We are in the first year of implementation of our Mandarin Chinese program at Highcrest Middle School. This year, we offered two sections of Mandarin Chinese for our 5th grade class, and we look forward to greeting our next group of Mandarin students during the 2013-14 school year. 

China is one of the world’s oldest and richest continuous cultures, over 5000 years old.  One fifth of the planet speaks Chinese. Mandarin Chinese is the mother tongue of over 873 million people.  In addition to the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, Mandarin Chinese is also spoken in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Mongolia. 

Students selecting Mandarin Chinese as their language experience a beginning Mandarin curriculum that would carry them from 5th through 8th grade, and that will prepare them for the second year of Mandarin study upon entry at the high school level. Students will be linguistically and culturally equipped to communicate on a variety of topics in Mandarin.

Mandarin class students will learn about Chinese culture through different festivals: Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese New Year and Dragon-Boat Festival. Students will also enjoy learning how to write calligraphy,make dumplings and paper fans, perform a lion dance parade, as well as play ping pong. All Mandarin students will have the opportunity to practice their language skills while visiting Chinatown and enjoying Dim-Sum and tea.