DLI means to use the target language as the medium of instruction, instead of teaching the language only. Even though acquiring the language is still one of the learning objectives, teachers do not strictly focus on teaching grammar, pronunciation and practising drills. Instead, teachers extensively use Chinese to teach, to conduct activities and to communicate, so that students learn the language unconsciously. Just like how kids learn their first languages. In the US, this kind of instruction method has been categorized as a special teaching program, called the Dual Language Immersion program. This program is well-established, with French, German, Spanish and Portuguese as the first four programs. In around 2006, some school districts have started the Chinese Immersion Program (CIP).

How to use Mandarin Matrix DLI Proficiency Builders in immersion teaching?

The Mandarin Matrix’ DLI Proficiency Builders series  is a complete curriculum that was co-developed with school districts and professional teachers. It is specially designed for Dual Language Immersion programs. The materials is available in print and on the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom, levels ranging from foundation (0 starter) to intermediate 4 level (Pre-AP). Here are some highlights:

Highlight 1: Making learning interesting through storytelling

The DLI Proficiency Builders come in story format and was designed based on concepts of TPRS. In the lower levels, each unit has 3 stories with the same set of key words repeatedly used in different combination/vocab across the stories. The background of the 3 stories are based on students’ family, school and playtime. Students are able to get a sense of the language naturally through reading about context in different settings.

The pedagogy of teaching through the form of story aligns with the concept of immersion teaching using Chinese as the medium, rather than the teaching purpose. It also allows children to establish the foundation of Language Art Skills from an early age. For example, each of our stories starts with a beginning, it then gradually builds up, with a climax or a problem to solve, eventually a small surprise at the end. By applying the typical concept of “Story Mountain” in our content, we are bringing students from our Foundation level (= 0 beginners) to not only immerse with the language, but also immerse with language arts.

Below is a live demo of a Chinese immersion class in the second grade of elementary school. The teacher used Mandarin Matrix’ DLI Proficiency Builders.

Thanks to Teacher Yang for his wonderful demonstration!

The most important thing is that children should learn the language with fun. A story is worth a thousand words. Watching them enjoying learning and reading is also the joy of a Chinese teachers.

Highlight 2: An Unique Spiral Pedagogy

The DLI Proficiency Builders are designed with the “spiral pedagogy”, which means key words are highly repeated or reused, and are also expanded to wider and higher ranges. In this pedagogy, we follow the “I+1 principle” or “Comprehensible input” in order to make sure that students can fulfill all the requirements before going to the next steps.

Under the design of highly repetitive words, students can gradually improve their Chinese proficiency. Think about this, traditional textbooks introduce more than a dozen new words in each lesson, but how many percentage can students memorise? The Mandarin Matrix DLI  Proficiency Builders focus on very few new words in each unit at the lower levels. Even more, we use three stories to introduce the same keywords in each unit. We really make sure students acquire 100% or even 120% at the novice levels, then we bring students up to higher levels.

At 14’20 in the below video, you can see that once students got their new books, they simply just can’t wait to see if they can read them.

At the intermediate and higher levels, students expand their knowledge really fast because Chinese itself is a language of compound words. Also, our materials have changed from “character-based” to “word-based” learning at these levels. Moreover, the materials are expanding in non-fiction style. In Intermediate 3 and 4 levels, there are multiple authentic short texts in addition to a story. These short texts include different text types such as emails, blog posts, posters, etc., The stories and short texts both focus on the same set of keywords, again, aiming to increase the frequency.

Intermediate 3 and 4 also highly align to the six themes of AP: contemporary life, personal and public identity, family and community, global challenges, science and technology, beauty and aesthetics.

Highlight 3: Teacher reads, We read, Student reads

At Foundation level, each unit has three stories, which are called “Teacher Read”; “We Read” – for everyone to read together in class; “Student Reads” – the last one in the unit that students should be able to read completely by themselves. There are other communication vocabulary in “Teacher Reads” and “We Read” books, but key words students should learn are presented in red fonts.

“Big Books” is also available i this level. They are in larger size, allowing teachers to make different seating arrangements in class and to read to students.

At Intermediate 3 and 4 levels, as mentioned above, we not only have stories but also introduced many different text types. We have also expanded and covered AP themes and SDGs. Great for middle school+ students to conduct higher level discussions and develop more advanced languages.

Highlight 4: Informational teacher’s manual and well-illustrated worksheets

Each and every unit in this Proficiency Builder series includes detailed teacher’s guide, highlighting teaching points, key grammar concepts, oral focus, teaching objectives, effective evaluation suggestions and related readings, which help teachers to formulate each reading lesson’s plan.

Each unit also has worksheets that can be easily printed. Some of these worksheets are created by senior teachers of the American Star Talk Program, and some are created by AP teachers. They can save a lot of time for teachers. Print them immediately for students to practise basic stroke writing, reading comprehension, etc. . In the elementary worksheets, all the exercises are matched with interesting and easy-to-understand pictures, allowing students to practice and strengthen skills while making direct associations with pictures.

Highlight 5: A perfect online + offline solution

The curriculum isn’t only available in printed version, but also on the online learning platform of Mandarin Matrix! As long as a student or teacher subscribe to the platform, s/he can browse purchased books anytime, anywhere within the subscription period. This account can be purchased by school at one go, or by individuals. Both Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese are available.

The Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom not only has books on it, but also plenty of online exercises including listening, speaking, reading, and writing. There is no need to stack a pile of books and print out notes anymore! Everything is on the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom!

Interested in checking out the materials and online platform? Just

Fill out the form and claim a free trial account!

1) The best wish for all cases: 新年快乐，扬眉兔气 (Xīnnián kuàilè, yáng méi tù qì)

        Traditional Chinese: 新年快樂，揚眉兔氣

新年快乐 means Happy New Year’. You can say this  in any year. 扬眉 “兔” 气 is a pun from a Chinese idiom 扬眉吐气, which means “a feeling of exaltation upon fulfilment; one appears to be very proud and self-satisfied.” The third character of the idiom 吐 (tǔ, to breath out) has a similar sound with 兔 (tù, rabbit), as we put 兔 in the idiom, we keep the original good meaning of the idiom and relate it to this very year – the Year of The Rabbit! 

2) Play safe: 兔年行大运  (Tù nián xíng dà yùn)

        Traditional Chinese: 兔年行大運

It literally means “Best luck in the Year of The Rabbit!” This can be used anytime and to anyone too. Not so special, but it’s very safe and easy to use!

3) Play it bilingually: Happy New Year 兔 You!   

As  兔  (tù, rabbit) sounds the same as “to”, you can create a fun phrase by swapping them! Make sure to use this in writing, so people know that you are playing with homophones!

There’s a cute Youtube clip here using is as a fun ending.

4) The best for businesses: 新春开运，鸿兔大展  (Xīn chūn kāi yùn, hóng tù dà zhǎn)

        Traditional Chinese: 新春開運，鴻兔大展

新春 means  ‘New ew Spring” which is also another way of saying ‘New Year’.

开运 means  to set off good luck, which conveys the wishes of being lucky

鸿兔大展 is taken from the  Chinese idiom “鸿图大展”, which means “to carry out one’s great plan, ride on the crest of success”. The second character of the idiom 图 (tú, a plan) has a similar sound with 兔, another pair of homophones! Shop owners and cooperates will love this new year wish, hoping for the best of luck and success in business. 

5) The best for students or fresh graduates: 前兔似锦，兔兔高升  (Qián tù sì jǐn, tù tù gāo shēng)

        Traditional Chinese: 前兔似錦，兔兔高升

We’re doing the same trick here. Replace 途 with 兔 in 前途似锦 (Qián tú sì jǐn: a bright future) and 步步with 兔兔 in 步步高升 (Bù bù gāo shēng: step by step, rise to eminence)

This is about wishing people a great future so it’s the best for students, especially graduates. 

6) 兔年吉祥，五福临门  (Tù nián jíxiáng, wǔ fú lín mén)

        Traditional Chinese: 兔年吉祥，五福臨門

“Auspicious Year of the Rabbit, five blessings to your door (= family)” 

The five blessings are: longevity, wealth, health, virtue and a natural death)

This is quite a traditional wish but nicely linked to Chinese culture. It can be used in any setting , but is especially good to wish to elders or people who regard traditions and cultures highly.

7) 动如脱兔，笑口常开  (Dòng rú tuō tù, xiào kǒu cháng kāi)

        Traditional Chinese: 動如脫兔，笑口常開

动如脱兔: Is  an idiom with the character 兔 (tù, rabbit) and is a  a metaphor that describes  people who move like rabbits, meaning that they are energetic. 

笑口常开: always laughing. 

This would be a good phrase to wish people good mental and physical health, because health is wealth!

8) 金兔临门，万事如意  (Jīn tù lín mén, wàn shì rú yì)

Traditional Chinese: 金兔臨門，萬事如意

金兔临门: A golden rabbit is at the door

万事如意: May all go well with you

This can be said to anyone. 

9） 招只兔，年年富 （Zhāo zhǐ tù, nián nián fù）

        Traditional Chinese: 招隻兔，年年富

“Catch a rabbit, and get rich every year!” Being rich and wealthy is alway a good wish in Chinese culture. These two short sentences rhyme, so it’s even easier to send your good wishes to people!

10） 兔年好运挡不住，兔年财源滚滚来   （Tù nián hǎo yùn dǎng bù zhù, tù nián cái yuán gǔn gǔn lái）

        Traditional Chinese: 兔年好運擋不住，兔年財源滾滾來

兔年好运挡不住: Unstoppable good luck in the Year of the Rabbit

兔年财源滚滚来: Unlimited great wealth in the Year of the Rabbit 

This one is longer for those who would like to challenge themselves.

Are you now ready to give it a go and spread your Chinese New Year wishes? We wish everyone 兔年好运挡不住，兔年财源滚滚来!

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Real-Time Recognition of Handwritten Chinese Characters

We’ve added a new Character Stroke Order feature to help students review how a character is a written and encourage them to write it again following the correct Chinese stroke order rules. Repetition of character writing helps students to learn and memorize the character in a short period of time. This new feature enables students to learn new characters in less than a minute and remember 95% of what is learnt through handwriting recognition, writing style corrections and stroke order reminders.

Here’s how it works:

Accelerate your learning with our new Audio Analysis Tool

Our new Audio Analysis feature enables students to test their pronunciation of Mandarin characters, whilst instantly and automatically analyzing speaking assignments. Students will get real-time feedback as the system shows which characters were correctly and incorrectly pronounced helping them to further improve the accuracy of speech as they learn in a virtual environment. 

And that’s not all…

Teachers can now instantly mark their students speaking assignments and receive real-time feedback on their student’s pronunciation of Chinese characters, reducing their correction time. The Teacher’s Portal has also been updated, generating exportable and printable report cards for students, and allowing teachers to see the live status of students’ progress. 

“Mandarin Matrix is thrilled to start the 2021-2022 school year with a newly refreshed platform that includes exciting new features and Clever integration. We continuously strive to make the Mandarin Matrix online platform innovative, intuitive, and fun for users. We can’t wait for both return and new Mandarin Matrix users to log on and have a fresh start to the new school year!” said Bob Davis, Global Chief Executive Officer, Mandarin Matrix.

Additional new features within the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom include the introduction of Elementary Math and Science Readers for Dual Language Immersion proficiency aligned to Common Core Math standards and Next Generation Science standards featuring factual and informative texts and audio support to master keywords and vocabulary. Carefully designed images and real life photos and illustrations assist students in visualizing and understanding concepts. Chinese Connections Readers are designed for high school and middle school students learning Chinese as a world language aiming to take the AP or IB exam, offering relatable stories, contemporary authentic use of language and expressions enabling students to practice Chinese in real world settings. 

About Mandarin Matrix 

Mandarin Matrix (MMX) is a leading customizable, online learning platform designed to support learners of Mandarin as a second language.  Providing a turnkey solution to schools, teachers, students and parents, the Mandarin Matrix Online Classroom and supporting print materials offer a complete learning solution with an integrated range of learning tools designed to be user-friendly and easily accessible. Developing original material with the support from educators and academic seats of excellence around the world using characters and content that are common to curricula worldwide.  Supporting more than 350,000 students since 2014 in Hong Kong, USA, UK and at international schools around the world with multiple navigation languages, MMX aims to provide access to 35 million children globally by 2030.

For more information about Mandarin Matrix visit www.mandarinmatrix.org 

Contact us to get a free trial or to learn more via email at sales@mandarinmatrix.com 

If you are participating at NCLC, please visit our virtual booth to discover how to boost K-12 Literacy in any Learning Environment.

Highlights from the ESSER FAQs document (U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary & Secondary Education)

A-3. How may an LEA use ESSER funds? 

An LEA may use ESSER funds for the broad range of activities listed in section 18003(d) of the CARES Act, section 313(d) of the CRRSA Act, and section 2001(e) of the ARP Act. Some of the ESSER funds (ESSER I, ESSER II, or ARP ESSER) may also be used to support school programs. We have consolidated below the three ESSER programs’ lists of allowable uses of funds.  The activities that are listed in section 18003(d) of the CARES Act, section 313(d) of the CRRSA Act, and section 2001(e) of the ARP Act that an LEA may support with ESSER funds are:  

13. Funds can also be used to purchase educational technology (including hardware, software, and connectivity) for students served by the LEA. This can help regular and substantive educational interaction between students and their classroom instructors, including low-income students and students with disabilities.

C-19. Can an LEA use ESSER and GEER funds to support distance learning, including the purchase of educational technology for student use?  

Yes. An LEA may use ESSER and GEER funds for activities that support distance education and promote long-term improvements in technology infrastructure and operations. These activities might include providing online learning to all students, including those with disabilities, English learners, students experiencing homelessness, and students in foster care. This includes helping with training educators in the effective implementation of online learning.

Continuity of learning:

An LEA may use ESSER and GEER funds to purchase educational technology for students and educators including:

 •Purchasing of mobile technology devices such as tablets and laptops. 

•Providing off-campus WiFi access students and teachers through the purchase of devices/equipment, mobile hotspots, wireless service plans, or installation of Community Wi-Fi Hotspots, especially in underserved communities.

•Offering Teleconferencing applications or programs.

•Providing Software/online/virtual programs, screen capture/recording software, online/virtual cultural curriculum/programs, online/virtual tutoring curriculum/programs and learning management systems.

 •Giving technology accessories, such as headphones, speakers, laptop cameras; and  

•Assisting with technology devices – such as dedicated communication devices and applications for text-to-speech, graphic organizers or word prediction.   

Supporting distance learning requires the effective use of technology by educators. Funding may also be used to provide professional development support for educators – who can provide meaningful learning opportunities for students. These funds can also support personnel such as speech therapists, guidance counselors, and social workers.