Say it first
Start from a Mandarin word your child already hears and says.
FOR CHILDREN WHO SPEAK SOME MANDARIN
Your child can say the word.
Help them recognize the character.
Ten-second visual animations for heritage Chinese kids who already speak some Mandarin — a word they know, turned back into the character it is written as.
No sign-up needed · Made for a parent and child · Progress follows your account
From spoken to recognized · Tap to watch
About ten seconds, from the word they already say back to a clear, standard character.
20 characters free
TRY THE IDEA FIRST
Three characters, to feel the connection
Open an animation, say the word your child already knows, and watch the picture turn back into the character.
A SMALL, FOCUSED FIRST STEP
One step, done properly: from saying it to recognizing it
It does one thing: it links a word your child already says to the character as it is written. It is not a full Chinese course, and it does not replace systematic reading practice.
Not one more animation — one more way in
- It does not start with an unfamiliar symbolYour child already knows what a mountain is, and what water is. The animation sets out from a meaning they already have, instead of asking them to remember a shape they have never met.
- Only the parts that belong to the character changeNo points, no elaborate game, no story that has nothing to do with the character. The picture keeps as close as it can to the link that really connects the meaning and the written shape.
- Then the picture is taken awayThe animation ends on the clear, standard character. What we hope the child keeps is the character, not the clip.
See the link
A short animation lets the shape and the meaning meet for the first time.
Back to the character
The animation ends on the clear character, and the parent decides whether to mark it recognized.
How we think about “learning”
Watching an animation is not the same as knowing the character. “Recognized” is only a progress note the parent makes on this device — it is not a claim about learning outcomes.
WHO IT IS FOR
Who these animations are for
If any of these sound familiar, it will probably suit your family.
Your child already speaks some Mandarin
They hear it and say it at home, they understand simple words — but the written characters are still unfamiliar.
There is little Chinese around you
English or another language fills the day, and the sounds stay while the characters slip away.
You do not want to start with stroke drills
You would rather the characters felt interesting and full of pictures first, before they feel like homework.
You only have a few minutes
A few minutes at a time is enough. No streaks, and no “you skipped today” pressure.
It does not replace kindergarten, school or a structured Chinese course, and it is not for adults starting Chinese from zero.
WHAT YOU GET
One payment — here is exactly what it buys
Not a stack of flashcards, but a set of short animations built as “image → spoken word → character”, plus the parent’s own progress record.
- Image animations for 117 characters — one short animation per character, from the word your child already says back to the written character. The library keeps growing.
- A Mandarin pronunciation for every character — replayable on its own, so a parent can read along.
- 20 characters free to try — no sign-up and no payment, so you can try it with your child before deciding.
- Progress that follows your account — the “Recognized” marks you make travel with you to another device, and a recovery code unlocks everything again on a new device.
- Characters added later are included — videos for characters added to this library afterwards are included too, at no extra charge, and buyers keep the price they paid.
- No ads and no subscription — a single one-time payment, with nothing that renews.
- Refundable for 14 days — if it is not right for you, ask within 14 days and the full amount goes back the way it came.
Scope: this purchase covers the videos of this character library, including characters added to it later. Comics, picture books, stories, AI features, courses, and separate apps or mini-programs would be new product lines, and they are not part of this purchase.
A FATHER’S NOTE
Why a dad raising his daughter in Dali built this site
Hi, I’m Yaya’s dad.
For the past three years I have been a full-time stay-at-home dad to my 5-year-old daughter. We live in Dali, China. Like many heritage families, I carried one worry around: as English becomes her everyday world, will she still keep her mother tongue?
I spent over a decade in tech operations. I am not a teacher, and I never studied early-childhood education — but one thing I knew for sure: I did not want her first step into Chinese characters to be tracing strokes and memorising stroke order. She could already say 山 and 水 without thinking, yet the written characters stayed a wall.
So I used AI tools to turn the words she says every day into short “image → character” animations — so she sees what a character looks like before she meets it in real life.
That is how Hanzi Sprout started. No homework, no timetable — just a small tool a dad stitched together while raising his child, and a hope that it helps your child take an easy first step into Chinese characters.
— Yaya’s Dad (Dali, China)
- Made by one dad
- No ads
- One-time purchase
- Privacy first
WHAT IT COSTS
Try it free, unlock it when it fits
The free part needs no account and no payment. The full library is a single one-time payment — not a subscription, and nothing renews.
WHY YOU CAN TRUST IT
Why it is safe to buy
Made by one dad
Not a course company and not an education group. A tool one father built for his own child, with plain words and a plain price.
We know the parent, not the child
No child’s name, birthday, photo or recording, and no behaviour tracking or ability scoring. You give us an email address; we remember which characters you marked.
Refundable for 14 days
If it is not right, send the form within 14 days. Once we have checked it, the full amount goes back through PayPal. No reason needed.
We do not promise what we cannot do
We do not claim your child will recognize a character after watching, or how many they will know in how long. “Recognized” is the parent’s own note — not an assessment, and not a promise.
Read the privacy note · Read the terms · support@hanzisprout.com
QUESTIONS PARENTS ASK
Common questions
What age is it for?
We look at whether a child speaks some Mandarin, not at their age. If they already understand and say some Chinese words but do not read the characters yet, it is worth trying. The free part needs no sign-up and no payment, so you can try it with your child first.
How is this different from a literacy app or flashcards?
We do not teach stroke order, we do not drill, and there is no leaderboard, points or streaks. The bigger difference is where each character starts: with a word your child already understands and already says. A ten-second animation uses changes in the picture to draw their attention to the link between the meaning and the written shape, and ends on the clear, standard character. The animation is not a reward — it is a way in. What we hope they keep is the character, not the clip. The aim is for them to see it, not to be tested on it.
Will my child definitely learn to read after watching?
No, and we do not promise that. The animation lets the shape and the meaning meet once; the rest comes from everyday repetition and your child’s own pace. The “Recognized” mark on the page is a note the parent keeps.
Do we need an account? Do you collect anything about my child?
The free part needs no account and no payment at all. We store the parent’s email address and the marks the parent makes themselves — never a child’s name, birthday, photo, recording or school, and no behaviour tracking or ability scoring.
If the library grows, do I pay again?
No. This purchase covers the videos of this character library, and characters added to it afterwards are included too, at the price you already paid. If we later release a separate product line such as comics, picture books or a course, that would be priced on its own and is not part of this purchase.
Does it work on a new phone or computer?
Yes. After payment you get a recovery code (also sent to your payment email). Sign in with the same email on the new device, or enter the recovery code, and everything unlocks again. You do not pay twice.
Can I get a refund?
Within 14 days of payment you can fill in the refund form on the pricing page. No reason needed. Once we have checked it, the full amount goes back through PayPal, and the access it unlocked then ends.
How do I reach you?
Write to support@hanzisprout.com. We usually reply within 2 working days. That address only handles orders, payments and refunds — we do not send marketing mail.
20 CHARACTERS · FREE
Use one real session together to decide if it fits
Try the free characters with your child first, then unlock the full library in one payment if it fits. The library currently holds 117 characters and is still growing. No account required, and no child’s name, photo or voice is ever collected.