Children spend approximately 80% of their time outside of school, this includes after school activities and time spent at home. Research has shown that promoting a balance between academic time and after school activities can provide valuable resources to support children’s development. Seeing how important after school activities are to nurture children, its existence has been strongly encouraged by several parties.

Out of the many available activities, enrichment class is one of the most popular options if you would like to enroll your children in after school activities. Enrichment classes are usually conducted to help students develop skills based on their interest. This type of class has become increasingly popular in Singapore, a clear indication of how highly beneficial enrichment classes are. The larger demand in enrichment classes has pushed many training centres to provide their own classes directed for younger learners.

In this article, we will specifically dive into Chinese enrichment classes, providing the advantages and how to choose the best Chinese enrichment class for kids. 

In the previous section, we have mentioned that taking enrichment classes can be highly beneficial–which is proven by the growing demand for classes among parents. The same applies to Chinese enrichment classes, which have been popular in several countries due to the constantly growing presence of the Chinese language. Taking Chinese enrichment classes can provide your kids with the following advantages: 

• Expanding Connection
  After school activities such as enrichment classes usually take place in training centres, where kids from different schools have chances to meet each other. This momentum can open a new opportunity for kids to expand their connection, communicating with peers outside of their schools and neighborhood.

• Increasing Skills Based on Interest
  In line with its original purpose, enrichment classes are mainly used to enhance children’s ability in a field they are interested in. These types of lessons will cover material that is not typically taught in formal education, giving them further understanding and implementation on daily life.

• Increase Confidence
  Most Chinese enrichment classes will usually have native or expertised trainers that have been qualified to teach with their numerous past experiences. Therefore, most of them are very active in providing feedback, encouraging young children to communicate in Chinese. With the help of Chinese enrichment classes, children will be used to using Chinese in daily conversation, providing them with the self-esteem to communicate with other people.

• Flexible Classes
  As Chinese enrichment classes are mostly conducted as an after school activity, the lessons are less pressuring than formal education received during school hours. Many Chinese enrichment classes have opted to a more casual learning style, providing quizzes and interactive activities to keep children engaged during lessons.

With how fast technology has grown, Chinese enrichment classes are no longer confined to traditional classroom settings. Instead, students now have the flexibility to choose between face-to-face sessions and online lessons. Each of these formats has pros and cons that may influence your decision when choosing a Chinese enrichment class for kids, depending on your child’s learning style.  Whilst there is no absolute answer regarding which one is better, it is important to consider the differences before deciding on which one to take. As a reference, here’s a quick summary of each option’s advantages and disadvantages. 

Online Classes

The rise of online classes have begun specifically due to the influence of the lockdown, forcing people to adapt to different technologies. These types of classes are typically conducted through online conferences such as Zoom. 

Advantages of online classes include:

1. Flexible schedule that can be adjusted to suit kids’ availability
2. Saving commute time and cost
3. Emphasis on technology adaptation, with a few activities encouraging the students to access different learning resources
4. Due to the class being held online, courses are usually cheaper

However, it is also important to note that online classes also come with the following disadvantages: 

1. Lack of in-person interaction which can reduce children’s ability to socialize with others
2. Prone to technical difficulties during sessions 
3. Increasing children’s screen time

Face to Face Classes 

Face to face classes is the most traditional way of teaching, which requires the students to attend lessons physically in training centres. Taking face to face classes will provide you with the following advantages: 

1. In-person engagement that can be tailored to feel personal 
2. Engaging activities that boost children’s confidence in socializing with others 
3. Providing a perfect study environment for children to focus on their lessons. 

However, it is also important to understand that face to face classes may come with the following disadvantages:

1. Fairly more expensive cost compared to face to face classes 
2. Commute duration and cost that may affect your decision on settling down in a specific training centre
3. Inflexibility of changing schedules. 

Finding a suitable Chinese enrichment class is similar to finding a needle in a haystack. Landing on the best Chinese enrichment class at first glance might be nearly impossible, especially since you have to take in consideration many different factors, such as the trainer’s experience, location, fee, and learning methods. Here are a few ways that you can implement to choose suitable Chinese enrichment classes for your children!

• Knowing your objectives – knowing what the objectives you want your children to achieve is the first step to choosing the suitable Chinese enrichment classes. This step is important since different enrichment classes will provide different focus. Some lessons might focus on learning vocabulary, while the others concentrate on conversational skills. 

• Check class capacity – When it comes to capacity, it is important to understand that different children will have different preferences in class capacity. Some children might focus better on a group class, while the others prefer having private lessons to enhance their skills. 

• Understand trainer’s background – Trainer is the core of Chinese enrichment classes since they will be the one teaching the materials. When looking for Chinese enrichment classes, be sure to know the trainer’s past experiences and ability to teach. 

• Join trial classes if available – Some training centres usually offer their students a trial class before joining the Chinese enrichment class. This opportunity can be utilized to ensure that your children can adapt with the learning environment and methods offered by the centre. 

• Looking at past testimonials – Nothing speaks better than past testimonials as they are written by those who have attended the Chinese enrichment classes before. While considering choosing suitable Chinese enrichment classes for your children, try looking for reviews and testimonials from fellow students to know how well the classes can help kids learn. 

EliteKid is a collaboration between Elite Linguistic Network, a reputable and trustworthy Chinese language school with 13 years of training experience based in Singapore. With the amount of experiences gathered, we are committed to help young learners study Chinese in a fun and interactive way. With proven track records and qualified teaching, here is how we will assist kids’ learning journey. 

1. Curriculum can be divided into two big branches, structured curriculum and theme based curriculum. Structured programs are usually aimed for comprehensive learning that aligns with the school’s syllabus. On the other hand, theme based curriculum will focus more on combining interactive and engaging media, such as nursery rhymes and picture books. 
2. Trainers are highly experienced, proven by certificate in teaching. With previous teaching experiences, trainers at EliteKid are able to teach young learners in an interactive way to keep them engaged.
3. EliteKid has a proven track record represented by testimonials from parents. With the number of positive reviews left by parents and their kids, we exhibit professionalism in assisting children to learn Chinese. 

Chinese enrichment class is one of the available after school activities that can help your kids enhance their Chinese skills. With how popular Chinese enrichment classes are, these lessons are now available for both online and face to face. If you are interested in the arrangement, contact us and learn more about our existing programs!