More than 35 dual language immersion teachers from throughout L.A. County gathered in the South Pasadena Unified School District’s boardroom on Oct. 17 for the Dual Immersion Pedagogical Institute, a workshop-style program designed for teachers and administrators interested in sharing strategies, materials and experiences in Mandarin and Spanish dual language immersion program settings.
SPUSD’s very own Mandarin Dual Immersion teachers Tina Chan, who teaches kindergarten, and Judy Ho, who teaches first grade, demonstrated instructional practices in dual immersion Mandarin classrooms, which included a lesson on active listening skills. During the full-day, interactive session, teachers attending the session learned best practices for students who are acquiring literacy skills and content in English and in a target language.
SPUSD offers a Spanish language immersion program at Monterey Hills Elementary School and a Mandarin language immersion program at Marengo Elementary School. In addition, SPUSD offers a secondary Dual Language Program at SPMS that teaches bilingualism, bi-literacy and multicultural understanding.
First published in the October 27 print issue of the South Pasadena Review.
