Playtimes HK Magazine June 2017 Issue | Page 68

Mandarin Immersion Camps For children learning Mandarin, a summer camp in China or Taiwan can offer an invaluable opportunity to improve their vocabulary in a fun, immersive environment. We round up some of the options available Camp Taiwan Camp Taiwan’s Mandarin summer camps are conducted entirely in Mandarin and are suitable for both native speakers and learners. They offer six days and five nights of adventure in a 90-acre campsite on the north coast of Taiwan. In the Chicken Little camp (19-24 June), students get to experience a number of activities including archery, rock climbing, river tracing, sports, crafts, and ecology and they even get to live in safari-style tents in the mountains of Wanli. Perfect for active children, it is suitable for age 7-14. camptaiwan.com.tw/youth-camps/ summer-camp/ Taipei Kids Mandarin Camp The Taipei Kids Mandarin Camp runs during January and July and is available as either a two-, three- or four-week option. It comprises 15 hours of intensive fun Mandarin each week including listening, speaking, pronunciation, reading, vocabulary, grammar and activities. You can either 66 www.playtimes.com.hk Mandarin house sign up for just the lessons (Monday- Friday 9am-12) or you can also book one of the five family apartments located near the school. The course is suitable for children of 3-14 years (the average age is 7) of all abilities, but if the parents are interested to learn, too, that can be arranged. www.languageinternational.com/ course/taipei-mandarin-kids- mandarin-camp-taiwan-mandarin- institute-taipei-73500 National Taipei University of Education Chinese Language Education Centre This isn’t an option for this year as courses are already full, but it’s worth considering for next summer, or perhaps over Easter. It accommodates students age 6-15 with students divided according to their ability. Class hours are 9am-3pm, with mornings spent in class and afternoons spent on cultural experiences and activities. The programmes run for three weeks. academic.ntue.edu.tw Mandarin Daily News Another Taipei-based camp is through Mandarin Daily News, which has been running Mandarin classes since 1973. Camps are suitable for children age 6-15 years and of all levels of Mandarin ability. Teaching is carried out in small groups based on age and level of Chinese, making the learning highly efficient. Cultural elements are also introduced, including martial arts, calligraphy, clay-making etc. study.mdnkids.com/camp_eng.asp#a1 RICH Beijing Language and Culture University RICH Chinese summer camp has been running since 2002 catering to students age 8 to 18. Providing nine types of classes, the school caters for students with varied Chinese proficiency levels. One hour of one-on-one tutoring every day is designed to enhance writing and speaking skills. Outdoor activities including visits to local places of interest, unique sport experiences as well as a grasslands trip to Inner Mongolia