On-set, he met and became friends with Chinese actor Cao Jun, who played Xiang Yun’s onscreen son. Of course, Cao Jun spoke fluent Mandarin.“My son, who very rarely spoke Mandarin, suddenly started speaking Mandarin. After returning to Singapore, he began actively learning Mandarin, and with the help of a very good Chinese tutor, [the language] was no longer a problem for him,” Xiang Yun recalled.
As for Yixin, Xiang Yun shared that she was often busy with work when her daughter was younger. Therefore, Yixin interacted more with their helper in English, and rarely spoke Mandarin. “After she entered school, learning Chinese became a challenge for her. Her turning point came when she was in Primary Two,” Xiang Yun wrote.
"At that time, the whole family went to Taiwan and chartered a vehicle for a tour. The driver-cum-tour-guide spent all 10 days enthusiastically introducing all the good food and fun tourist spots. When Yixin returned to Singapore, her fluent Mandarin stunned me. From then on, she was no longer resistant to learning Chinese.”
So there you have it, the secret to spurring your kids on to learn their mother tongue, for Xiang Yun at least, is to have them interact with people who speak that language fluently. And of course, loads of hard work.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
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