Campanelli School becomes “sister” to Tianjin Hedong School in China
Posted by Terri McHugh on Tuesday, December 6th, 2011 at 4:17 pm
Campanelli Elementary School in Schaumburg, home of District 54’s Chinese Immersion program, recently established a sister school relationship with Tianjin Hedong District Experimental Primary School.
Principal Steve Kern and Julie Colgrove, director of language and culture, visited China this fall as part of a group of educators sponsored by HanBan and the College Board. These two organizations have the goal of supporting schools and school districts that are interested in establishing or enhancing a Chinese language program in their schools.
The Chinese Immersion program at Campanelli is designed to teach students how to read, write and speak Chinese while also understanding the Chinese culture. The program is open to students in kindergarten this year, but will be accepting students in both kindergarten and first grade for the 2012-13 school year.
“During my visit to China I visited many schools and had the opportunity to talk with educators in these schools,” Kern said. “I quickly realized that they are trying to address the same challenges that we are faced with. We are both looking for ways to better educate the students in our schools.”
This relationship will give Campanelli students in both the Chinese Immersion program and other classrooms an opportunity to connect with students at the Tianjin Hedong District Experimental Primary School. For more information about the Chinese Immersion program, visit the Campanelli website.
Campanelli will also be at the Open Enrollment Fair on Jan. 26. Parents interested in learning more about the program will be able to sign up at fair for a tour of the school and an informational meeting. For more information about the Open Enrollment Fair, visit the District 54 website.