Clubs
What are Clubs?
Clubs, unlike enrichment classes, run year long and span across all three terms of the school year. The Aftercare fee is a reduced fee of $14 per day for each child. Clubs allow your student to explore new horizons while creating community built on shared interests and experiences!
Clubs Offered for Term I
The First Lego League
22 Fridays 4:15pm-5:15pm, Grades 4-8
Join the fun and creativity of First Lego League! Students work in teams to design, build, and program LEGO® robots to complete exciting challenges. Along the way, they practice problem-solving, teamwork, and innovative thinking. Perfect for curious minds who love building, coding, and competing in a friendly, supportive environment.
The lead teacher will share the schedule with the team. The first team meeting will be on October 2.
The lead teacher will organize the Lego team. If there are many students interested in the Lego League, we will recruit parent coaches/volunteers to help support Lego League activities.
No Class Days:
*Oct. 9- No Classes/No School: PD Day
*Oct. 16- No Classes/No School: PD Day
*Feb. 5 – No Classes/No School Lunar New Year Holiday
*April 3 – No Classes/No School: Professional Development
*April 10 – No Classes/No School: Conferences 8 AM – 4 PM
Each team consists of 5 students. There is no limit to the number of students who can participate; if we have more students, they will be divided into multiple teams. This is a year-long engagement starting on October 3.
Instructor Bio: Xueqin Wang
an experienced Chinese educator at Yinghua Academy, inspires students to excel in language and competitions, earning top national and international awards through her engaging and caring teaching.
Financial Information:
$500 Class fee+ $308 Aftercare fee = $808
This is a year-long team. Students will meet with the group regularly on Fridays for the Lego project. The fee includes school administration, coach fees, and competition entry fees. An additional materials fee of approximately $200–$400 is not included.
Debate
Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:45pm-5:00pm, Grades 6-8
The MN Middle School Debate brings together students from grades 6–8 to develop public speaking, critical thinking, and teamwork. Competing twice a week from 4:00–5:00, teams debate current issues in a structured format that builds confidence and respect. Parents are invited to volunteer as judges to support mock debates..
Debate will run from October 7 to March 31 across three terms. The fee includes coaching, class materials, and competition entry fees for the whole year. The first meeting will be held on October 7. Once the tournament starts, competition sessions may extend beyond 5:00 PM.
Classes will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The lead teacher will share the specific schedule.
Instructor Bio: Mr. Lopez
Mr. Lopez is one of Yinghua’s new ELA teachers this year! With 24 years of teaching experience, Mr. Lopez is ready to create a fun and engaging learning environment for our debate students!
Financial Information:
$500/Per school year.
(Scholarships are available to support students. Please reach out to Dr. Lien directly if your family is interested.)
There is no Aftercare fee; therefore, Aftercare is not included. Your student needs to be picked up at 5:00pm on non-tournament days. On days students are away for a tournament, they must be picked up within 15 minutes of returning to school. For safety reasons, students are not allowed to leave the school at 3:30pm and return later for the session. Violation of this policy will incur fees.
Battle of the Books
7 Classes, Wednesdays 4:00pm-5:00pm, Grades 3-5
Battle of the Books is a fun, friendly competition that sparks a love of reading through engaging, non-curricular books. Students form teams, work together to read selected titles, and test their knowledge in an exciting quiz-style challenge. It’s a great way to build teamwork, reading comprehension, and a lifelong passion for books—all in a supportive, encouraging environment.
7 Classes: Sept. 23, Sept. 30; Oct. 7, 21, 28; Nov. 4, 11
Make-up: Week of November 16th
No Class: Oct 14
Instructor Bio: Phil Morris
Mr. Morris has been leading the Battle of the Books for the Yinghua team for the past few years and has helped Yinghua achieve success in competitions with other Friends of Education teams. He supports and encourages students to develop a love of reading and enjoy teamwork.
Financial Information:
$120 Class fee+ $98 Aftercare fee = $218
(This registration is for Term I only. The Battle of the Books will continue in Terms II and III with competitions against other Friends of Education schools. Another registration will open for Terms II and III.) *The fee includes coaching and books.
Technovation Girls Challenge
8 Classes, Tuesdays 4:00pm-5:00pm, Grades 2-5 & 6-8
Technovation Girls Challenge inspires and enables teen girls to dream up, design, code and pitch an AI technology and/or mobile application. Working with professional mentors, all-girl teams develop a real-world combination of technical and entrepreneurial skills. Parents with basic coding will be invited to support our students in the competition.
Instructor Bio: To Be Determined!
Financial Information:
$420 Class fee+ $392 Aftercare fee = $812
This club is designed to prepare the girls’ team for the competition in April. The program will begin on October 7 and run for the entire school year. The fee includes coaching, curriculum materials, and competition entry fees. The lead teacher will share the specific schedule.