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School language program expands Six schools scheduled to participate this year  Jul. 29, 2013 10:36 AM   | Simon Gill, 5, a pre-kindergarten student, follows singing a song in Chinese with Yujiao Tan, a teacher from China, teaching a Chinese language immersion camp at Downes Elementary School. / JENNIFER CORBETT/THE NEWS JOURNAL Written by Matthew Albright…

McIlvaine hosts Camp Ni Hao to further Chinese immersion The hallways at J. Ralph McIlvaine Early Childhood Center were filled with the sounds of children chattering and singing while teachers instructed on Wednesday. What makes these otherwise average occurrences unique is that all of the chattering, singing and instruction are being conducted entirely in Mandarin.…

After I wrote about finding books for immersion students to read in Chinese I found out that there exists an entire universe of easy-to-read novels in Spanish and French for new learners. These sometimes go under the moniker TRPS (for Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling.) It’s a method of teaching foreign languages in which…

The Center for Applied Linguistics is updating it’s two-way immersion program directory. It includes multiple languages, Mandarin among them. Schools that serve both English and Mandarin speaking students should add in their information. CAL’s Two Way Immersion Directory – Updates in Progress CAL has re-opened its Two-Way Immersion Directory to continue to gather information about…

Parents and teachers often lament the lack of appropriate books in Chinese for immersion students. But while we whine, the kids are getting down to work. If there aren’t books you want to read in Mandarin, write them yourself. That’s the lesson we can all learn from Annemarie Hilton, age 10. Hilton is  going into…

As many of you know, I’m just about finished writing a book on immersion called “A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion.” One of the pieces I’m missing is the experience of students who’ve gotten far enough in Chinese to be able to talk about whether or not they’re glad they’ve learned it. If you have…

 The First Mandarin immersion school in Massachusetts will now become the first K – 12 Mandarin immersion program in the nation. By Elizabeth Weise The Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School (PVCICS) is in the town of Hadley in western Massachusetts. The school opened in 2007, as a K-8th grade regional public charter school. It…