Trilingual Children’s Book Goes Digital

The New Zealand Chinese Language Week Trust is making its ground-breaking trilingual chlldren’s picture book available in audio and video formats this year.

For the past five years, the Trust has provided a book in Mandarin, English, and Te Reo Māori free of charge to schools and district libraries around the country during New Zealand Chinese Language Week.

New Zealand Chinese Language Week Charitable Trust chair Jo Coughlan says the previous books have been hugely popular.

“These new formats make them even more accessible. Teachers may be able to present them to entire classes of children at one time in a way that makes all three languages relevant and accurate.”

Feedback from librarians in previous years has been amazing, Jo says.

“There don’t seem to be many books like this, where Mandarin Chinese, Te Reo Māori, and English are all together.

“Teachers tell us that their students are thrilled to see their cultures and languages reflected – whether that’s in Te Reo Māori or Mandarin Chinese, or indeed both.”

The New Zealand Chinese Language Week Charitable Trust makes all its resources available in the three languages. Jo says this was decided as a trust policy many years ago, reflecting the importance of Te Reo Māori to Aotearoa New Zealand but also the benefits of speaking more than one language.

“There is plenty of evidence to show the benefits to the brain from having more than one language. As a trust, we encourage the learning of Mandarin, but all languages have benefits.”

The video of the book being read in Mandarin Chinese, English, and Te Reo Māori is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIomXJukBYU

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