BCS Mandarin 

mkuo@bullischarterschool.com

Ms. Kuo is excited to return for her 9th year at BCS to continue to implement and teach in the Modern Language Program! She began implementing the Modern Language Program in Fall, 2007 and is very excited that all K-8 graders are studying either Spanish and/or Mandarin.

Ms. Kuo was born and raised in Taiwan and moved to Vancouver, Canada when she was twelve.  She experienced firsthand the challenges and thrills of learning a second language when she started 7th grade in Vancouver. This experience prompted her to study other languages in high school and college as she realized how knowledge in other languages and cultures allowed her to understand and connect with people she otherwise would not be able to. After receiving her B.A. with a double major in Spanish and Human Geography from the University of British Columbia, she continued at UBC to work on her teaching credential. In 1999, Ms. Kuo relocated to the Bay Area to attend graduate school at Stanford University where she earned her Master’s degree in Education with a focus in Language, Learning and Policy.  

Before joining the staff at BCS, Ms. Kuo was a third grade classroom teacher in a charter school in East Palo Alto where she worked with mostly English Language Learners and provided instruction in both English and Spanish.  Ms. Kuo was then hired to teach first grade in the Cupertino Language Immersion Program where she instructed students all the core subjects in Mandarin and English.  While working in the immersion program, she participated actively in the Curriculum Development Committee where she worked with cross-grade level teachers to develop Mandarin curriculum aligned with state standards, served on the Technology Committee to support other teachers’ technology integration, planned collaboratively with parents and teachers on the Curriculum Advisory Committee, and represented her program to present in a workshop at the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) conference in San Jose.  

Language is Ms. Kuo's passion. She studied, in addition to Spanish, some Japanese and French in college and is currently learning Italian. One day she hopes to live overseas where she will be immersed in the target language environment and learn more about its culture and people. When she's not working, she enjoys singing and reading with her sons, hiking, traveling, and going for walks with her family.