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My original goal was to have 20 students attend all ten sessions plus the dress rehearsal and actual Japan Night. Thirty-four students were given parental permission to join the club, so I divided the group into two clubs which met on two different days, but would eventually come together for Japan Night. Twenty-five students stayed for the entire project! (More students wanted to apply later, but missed the deadline. There is a great interest for next year if I intend to continue the group.)
I. Club Set Up:
I applied for a district Mini-Grant to fund DVDs, CDs, books, and other learning materials.
I advertised in my classes, through school newsletter, posters, and flyers.
I created an informational letter and permission slip was provided to all interested students. There was a deadline for the permission slip. The permission slips requested the following information: student name, parent name; phone numbers; any food allergies; any intendance restrictions; any physical considerations. Can a parent come in to help supervise?
I decided to include a request for an optional donation of $4 to help with food and supply purchases which were not covered by the Mini-Grant.
The Club was formed as two different groups which met either every Tuesday or every Wednesday in my classroom from 3:30 to 5PM.
Up to 20 students were accepted at each different session--two sessions were provided.
The Club was open to any student in grades three through six.
All students were required to attend a dress rehearsal and the Japan Night.
Student "passports" were created by the teacher. Students would glue a different computer printed or ink block stamp into their passports at each meeting. The student would also write a little about what we did this day. Students who attended all meetings would receive a special award.
All students received a certificate during the Japan Night activities.
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II. Activities:
Passports were created.
We looked at pictures of the teacher's Japan trip as part of a Powerpoint presentation. This was also used for a discussion about life in Japan.
The American students voted to wear slippers in the classroom during our meetings just as the Japanese students do.
The teacher listed Japanese resources available in VT; for example, the Vermont branch of the Japan America Society.
We watched part of Mrs. Bell's trip on digital video.
The students dressed up in outfits Mrs. Bell brought back from Japan--Kimono and Yukkata; they then had their pictures taken.
We learned "Tanko Bushi" a traditional folk dance.
We learned a choreographed routine to traditional Japanese music using ribbon wands.
One student conducted an Anime workshop--I made sure that the material was suitable for this age group and I still gave out parental permission slips.
We tried a variety of snacks: Asian pears, Miso soup, rice crackers, Oriental snack mix, rice, wasabi chips, green tea . . .
The teacher gave a chopstick lesson with rice. The students were given a pair of chopsticks to take home.
We drank Japanese tea and discussed the custom of the Tea Ceremony.
We studied simple Japanese words--greetings, numbers, and colors. We played games using these words; and, used the words as a regular part of the class.
We performed a Readers' Theater version of the book, The Drums of Noto Hanto . The teacher created the script from the book. We added a performance of percussion instruments.
The teacher read the stories: The Drums of Noto Hanto, The Samurai's Daughter, and The Three Samurai Cats.
We discussed the poetry of Japan. Three students read the Japanese style poetry of Vermont Poet David Budbill and of the Japanese Poet Kaneko Misuzu.
We discussed the teenage and kid culture of Japan: Yu gi oh, Pokeman, comic books, magazines in Japanese, toys.
The students were encouraged to attend the Matsuri of Japanese culture held at Saint Michael's college. They were given free admittance and badges.
All students attended and hosted/participated in our Japanese Night (see link).
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Here is a copy of the letter that I sent our to our parents updating them on our activities.
JAPAN CLUB UPDATE
May 3rd, 2005
Dear Parent Or Guardian,
Konnichiwa! This letter is to update you on what we have done in Japan Club and
to let you know what is next. Please note that you are always welcome to come
and visit our group at any time. We have already sampled green tea (both hot and
cold), Asian pears, wasabi chips (spicy!), miso soup, soy nuts, seaweed flavored
rice crackers, and oriental mix. Soon we will try a Japanese chocolate sweet
called "Pocky". Thanks to all of you who have contributed snacks or money
towards snacks--it’s been a big help! On May 17th and 18th we will try some
sushi for kids. This means that we will use rice, seaweed wrap, vegetables, and
fruit to create our rolls. (Sorry, we won’t actually use raw fish.) Are there
any parents out there who are good at creating sushi? I’ve never done it before
and wouldn’t mind any assistance.
We have attempted to learn basic greetings, numbers, and colors in Japanese. We
have sampled the Kyogen comic theater technique. We have learned about the
Japanese culture through a PowerPoint, videos, stories, and discussion. We have
learned how to use chopsticks with rice. The students have been given the
opportunity to dress up in traditional Japanese clothes and have their picture
taken. Now we are currently working on a reader’s theater version of the book ,
“The Drums of Noto Hanto” with added percussion. Soon, we will learn a little
about anime cartoons (Tuesday group), origami paper art (Wednesday group), and
sushi rolls. A number of our students will learn a choreographed ribbon dance to
be performed with the famous song, “Sakura”. Other students will prepare for a
Japan Night reading of Haiku poetry. Attached is a list of our Japan Night
plans.
Arigato (Thank You),
Wendy Bell
III. Japanese Night--see link for content