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Testimonials
What the Experts are Saying About ALD
From Mark Warschauer, director of UCI's Ph.D. in Education program, and founding
director of UCI's Digital Learning Lab:
I have a Ph.D. in Second Language Acquisition and have trained language teachers around the world. And my boy-girl twins, now aged 7, have been attending A Little Dynasty for a year. ALD offers one of the finest language teaching programs for young children that I have ever seen.
The teachers employ "full immersion" from the very beginning of study, helping children learn and use Chinese in a highly motivating and playful way. My kids couldn't wait to go to the summer camp,
where they were so busy having fun that they forgot they were learning Chinese, but every day their knowledge and proficiency in the language grew. The teachers also take a strong personal interest in the children. We are so lucky to have a terrific resource like ALD in our community.
Mark Warschauer, Professor of Education, University of California, Irvine
director of UCI's Digital Learning Lab:
I have a Ph.D. in Second Language Acquisition and have trained language teachers around the world. And my boy-girl twins, now aged 7, have been attending A Little Dynasty for a year. ALD offers one of the finest language teaching programs for young children that I have ever seen.
The teachers employ "full immersion" from the very beginning of study, helping children learn and use Chinese in a highly motivating and playful way. My kids couldn't wait to go to the summer camp,
where they were so busy having fun that they forgot they were learning Chinese, but every day their knowledge and proficiency in the language grew. The teachers also take a strong personal interest in the children. We are so lucky to have a terrific resource like ALD in our community.
Mark Warschauer, Professor of Education, University of California, Irvine
I would like to thank A Little Dynasty Chinese School for my children's E-Learning Classes with Mrs. Franny and Ms. Margaret. Mrs. Franny and Ms. Margaret have provided engaging and meaningful live lessons and homework assignments. It is clear to me that they spend a tremendous amount of effort and time preparing their lessons, giving relevant homework assignments, and constructive feedback for improvement. Thanks to Mrs. Franny and Ms. Margaret, my children did not experience a huge regression in skills as they remained engaged in reading, typing, and various aspects of the Chinese culture.
As we approach the last week of the regular semester, I can already see that ALD is ready to seamlessly continue to provide their students with online learning experiences to prevent regression of skills and further advance the students' Chinese speech, language, reading, writing, and cultural awareness skills through their summer lab classes.
In closing, I want to thank ALD for my children's E-Learning experience, for Mrs. Franny, for Ms. Margaret, and for the ALD Administration for their efforts to provide a quality Chinese education both in a physical classroom and online.
Anda C
As we approach the last week of the regular semester, I can already see that ALD is ready to seamlessly continue to provide their students with online learning experiences to prevent regression of skills and further advance the students' Chinese speech, language, reading, writing, and cultural awareness skills through their summer lab classes.
In closing, I want to thank ALD for my children's E-Learning experience, for Mrs. Franny, for Ms. Margaret, and for the ALD Administration for their efforts to provide a quality Chinese education both in a physical classroom and online.
Anda C
My daughter started ALD from level 1 and is now in level 7. Throughout the entire program so far, she has loved her classes—whether in person or now online. She has also enjoyed the summer camps. The two reasons she has enjoyed ALD so much are because of the amazing teachers who sincerely care about each child’s progress and make classes fun and the program itself is very well thought out. We will continue to be part of the ALD family because my daughter has become fluent and very confident in her Mandarin abilities!!
Eileen C
Eileen C
Dear A Little Dynasty,
I would like to commend Ms. Vivian for the wonderful job she is doing with the online Beginner’s B classes. My twins, Brandon and Sylvia, love her and have talked excitedly about her before the coronavirus shutdown. Now that the classes are online and I can sometimes listen in on the classes, I have witnessed Ms. Vivian’s patience and genuine love for her students and teaching. Never have I heard her raise her voice to students, and she always has a word of praise for the children’s efforts. Teaching online is difficult, as it is harder to capture and hold onto young children’s attention. Ms. Vivian is doing a wonderful job, despite the difficulties of online teaching. She definitely deserves a round of applause.
Last, but not least, I would like to thank Ms. Wendy and Ms. Angie, for their abundance of patience with questions from me. They are the friendly faces and voices who represent the school when parents and students first walk through the door or call, and I thank them for their dedication and wonderful support.
Sincerely,
Melanie C.
I would like to commend Ms. Vivian for the wonderful job she is doing with the online Beginner’s B classes. My twins, Brandon and Sylvia, love her and have talked excitedly about her before the coronavirus shutdown. Now that the classes are online and I can sometimes listen in on the classes, I have witnessed Ms. Vivian’s patience and genuine love for her students and teaching. Never have I heard her raise her voice to students, and she always has a word of praise for the children’s efforts. Teaching online is difficult, as it is harder to capture and hold onto young children’s attention. Ms. Vivian is doing a wonderful job, despite the difficulties of online teaching. She definitely deserves a round of applause.
Last, but not least, I would like to thank Ms. Wendy and Ms. Angie, for their abundance of patience with questions from me. They are the friendly faces and voices who represent the school when parents and students first walk through the door or call, and I thank them for their dedication and wonderful support.
Sincerely,
Melanie C.
I enrolled my 7yo son to the LAB at A Little Dynasty Chinese School summer camp. We came from Indiana/Michigan for the whole summer. My son had started a Chinese Immersion language program in Michigan last year. The teachers felt he needed more exposure to "catch up" with other children in his class. It was actually recommended that I take him to China for 2 months during the summer. Due to previous commitments, I couldn't do that. But by coming to ALD Chinese School, I could give him the exposure of a Mandarin Chinese environment while being able to fulfill our previous commitments. Why I chose ALD is because they just started a summer program this summer called LAB. LAB has subjects such as electronics, robotics, coding, physics, and aerospace - all in Mandarin Chinese. How cool is that?
We actually have 1 more week at ALD. In the 9 wks we have been here, my son's Chinese has improved from questionable understanding of Mandarin to definite understanding and he is now able to initiate conversation as well. His confidence level has improved. Not only did his Chinese improve, he had a lot of fun. He made friends, looks forward to each day at camp, and we even talked about maybe coming back next summer. As a parent, I am thrilled he was able to enter into a new program, was able to meld with the other kids, and excel as well.
Thanks ALD!
I wanted to give an update to this review. 3 months later and my son wants to go back next summer if we can. His school says his Mandarin has improved and he is caught up. No longer are they saying he needs a tutor. :)
Wanda Z.
We actually have 1 more week at ALD. In the 9 wks we have been here, my son's Chinese has improved from questionable understanding of Mandarin to definite understanding and he is now able to initiate conversation as well. His confidence level has improved. Not only did his Chinese improve, he had a lot of fun. He made friends, looks forward to each day at camp, and we even talked about maybe coming back next summer. As a parent, I am thrilled he was able to enter into a new program, was able to meld with the other kids, and excel as well.
Thanks ALD!
I wanted to give an update to this review. 3 months later and my son wants to go back next summer if we can. His school says his Mandarin has improved and he is caught up. No longer are they saying he needs a tutor. :)
Wanda Z.
I signed up my son for the summer camp for 6 weeks this year and was nervous about it. On one hand, we really want to find a good after school program to continue his Chinese. On the other hand, I know that the quality of the classes varies greatly in this industry being a Chinese teacher for decades myself. My son didn't have a good experience in the last program and I really hope that I can find a good place for him. When he first started he told me he didn't want to go and he was bored, I was very concerned so I spoke with Wendy to find out why. She is super friendly, helpful and attentive. I was very happy to see the changes after we talked, and he started to enjoy going to ALD for the rest of the summer! I was definitely very impressed by the culture experiences they created for the children that got him very interested in the the culture of my origin (Taiwanese games and night market), but what impressed me the most is how much he loves writing and he would write the words on his own at home "for fun", and loves speaking Chinese to me more than before. He even tried to teach his little brother Chinese! It tells me that the experience is positive and that he is motivated. It seems like the program for the language development is solid too. We signed up for after school program and can't wait to see more progress for my son's Chinese!
Josie K.
Josie K.
I heard about this program from my son's classmates parent. She raves about it so much that I set up an appointment to visit. Let's just say I signed up my LO right away for 4 weeks of camp. It is such a great series, we are not native Chinese speakers, in fact far from it and he is already learning so much in just a week. He is also making great friend and learning on a different level about drones, robots, 3 D printing. So happy to have found this school. I signed up my son for two additional weeks of summer camp and am adding him to the weekend after school program. He absolutely loves it and on the days I don't cook for him, he loves his hot lunch options provided by Panda Express!!!! I recommend this school to anyone trying to teach and immerse their kids in a completely different language and culture.
Paris S.
Paris S.
We are so incredibly happy with A Little Dynasty. The teachers have been amazing! My son attends the Little D parent and me program and he loves the days when he has class! He lights up the moment we get there and runs around like the happiest kid in the world! The classes are educational, and he loves the music and songs which he sings at home too. The other families in the class are great and I believe will be lifelong friends for my son. We highly recommend!
Vivian T.
Vivian T.
As this is our children's last week at camp, I just wanted to say a heartfelt thank you to you and all of the dedicated teachers. The children have thoroughly enjoyed all of the engaging activities and adore the enthusiastic and caring teachers. A Little Dynasty is the third Chinese school (one New York City immersion school and a second Connecticut immersion school) that my children have attended, and, in my opinion, the most effective because of the emphasis on learning through interactive and educational play and the varied and abundant resources. I wish we lived here so the kids could attend the after school program each day.
Michelle T.
Michelle T.
Both my daughters -- ages 8 and 5 -- love "A Little Dynasty." They have been attending classes every week for almost eight months now, and they still look forward to going every week with great enthusiasm. They love attending because the teachers at "A Little Dynasty" truly make learning Chinese fun! I love it because I have watched my daughters progress from speaking virtually no Chinese and having almost no comprehension of Chinese, to the point now, where they can speak and understand simple phrases and sentences in Chinese. The school has more than exceeded my expectations. The teachers and staff are so friendly and professional, the curriculum is well thought-out and creative (I love the different themes that are taught every week as well as the art and music that is incorporated into the curriculum), and the school environment is so inviting and clean. I'm so glad that "A Little Dynasty" opened up when it did. Having my daughters attend has been one of the best decisions my husband and I have ever made, and I know that learning Chinese will forever enhance their lives.
Libby W.
Libby W.
I would like to take the opportunity to let you know how impressed my husband and I are with the curriculum and staff at A Little Dynasty Chinese School. Since my son’s enrollment in your Kindergarten and Practical Conversation classes, we have noticed great progress with his learning of Mandarin Chinese as a second language.
In just the six months our four year old son has been enrolled in your school, he is now able to speak Mandarin Chinese in complete sentences and respond to simple questions, both of which he was unable to do prior to attending your program. He is also able to recognize simple characters. In addition, we are impressed with the structure and content of your curriculum and your focus on teaching the fundamentals of the Chinese language so that a solid foundation is created for the children.
More importantly, we believe our son has made a lot of progress because you have created a learning environment that is fun. The teaching staff is energetic, enthusiastic, and creative. We are also pleased with the personal attention provided by the staff and their understanding of each child’s individual needs. Our son loves all the teachers at your school and has also made great friendships with the other children.
We are very grateful to have found your program and believe it is providing the necessary foundation for our son to become fluent in Mandarin Chinese. You have a genuine interest to create a quality Chinese School for children and we are appreciative of your personal commitment and dedication towards this mission. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Marisa H.
In just the six months our four year old son has been enrolled in your school, he is now able to speak Mandarin Chinese in complete sentences and respond to simple questions, both of which he was unable to do prior to attending your program. He is also able to recognize simple characters. In addition, we are impressed with the structure and content of your curriculum and your focus on teaching the fundamentals of the Chinese language so that a solid foundation is created for the children.
More importantly, we believe our son has made a lot of progress because you have created a learning environment that is fun. The teaching staff is energetic, enthusiastic, and creative. We are also pleased with the personal attention provided by the staff and their understanding of each child’s individual needs. Our son loves all the teachers at your school and has also made great friendships with the other children.
We are very grateful to have found your program and believe it is providing the necessary foundation for our son to become fluent in Mandarin Chinese. You have a genuine interest to create a quality Chinese School for children and we are appreciative of your personal commitment and dedication towards this mission. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Marisa H.
We can't thank you enough for having such a great impact on Brody. When Brody was attending another chinese school, he would cry about not wanting to go...and since coming to Little Dynasty, (I think it took one week), he tells us he wants to attend chinese school EVERY DAY! We have seen an incredible change not only in his conversational chinese, but also in his overall willingness and enthusiasm to speak chinese. Since he was two and a half he would say "I don't want to speak chinese" and we would threaten him by taking away all his "Made in China" Hot Wheels cars and toys and NOW we hear songs, rhymes, tongue twisters, games, etc in chinese. We are so delighted with this change that it doesn't even bother us when he gets sassy and talks back to us or when he's reprimanding his baby sister because it's ALL IN CHINESE! It's even more exciting when we sense he's thinking in chinese or when he responds to us in chinese without any prompting.
Thank you again for such great quality work and making this learning experience fun for the kids. Driving up from San Clemente 3 times a week has been worth it! I love seeing all the smiles and hearing all the laughter at pick up time. I only wish Little Dynasty was around when I learned chinese... I wouldn't have such dreaded memories ;-) We look forward to enrolling Mei Mei when she's of age! Keep up the great work... we are your biggest supporter.
- Monty and Thalia
Thank you again for such great quality work and making this learning experience fun for the kids. Driving up from San Clemente 3 times a week has been worth it! I love seeing all the smiles and hearing all the laughter at pick up time. I only wish Little Dynasty was around when I learned chinese... I wouldn't have such dreaded memories ;-) We look forward to enrolling Mei Mei when she's of age! Keep up the great work... we are your biggest supporter.
- Monty and Thalia
A Little Dynasty rocks!
Both of my daughters love their Chinese classes at ALD! It's very important to have friendly staff and fun material in order to keep kids interest in learning, and ALD has it all! Just like their motto, "learning Chinese through playing" my kids have been showing great progress simply just by enjoying the classes at ALD!
Shelly C.
Both of my daughters love their Chinese classes at ALD! It's very important to have friendly staff and fun material in order to keep kids interest in learning, and ALD has it all! Just like their motto, "learning Chinese through playing" my kids have been showing great progress simply just by enjoying the classes at ALD!
Shelly C.
We have been very pleased to see our son Tiger's Chinese level improve so much in such a short amount of time and to have him get to spend time with other children and such nice teachers. We love the location and the chance to hang out with so many other parents also interested in improving their children's Chinese. I think there is a huge need for such a school in Irvine and it is no wonder the number of students is escalating so rapidly.
Troy W.
Troy W.
A Little Dynasty is a warm and friendly place for young children to explore and learn. The teachers are so kind and caring. My son especially likes Teacher Wendy, who is a spectacular teacher. She is patient and really knows how to appeal to young children. My son is four years old, and has been going to A Little Dynasty for about two yearsw months. He really enjoys going there and has made much progress in his Chinese vocabulary.
-Margaret H.
-Margaret H.
We have had a great experience with A Little Dynasty. Even though we are both Chinese, we speak different dialets and use English in our household. Our initial goal in sending our daughter there was for her to get some exposure to the language and learn some phrases here and there. After just 6 months, she can understand most conversations in Chinese and what is more amazing is that she can read using the phonetic symbols (neither one of us can read or write so she's already surpassed our Chinese abilities). She looks forward to the class and enjoys doing her "homework". The best part of A Little Dynasty is that her grandmother, who is not comfortable speaking English, is now able to communicate with her in Chinese.
The staff and teachers are great with the children. The teachers are experienced and make learning chinese fun! Parents frequently get an update on the day's lesson and/or progress. A Little Dynasty will continue to be a part of our daughter's education!
- Pat
The staff and teachers are great with the children. The teachers are experienced and make learning chinese fun! Parents frequently get an update on the day's lesson and/or progress. A Little Dynasty will continue to be a part of our daughter's education!
- Pat
Not a day goes by when our 4 ½ year old son can’t wait to go to A Little Dynasty Chinese School. He absolutely loves it! The academics are well structured and, best of all, tailored to each child’s level or progress -- our son never gets bored since the instructors always find ways to challenge him even if it is beyond the given curriculum (the #1 reason we love A Little Dynasty). Additionally, our son has developed a nice circle of friends beyond those from his pre-school. Each day, when we pick him up, there is a room full of children playing and speaking Chinese to one another which makes us happy with our choice in A Little Dynasty.
- Nathan's Mom
- Nathan's Mom
I found out about A Little Dynasty through a friend who sends her son there. My son, 6, spoke Mandarin when he was born (thanks to grandparents babysitting) but lost everything when he went to his first year of preschool at age three. When he started he could hardly say anything in Mandarin, and within 1 week of attending summer camp, he was speaking short sentences, and fluent again after 1 month. I'm not saying that every child will have this same outcome, but we are extremely happy with our decision to send our son here. Some reasons why this school stands out from other schools:
- While the school is quite academically focused, it is still fun for the children. The children learn a lot of Chinese while playing with each other. Before and after class the kids are playing with each other and with the teachers, and the teachers help them translate so they can play using Chinese too. It makes Chinese so much more relevant than just learning random words in a classroom, and it stays with them.
- The school is not just about teaching Chinese; they also understand the importance of teaching independence, social skills and manners. I was concerned for my son when he was misbehaving in class when he first started, but the teacher reassured me it was a normal transition for a child who is thrown into a new environment and one in which he doesn't understand the language. It was really reassuring to hear that he was "normal", and their patience and understanding has paid off tremendously.
- The teachers really care. Almost daily I chat with the teachers to see how my son did. In the beginning especially I always had questions - did my son eat lunch? Did he play too rough with any kids? Did he sit still in class? Did he have a runny nose? And every time the teachers are able to give me specific examples in response. This was not true of the previous preschool where the response many times was "I don't recall". How the teachers are able to be so attentive of so many children is a mystery to me but I am grateful for their attentiveness to my son.
I know when my son is or isn't enjoying himself. He really enjoys this school and has self confidence he didn't have at his previous school. He also enjoys correcting my Chinese and teaches me new words like how to say Batman, Lightning McQueen, Angry Birds, Disneyland, and Light Saber in Chinese. So cute!
- Peggy C.
- While the school is quite academically focused, it is still fun for the children. The children learn a lot of Chinese while playing with each other. Before and after class the kids are playing with each other and with the teachers, and the teachers help them translate so they can play using Chinese too. It makes Chinese so much more relevant than just learning random words in a classroom, and it stays with them.
- The school is not just about teaching Chinese; they also understand the importance of teaching independence, social skills and manners. I was concerned for my son when he was misbehaving in class when he first started, but the teacher reassured me it was a normal transition for a child who is thrown into a new environment and one in which he doesn't understand the language. It was really reassuring to hear that he was "normal", and their patience and understanding has paid off tremendously.
- The teachers really care. Almost daily I chat with the teachers to see how my son did. In the beginning especially I always had questions - did my son eat lunch? Did he play too rough with any kids? Did he sit still in class? Did he have a runny nose? And every time the teachers are able to give me specific examples in response. This was not true of the previous preschool where the response many times was "I don't recall". How the teachers are able to be so attentive of so many children is a mystery to me but I am grateful for their attentiveness to my son.
I know when my son is or isn't enjoying himself. He really enjoys this school and has self confidence he didn't have at his previous school. He also enjoys correcting my Chinese and teaches me new words like how to say Batman, Lightning McQueen, Angry Birds, Disneyland, and Light Saber in Chinese. So cute!
- Peggy C.
A Little Dynasty has been an incredible learning and growing environment for both my kids over the past year (Dante 8 and Lexy 6). I have always wanted to expose them not only to another language but also to learn and appreciate other cultures. The staff and management have done an amazing job and they really have made learning Chinese fun for both the kids and for me. I highly recommend this program not only for native speaking families but also for families interested in immersing their children in what will become fluency in the Chinese language and culture. I have already recommended this program to several of my friends and I am happy to see so many have signed on and are attending classes at both the facilities. I know A Little Dynasty will continue to exceed my expectations and provide a welcoming and fun venue that my children truly enjoy and love being a part of.
- Luis T.
- Luis T.
