Lupine Lane is extremely excited to be able to offer Mandarin as a part of the curriculum for the 2013-2014 school year. We are thrilled to have Haihai Thompson working with us next year to teach this language in a way that is fun and exciting for the children. Ms. Haihai is a native Chinese speaker whose specialty is teaching this language to young children.
Ms. Haihai has offered her thoughts on the importance of learning this language at the preschool level:
“Mandarin language is fast being recognized as the most important second language for children to learn across America. With China now America’s second leading trading partner, Mandarin has superseded Japanese to become the language of choice for people of all ages to master for business, cultural and social aspirations. Learning an additional language before the age of ten ensures that the linguistic part of the brain develops well. Knowledge and skills are more easily acquired at this early age and are better retained for later in life. The brain is also challenged in a different way which may improve aptitude and intellectual development in support of other disciplines.
Lupine’s Mandarin curriculum focuses on building a solid foundation for new students as well as students that already have had exposure to the language. We believe that learning Mandarin should be a fun experience for the children. Since Mandarin is a character based language, we integrate a lot of different teaching methods that include dancing and singing, role playing, drawing, games, arts and crafts and other visual learning to get the children interested and enthused to learn the language and the Chinese culture behind it.“
Ms. Haihai is also offering a Mandarin Genre Camp this summer at Lupine Lane. This camp is for ages 6-11 and provides the opportunity for older kids to delve into the language and the culture behind it. You can register for this camp online.