Every day, the richness of cultures is evident. In Jean Behrens' fourth-grade class, students are quietly studying English when Norman Tan breaks out in Cantonese. A classmate who recently arrived from China is asking him about the lesson. I only speak two. But language isn't the only new subject to learn.
American food can be very perplexing.
For a while, Laird kindergartners ate lunch in the English as a second language classroom. There they would learn about American food. The school week for many of these children doesn't end on Friday. That way, Norman explains, if they return to China, he'll know the language and culture. Chinese is too hard.