日本の地図　Map of Japan Jigsaw Puzzle

Here is a link to an online jigsaw puzzle – Map of Japan. Have a go. がんばってください。

だるまちゃんとてんぐちゃん　The Little Daruma and the Little Tengu – Term 2, 2012

The topic for Term 2, 2012, in Japanese is ‘Environment’ and we will focus on some aspects on recycling and reusing materials. We have already studied the book called もったいないばあさん(Mottainai Baasan, Stingy Grandma) and discussed what we can do to reduce wastes in our daily life.

Now, we are about to study the book だるまちゃんとてんぐちゃん(Daruma-chan to Tengu-chan, The Little Daruma and the Little Tengu by Satoshi Kako).

だるま Daruma: This roly-poly doll is regarded as a lucky charm in Japan. When you buy one, the eyes are left white. You colour in the left eye of the doll when you make a wish. Then, people put it on display in the house, shops, etc. When the wish comes true, the other eye is coloured in. Here is a little film based on a book called だるまさんが Daruma- san ga.

てんぐTengu: The Long-Nosed Goblins often appear in Japanese folk tales and they can change the length of their noses as they wish. Here is a link to a story of the Long-Nosed Goblin.

かぞく　Family

Learn a set of family words, i.e. dad, mum, etc., on the following website.

Click here!

You may wish to learn some more family words and try some games on the side. You can always refer to the word list below the main section. Click here!

Here is a link to a You Tube clip to learn some words for family members. Take a look.

Click HERE!

This is a link to a Kids Web Japan page ‘Introducint my family’.

While you are here, you might want to watch some more Japanese language learning videos.

Greetings/Introductions              Numbers            Introducing yourself in Japanese

ひなまつり Hinamatsuri – Dolls Day

In Japan, March 3rd is a day devoted to girls. On this occasion, a family wishes for their daughters’ health and happiness. A special set of dolls dressed in traditional costumes is displayed and girls often wear kimono. A family also enjoy special food to celebrate the day.

Here are some links for you to discover more about this special day, ひなまつり (Hinamatsuri).

Kids Web Japan – Hinamatsuri     Kids Web Japan- Manga/Cartoon

Origami dolls (1)     Origami dolls (2)     Hinamatsuri Song

Online Game (A simple ‘drag-and-drop’ game to decorate a whole set of Hina dolls. To start the game, click on the left button on the bottom of the page.Tip: Start decorating from the bottom shelf.)

Online Colouring-in (Click on the top button next to the main picture to start the activity. Once on the actual activity page, you need to click on the colour you want first on the right, then click on a section you want to colour in. More colours are available by clicking on different colours on the palette.)

Other activities

Sample Speeches – Assessment Task for Term 1, 2012 (Grades 3 to 6)

Each student is to give a speech in Japanese. Of course, we will work towards it over the next few weeks in class.

Here are four different samples of the Assessment Task for this term. While listening to the samples, think about the following points.

• What are the speeches about?
• Do I hear any words that I know? What are they?
• Do I notice anything? What?

日本のクリスマス　Christmas in Japan 2011

In Japan, Christmas is celebrated differently from Australia.

According to some sources, the number of Japanese Christians are less than 1% of the total population. Christmas Day is not a public holiday, but just a normal day. Shopping centres and streets may be decorated in the Christmas theme and Christmas sale may be on. You may hear endless medleys of Christmas carols everywhere. However, Christmas is not the time for families, but more for friends and/or colleagues to get together in Japan. Children may have a Christmas party at school with their classmates and teachers, just like here in Australia. It is common for the Japanese to celebrate Christmas (= have a party) with a feast of roast chicken (not turkey) on Christmas Eve. Christmas cake is very popular in Japan as part of the special feast, but it is very different from what you know as Christmas cake. Good children find their presents from Santa (サンタ, santa) on or near their beds in the morning of Christmas Day.

Here are some photos from Japan. You may have seen them before, but here they are.

Here is a link to a game from Japan. The aim of the game is to collect (that means ‘click on’) as many presents as possible as they appear in the windows. There are ‘damaged’ presents that you are not supposed to collect and there is a time limit. There are at least three stages. From Stage 2, you need to collect golden presents as well as wrapped presents. It seems that the game gets more difficult as you progress through the stages. You need a Flash Player on your computer to play this game.

Click here for the game, プレゼントをあつめよう！ゲーム.

たべもののたび　Digestive System

In the Japanese classroom, we are reading a book called たべもののたび (Tabemono no tabi, Journey of Food, by Satoshi Kako). This book explains what happens to the food that we eat.

Take a look at this website. This is a video that shows where the digestive organs are in our body.

  Click here

すもう Sumo

すもう, sumo, is a traditional Japanese sport and is very popular in Japan. Click here for more information about the sport. Find answers to the following questions.

1. What kind of sport is すもう, sumo?
2. What do you need to do to win a bout?
3. How did すもう start?

Watch a couple of すもう videos.

Video 1 : Sumo         Video 2: Could you be a Sumo wrestler?

You may want to play a game of virtual paper sumo wrestling on Kids Web Japan.

For paper sumo wrestling, here is a video showing you how to make an origami paper wrestler.

Enjoy!

七五三　Shichi-go-san

七五三, Shichi-go-san, is normally on 15 November every year and it is a day for children who are 7, 5 and 3 years old.

There is also a video clip (YouTube) you would like to watch.  What do you notice in this video? What is the most interesting thing about this event?

Find out more about this special day here (Kids Web Japan)!

Early Finishers – Online Activities

おめでとう！Congratulations! You have completed your Assessment Task!

While waiting for the rest of the class to finish their Assessment Task, you may wish to try some of the following online activities.

Learning Basic Japanese          Hiragana Practice Game

Japan Map Game (easy)             Japan Map Puzzle

Japanese Gesture Quiz               Spot the Mistakes

Kids TV            Travelling Around Japan         Origami

ふくわらい (Japanese style Pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey)

Of course, you can try these activities at home.  たのしんでください。