Search the Internet and local library for learning material. Look for material where you can play a CD or hear the sounds. Pronunciation is not related to Chinese characters, and a tool called Pinyin is a used to transcribe Chinese characters so that you can pronounce it. Pinyin is a way to phonetically express the sounds in Chinese Mandarin and represent Chinese characters using the English alphabet.
Listen to Mandarin sounds. Mandarin has more vowels than consonants. Vowels are musical sounds. Nasal sounds like "n" and "m" are the only Mandarin syllables that do not end with a vowel.
Sing songs together. Learning Mandarin Chinese vocabulary by singing together is a fun way to memorize new words. You also practice rhythm and learn to identify different words. The tones may be difficult to hear in a song, so practice the words separately before singing. Tone is changes of the pitch, and there are four tones in Mandarin. The tones change the meaning of a word.
Read books. Look for read-a-long books, where he can learn sentences and practice reading Mandarin. Read the books together. Use a video camera and film when he is reading the book. Watch the recording together and compare it to the CD. Reward and encourage your child, and focus on the positive aspects. Learning Mandarin Chinese takes time, and the tone is difficult to get right from the beginning.
Use CDs and songs in everyday activities. Learning a language should be an engaging and fun activity. Sing the songs together while you travel, wait for the bus or clean the room. Read a book every evening before he goes to bed. From the beginning, the books contain only a couple of words. Short and frequent sessions are an effective way of motivating your kid. It also ensures that the last session is fresh in his memory.
Use a writing book to learn to write Chinese characters. Alternatively, peruse the Internet and look for signs for words that you have learned. Look at the stroke order for the Chinese characters. All characters are written in a certain order. Use black ink and a brush and let your kid write big signs using the correct stroke order.