Stories & Rhymes is not a formal class. It is a large-format group session with no curriculum planning, completely run by volunteers.

If you would like your toddler or preschooler to progress in their language development, we recommend enrolling for a class.

• Stories & Rhymes is a 30 minute group mat session, to be available regularly at public libraries, and run by volunteers.
• It is most suitable for 2-5 years olds and their caregivers, however is open to under 2s as well.
• Our sessions are suitable for non-Mandarin speakers.
• Stories & Rhymes sessions enable your children to to be exposed to Mandarin as another language.
• Sessions provide children, parents, caregivers with the opportunity to hear Mandarin spoken through stories, nursery rhymes and action songs.
• Stories & Rhymes session times will be published on this page and the Stories & Rhymes Facebook page once they are confirmed for 2018.

We would like to expand our programme to offer it to more children, e.g. in more community libraries, kindergartens, playcentres etc., but rely entirely on unpaid volunteers.

Please let us know at stories-n-rhymes@nihaocc.org.nz if you would like to volunteer to support the programme.

Why volunteer?

•  Use the skills and experience you’ve gained to benefit your own family or to initiate sessions in your local community (whether kindergarten, Playcentre, church, or library etc.)
• Be part of a wider network and community which share the same interest in fun Mandarin language exposure for children under 5 years old, through childhood stories & songs.
• Use your Mandarin language skills to translate children’s songs, share this with the network, and have access to songs from other volunteers.

Aims of the Stories & Rhymes programme:

• To provide more fun Mandarin Chinese language exposure to families with children under 5 years olds, via public libraries and community venues
• To create an open network and community where we can easily learn and share  popular NZ childhood rhymes/songs in Mandarin Chinese
• To “train the trainers” and help others gain experience and skills in sharing Mandarin Chinese through stories and rhymes, so that they can also do so in their own families and communities

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