The American School in Mexico City is a multicultural school drawing its students from the upper middle class with a pupil population of about 40% United States citizens, 40% Mexican, and 20% other nationalities. Admission is based on language proficiency, scholastic achievement, and ability to pay. The school admits monolingual Spanish speakers at kindergarten level only and provides a two- to three-year program of total immersion to prepare them to read in English at first grade. All through the elementary program, there is a half day of Spanish and a half day of English with course content taught in both languages. The middle school features a core curriculum combining social studies and English and incorporating the multicultural backgrounds of the students. At all levels, teaching strategies are based on recognition and appreciation of the students' cultural characteristics and differences. Family roles, community requirements, work ethics, student-teacher roles, and school attitudes are among the cultural variables taken into account in planning curriculum and teaching methods. Although the general goals of bilingualism may be similar in Mexico and the United States, bilingual programs in the two countries are different--largely because English, in Mexico, is an elite study. (JH)