Yu Ming Charter School

They’ve arrived! 🇨🇳✈️

Our 8th graders made it to China for their annual two-week Study Tour to Beijing, Yangshuo, and Shanghai.

This long awaited trip is the culmination of nine years of learning together at Yu Ming and a meaningful milestone in their bilingual journey. Over the next two weeks, students will immerse themselves in language, service, and culture–unforgettable experiences that bring their studies to life.

The adventure begins. Stay tuned for highlights from the trip!

Yu Ming wishes you a Happy Lunar New Year! Last week, our campuses welcomed the Year of the Horse with joyful performances across campuses.

The Year of the Horse symbolizes energy, perseverance, and forward momentum. Those qualities were on full display as students performed Mandarin songs, adorable dances, and even magic tricks! Moments like these remind us that language is not only something we study, but something we live together, carrying forward traditions that connect generations and cultures.

We were honored to celebrate alongside Yu Ming families, joined by Oakland City Councilmember Charlene Wang , ACBOE Trustee Aisha Knowles, San Leandro Mayor Juan González, Njeri from Little Sheep Chinese Learning Center and other community leaders. Thank you to our teachers and staff for making it such a beautiful celebration of language and community.

Let us move forward together in the Year of the Horse.

One Yu Ming. 28 home languages. Many cultures.

As we celebrate Black History Month and Lunar New Year, we’re inspired by Bad Bunny's message in his Superbowl performance: “the only thing more powerful than hate is love,” choosing unity, community, and love.

Our community centers on caring for our students. Always.

We recently dropped off over 130 free Learning Kits to Hively Alameda County for their rising kindergarteners, marking a new partnership for Yu Ming.

Hively Alameda County expands access to early childhood supports by connecting families to essential resources, high-quality child care, and accessible mental health services. We’re grateful to their staff for helping make this partnership happen and for ensuring these kits reach families at a key transition moment.

Yu Ming’s Learning Kits focus on early math and literacy skills to support kindergarten readiness. Launched in 2021 during the pandemic, they remain an important way for us to support local families beyond our classrooms through community partnerships like this one. 💛

This week, our Transitional Kindergarteners celebrated their 100th day of school, quite a milestone for our inaugural TK class. Can you tell they're loving it?

Our TK program is play-based, joyful, and 100% immersion, designed to nurture curiosity, confidence, and a love of learning (and learning in Mandarin) from the very start.

We are proud to prioritize access by reserving 60% of TK seats for students eligible for free or reduced-price meals, ensuring our youngest learners get a strong, welcoming start to school.

Seeing these young learners show up with big smiles every day makes it pretty clear they’re doing school right.

Last week, we were honored to host students from Shanghai Pinghe School for a week-long exchange at Yu Ming.

Our 8th graders learned and took a field trip to the Exploratorium alongside visiting students, while peers in grades 5–7 also had opportunities to connect, communicate, and build cross-cultural friendships.

This exchange continues next month, when our 8th grade students travel to Shanghai for our annual China Study Tour. Grateful to our families for making these meaningful global learning experiences possible 🌏

Congratulations to Yu Ming’s Class of 2025! We are so proud of these incredible students and all they’ve accomplished. Over the past nine years, they’ve grown into curious, compassionate, and courageous learners, ready to make their mark on the world. As they move on to new challenges and opportunities, we celebrate their journey and the bright futures ahead. Help us cheer on our graduates!

Shout out to our photographer and YM parent, Ingrid, from www.jerryyoon.com for capturing these beautiful memories!

🌱 Check out what’s growing at our Chestnut Campus ECP Garden Club!

Thanks to Ms. Cachet for starting this wonderful club and teaching students how to grow plants from seeds. Our young gardeners have been learning about plant parts, what plants need to thrive, and healthy eating.

Ms. Cachet shared, “It’s my pleasure to be part of the Yu Ming community. I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to share my passion for gardening here with ECP. I started gardening when I was 14 at Berkeley Youth Alternatives garden patch. I even made the front page of the Oakland Tribune selling our organic produce at the local farmers market. I thought it’d be great to share some of my skills and ideas with the students here.”

🌿 If you'd like to support Ms. Cachet and the garden club, donations of soil and potting containers are welcomed!

We closed out AANHPI Heritage Month with an inspiring conversation about leadership, belonging, and community impact! 🌸✨

Our amazing panel of changemakers shared their personal stories and the powerful ways they’re creating safer, stronger, and more inclusive communities. From speaking out against injustice to helping others find their voice, each guest reminded our students that everyone has the power to make a difference.

A huge thank you to:

🌟 Thien Pham, Graphic Novelist, Comic Artist, and Educator
🌟 Dion Lim, TV News Anchor & Reporter at ABC7/KGO-TV
🌟 Mark Young, Founder of Stand with Asians
🌟 Carolyn Wang Kong, Chief Strategy Officer at The California Endowment

Thank you for inspiring our students with your courage, wisdom, and commitment to building a better world. 💛

Yu Ming’s volleyball team just wrapped up an incredible season — finishing undefeated with 8 straight wins! We’re so proud of our athletes for their teamwork, grit, and school spirit on and off the court.

Way to go, Dragons! 🔥

May is AANHPI Heritage Month, and we had a blast celebrating the rich cultures, histories, and contributions of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities!

Throughout May, our students and staff came together for incredible activities and performances that honored the diverse voices within the AANHPI community. Highlights included:

🥋 A wood-breaking Taekwondo performance by Eric Lee at Team Dragons Taekwondo
🎨 Mr. Sameer sharing his Indian heritage and traditions with our 5th graders
📚 Ms. Delgado and her Grade 2 students researching prominent AANHPI figures who’ve shaped the world
🦁 A lively lion dance and kung fu demo by Sunny Guo and his team at U.S. Shaolin Kung Fu
🎲 Ms. Lee educating students about Korean culture and how to play Gongji, a popular Korean dice game
🌍 Mr. LaMarr hosting a highly competitive “Guess the Country’s Flag” game at our community meeting

As a Mandarin immersion school, celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month isn’t just about fun — it’s about nurturing cross-cultural understanding and honoring the unique stories, struggles, and contributions that make our community vibrant.

Thank you to our incredible staff, volunteers, and families who made this month so meaningful! 💛✨