Please note that for all the camps et al I post, I don’t have personal knowledge of them and am not vouching for them, I’m just passing along the information.
Beth
|
Information for parents of kids in Mandarin immersion education
Please note that for all the camps et al I post, I don’t have personal knowledge of them and am not vouching for them, I’m just passing along the information.
Beth
|
|
Register now for the Sixth Annual CLAC Conference!
HURRY–EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION DEADLINE IS JANUARY 19!
Exploring Approaches to
Cultures & Languages Across the Curriculum
March 9-10, 2012
Radisson University Hotel
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
This conference provides an opportunity for faculty, graduate instructors, and administrators to share expertise in building and managing CLAC programs. The conference will address the practical issues related to developing successful pedagogical models for the use of world language and culture learning across the post-secondary curriculum.
A specific focus of the 6th annual conference on Cultures and Languages Across the Curriculum (CLAC) will be on presenting and discussing a variety of models and aspects of post-secondary programs implementing world languages and cultures across the curriculum. Seasoned CLAC practitioners, those in the process of implementing programs, as well as prospective CLAC program developers will come together to share ideas and best practices in our evolving and unique field of education for global citizens. Attendees at the CLAC conference will learn how CLAC programs are implemented at other institutions and will have a rare opportunity for extended discussions examining design and delivery of a CLAC curriculum.

In addition to an exciting line up of sessions, panels and posters, the CLAC conference is also offering three pre-conference workshops for an additional fee:
Register now—Early bird registration deadline—January 19, 2012!
More information about the conference program and registration can be found at:
www.carla.umn.edu/conferences/clac/
CARLA continues to add to the treasure trove of free resources by making more of its working papers available online.
Research and Practice in Immersion Education: Looking Back and Looking Ahead – Selected Conference Proceedings
Carol A. Klee, Andrew Lynch, and Elaine Tarone (Eds.)
These selected conference proceedings highlight the presentations and discussions held at the conference on immersion education held at the University of Minnesota in October 1995. The papers report on the challenges related to policy and planning and pedagogical and assessment issues.
To access this and other free CARLA working papers go to:
www.carla.umn.edu/resources/working-papers/
The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) at the University of Minnesota has sponsored a summer institute program for second language teachers since 1996. This internationally known program reflects CARLA’s commitment to link research and theory with practical applications for the classroom. Each institute is highly interactive and includes discussion, theory-building, hands-on activities, and plenty of networking opportunities.
Summer Institutes for Immersion Teachers
Summer Institutes for Language Teachers
More Information
Detailed information is available on the CARLA website at: www.carla.umn.edu/institutes
BY REBECCA RANDALL
The Lake Oswego Review, Jan 12, 2012
Portables at River Grove Elementary School or a magnet school at Bryant Elementary School are two options on the table for implementing Spanish and Mandarin language immersion beyond kindergarten next fall. The two options were presented to the Lake Oswego School Board Monday night.
Please read more here.
The meeting about Mandarin at Cherokee Elementary originally scheduled for Jan. 12 has been moved to Jan. 19 due to snow.
More on the schedule change here.
More here about the new program:
Program Overview
Lake Forest School District 67 is very proud of its first year implementation of theMandarin Immersion Program for kindergarten and first grade students. A significant early achievement is the Asia Society’s selection of Lake Forest schools as an exemplary program. The program is housed at Cherokee Elementary School, immersing 40 kindergarten and 32 first grade students in Mandarin Chinese. Students engage in a comprehensive partial immersion program with 50% of their day in the Mandarin-speaking classroom and 50% of their day in the English-speaking classroom. The Mandarin teacher instructs in mathematics, Chinese culture, and portions of social studies and science. The English teacher delivers instruction in language arts (reading, writing, and spelling) as well as portions of social studies, science, and math.
Kindergarten and first grade students rarely hear their Mandarin teachers speak English. Everything in the classroom is done in Mandarin regardless of the activity or curricular area of study. The Mandarin-speaking teachers use multiple strategies such as pictures, songs, video, models, body language, games, etc. to communicate and engage students. Although students do begin by speaking English to their classmates and Mandarin teacher, social exchanges and short responses in Mandarin soon become commonplace. Students are very proud and excited to speak the language, write Chinese characters, and show understanding of what their teacher is saying. As acquisition of the language grows, students show more confidence in their skills and quickly become comfortable in speaking Chinese.