Keetch 1

Robin Keetch
Sean M. George
English 1010.40
9 September 2015
Can You Please Translate That Into English?
Its the first day of school, and theres a meltdown. That wasnt expected. Lexi is an
overachiever and loves school. She was reading and writing before Kindergarten. She is quiet
and hates any attention on her, but she has the cutest, sweetest face. She has a smile that can light
up the room and is so much fun to be around. She was so excited to start her Chinese class. I
was anxious to hear how the first day of the Chinese Dual Immersion program went. I was in the
kitchen baking some cookies for the kids when they got home. In walked Raimee. Hi! How
was your first day of school!? I questioned. Oh awesome Mom! Im going to love my
teacher! Lexi staggered in behind. I asked, How was your first day of school!? No answer.
Maybe she didnt hear me. I repeated the question. Lexi burst into tears. I hate school. I hate
Chinese. I never want to go back! I was confused. And then I see her soaking wet pants, socks,
and shoes. She peed her pants. She asked her Chinese teacher to use the restroom, but she
answered in Chinese, so Lexi couldnt understand the answer. Right then I knew this dual
immersion program was going to be a challenge, not just for Lexi, but for me as a mom. Was this
going to be worth it?
We got the warning. It might be rough for the first half of the school year. Your children
might struggle, but the program has been proven successful over and over again. Look at the test

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scores for all of the students enrolled in the program in other schools. Your child will be reading
and writing in Chinese by Christmas. The children would be listening to the dual immersion
teacher for half a day, and she would only speak Chinese, no English, not one word. How many
people get the opportunity to learn to read, write, and speak a second language in elementary
school? This was an opportunity that couldnt be passed. The warning shouldnt have been taken
lightly. The second week of school came with a homework packet, a thick stack of papers. Half
of the packet was in Chinese, with no English translation. My overachiever was feeling like a
failure, and I couldnt help her without an English translation. Another meltdown. I was in a
predicament. I had to make a decision to either pull Lexi out of the program, or have her receive
special tutoring.
I made an appointment with the teachers to sit in the classroom and observe. I felt that if I
continued to let this drag on, she would fall behind in her academics. As I sat in the classroom
examining the teacher and the class, I started to understand. Listening to the teacher speak in a
different language, and trying to understand the concepts being taught, generated feelings of
frustration. If I couldnt figure out what was being communicated, how were these children
going to? If it is putting this much stress on this sweet little six-year old, who loved school 2
months ago, then maybe this wasnt the perfect choice for her. Mrs. Sun assured me, This is
normal. Every child is going through this same exact thing. Some children deal with their anxiety
and emotions differently. Please wait until the first Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences before
you make the decision to pull her out of the program. There, we will meet with you and your
student, and she will be able to show you what shes learned. You will be amazed. The
conferences would be held in November. This was going to be a long 3 months.

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Six weeks of school went by, and Lexi would act out almost every school day. During the
weekend, Lexi seemed to snap out of her tantrums, but as soon as Monday came, it was the same
fiasco all over again. Then the seventh week came, and sometime in that week there came a calm
to the storm. Homework wasnt a battle. There was an ease of tension, and school seemed to be a
little more pleasant for Lexi again. November came and conferences were coming up. I was
anxious. Lexi and I walked into the classroom. Mrs. Sun welcomed us in Chinese and began to
converse with Lexi. I watched as Lexi nodded her head as if to know what she was saying. Did
she really know what was being said? Or was she just pretending? We sat down and Mrs. Sun
pulled out a book written in Chinese. She mustve told Lexi to read it because she grabbed it and
began reading - in Chinese! She didnt have any help from the teacher. I watched and listened as
she read and spoke in Chinese. Goosebumps crept up my arms and tears swelled in my eyes. I
thought, This is surreal. That was just the beginning. Mrs. Sun pulled out papers written in
Chinese, and Lexi read them to her. They began having a conversation in Chinese. I had no idea
what they were saying, but they did. I was taken aback by it. This might be the only time in my
life that I would appreciate people speaking a different language in front of me, not caring if
anyone translated it. Mrs. Sun mustve asked Lexi to wait outside the classroom, because Lexi
got up from the table, walked into the hall, and shut the door. I looked at Mrs. Sun; before she
said anything, tears started rolling down my cheeks. I cant even believe it, I said, Im.
amazed. She gave a sweet, compassionate smile and began to tell me everything [in English]
that she and Lexi had been discussing. At that moment, I knew that the Dual Immersion program
was going to be phenomenal.
Its the first day of Lexis third grade year. She has been in the program for 2 years. I wait
outside of her classroom, anxious to see how the first day of school went. The bell rang extra

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loud. I was standing just underneath it. The kids came running out of the classroom, yearning to
get home, except for Lexi. Maybe I missed her. I glanced in the classroom, and there she was
with Mrs. He and a couple of her peers, having a full on conversation in Chinese. They started to
giggle as Mrs. He pointed her finger at them. My heart swelled with joy. They grabbed their
backpacks and skipped to the door. How was school? I asked. So much fun! Mrs. He is going
to be an awesome teacher! Lexi was so happy. What were you guys laughing and talking
about? I was curious. Mrs. He told us to go home and tell our parents that we love Chinese and
that she is our most favorite teacher ever. Lexi giggled. Eight years old, two full years in the
program, and she can understand a second language: incredible!
Lexi can read, write, and have a converse in Chinese. Shes still in the beginning stages,
but she is on her way to becoming fluent. The recent bad days havent been due to school or the
Chinese program. Her academics, which I thought would suffer, havent suffered at all. As a
matter of fact, her test scores (along with her peers in the program) are at or above average. The
short time I spent watching my child struggle was truly difficult. My heart broke. But what Ive
learned is that sometimes its ok to struggle. Difficulties only last a short time, even though it
seems to take forever. The Dual Immersion program is definitely demanding, but at the same
time, its amazing, and its benefits will long outweigh the trials and turmoil.