Have you heard of 巧虎 (Qiǎo hǔ / clever tiger), a popular educational Chinese show for children? 巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu) was one of the first resources we got when my children and I began to learn Chinese together!
Instead of TV shows in English, watching the Chinese shows from 巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu) might encourage your family to speak the minority language.
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巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu) review of Chinese video program for kids
Our experience with 巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu)
We first subscribed to the program when my daughter 老大 (lǎodà / oldest child) was 3 years old, and she was instantly a super fan!
Now, my 3-year-old son 老二 (lǎo èr (second child) has gotten a chance to adore 巧虎. However, 老大 is now 6-years-old and has pretty much outgrown the Chinese show and activity books. Our DVD player has also been broken for months, and we don’t miss it!
Due to the negative effects of excess screen-time, we have allowed limited television for my children to have Chinese language and cultural exposure.
Previously, my kids watched 巧虎 a few times each month, but they use the workbooks much more often.
Recently, we decided not to renew our subscription for the next year due to preference for screen-free resources (eg, Luka Reading Robot, Youdao Pen), I still think there are great aspects of 巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu) worth sharing.
For reference, I first wrote this post in November 2017 and have updated it in April 2020.
What is 巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu)?
巧虎, also known as Qiaohu or Ciaohu, is a subscription-based program geared toward young children learning Chinese.
巧虎 originates from the Japanese anime program Shima Shima Tora no
Shimajirō. Franchises in China and Taiwan provide educational materials
in Mandarin.
Like the popular American show Sesame Street, 巧虎 combines live action, animation, and mascots with music and dance.
However, 巧虎 is MUCH better and less annoying (sorry, I really can’t stand Elmo’s voice)!
Why is 巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu) so popular?
1. 巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu) is easy to understand
Children learning Chinese need exposure to native Mandarin speakers.
Compared to other popular shows dubbed in Mandarin, the speech is clear and relatively slow.
As a result, young children and non-fluent adults like myself can hear each word.
In addition, Ciaohu features real people on the show, so your child can see children and adults speaking native Mandarin.
This is important compared to popular children’s shows which only have cartoon characters.
7. 巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu) teaches traditional Chinese characters
Since the Chinese workbooks correspond with DVD dialogue and subtitles, children can follow along with the DVD.
Also, Chinese song lyrics are provided in the workbooks.
As you can see in the video, my daughter has been excited about reading Chinese in the 巧虎 (Qiaohu / Ciaohu) workbooks!
8. 巧虎 (Qiaohu) toys & games motivate kids to speak Chinese
Since the toys and games reinforce topics from the DVD and workbooks, kids may be motivated to speak Chinese and apply new lessons through pretend play.
Like most Chinese learning materials, many pages of the workbooks are overly cartoonified.
Unfortunately, excessive colors can distract from important teaching concepts. For example, the clock teaching workbook came with an interactive paper clock that my daughter put together independently.
For a child who has not yet previously learned this skill, you can see in the image below many competing visual elements.
3. 巧虎 Simplified Chinese version is not easily accessible in the United States
China’s 巧虎 program uses Simplified Chinese: http://www.qiaohu.com/. However, they deliver within China, so you have to know someone who lives there and who can receive and then mail the package to you.
Taiwan’s 巧虎 program uses Traditional Chinese: http://www.ciaohu.com/. This program is available for US families through their office in Garden Grove, California.
4. English code-mixing:
Occasionally, English is used since it is introduced to Taiwanese children around age 4-5.
This is a downside for our family since we use 巧虎 as a Chinese immersion resource at home. Fortunately, most of the materials are in Chinese however.
Since the Ciaohu website uses traditional Chinese, and Pinyin is not used in Taiwan, the phonetic translation for 巧虎 is spelled with a “c” instead of “q”.
If you Google “Qiaohu”, the results are for the mainland China version, not the Taiwan version.
However, if you have questions and cannot read the website, call the Ciaohu office! In the past, they have generally responded quickly to my questions.
Ciaohu subscription forms
You can use the following forms to subscribe to Ciaohu.
While they offer referral gifts, we do not accept them because we:
Want to remain unbiased in our recommendation.
Strive to live with minimal toys.
Choose to generally live logo-free.
Summary
巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu)’s Chinese shows and workbooks are popular among many families. If your family wants to include screen-time into your daily routine, the monthly subscription can help with providing exposure to native Mandarin speakers and Asian culture.
On the other hand, if your family has adequate exposure to Mandarin and you’re concerned about screen-time and clutter, then you can likely skip 巧虎.
What does your family think of 巧虎 (Qiaohu, Ciaohu) ?
Did you find the show, toys, and/or workbooks to be helpful?
Please share your thoughts in the comments! We’d love to learn about your experience!
I'm a Chinese-American mom who is having fun teaching my children Mandarin Chinese while re-learning the language myself. I love coming up with creative, hands-on, and educational activities, and I hope these ideas help your children have fun learning Chinese!
Hi,
This looks perfect for my kids to learn Chinese. I love that’s in traditional characters too.
Thanks for the info/tips!
I’ll start with the YouTube QiaoHu for now and see if it’s captures their attention.
Good luck with learning Chinese at home. 🙂
Jennifer
Hello! This has been the most helpful thing I’ve seen on the internet on how to get ciaohu DVDs! Thank you!
Would you happen to know at which subscription age they introduce zhuyin? My son is currently learning zhuyin and I’d love to use these to help reinforce what he’s learning in class. Love from a fellow physician mom 🙂
Hi Dr. Nancy! 🙂 Thank you for stopping by! I’m so sorry for just seeing your comment now! I have updated the post with this information:
– 成長版 Grow edition (Zhuyin is introduced)
– 學習版 Learn edition (Pinyin is introduced)
Ciaohu generally responds quickly to questions via email and phone though! I hope that you were able to get in touch with them!
Hi Eliza! Check the “downsides” section of the article. I put a link to the SC version which I think is only available in China. If you have family/friends in China, you could have it delivered to them, and then they could ship it to you…
This was very helpful and informative, thank you. My daughter is 20months and I really liked how you weighed and pros and cons for parents to make a decision based on their goals and budget.
Jennifer says
Hi,
This looks perfect for my kids to learn Chinese. I love that’s in traditional characters too.
Thanks for the info/tips!
I’ll start with the YouTube QiaoHu for now and see if it’s captures their attention.
Good luck with learning Chinese at home. 🙂
Jennifer
Betty says
Hope your kids enjoy learning from Qiaohu!
Nancy says
Hello! This has been the most helpful thing I’ve seen on the internet on how to get ciaohu DVDs! Thank you!
Would you happen to know at which subscription age they introduce zhuyin? My son is currently learning zhuyin and I’d love to use these to help reinforce what he’s learning in class. Love from a fellow physician mom 🙂
Betty says
Hi Dr. Nancy! 🙂 Thank you for stopping by! I’m so sorry for just seeing your comment now! I have updated the post with this information:
– 成長版 Grow edition (Zhuyin is introduced)
– 學習版 Learn edition (Pinyin is introduced)
Ciaohu generally responds quickly to questions via email and phone though! I hope that you were able to get in touch with them!
Eliza says
Hey Betty,
Do you know how I can get the simplified chinese version? I can’t seem to find it even when I search qiaohu or ‘巧虎‘.
Thanks!
Betty Choi says
Hi Eliza! Check the “downsides” section of the article. I put a link to the SC version which I think is only available in China. If you have family/friends in China, you could have it delivered to them, and then they could ship it to you…
Sonia says
This was very helpful and informative, thank you. My daughter is 20months and I really liked how you weighed and pros and cons for parents to make a decision based on their goals and budget.
Betty says
Hi Sonia! Thanks for taking the time to write! Grateful to hear that the review was helpful!