Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Start Graded Learning
Reading time: 10-15 minutes
Everyone is talking about ‘graded learning’. But what is it? Do I even need it? How should I use it if I have it? We’ve been using and selling Chinese graded learning since 2020. So, here are some things you should know if you want to start using it.
1. How is graded learning supposed to help me?
Graded learning can be really helpful when you’re learning a language but only when your child is ready for it.
In a nutshell, graded learning has three purposes:
Marks progress — people use it to determine where they are on their language journey. Checking your progress against the levels means you’ll know how fluent you are and what to expect next.
Introduces new characters — graded learning always provides character banks for each level. Use them to help you build your vocabulary.
Provides an engaging way to practise Chinese — a graded reader is the best of both worlds: a structured educational book and general picture book!
Have you ever watched Uncle Roger’s reaction to Jamie Oliver’s egg fried rice? Graded learning is like the spring onion. It’s important overall but it has to be added at the right moment. Graded learning can only be helpful when your child is ready for it.
2. Are we ready for graded learning?
Sometimes customers buy a graded learning series but then are surprised when their child isn’t engaging with it. Being ready depends on your child’s age, ability, and even personality.
Try this quick test: the wordsearch game! Ask them to spot any basic Chinese characters when looking at a book. If they can find those characters, they are ready! (This is a minigame you could do with them whenever you’re reading together.)
Other indicators of being ready are:
Using books independently (telling themselves the story).
Starting to remember characters (either by saying, reading or writing).
Being teachable! i.e. They can be taught to recognise new characters.
Everything you do to create a bilingual environment now will better prepare them for graded learning.
If they’re not ready, don’t invest in graded learning yet. Instead, concentrate on building the other things in your bilingual environment first. You could:
Join our book club! We read books and do activities with children online to help them engage with their books. Plus, all our recordings are available to subscribers, too!
Buy fiction and non-fiction books that interest them and encourage them to read.
Read with them to develop their interest in books.
Label things around your house in Chinese.
Use vocabulary posters or flashcards.
Speak to them in Chinese when and if you can.
Listen to music and radio in Chinese or watch Chinese cartoons and shows.
Everything you do to create a bilingual environment now will better prepare them for graded learning. Save the graded learning (and your money!) for when they are ready.
3. To Pinyin or not to Pinyin?
That is the question. In general, no Pinyin is best. Why?
Here’s what we recommend
Don’t let Pinyin overshadow Chinese characters. Treat the first 600 words like sight words.
While your child is still young, abstain from it. If they become too dependent on Pinyin, they’ll actually be reading the Pinyin and not the Chinese characters. Pinyin resembles English more and, because we live in an English-dominant country, it’s more likely to overshadow the Chinese. Treat — at least — the first 600 words as you would treat English sight words. These are words that children should recognise quickly without needing to think too hard or check for Pinyin.
Tactics change when they are older. At this stage, it’s not about learning the basics anymore. It’s about supporting their independence, developing their confidence and supporting further language acquisition. As their vocabulary begins to expand, we recommend starting to introduce Pinyin. This way they can be more independent (look up words themselves etc.) and they’ll be able to type in Chinese, too. There are just so many lifestyle advantages to learning Pinyin and, by that point, they should be confident enough in the basics.
But… I’m not fluent in Chinese myself! Don’t I need Pinyin?
There are plenty of tools and options that can help you use books without relying on Pinyin!
If you haven’t already, take a look at some bilingual parenting blogs like Lah Lah Banana or Chalk Academy, both of whom were not fluent in Chinese. You’ll see that their focus is to provide a bilingual environment for their children and being the facilitator for language learning. Even if you’re learning Chinese alongside them, it’s most likely your children will end up learning faster. But, that’s okay. Your job is providing the bilingual environment! Here are a few ways you can do that without needing to rely heavily on Pinyin:
Get books and graded readers compatible with Global Luka
Series-specific graded reading pens like Le Le Chinese
Graded readers that come with audio or CD
This way, even if you’re not able to read it yourself, you won’t be limited by Pinyin.
And here’s what we suggest if you really, really, really want Pinyin
We only have one series that comes with full Pinyin. If you’re really looking for Pinyin, Guo Guo’s Graded Learning is the one.
But some other series can easily be adapted to have Pinyin, it just requires a little DIY and work on your part. Try:
4, 5, Quick Read: There’s plenty of space to add Pinyin above/below the characters
600 Chinese Words: Similar layout to 4, 5, Quick Read but with a focus on reading sentences.
4. How much should I buy?
It depends…
If money is no object, then you have all the options before you. If it is, then you’ll have to make some decisions. Thankfully with graded learning, you can usually buy the levels separately (especially if the full set is more than £50). That way you can purchase as you go along. This can make it more affordable by spreading out the cost of graded learning.
But, don’t get too stressed about the order! For flexibility, you can benefit from having all the graded learning levels out at once. For us, my niece is really motivated by seeing the other levels because she feels like she’s achieved something whenever she tackles a harder level. She surprised us once by reading a book from the level above!
At the end of the day, the answer to this question is entirely situational. You know best the situation in your home and how to best tackle the question of budget. Either way, you’re doing the right thing!
5. Is graded learning enough on its own?
Short answer: no. Variety is key! Take a look at how schools use books.
Graded learning has been around for decades. There are lots of English graded learning! Most primary schools purchase different graded learning series and combine them to make their own levels. That’s why they stick the coloured ‘bands’ on them.
But that’s not all. British primary schools usually have two other sources of books for children. There’s the classroom library and then the school library. That’s two whole sections dedicated to fiction and non-fiction books for children to read just for pleasure and interest. About 30% of available books would be graded learning, the rest is just fiction and non-fiction books.
This is tried-and-tested. Schools have so many other books for children to choose from because they know it supports their education and engages them.
Now think. Just change all those English books to Chinese books. Swap out the English graded learning series for Chinese graded learning. And all the English fiction and non-fiction books for Chinese fiction and non-fiction books.
Ta-da! You’ve just built the perfect Chinese children’s library.
Basically, just copy schools!
This is tried-and-tested. Schools have so many books other than graded learning because they know it supports development.
Schools use graded learning as the baseline because that’s exactly what it is.
It provides structure to something that would otherwise be very complex and difficult for the average family to manage.
It’s a great way to mark progress as a child grows.
But it’s also important to encourage children to read other fiction and non-fiction books so they use their imaginations, stretch their creativity, improve their storytelling and literacy.
The more children use and adapt the language they know, the more confident they will be. That’s why they need other books outside of graded learning to help them explore what language in different contexts.
Your home library doesn’t have to be as vast as a school library because you can tailor your choice to suit the interests of a few children (not hundreds).
6. What am I aiming for?
600 words is a great goal to start with.
600 words is generally good enough for everyday things but this really is your starting point. It sounds scary but it’s functional and definitely attainable. Think about it, in the English language there are 1000 common words. 600 is nothing in comparison!
Most graded learning series cover over 1000 words, so all the graded learning series that we stock will be able to help you acheive this goal!
7. What's your best piece of advice for me?
Graded learning is an important detail but don’t forget the overall picture!
In a sentence: learning a language is all about interest.
Sparking interest is more than just about graded learning books. There are many factors that contribute to sparking this interest in children, and we’re here to help you do that!
Graded learning should only come in when your children are ready to learn. Don’t be tempted to introduce it too early… (Especially when there is no interest to learn Chinese yet.)
Instead, make sure:
You’re providing them with a great bilingual environment.
They’re able to enjoy Chinese language media (songs, movies, TV, even YouTubers!)
They’re also enjoying Chinese children’s literature (fiction and non-fiction books)
You’re involved in the process of their learning.
To keep it fun and relevant. If they like volcanoes, find something in Chinese about volcanoes!
I cannot stress enough how important interest is to learning a language! Being interested in something naturally helps you learn it quicker, right? Thankfully, nowadays there are many ways to spark interest and engage them in the Chinese language. Graded learning is an important detail but don’t forget the overall picture!
Well done for getting through all that! There’s probably a lot to think about and digest… But if you think you’re ready for graded learning in your bilingual library, why not browse our graded learning stock now?
For those of you considering graded learning, we hope this has helped clear the air! There’s a lot to consider when you’re raising a bilingual child and we know how overwhelming it may seem when you’re just starting. Just take it step by step! And contact us if you’re really stuck. We love to chat to our blog readers and help them find solutions that can work for them.
Just a quick disclaimer! Aside from Le Le Chinese and Luka Reads, the others are not affiliate links. These links are provided solely for your convenience and information.
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