feel a little different to other kids!
Other favorites by 賴馬 lai ma:
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You can also look for characters your children may already know from English storybooks like Maisy, or The Color Monster. There are mandarin versions of the same books: Maisy | The Color Monster | Eric Carle's collection | Peppa Pig | The Gruffalo
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Interactive Sound Books or Push-button books 有聲書 (yǒushēng shū)
These are books that have buttons you press to play audio recordings of object names, animal sounds, narration, etc.
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The editorial of Food 超人 (Food Superhero) offers many great resources: Eslite Store
Books with a Talking Pen / Audio Pen 點讀筆書 (diǎn dú bǐ shū)
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Audiobooks and Podcasts Parenting Audiobook App (Paid Subscription)
Free podcasts:
從前從前 (Once Upon a Time) Apple Podcast | Spotify
海外兒童中文頻道 (Mandarin Podcast for Kids) Apple Podcast | Spotify
Playful Chinese (Miss Panda) Apple Podcast
小朋友聽聖經 Little kids bible stories Apple Podcast | Spotify
媽爹講故事 (Mom & Dad's stories) Spotify
Free Textbooks - The "Overseas community affairs council" (OCAC) offers free physical textbooks (five per person) for learning mandarin, find out more here. They have children versions too.
Online versions of these OCAC textbooks can be found here: Free online books and resources to learn mandarin
Our favorite public libraries & bookstores in Taipei Metropolitan area:
Apps / Online Resources
Although kids won’t fully learn a language just by playing with an app, it can still be a fun and engaging way to reinforce what they’ve learned.
 | 巧虎 qiaohu App | App | Digital Resources Games, Video Lessons, Songs, etc. |
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 | Seemi App | Apple | Android SeeMi is designed specifically for children aged 5 to 12, offering educational video content, including the largest collection of animated picture book stories in Taiwan. The app aims to make learning as exciting as play and to help kids experience the joy of watching and listening! |
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 | Ezwrite App | Apple As the name suggests, this app focuses on writing skills |
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Online Resources for learning Chinese
To navigate these webpages you will need to read basic Chinese or use an online translator tool.
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 | Junji Academy - Resources organized by grade-leve. |
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 | 國語日報 Mandarin Daily News *For older kids or advanced learners |
YouTube Channels
For younger kids
 巧虎 qiao hu | Youtube Link |  樂樂TV le le TV | Zhuyin Song | Youtube |
 Foodman TV | Youtube |  小康軒幼教 KS Education | Youtube |
 笑笑星球 Haha planet ｜ Youtube |  Happy Bambi | Youtube |
 Pinkfong Mandarin | Youtube |  Yoyo TV | Youtube |
If your kids are learning the bopomofo (zhuyin), this song is the one most local kids use to learn it: Bopomofo Song
For older kids
Teenagers (+13yo) /Adults
Classes & Tutors in Taiwan
In Person - Mandarin classes (Taipei)
Mandarin classes in Taipei
Summer / Winter camps: During school holidays, some international schools and language centers offer immersion camps. Keep an eye out starting around March (for summer break) and October (for winter break) each year.
 | "Nostalgia for Taiwan" Short-term In-school Program for Overseas Taiwanese Children and Teenagers - This immersion program is open to overseas Taiwanese children and youths aged 6 to 15. At least one parent must be a Taiwanese national and act as the applicant for the program. 2026-2027 dates not yet announced. Find out more here |
 | TLI offers fun and structured programs for kids. |
 | NTNU Mandarin Training Center's Summer camp MTC's Website |
 | National Taipei University of Education |
 | Taipei Youth Program Association |
Local Buxibans (補習班) Cram Schools - Some of them offer Zhuyin 注音 / 正音班 Zhenyin ban classes to learn the phonetic system: bopomofo. These are classes for kids between the ages 4-7yo. Ask local parents or check the ones in the neighborhood you will be staying at. Some of the ones you will probably see around are: HESS, Joy English, American Eagle, KOJEN, Giraffe, LiveABC, Happy Marian, Shane English, etc. Although they all have the word "English" in their brand name, rest assured your kids will be immersed in Mandarin language environment if you sign them up for the camps they offer, as most kids still communicate mainly in mandarin in the cram schools.
How to Find a Tutor:
Join Facebook groups like "Taipei Parents," and ask for recommendations.
If you speak/write/read basic mandarin, make sure to search on FB or Google using keywords as 家教 (Tutor) - FB Groups to search for tutors: FB Group 1 | FB Group 2
Look for LINE groups of playgroups, or similar. For example in Neihu district there's a co-learning community. It all started with a local mom who was organizing different enrichment classes during the afternoons for her daughters, then it grew into a bigger organization: M&M Play Garden. You can search for similar communities in the area you will be staying.
If you are looking for summer / winter camps or classes that are not focused on Mandarin language instruction, here are some ideas you can check out:
Variety of classes and experiences My Fun Now | KKday | Niceday | The Center Taipei
Climbing Civic Boulder Gym Taipei | T UP Climbing
Soccer / Football A Star football | Club France Taiwan
Outdoor activities We KIDS | 小白老師 Nature trail walks |
Gymnastics Fly Kids | Happy Union | Tiger World
Parkour ADD Academy
Educational centers: Tinkerseeds
For Swimming, Badminton, Table Tennis, Basketball, Kpop dance, and so many more lesson options, check out the website of the Sport Centers near your district, for e.g.
Online
 | 親子天下 Parenting Editorial offers bundles that are like online classes kids can take on their own (their resources are available only in mandarin, no English platform) Zhuyin I | Zhuyin II | Zhuyin III Chinese Characters | (Short) Essay Writing | More online courses |
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How to find an online tutor:
Search italki, Preply, TutorJr or AmazingTalker.
For +16yo and adults, check out this guide provided by Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office (TECO): Taiwan's Mandarin Learning Resources
Creative Learning Ideas at Home
Label items around the house with Mandarin words or for more advanced learners do a treasure hunt activity of finding one object that starts with a bopomofo in the house: Youtube Link.
Use a "Word of the Day": You can use flashcards for this, or write in a whiteboard and place somewhere the kid would see it.
Play simple games in Mandarin like I Spy 我看到... (Wǒ kàn dào...) or Simon Says 老師說... (lao shi shuo)
Schedule Mandarin-only hours or playdates with local kids.
If your kids don't enjoy writing over and over again the characters they are learning, try to change it to Calligraphy! The Stationery stores sell a set that work with water. You can also try getting a little sand box and make them write with their fingers.
Change your Netflix or other content that your kid watches / listens to Mandarin.
Create a Spotify or Youtube playlist with Mandarin songs that both you and kids can enjoy
Final Tips for Parents
Don’t stress about fluency early on—connection is more important.
Make it fun and light, not a chore.
Consistency (even 15 minutes daily!) makes a huge difference.
🧡 If this guide helped you, please share it with other families, or comment your own favorite resources!
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