Fall 2020 Newsletter
We Can Still Do Hard Things.
Ni Hao, Mandarin Immersion (MI) Families – welcome back and if you are new, huānying! This school year looks very different, but we must admit – it looks much better than in April (crying in our closet, clutching a bottle of wine). Our wonderful teachers and administrative staff have been working around the clock through the summer to bring us the best virtual experience possible, and we feel encouraged about the new, proposed structure. We hope you had some time to recuperate, rest, spend some Zoom-free time with your families, and mentally, emotionally and spiritually prepare for back to school. Many of you have asked us – “how exactly are we going to recreate the language immersion experience virtually?” Great. Question.
DragonSprouts is here to help where we can.
Founded in 2012, DragonSprouts was affectionately named after the diverse roots we planted when the first MI Program was started in LAUSD's Local District-West. Today, DragonSprouts supports the MI Programs at Braddock Drive Elementary School, Broadway Elementary School, Mark Twain Middle School, and Venice High School and offers students the opportunity to become bilingual, biliterate and multicultural citizens starting in kindergarten through high school. Funding raised by DragonSprouts provides curriculum materials, teaching staff, community pathways, and resources for students and their families.
Why donate to or support DragonSprouts? We provide funding to support the Better Chinese online platform to help your little ones learn Mandarin. We deliver software subscriptions to Mark Twain Middle School Mandarin teachers to help them create engaging text and videos. We are currently working on a list of Mandarin tutors to supplement your school efforts (coming soon). Need ideas on how to create a learning pod? Want to set up playdates with other Mandarin speaking classmates? Have an idea to put together a virtual community event such as Chinese cooking or craft making? Have video editing capabilities to help us create ensemble videos of student performances?
We are here for you, but we need you! It takes a village. Please reach out to dragonsproutsinfo@gmail.com or any of the board members (listed below) directly or fill out this survey so we can get to know you better. Let’s get to work and have some fun!
You can learn more about DragonSprouts on Facebook and Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter and get on the dragon boat!
Meet Your New Board
Your Voice Mattered! Thank you for your input, meet your new board for the 2020-21 school year:
President: John Liu
Vice President: Rita Nagami
Treasurer: Brian Lee
Secretary: Lynn Lee
Vice President of Communications: Jen Warren
Vice President of Donor Relations: Michelle Wang
Board Member: Martha Pao
Board Member: Fonda Chang
Advisory Board Members
Representative for Mark Twain Middle School: Rich Lin
Representative for Braddock Drive Elementary School: Andrea Goldman
Events / Fundraising
Last school year we came so close to our goal of raising $88,888. Fun fact: Number 8 is considered so lucky that the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing started officially at eight minutes past eight on the eighth day of August, the eighth month.
While we raised enough money last year to cover basic expenses for this school year, we are still short of being able to hire more Mandarin teachers, which is our biggest support task as an organization and the most direct and significant beneficiary for our children. If you are in a position to give, please consider DragonSprouts as your tax-deductible charitable organization of choice.
How to donate
New school: Paypal – https://www.paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/1448575
Old school: Checks – please make out to DragonSprouts and mail to PO Box 661613, Los Angeles, CA 90066
How does my individual child (children) benefit from DragonSprouts?
Mandarin libraries – we purchase books so MI students have access to hard-to-find Chinese books.
Mandarin software – we purchase instructional software for our children to enhance their Mandarin. Some examples are Skritter and Better Chinese, which help students learn proper tone and stroke order.
Mandarin teachers – in the past we’ve paid for teachers’ salaries. In addition, we’ve also contributed to the cost in processing teachers’ visas.
Xie Xie, Mandarin Immersion community, we look forward to supporting you this school year!
~Your 2020-21 DragonSprouts Board
