Wonders - Children Learning Language

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(760) 632-5264
info@wonderslanguage.com

"Delightful, caring, intelligent and excellent instructors.... Your customer service is wonderful."

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has an experienced and dedicated team!

	Hilary Comerchero, Founder & Director Before starting WONDERS, Hilary managed and developed foreign language programs and language learning centers on both coasts. She supervised various international educational programs, including the Department of State’s Fulbright Foreign Student Program and Ford Foundation travel and learning grants. She has over 10 years as an experienced teacher and tutor of various ages and has created and led courses for language tutors. Hilary began learning French at the age of eight from a favorite aunt and studied it formally from third grade through her graduate studies. She has lived and traveled abroad for extended periods of time. She has a Bachelor’s in Comparative Literature from Haverford College and a Master’s in French Language and Culture from the Middlebury French School. She loves to study other languages as well. Lastly, her tutoring brought her to a student who is now her husband!

	Melissa Amador, Spanish Instructor Melissa was born in Ensenada, Mexico and was raised in Tijuana, where she lived for 30 years. She has the equivalent of a Bachelor's degree from Normal Colegio Ensenada and is licensed as a preschool teacher by the Mexican Government. For the last ten years, Melissa has been working with children in different schools in Tijuana as a preschool, kindergarten and English teacher. In 2007, she got married and moved to Del Mar, where she lives with her husband who is also bilingual. She loves working with children, as she considers it the most fun activity one can do. She especially likes to teach while children think they are playing and having fun.

	Nuria Serrano, Spanish Instructor Nuria was born and raised in Barcelona, Spain, where she lived for 29 years. She has a Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Public Administration from the University of Barcelona, and her mother tongues are Spanish and Catalan. She has worked as an administrative and legal adviser in a government office while also keeping up her passion of teaching children, which she began when she was eighteen. In 2007 Nuria moved to San Diego with her husband, who is working as an Associate Researcher at The Scripps Research Institute. In their free time they do outdoor activities such as hiking, and they love visiting new cities and cultures whenever possible. They really enjoy all the possibilities that San Diego offers them, and they feel that San Diego is their new home. Nuria considers that one of the most exciting parts of teaching is not only that the children learn a second language, but also that they start appreciating that there exist other cultures beyond their known world.

	Anne-France Moore, French Instructor Anne-France is a native of the French-speaking region of Belgium. She was born and raised in Lasne, a town not far from Brussels. Traveling with her parents around the world, Anne-France found herself in the US many times. At the age of 18, she decided to come to the US as an exchange student at Huntington Beach. It was after this that she decided that California was going to be her home. Upon finishing her Business Degree in Belgium, Anne-France traveled to San Diego to continue her studies, where she also met her husband and started a family. Her 5 year-old is starting to speak French and takes Spanish class at Wonders. Anne-France loves to travel and immerse herself in other cultures, from Africa to Bali. She is also fluent in Dutch (Flemish). She loves to interact with children and instructing her native languages. She feels the best way for children to learn a language is to make the experience fun and to provide lots of interactive activities that the children will want to remember. Her son is taking both French and Spanish at Wonders.

	Anne Plourde, French Instructor Anne is French Canadian with a BA (Honors) in French Translation from Queen’s University at Kingston, and a Master’s Degree in French Socio-Linguistics from McMaster University. She lived and studied in France at l’Université François-Rabelais in Tours, France as an undergraduate student. In 2001, she moved to San Diego with her husband and children. She has been involved with the PTA’s Running Club and Arts Attack Programs, on top of volunteering in the classroom. She has taught every age group from elementary school to older adults. For fun, she likes to run, including training for marathons. She likes to spend the rest of her time with her family swimming, camping, playing games, reading, and traveling. She is always amazed at young children’s capability to learn and strive in a fun, creative environment. She loves all aspects of the French language and culture, and can’t wait to share this passion with your children.

	Grace Zhang, Mandarin Instructor Grace grew up in mainland China. She completed her undergraduate studies in Northern China with a double major in Education and Information Systems, and she earned her Master's degree with honors from Depaul University in Chicago. Grace has many years' experience teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language to toddlers through adults. She absolutely loves teaching and especially enjoys working with children! She's inspired seeing them absorb knowledge so quickly while they laugh and play, and she's proud of seeing many smiling faces. She puts all her effort into helping her students learn language in a fun environment. The most rewarding part of her job is when former students come back and tell her how much they learned while they were in her class. In her free time, she reads, sings, dances, and directs children's plays and dances for Chinese festivals and holidays. Grace and her husband have a precious little girl who is just three years old. Her daughter speaks Mandarin and English fluently and is having fun in a Spanish class at Wonders!

	Lisa Underdal, Mandarin Instructor Lisa is a native of Beijing, China. She commenced her studies at Beijing Teaching University and is a graduate of Winchester School of Art, Southampton University, UK. A native Mandarin speaker, Lisa is also fluent in Cantonese and Shanghainese. After finishing her studies in England, Lisa lived in Denmark with her husband and son until they moved to the US in 2000. Since 2003, Lisa has been teaching classes for children in Chinese culture and language, including special classes for adopted children from China. She has also taught art and painting classes for both children and adults. Lisa enjoys exploring the nuances of language, culture and art with her students and likes to create a fun and playful learning experience for the children. Lisa moved with her family to San Diego in June 2009, from Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Photo coming soon!	Lillian Sung, Mandarin Instructor Lillian was born and grew up in Taiwan and came to the United States in 2005. She received a Master’s Degree in Linguistics with a focus on Teaching Chinese as a Second Language from California State University, Long Beach. She also teaches local high-school and college students. She is very passionate about teaching, because she loves being around students, and she greatly enjoys helping them learn. Being of Chinese heritage, Lillian feels it is important to pass on her language and culture to others, including those from non-Chinese backgrounds, so that they too can learn to appreciate it.

	Ana Lomba and her Easy Immersion^® Curriculum Wonders is a proud licensee of Ana Lomba Early Languages LLC^® curriculum, used in our French and Spanish classes and in our Mandarin classes for 1-5 year olds. Ana Lomba, a native of Madrid, is a leader in the field of world languages education who has taught all ages, from toddlers to university students. After completing graduate studies at Princeton University, she founded her language learning company in 1999. Ana has published award-winning books and CDs specifically designed for young children learning languages. These materials are at the heart of Ana Lomba’s Easy Immersion^® Methodology, where children learn language through immersion in storytelling, games, crafts, songs, and many other activities. Ana has held leadership positions with some of the most influential language organizations (ACTFL, NNELL, and FLENJ). She is a tireless advocate of early language learning in the US. Ana is currently a post-master student at NYU researching early literacy in dual language environments.

WONDERS BROCHURE (PDF)

We are leaders in the field, constantly improving our unique curriculum based on the latest research and developments about the brain, childhood education, and bilingual education. We use whole language in context, a comprehensive and directed approach deeper than simple undirected immersion.

We are educators dedicated to offering quality language classes for young children. We support a child's learning by creating a safe and fun-filled environment. We are not a licensed preschool that provides long-term care and supervision of children. We teach only foreign language only to children. We do not teach adults, and we do not teach other subjects. We remain committed to our expertise and mission!

We are instructors hired through a rigorous interview process that includes background checks. We are specially-trained in the Wonders method and undergo regular observation and review. We are native speakers who are enthusiastic, dedicated, creative, and nurturing.

We are in your schools! As part of our ongoing effort to support language learning and access for all children, we are pleased to partner with area schools to offer tailor-made programs for various languages and ages. Go to our in-school program page for more information.

Memberships:

National Network for Early Language Learning (NNELL)

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)

Since research shows that an early language learning experience generally results in the development of native or near-native pronunciation and intonation, it is recommended that students be provided the opportunity to learn a second language as early as possible in school. This early language learning experience not only helps to develop native-like pronunciation but also promotes higher levels of proficiency if the student continues in a well-articulated sequence of language learning. Research corroborates additional benefits including strengthening of literacy in students’ first language, raising standardized test scores in other subject areas, and developing comfort with cultural differences. These benefits accrue with instruction that is continuous throughout the school year, connected grade to grade, and more frequent than twice per week, adding up to at least 90 minutes per week, at both the elementary and middle school levels.

-ACTFL Position Statement on Early Language Learning

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