Philadelphia Chinese Academy
Philadelphia Chinese Academy is an authentic Montessori language immersion school for children ages 0 to 6, located in Center City.
Philadelphia Chinese Academy
Description
The Philadelphia Chinese Academy is dedicated to supporting children’s academic, emotional, and social development in today’s globalized world. The school works closely with parents to cultivate well-rounded children, focusing on respect, independence, consistency, empathy, language immersion, and habit stacking. These core values are thoughtfully integrated into their authentic Montessori curriculum, creating a nurturing and empowering environment for young learners. With full Mandarin immersion, the academy takes full advantage of children’s sensitive period for language development. Prospective families are invited to schedule a private tour to learn more about how the academy helps children thrive.
As seen in the Philadelphia Family Best for Families Guide
Has your child attended Philadelphia Chinese Academy? Share an endorsement below to show your support.
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Shirley L
Best of both worlds!! Having my child attend a Montessori school and learning mandarin is incredible. The teachers are so patient and wonderful. The amount of care and structure that goes into the curriculum is truly amazing.
Doris
Our 2yo son has only recently started at PCA, but it’s already obvious to us that this school and its teachers are really different in the care and attention they devote to the classroom (we were formerly at a different daycare that was just fine… but the care and curriculum at PCA is just above and beyond). The new independent skills that our son picked up in such a short time is impressive, and every morning he walks into school so happily and confidently (whereas at our former daycare, there were quite a bit of tears at drop-offs). The Mandarin immersion aspect of PCA was the #1 most important thing for us initially, but we are really loving these aspects of Montessori learning as well!
Qing
PCA has been a remarkable part of our son’s journey. There is balance there- academically and socially.
I’ve visited and placed my kids in several daycares and pre-k’s in the past, PCA is top tier. The children there are motivated and challenged to progress to their best potential with careful management and planning from their teachers.
The teachers there value their time and the students’ time equally, the students reciprocate. They are encouraged to move around their environment and express freely all while learning Mandarin Chinese daily.
The teachers there do not treat their students as just another headcount, they treat them as unique individuals- each with their own identity and journey.
From one parent to another, I highly recommend PCA for your children’s early childhood development. Dale does an extraordinary job on bringing in excellent teachers.
The cherry on top? The parents there are amazing too!!!
Irina
We’ve been part of this daycare since March 2025, and I honestly can’t say enough good things about our experience.
The growth we’ve seen in our daughter over the past months has been incredible. She’s become more thoughtful, more independent, and so much more aware. She helps around the house without being asked, uses polite language, and shows such sweet manners. It’s clear she’s learning respect, responsibility, and confidence.
She’s already understanding and speaking some Mandarin, and we don’t speak Chinese.
The teachers truly care. You can feel the love and intention behind everything they do. So grateful we found them!
Andrei Cojocaru
We sent our recently 2 year old here starting September 2025. Since he has started attending we have noticed many positive behavior changes at home: more willing to explore different toys and try playing with them, the want to replicate the routine at school like washing hands, eating unaided where possible, putting the things away and asking for things he wants instead of taking them. From the pictures and videos the teachers take, and the conversations we’ve had with them at the conferences we can see that they’ve been very patient with him as he tries to figure out how to navigate the world. Additionally, his Mandarin fluency continues to improve and many times surprises us with words that we didn’t know he knew. Before going here, we were worried about his behavior, but since coming here it’s been on an upwardly improving trend. It’s not perfect, but it gets better all the time, and I am confident he is learning the tools to be a good little human!
Favian Sutton
Our family has had an incredible experience at PCA. From day one, the school has fostered our child’s love of learning and curiosity through its Montessori approach combined with Chinese language immersion. We’ve seen tremendous growth in our child’s confidence, independence, and communication skills, both in and out of the classroom.
As African American parents with no background in Mandarin, we were nervous at first, but the teachers and staff made us feel so welcome and supported. They’ve made it easy and fun for our daughter to learn, and we’ve seen her grow in confidence, independence, and love of learning every day.
What stands out most is the thoughtful, nurturing community PCA has created. The teachers are deeply committed, creative, and attentive to each child’s unique needs, and the school goes above and beyond to support families as a whole, not just the students.
We’re grateful for the opportunities PCA provides and can’t recommend it highly enough to families seeking a language immersion experience that truly cultivates a lifelong love of learning.
Fangfei
Our three year old daughter started attending PCA’s Early Childhood program earlier this school year, and we couldn’t be happier with our choice of school. Not only is she picking up Mandarin, she is also learning amazing life skills as part of their Montessori program. We’ve seen her independence blossom under her teachers’ instruction. As a bonus, we love seeing what she does in school via photos, newsletters, and classroom observations. The Thanksgiving feast was a great showcase of what the kids have learned: they rearranged the classroom and also prepared food for the adults! I look forward to the school’s upcoming Chinese New Year Celebration for families too; I can’t wait to see what the kids have prepared for us. The PCA staff should be very proud of building such a wonderful school.
Yuan
I can’t even remember how we first found PCA, but I am so grateful we did. As soon as we transitioned our son from our care at home to PCA, we noticed an incredible shift toward increased independence, self-efficacy, and autonomy within weeks – even as a toddler. We were excited for him to learn Mandarin to speak with his grandparents, but we never imagined that he would exceed our Mandarin speaking capabilities at age 2!
We have absolutely loved all of the teachers who teach him not just language and math skills, but also foster a strong sense of community and shared responsibility. We have been anxiously awaiting to start our daughter at PCA and can’t wait to see how she grows and blossoms there as well.
Finally, PCA has become a wonderful community for us as parents, especially with the thought and intention that goes into parent communication, fostering spaces for parents to meet and chat, and invitation of parents to participate in school events and performances.
We love PCA and can’t wait to see this wonderful community continue to grow!
Zhi L.
Love this place! We wanted Mandarin immersion, that was a fact. But the real Montessori was a delightful surprise. Our son went to a “montessori” daycare before joining PCA, but their “montessori” was nothing like the instruction and expertise found at PCA. The Montessori aspect wasn’t a priority for us when we were first looking into pre-schools, but now I can’t imagine my son without it. He is so independent and helpful, and comes home singing Mandarin song.
Xiao Chi Zhang
If you ask me what is it that brought us to Phildelphia, we’d say: the city and the people. If you ask me what kept us here, PCA would be one of our top 3 reasons. PCA has absolutely transformed our lives for the better. I’ve seen our daughter grow and develop almost at the speed of light when she left her daycare to attend PCA. Within weeks, she developed impressive mannerisms, new-sense of responsibilities, and her Chinese vocabulary began to blossom. The response from the teachers have been nothing but transparent and engaging. The staff genuinely cares about your kids and they help foster an engaging relationship between parents as well. PCA is worth the investment for your children, they are a benefit to the city, and I am delighted for my youngest to join their ranks.
Erica C.
As a second-generation mother, I always felt a sense of embarrassment about not being fluent in Chinese. My own experience with Chinese school as a sixth grader was uninspiring and rigid, making it difficult for me to learn. So when we enrolled my daughter at Philadelphia Chinese Academy at just two years old, I wasn’t sure what to expect—but I was absolutely blown away.
Now, at four years old, her Chinese skills are incredible. The school’s approach makes learning feel effortless, seamlessly integrating language immersion with engaging and dynamic lesson plans. The Montessori component has also had a profound impact on her independence—she loves cooking with us at home, a skill nurtured by hands-on experiences at school, where she helps prep fresh vegetables. She’s even mastering four-digit addition, all taught in Chinese!
Beyond academics, the school fosters a deep appreciation for Chinese culture. Teachers Grace, Jenny, Yasmin, Clare, and Pearl guide the children through Chinese songs and dances, preparing them for joyful performances that bring families together.
At the heart of it all is Dale You, the incredible founder of Philadelphia Chinese Academy. She saw a need in our city and poured her heart and soul into creating a space where children are safe, thriving, and fully prepared for first grade. She goes above and beyond, even offering parents the opportunity to observe 20-minute sessions of the school day and ask questions, fostering a sense of transparency and trust.
The school’s expansion is beyond exciting, and the sense of community among parents is just as special. Through playdates and friendships, we’ve built lasting connections, making this journey even more meaningful.
Philadelphia Chinese Academy is truly a gem in our city, and I can’t think of a more deserving recipient of a LOVE Award.
Philly Family Community Member
Our daughter attended PCA for a year before Kindergarten and continues to go there for after care. We started our younger son at PCA as soon as he was old enough to attend. We chose PCA for many reasons – my husband wanted our kids to have Mandarin immersion, and I was interested in the Montessori aspect. We’ve been extremely satisfied with our experience at the school. The kids have had wonderful, patient teachers who care about the students. We’ve seen them become confident Mandarin speakers, improve their gross and fine motor skills (our 2 year old peels and cuts carrots!), grow their social skills and etiquette, become more self sufficient, and develop long lasting friendships as part of the PCA community. Our daughter was well prepared for Kindergarten. We love seeing the pictures and videos of the kids (old and young) playing, working, and eating together. We’re amazed to see that even the toddlers concentrate on their work, and the older kids are reading, writing, and stringing together sentences in Mandarin. The school brings parents in several times a year to see the classroom and celebrate various holidays, and the kids have performed songs in Mandarin. It is clear that a lot of thought and effort goes into these events, and I appreciate that it teaches the kids how to work toward a goal and gives them a chance to celebrate their progress. PCA has taught us parents that our kids are capable of even more than we imagined. We feel very lucky to have this school in our city.