Learning Mandarin before English

I would let my children to learn Mandarin before English

I am talking this not by thinking how important is Mandarin in the real world, but thinking from the POV of the learning process. The design of each word chararcter in Mandarin is without any definite sequence or pattern. Having to said this, it is easier to a child to learn Mandarin at their critical learning phase than an adult to learn Mandarin. 

A child when picks up a new language is at the stage of tabula rasa (blank state of mind), unlike adult with various expectations (negative thought, importance of it..etc). Learning how to write Chinese Character that demonstrates no sequence or pattern is easier than to learn just 26 letters of Alphabet. 

And after learner picks up a language (Mandarin), it is best for them to speak, write, listen and talk about it in their life, consistently, continuously. That's why a Chinese Primary School is the best platform to learn Mandarin. (Interaction with uncle2 and aunty, peers, teachers)

Immerse in a rich Mandarin cultural environment, it supports child's learning environment. It provides multitudes opportunities of communication that require a child to speak Mandarin. As a school curriculum doesn't pertain only learning in the classroom, there are various conscious and subconcious, major and minor occasions which required a child to demonstrate the use of Mandarin.

For example, 

1. Answer teacher's question

2. Peer chatting

3. Discussion about Sports Day

4. Exam approaching (Revision, Tuition, Extra Classes)

5. Story Telling

6. Weekly assembly

7. Prize giving ceremony

8. Asking for help when students fall, cry ,etc

9. Lead and be led in a group discussion

10. Arguing with the peers or teacher

11. Debate

12. Lenting and borrow stationery

13. When line up in canteen to buy food. 

14. Field trip

15. Register for any activity

16. Camp  & camping

17. Art and Craft workshop 

18. Represent school to district, state or national level

and many more just to give you pics of how immersive of the use of language in a school in various major and minor occasion.

All in all, a school is  a miniature of a community. It is filtered (no swear words, no major disciplines problem), and it is safer for a mini human to attend to a miniature of a community which they are going to face in the future. The real world of community without guaranteed protection and can be carnivorous. 

The reason I am putting learning a language this way , because as a teacher who taught in Malaysia national school, I used to dislike that the learning lesson always got disturbed or taken away by the school various extra-curriculum programmes, such as graduation, weekly debate lar, sports competition to state level or national level lar. Field trips lar  because it so often takes away my teaching lesson that I have to squeeze it into the next lesson or think of another better alternative to cover the syllabus. 

However, today, as I am reading and re-thinking about learning process, from the point of view of a potential parent, whom equipped with little teaching pedagogy skills, came out with such conclusion. Let me know if you have any other thought too.