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Teachers who teach in cross-cultural settingsplay a vital role in nurturing students’ appreciation ofcultural diversity but they tend to experience tremendouschallenges in their early years of teaching. To draw adynamic portrayal of those challenges, this study primarilycollected and analyzed 521 reflective journals written by 14Chinese language teachers throughout their first 2 years ofteaching in U.S. public schools. The study found that theteachers experienced a wide range of challenges inmanaging classrooms, developing curricular materials,crafting instructional strategies, assessing students, cateringto learner differences, and collaborating with others. Theseriousness of the challenges varied across areas andtransformed differently over time. Cultural difference,school context, and teacher’s background and ongoinglearning collectively contributed to the formation andtransformation of the challenges. This paper concludeswith practical implications on how to prepare and supportteachers to work in cross-cultural settings