Mandarin Immersion Parents Council

By Lara Gates

If you happen to peek inside Kim Cash’s kindergarten at Gavilan Peak School this fall, you will likely find 24 students learning numbers and colors—in Mandarin Chinese.

Cash’s classroom will be part of the Kinderchoice program in which DVUSD students will spend an hour a day with a Mandarin teacher (Cash will still be in the room), covering basic vocabulary for concepts like colors, numbers and the parts of the body. Scott Lawrence, director for the Mandarin Chinese Project at Gavilan Peak and Diamond Canyon schools, told In&Out, “It is important that they get that foundation early.”

The program is part of DVUSD’s Project 2021. According to Lawrence, the project has identified “global education” as a critical need in preparing graduates who can compete in the world.

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