KEY POINTS:
An Auckland preschool is aiming to become the country's first bilingual Mandarin-English early childhood education centre.
The Shuang Xing Learning Centre in Mission Bay is on the verge of applying for full accreditation as a childhood centre just three months after it was set up.
It has secured funding and has two fully qualified early childhood and language teachers.
Thirteen children are registered for the centre, which was formed by Chinese parents keen to keep their children in touch with their language and culture.
But it is also gaining interest from parents with no Chinese family history who are keen to introduce their children to different languages at a young age, as well as learn a language that is increasingly important in international trade and commerce.
Dayne Laird, whose 15-month-old daughter Tamsyn attends the centre, said he and his wife wanted to give their daughter better opportunities.
"She's learning English and Maori and their brains are much more adept at learning languages at a young age."
Native speakers of Mandarin worldwide are estimated to total 867 million and a further 178 million speak it as a second language.
By comparison, native speakers of English number only 380 million, but 600 million speak it as a second language.
Brendon Fraser, a board member at the preschool, said it was a new concept for New Zealand, "but as the Asian population grows there will probably be more. Mandarin will become a significant language for commerce and we are already getting a lot of interest from Anglo-Saxon families with no Chinese links. There are also those who want to stay in touch with their history and culture."
The number of Chinese living in New Zealand rose 40 per cent - from about 105,000 to 147,000 - between 2001 and 2006. Of the 2006 total, 78,117 were born in China.
Among them is Leila Yu, 2, who was adopted by Karen Bohan-Shaw and attends the Mission Bay preschool.
"It's important for Leila to learn the language, both for her own sense of identity and for academic reasons," said Mrs Bohan-Shaw.
Mandarin speakers in New Zealand almost doubled between 2001 and 2006 to 41,391 from 26,514.
May Goldsworthy is a first-generation immigrant whose 2-year-old daughter Claudia goes to the Shuang Xing Learning Centre. "I've been here for 10 years from Hong Kong and while my daughter will be a real Kiwi kid I want her to have that culture and language of her family."
* The preschool is hosting a fundraiser to help its application for early childhood education status. For details email Brendonfraserproducers@xtra.co.nz or call 027-275-7680.
