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November 2020 by Brad R.
I have no idea what this school is like now. I started Kindergarten there in 1948, my teacher was Ms. Bishel. It was called Chapman Avenue School at the time, I don't know why. There isn't any Chapman Avenue nearby that I know of. I was the only one in the class who knew how to read, so she would bring in comic strips and have me read them to the class. The main building was an old 2-story one. I don't know when they replaced it but I think it was before the '80s. My other teachers were Ms. Hartwig, Ms. Lynch, Ms. Hungerford, Ms. Curtis, Ms. Butler, Mr. Barrett, Mr. Fandey (the best), Ms. Thomas, and Mr. Layton (mean to me because he didn't like my older brother). I lived on Spinning Ave., just the other side of Van Ness. We moved away in 1955.
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October 2020 by KL C.
My child has been at Chapman since ETK and she is now in the 2nd grade. Kudos to Ms. Trickett for a job well done in molding young minds. At the end of my child's preschool/ETK year, she was able to read and write numbers, sight words, and even learned how to sing ABC's backwards. They were also taught simple poems and given rewards for memorizing it at the end of the week. Ms. Acosta was very helpful and worked alongside Ms. Trickett. They were a good team. Our plan was to transfer our child to another top rated school in Gardena after ETK, but this all changed when the Mandarin Immersion Program came into fruition. We have no Mandarin background and were uncertain if this was the right program for her. We took a leap of faith and are so happy with our decision as our child is now a flourishing 2nd grade English and Mandarin speaker, reader, and writer. Ms. Zhu, Ms. Han, and Mr. Chen are all top notch and are assets to Chapman. They're full of energy, dedicated, and hardworking. The kids are thriving because of their amazing teachers. The class size is also smaller than the regular program and comparable or even better than a private school. The kids and parents always have a great time when we have our beach and park play dates, until COVID-19 came along. The parents are always supportive and ready to lend a helping hand. Homework is often challenging because of our non existent Mandarin background, but the moms in our second grade group are a great support system and provide reassurance that everything will be ok. It's like being in a tight knit family. I'm excited to see what the future holds for my child and her peers. It is a privilege to be a part of the sole Dual Language Mandarin Elementary School in the South Bay. Thank you, Chapman!
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October 2020 by J J.
[Chapman Dual Language Mandarin Immersion Program] I was surprised that there was no review of this program, the only Mandarin Chinese Immersion program offered by a public elementary school in the South Bay. It was probably in 2017 that I heard of a rumor that there would be a Mandarin Immersion offered soon somewhere in the South Bay. At the time I had my son taking Chinese lessons in after school program a few times a week. It was a far drive us to pick him up after work, but him learning Chinese was important to our family. Being the only Mandarin speaker in the house, it was very difficult for me to implement Chinese at home. After he started preschool, he quickly forgot pretty much all of the Chinese I'd taught him. Fast forward, he was about to start kindergarten and Chapman had officially been confirmed to have their first dual language Mandarin STEAM program for the 2018-2019 year. I was very excited, but also concerned to send him to a brand new program. Even though we didn't end up sending him there for the inaugural year, I stayed in touch with some of the parents I met during the orientation. In the summer of the following year, I was invited by the PTA to join their beach picnic and to meet the current and other prospective families. They were so welcoming and the children were so happy and kind spirited, that I thought, how wonderful it'd be to be a part of this wonderful small group! My son had a blast playing with the kids on the beach and I had a chance to ask questions and hear experiences of other families. We applied to the program and hoped the school would waive his birthday restriction and let him in the 1st grade in the fall - well, that didn't happen and we decided to have him finish his 1st grade at his then current school (very wonderful school). Early this year we tried again and the district finally allowed him to register to enter 2nd grade this fall. I was very worried that he would be very behind other kids whom had attended the program for 2 years whereas he only had some after school Chinese classes that modeled learning via playing (meaning, could barely read or write). Then Covid hit, we were all stuck at home. I hired him a private Mandarin tutor and helped him catch up his reading and writing. In the mean time, we were still quite conflicted whether this was right for him, particularly the school was going to be online only. The first week of the school, his teacher conducted a Mandarin assessment and my son did horribly. I was freaking out that he was going to be so behind and super miserable. After a couple of weeks, he seemed able to adapt to the class structure and material. I must say that I was shocked that in merely 2-3 weeks, he really started to read and write in sentences! Then he started speaking to me in Mandarin naturally at home and I didn't have to "**** down" my Mandarin when talking to him. I had thought that taking Mandarin lessons after school would be good enough, but after we spent thousands of dollars every year on his lessons, the progress was very patchy. There is no match to being in an immersion environment. The progress he has made in a short month is literally triple-fold! I'd also like to mention that even though online learning is not ideal, but being forced to dive into this environment, my son has become very comfortable using digital tools. Even though we don't like him on the screen for so long everyday, the world is already in a digital era and you might as well get the kids adapting to the new way and get comfortable thinking and navigating digitally. We really think this is a gem in the South Bay. It's like getting a private school setting for free. His teacher also listens to our feedback and has been very willing to work with parents to make online learning productive and more fun. If you're looking for a REAL Mandarin Chinese Immersion program, there really is no better program than Chapman in the South Bay. In addition, because not a lot of people are aware of the program, the class size
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August 2020 by Amaris M.
Writing an updated review to say that I'm enrolling my second child into Chapman and again, rude staff. I am an adult who KNOWS what she's asking the staff for. If they're rude to ME, how do they treat a kindergartener who has no idea what he's doing? I followed the instructions to receive my child's chromebook for distance learning and surprise, surprise...He wasn't on the list when I went to pick it up. I can't believe a place like this exists. This is supposed to be a school?! And we're supposed to leave our children in the care of these useless people?! My other son who I previously enrolled here has been in a Torrance school since finishing 5th grade at disgusting a$$ Chapman. Torrance staff is not only more helpful but they have better attitudes too. They don't hate their jobs (or their lives) project that negative energy onto the parents (and possibly the children) of this school. This is a HORRIBLE school. Absolutely HORRIBLE.
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June 2020 by Lauren M.
My son attended kindergarten here ... Amazing school! Due to my sons needs .. he has to go to another school. However, My son had MR. CLAY and he enjoyed his class so much .. My son still talks about him! The school was always clean and pretty and was extremely warm and welcoming .. Initially I wanted 156th st . But after walking inside Chapman I immediately had a change of heart. The ladies in the office are amazing! The principal and assistant principal were amazing as well .... I went to work everyday knowing my son was well taken care of and getting the best education there was to offer . I recommend Chapman to anyone ... Thank You
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June 2020 by William G.
When I moved to Gardena, I transferred to Chapman Elementary school for 5th grade and everyone was nice and polite. My 5th grade teacher was Ms. Cheng and she was so nice and polite and she was kind and funny to her students in Room 13. I don't know if she still works there but I had the privilege to be her student!
