About Us

Mandarin Discovery School is an immersion school located in the YWCA in White Plains, NY, and with a second location in Yonkers, NY.  We offer classes to both children and adults.  Our small classroom sizes and accommodating teachers make learning Mandarin an enjoyable experience.  Our programs teach all four language skills - speaking, listening, reading, and writing - with a particular emphasis on speaking.  We immerse students in Chinese culture as well as the Mandarin language, so a cultural focus is carefully integrated into our curriculum.

Founder's Note

I was born and raised in northeastern China.  Before immigrating ​to America, I worked as a licensed nurse in a women's and children's hospital in Beijing.  I spoke little English.  As China's nursing industry grew, however, more English speakers were needed.  Thus, I decided to move to the United States to study English. 
 

I found learning English in an immersive environment extremely beneficial to my studies.  Being surrounded by American culture allowed me to learn the language at an accelerated rate simply through daily interactions.  This experience showed me the practicality and effectiveness of immersive language programs, and inspired me to open Mandarin Discovery School. 

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Here, we aim to introduce you and/or your children to the world of Chinese, both as a language and a culture.  The only prerequisite for our classes is a passion for learning.  We hope to see you there. 

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- Shanshan Li