Coming Soon to Taiwan in June 2022 …. Fun Taiwan Camp!

A New, Immersive Mandarin Learning Experience for Kids – Fun Taiwan Camp 2022!

When we lived in Hong Kong, coming back to Taiwan with the kids every summer to spend time with family, learn Mandarin, plus a little fun for mom and dad was a staple in our lives. Come June, I would pack our bags, bring the help and request to work out of the Taipei office for 2 months. From June to August, I pretended I was a local living large in Taiwan. The kids were enrolled in Mandarin Daily Summer Camp or some other local camps, immersed in the local lives and culture. I was determined to make the most out of our Taiwan summer holidays so when we go back to Hong Kong, and they’d be fluent in Mandarin (A mother can dream….).

One of the things I didn’t like about the existing Mandarin learning programs like Mandarin Daily or NTNU Summer Camp is the class size. It was a large group of kids who were in different levels of Mandarin fluency and literacy. I wasn’t sure if my kids got the attention they needed during class. Also, the classes were full of overseas kids so while the teacher spoke in Mandarin, the kids were having a ball speaking English. The first summer, Max came home and told me that he made great friends from LA who taught him lots of bad words in English and Spanish. “Where are the local kids? We need to go hang out with them!” I thought. The second summer I had a different strategy. I signed him up for all local camps. The problem with that is that there was no time for proper Mandarin lessons. I would hire a private tutor and squeeze it in during the weekends or weeknights. The effect of that private Mandarin learning was very limited. What if there was a summer camp that combined the best of both and offered kids an engaging, creative and immersive Mandarin learning experience in Taiwan? This was the beginning of Fun Taiwan Camp.

I found the perfect partner in 放學窩 Fun Study Nest – Max and Ashley’s after school program.

We’ve been part of their family for the last 6 years – even before we moved back to Taiwan permanently. I loved the caring teachers, and the creative teaching style who encouraged kids to learn through play. Different from traditional after school programs where the teachers focus on getting kids to finish their homework, Fun Study Nest takes kids to play outdoors, plan lots of extracurricular activities, organize excursions and day trips. The extracurricular classes they organize focused on building kids’ interest and learning in STEM, nature and the arts. I initially approached them in 2019, thinking that we could launch in 2020. I didn’t take into consideration a global pandemic that would halt international travel.

We picked up the conversation again earlier this year, and everything was on track until the worst wave of COVID hit Taiwan. Green light? Yellow or Red? There is never going to be the perfect time, and we are fully aware that we’re a little late to the game but instead of always thinking, “one day….”, we’re making it “Day One”. Fun Taiwan Camp 2022 – this is our soft opening. We’re keeping the class size even smaller than originally plan and hope to onboard kids who will get the most out of their short time in Taiwan, have a blast, and maximize their Mandarin learning during the summer. While we’re finalizing the details now, I want to give everyone a sneak preview to what we’ve been planning, so you can plan out your summer if you haven’t confirmed your plans for Taiwan. Registration and final details will be available in 2 weeks’ time. Here’s the short summary of what Fun Taiwan Camps is all about!

【Fun Taiwan Camp – Immersive Mandarin Learning 2022】

【放學窩2022華語營課程公告】

Coming to Taiwan for the first time – a brand new, immersive and creative Mandarin learning experience that promises to be engaging and fun for your kids!  Fun Taiwan Kids and Fun Study Nest presents – Fun Taiwan Camp, an immersive Mandarin learning experience.  Campers are enrolled in Mandarin classes in the morning with a teacher with over 10 years of Mandarin teaching experience.  In the afternoon, in an all-Mandarin environment, the campers make friends with local Taiwanese kids, participate in fun activities, and practice Mandarin straight away!

Suitable for kids from ages 6-12, Fun Taiwan Camp is a bespoke Mandarin learning experience that combines Mandarin textbook learning, Mandarin storytelling and lessons in conversational Mandarin that the campers will need for afternoon activities.  The small class size of 10-15 students allows Mandarin teacher to provide focused teaching to maximize their 3-week learning time. 

In the afternoon, Fun Taiwan Campers join the kids at Fun Study Nest (afterschool program) in the classroom to take part in fun activities. Activities in Session 1 include bugs class, yoga, detective fun, arts and crafts…etc. Session 2 and Session 3 of Fun Taiwan Camp offers themed activities in the afternoon like as “Open for Business – Who’s the boss?” “Fun Experiments with Food”, “Ninja Boot Camp” and “Outdoor Survival Camp”.

Once a week, campers go out on a day trip to nearby cities like New Taipei City, Yilan, or Hsinchu for an adventure in rafting, paintball or horseback riding.  During Session 2, campers will have an opportunity (optional) to go on an overnight camping trip to Hsinchu.  Other outdoor excursions include half-day trips to educational spots around Taipei to experience the rich Taiwanese culture. 

Session 1 – 6/20-7/8

Session 2 – 7/11-7/29

Session 3 – 8/1- 8/19

Time: Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:30pm

Location: Classroom in Da’an District, Xinsheng South Rd, Sec. 1 (walking distance to Da An Park and Dongmen MRT station)

Spaces are limited so e-mail funtaiwankids@gmail.com today for more details!

*****Update – please visit our page for more information and enrollment details

Fun Taiwan Camp: Immersive Mandarin Learning 2022 – Fun Taiwan Kids