Curriculum
We offer a unique, immersive classroom experience led by native speakers, using official Taiwanese curriculum materials aligned to the internationally recognised and accredited TOCFL (Test of Chinese as a Foreign Language) system.
Our approach ensures children progress towards fluency while enjoying the learning process. Our structured program helps children develop confidence in speaking, reading, and writing Chinese, preparing them for a globalized world where Mandarin skills are increasingly valuable.
For our group lessons, we assign children to a class via a mix of age and ability, always conducting a free assessment before assigning them to a class. If you prefer private lessons (individual or small groups) then we will work with you to choose an appropriate curriculum.
Class types & details
Our classes and content align to the TOCFL system, allowing students to progress in a structured way through the bands & levels of the system, with teacher-led assessments before moving on. The picture below shows how these levels build towards GCSE in the UK. For students who choose not to take Mandarin GCSE we offer custom tuition for advanced TOCFL levels.
Ideal for complete beginners. We teach basic conversation (listening & speaking) through introducing foundational vocabulary and embedding them through songs & games. We also start to introduce the basics of Chinese characters using materials such as ‘Chinesasy’ by Shaolan. We split our classes into Zhùyīn ( 注音) - popular in Taiwan - and Pinyin (漢語拼音) systems to support the early development of reading and Chinese character learning.
Accompanying materials
(provided on registration)
Starter (Pronunciation Handbook) Textbooks A & B - 入門（發音手冊）課本
Ideal for those children with foundational knowledge of Chinese. We teach daily conversation topics (such as family and school life, hobbies & sports and food & drink) building on foundational vocabulary and embedding sentence structure through games. We also build on the basics of Chinese characters working towards recognition and writing of approx. 50-80 characters.
Accompanying materials
(provided on registration)
We follow topics from K2 - Basic Textbooks A & B, Book 1 Textbooks A & B and Book 2 Textbooks A & B. These books support both Zhùyīn ( 注音) and Pinyin (漢語拼音).
Ideal for those children with good all-round knowledge of Chinese ready to tackle more complex topics! Continuing to teach daily conversation topics we also start to work on more complex sentence structures, and practice writing via daily diary entries. We also do more complex listening via recorded stories, and check students comprehension through verbal quizzes.
We expand knowledge of Chinese characters working towards recognition and writing of approx. 200 characters.
Accompanying materials
(provided on registration)
We follow topics from Book 3 & 4 Textbooks A & B
These classes are tailored to meet the needs of students who are considering taking (or who have already selected) Chinese at GCSE level.
Taught by specialist GCSE teachers, we use a similar class format as Fēijī Bān but with a focus on building the skills and vocabulary required at GCSE by AQA and EdExcel exam boards.
For students who choose not to take Mandarin GCSE we offer custom tuition for advanced TOCFL levels.
Accompanying materials
Our teachers prepare lesson material based on common topics featured in both AQA and Edexcel exams. We also recommend parents purchase the relevant accompanying book.
