Since people are focusing more on having experiences that last a lifetime, verses consumption, how does Learning Chinese fit in this?

Teaching your kids Chinese is a gift that will benefit them for the rest of their lives. It will give them a different prospective on life, expanding their career possibilities as well as expanding and exercising different areas of their brains. It's also beneficial for adults to learn Chinese (Unfortunately, Childbook’s primary focus is on Learning Chinese materials for children). As you learn Chinese, you will also be learning about the Chinese culture. Language has a huge impact upon any given culture, and learning Chinese can give your child first hand experience of the intricacies required to be successful when interacting with the Chinese culture or even other Asian cultures.

The main requirement of learning Chinese is not materials, but rather time and dedication. One doesn't learn a language by spending money, but rather by taking the time to learn the words, sentence structures, and by understanding the culture. Don't get me wrong here, although the right materials can definitely ease your path when learning Chinese, the time, effort and dedication required to truly master the language is what really makes an attempt to learn Chinese successful (or God forbid, unsuccessful).

More on why to Learn Chinese.

The article that got me thinking on this topic,
Americans Doing More, Buying Less, a Poll Finds - NY Times.

Labels: Why Learn Chinese