New Jersey Mandarin immersion school celebrates 14th year

NJ.com May 23, 2021

“Shēng rì kuài lè, Shēng rì kuài lè,” a chorus of about 20 elementary and middle school age students sang in Mandarin. They were lined up in the hallway of the YingHua International School on a recent weekday, holding candles. Chinese lanterns hung above as kids fidgeted around, eyeing an ice cream cake frustratingly out of reach.

The children were celebrating the 14th anniversary of the private Chinese immersion school’s opening on May 4, 2007.

Inside the small building on Laurel Avenue in Kingston, teachers lead classes from pre-school to Kindergarten entirely in Mandarin. Colorful posters describing regular morning routines— putting backpacks and jackets away, grabbing a seat, taking out pencils— are all written in Chinese characters, and all discussions are led in the language. Then, from 1st to 8th grades, the curriculum is taught partially in English and partially in Mandarin.

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