My First Everyday Words in Cantonese & English is designed to encourage conversational Cantonese, and is ideal for families or caregivers who may not be fully fluent in spoken Cantonese or written Chinese.
This book introduces Cantonese language and culture to preschool children. It is unique in its focus on colloquial Cantonese, not formal written Chinese.
Starting with “Good Morning!”, this picture book contains the conversational questions, phrases and words needed to talk through a day in the life of a toddler.
Each phrase is written in traditional Chinese characters and colour-coded to the jyutping (and an alternate phonetic pronunciation) and English translation.
A special section for dim sum, a Cantonese cuisine and tradition of small, bite-sized plates, is also included.
Karen Yee is a Cantonese-American mom who began creating her own educational materials when she couldn’t find fun, illustrated books for teaching her kids Cantonese. Today, her entire family speaks Cantonese. She hopes her books support other families on their language journeys.
Karen graduated from Stanford University and The Wharton School, and was a National Spelling Bee finalist. She lives with her family in California.
