Chinese language program — questions from families, answered.

Coachers is a Chinese language program for heritage and bilingual children ages 5–12. Sessions use Taiwan stories — festivals, food, family memories, and real places — as the foundation for learning. Rather than drills and flashcards, each lesson starts from a story and ends with something the child made. The result is Chinese that feels personal, not foreign.

Coachers is designed for heritage and bilingual children ages 5 to 12 — children who have some connection to Chinese through family but who haven't had the chance to develop it fully. This includes children who understand some Chinese at home but haven't started reading or writing, children who can speak some Chinese but want to say more, and older children ready to read, write, and present in Chinese.

Most Chinese programs teach vocabulary and grammar in isolation. Coachers teaches Chinese through Taiwan stories — real festivals, real places, food, and family structures that give children something worth saying. Every session connects language to cultural identity. Children finish each lesson with something they made: a written character, a sentence about their family, a moon message card, or a short essay. The program is also entirely one-on-one, so each child's pace and background shapes the lesson.

Coachers teaches Traditional Chinese characters — the script used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and by most Taiwanese heritage communities worldwide.

The language of instruction adapts to each child's level. At the Bridge level, English carries the understanding while Chinese carries the vocabulary and characters. At Connect and Express levels, more of the session unfolds in Chinese. The goal is to use as much Chinese as each child can handle without losing the thread of the lesson.

It means that every lesson at Coachers starts from a real Taiwan story — a festival, a food, a place, a family memory — rather than from a grammar rule or a vocabulary list. Language lives inside stories and relationships. When children learn Chinese through stories that connect to their own heritage, the language becomes something personal rather than a subject to study.

Coachers offers three levels based on where a child currently is, not what grade they are in.

• Bridge 搭橋級 — for children ages 5–8 who understand Chinese at home but have not yet started reading or writing.
• Connect 連結級 — for children ages 7–11 who can say some things in Chinese and want to say more.
• Express 表達級 — for children ages 9–12 who are ready to read, write, and present in Chinese.

Coachers programs serve children ages 5 to 12. Bridge is recommended for ages 5–8, Connect for ages 7–11, and Express for ages 9–12. Exact placement depends on the child's current level, not only their age.

Bridge 搭橋級 is for children ages 5–8 who understand Chinese at home but have not started reading or writing yet. Stories and pictures carry the lesson while English holds the understanding. By the end of a theme unit, a child can write their first characters and say a few sentences about home or family. Sessions are 50 minutes, one-on-one.

Connect 連結級 is for children ages 7–11 who can say some things in Chinese but want to say more. Sessions work through the five themes in sentence form — talking about food and family, writing short descriptions, and building vocabulary that makes Chinese feel personal rather than foreign. Sessions are 50 minutes, one-on-one.

Express 表達級 is for children ages 9–12 who are ready to read, write, and present in Chinese. Each unit ends with a real piece of work — a short essay, a presentation, or a cultural project. The content is Taiwan stories: real places, real festivals, and family structures that give the language something worth saying. Sessions are 50 minutes, one-on-one.

The five themes are questions a child actually wants answered:

• Home 家與歸屬 — What makes a place home?
• Family 家庭與記憶 — What stories live in our families?
• Food 食物與生活 — What does food tell us about culture?
• Place 地方與自然 — How does place shape our lives?
• Feelings 情緒與表達 — How can I say what I feel in Chinese?

Levels at Coachers describe where a child is now, not the grade they attend. A short placement call with the teacher helps identify the right starting point. If you are unsure, it is always better to start at a comfortable level and move up than to begin somewhere frustrating. Request a placement call →

The Bridge level is designed for children who understand some Chinese at home — perhaps they hear it from grandparents or at family gatherings — but have not yet started reading or writing. If your child has no exposure to Chinese at all, reach out through the contact page and we can discuss whether a Coachers program is the right fit.

Yes. Coachers was created specifically for children growing up outside of Taiwan and China — in the United States, UK, Australia, and elsewhere — who have Taiwanese or Chinese heritage but whose Chinese has not kept pace with their English. The program meets children where they are and builds from the cultural connections they already carry.

All regular Coachers sessions are one-on-one — one child, one teacher. This allows the lesson to follow the child's pace, interests, and background rather than a fixed group schedule. Coachers also offers group-format workshops in Taiwan (see Workshops in Taiwan), which are separate from the weekly program.

Each session is 50 minutes.

Sessions are held weekly. Consistent weekly attendance allows children to build on each lesson and maintain momentum across a theme unit.

Coachers serves families around the world online. Contact us through the website to discuss availability and session scheduling for your location.

Each session follows a four-step flow:

• Story — a Taiwan picture book, festival, or family memory
• Chinese — words and sentences the child uses themselves
• Culture — a connection to Taiwan and the child's own life
• Create — a finished piece the child takes away

The session always ends with something the child made — a written character, a card, a short sentence, or an essay.

Start by reaching out through the contact page. From there, you will have a short placement call to identify the right level for your child, after which sessions can be scheduled.

A placement call is a short conversation between the parent (and optionally the child) and the Coachers teacher. It helps determine which of the three levels — Bridge, Connect, or Express — is the best starting point, based on what the child can already understand, say, read, and write in Chinese.

Pricing is available on request. Please contact us for current rates and scheduling options.

Workshops in Taiwan are short, theme-based, hands-on sessions held in Taiwan for children visiting or living there. Each workshop uses a real Taiwanese cultural context — a festival, a market, a temple, or a shop sign — as the starting point. Children use Chinese within that context through stories, vocabulary, sentence frames, hands-on creation, and sharing. Every workshop ends with a finished piece the child takes home.

The Taiwan workshops are for heritage and bilingual children ages 5–12 who are visiting Taiwan short-term, bilingual families seeking a Taiwan cultural connection, and parents who want their children to actively use Chinese while in Taiwan. They are a compressed, single-session experience — separate from the ongoing weekly one-on-one program.

Yes. Coachers works with schools, community organisations, and cultural institutions seeking to bring Chinese language and Taiwan cultural programming to their communities. More information is available on the Partnerships page.