After School Program
The primary goal of this program is to enhance and further develop students’ Chinese listening, speaking, reading and writing skills through formal Chinese language arts classes and an immersive Chinese environment. Students will be grouped based on their age and language ability.
The Cornerstone After School Chinese program differs from traditional paper-and-pencil approaches. Our teaching focuses on what students can do with Mandarin Chinese. We use a research-based, dynamic curriculum that is regularly evaluated by our professional teaching team to ensure optimal quality and effectiveness.
Our flexible approach is tailored to the needs of the students and works far better than a fixed curriculum or set of textbooks. We carefully select articles grouped in different
themes for teaching. We identify and emphasize topics that interest our students, that tap into their real-life experiences, and that fit the needs of their personality and language proficiency development.
Children develop their Chinese language skills, knowledge, understanding, and attitudes through daily routines and first-hand experiences provided at Cornerstone.
Clear grade-level learning standards and systemic assessments are set up to help students grow their Chinese language abilities. At Cornerstone, assessment is a continuous process of gathering information about student learning and performance using a variety of sources over time.
The After School 100% Chinese Immersion Program has four stages of development. Stage 1 is the beginning level, for Kinder and beginners. Stage 2 is the foundation level, divided into a two year program: Foundation 1 and foundation 2. Stage 3 is Pre-advanced level, divided into a three years program.
This Beginner class takes place from 3:00-5:30pm, and Foundation and Pre-advanced classes take place from 3:30-6pm. Both convene from Monday through Friday. Two-, three-, and five-day options are available.
Evening Program
The Thursday night program is designed for middle school and high school age students who possess intermediate, middle and upper Chinese language proficiency, while enabling them to continue their Chinese language and culture study. An entrance exam is required. Students will also be assigned self-study projects to complete after class time.
The CLC (Chinese Language and Culture) class is designed for intermediate level Chinese students who not only develop proficiency in Chinese language but also gain knowledge of Chinese culture. The content of this course covers a wide variety of topics, including Chinese language structures and characters, Chinese customs, proverbs, holidays, social phenomena, religion, poetry, geography, as well as Chinese folklore. The texts challenge the student to develop their linguistics.
The test preparation course is designed to help students to get ready for the SAT II Chinese subject test and AP Chinese test, which is administered by the US College Board. As students proceed through this course, they learn vocabulary and important sentence structures for performance tasks. They will also observe and practice models and gain skills for taking tests.
This program takes place from 7-8:30pm on Thursday nights. In the 2024-25 school year, this program is conducted at the Manuela Campus.
Summer Camp
Cornerstone offers two weekly Summer Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Camps for upcoming Kindergarten to 6th grade. Here, you'll embark on a magical journey through the world of Chinese language and culture, all while having tons of fun.
Registration for the 2026 Summer Camp will open in January 2026.
Please see 2025 Summer Program Information for your reference.
