Introduction to Japan: Introduction to Japan: Middle SchoolMiddle School

The Institute for Japanese StudiesThe Institute for Japanese Studies

Where is Japan?Where is Japan?

National holidaysNew Year's Day: January 1

Coming of Age Day: January 15 (for those 20 years old)

Foundation Day: February 11 (founding of Japanese State)

Vernal Equinox: March 21

Keep Japan Green Day: April 29 (remember Emperor Showa)

Constitution Day: May 3 (celebrate Japan's constitution)

Children's Day: May 5

Respect for the Aged: September 15

Autumn Equinox: September 24

Health Sports Day: October 10

Culture Day: November 3 (celebrate Japan's heritage)

Labor-Thanksgiving Day: November 23

Emperor's Birthday: December 23

 

Japanese money

http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A1%E3%82%A4%E3%83%AB:JPY_coin1.JPG

http://sakutomo.cocolog-wbs.com/himitu/images/osatu.jpg

Age Grade Educational establishments

3-4Kindergarten

( 幼稚園 Yōchien)

Special school( 特別支援学校 Tokubetsu-shien

gakkō)

4-5

5-6

6-7 1

Elementary school( 小学校 Shōgakkō)

Compulsory Education

7-8 2

8-9 3

9-10 4

10-11 5

11-12 6

12-13 1 Junior high school / Lower secondary school

( 中学校 chūgakkō)Compulsory Education

13-14 2

14-15 3

15-16 1 High school / Upper secondary

school( 高等学校

kōtōgakkō, abbr. 高校 kōkō)

College of technology

( 高専 kōsen)

16-17 2

17-18 3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Japan

Education in Japan

School Calendar: April 1 – School Calendar: April 1 – March 31March 31

• April 6 Opening Ceremony• April 9 Welcome Party• April 22-23 Health Examination• May 20-25 Midterms• June 4 Sports Festival• July 1-6 Final Examinations• July 7 Proficiency Test• July 17 Closing Ceremony• July-August Summer Camp

Example: Takashima High School (Tokyo, Japan) 2009:

•September 1 Opening Ceremony•October 20-23 Midterms•November 24-26 School Trips•December 7-10 Final Examinations•February 19 Proficiency Tests•March 2-5 End of Year Exams•March 8-9 Ball Games•March 13 Graduation Ceremony•March 25 Convocation Graduation Ceremony for new students

Junior High SchoolsJunior High SchoolsAttendance for the three years of junior high school education is

compulsory. More than 90 percent of junior high schools are public coeducational institutions.

Each year students are assigned to a homeroom with a maximum of 40 students (the average in 2006 was 30.4), with whom they take their classes.

The standard curriculum includes the following required subjects:Japanese language Music

Social studies Fine Arts

Mathematics Health & Physical Education

Science Industrial Arts or Homemaking

Foreign language elective (almost always English)

The Lives of Japanese Elementary The Lives of Japanese Elementary Students:Students:Grade 6-1Grade 6-1

Let’s look at the life of a typical student in 6th grade at a Junior High School in Tokyo.

http://www.tjf.or.jp/shogakusei/6-1/donna/ichinichi_e.htm

The Lives of Japanese Elementary The Lives of Japanese Elementary Students:Students:

Grade 6-1: Our TownGrade 6-1: Our TownOur town is in the middle of Tokyo. Even though

it’s in a large city, the town we live in is a quiet residential area. You can buy anything you need at our big supermarket and convenience stores. Shopping is very convenient in our town.

There is a lot of traffic even in the residential area. The number of accidents was increasing, so they recently put up a lot of new guardrails and traffic lights. 

The town has various public facilities, like the library and the jidokan (children’s recreation center). There’s also a large park with a stream where we can play in the summertime.   

Walking to schoolWalking to school

"Good morning."Here we are, everyone going into the school.

We get to school between 8:15 and 8:25.

For most of us,it’s about a ten-minute walk.

SchoolSchoolOur school was founded in 1951 and covers an area of 6,195 square meters. The school building is a “g” shape and surrounds the school field. The northern side is three stories high, and the eastern side is four stories high. The gym and the pool are on the western side of the school field. When we have nice weather, we can play on the roof.

There are about 500 students at our school. The school field is not very big but it has four large gingko trees, the hallmark of our school. There is also an animal shed where we keep chickens, rabbits, and pigeons.

School: MapSchool: Map

http://www.tjf.or.jp/shogakusei/6-1/donna/ichinichi_e.htm

Entering SchoolEntering School

"My uwabaki have gotten too small!"

These are the shoe lockers where we keep our shoes. When we get to school, we take off our sotogutsu (street shoes) and put on our uwabaki (indoor shoes). So as to help keep the school clean, we don’t wear our street shoes indoors.

Entering School – Rainy DaysEntering School – Rainy Days

On rainy days, we put our umbrellas in the umbrella stand in the entrance.

Our TeacherOur Teacher

Our teacher is a woman. She was our homeroom teacher for 5th grade, too.  

Our teacher comes to school every morning on her electric bicycle. She sometimes forgets to bring things to school and messes up, but she’s strict about classroom behavior and is always really enthusiastic. She is also very good at playing the piano, and plays accompaniment for us during ongaku chokai (musical morning homeroom). 

Our teacher loves buying things on bargain and brags to everyone about things she has bought cheap. She often buys materials we use in class at a 100-yen shop. 

Miyazawa Sensei

Grade 6-1: Our ClassGrade 6-1: Our Class

Our class of 28 students is made up of 14 boys and 14 girls.  We call each other by our nicknames so that we can get to know each other better. We decided on our nicknames during homeroom. During homeroom we also agreed on three class goals that we try to achieve.

We try hard to cooperate with each other in everything we do. This way, we come up with a lot of good ideas. It’s a fun class where both boys and girls get along really well.

Our GoalsOur Goals

Goals: 1. Think before you act

If our teacher is late for asa no kai (morning homeroom) because of a meeting, we find a way to make good use of the time.

2. Be thoughtful and kindIf someone is having trouble, we help out by lending a hand.

3. Express your viewsNobody should be embarrassed about making mistakes. The classroom is a safe place to make mistakes, so we don’t have to be afraid to say what we think.

Hallway

We hang bags for our white smocks for lunch duty and for our gym clothes on hooks in the hallway in front of the classrooms.

ClassClass SignsSigns

Sixth graders in a previous class made class signs for each class. Each sign is different so they're fun to look at.

School BadgesSchool Badges

Students in Grade 6 Class 1 wear badges of our own choosing with our school badges.

I wear a badge of a picture of a temple for good luck.

Student LockersStudent Lockers

Each student has a locker, where we put our randoseru ("school satchel" or backpack usually made of sturdy leather) and other belongings.

Inside each homeroom

Student Desk Student Desk Our equipment box is

like a drawer. We put scissors, glue, and cellophane tape in one, and our textbooks in the other. Everyone has equipment boxes.

Message for the DayMessage for the Day

Every morning, our teacher writes a message to us on the board so that we know what we'll be doing that day.

Message for the DayMessage for the Day

Each kakari (person-in-charge) writes announcements on the blackboard in the back of the classroom.

Fish Tank

We’re raising killifish in our classroom. There were twenty fish when we were in fifth grade, but now there are only three.

ClassesClasses

• "Pick me!"In class, we raise our hands when we know the answer to the teacher's questions. We stand up and answer the teacher when she calls on us.

Homework ListsHomework Lists

We are assigned kanji worksheets for homework everyday. Only those who choose to work on kanji workbooks and math workbooks do so. On days when we have tests, we correct our mistakes for homework. If we forget our homework, our grades go down a little bit.

Kanji Tests

We havehave a kanji test every Tuesday, Everyone is writing away!

By the end of 6th grade, we have to know 1,006 Kanji Characters.

Three Types of Writing

• Kanji: 山、川、木、火、月

• Hiragana: 　あ、い、う、え、お

• Katakana: 　ア、イ、ウ、エ、オ

Kanji 　（漢字）

Kanji 　（漢字）

Katakana

安　

以

宇

Kanji Hiragana

あ　

い

う

ア　

イ

ウ

School LunchSchool Lunch

We eat in our han (group). Washing our hands before lunch. Every classroom has a sink.

School LunchSchool Lunch

Pushing the wagon that has been transported from the school kitchen back to the classroom.

Be careful, it’s hot.” ”It looks yummy"Certified cooks make our lunches in the school kitchen. Students on lunch duty are in charge of serving. They put on white smocks and white bonnets.Every week, han (working group) made up of five or six students take turns on lunch duty. The lunch duty students bring the lunch trucks to the classroom and serve the rest of us as we line up with our trays.

School LunchSchool Lunch

Our school lunch. On this day, we had coffee milk, which is served about once a month.

Cleaning up after lunch.

CleaningCleaningAfter lunch, we take about twenty minutes and do the cleaning up together. We move all the desks to the back of the classroom, sweep the floor, and wipe it with mop cloths (zokin).

We also clean the blackboard and wipe the desks.

We clean our classrooms and the hallways in front of our classrooms starting in 1st grade. The 5th and 6th graders also clean the special classrooms. Grade 6 Class 1 is in charge of cleaning the science room.

This is the cleaning duty wheel. We turn it once a week.

Gym ClassGym ClassOne, two, three, four."This is physical education class. We're warming up in the gym.We have PE class in the gym or the school field. We change into our gym uniforms and red and white caps before class. Even in the winter our gym clothes are short-sleeved T-shirts and shorts. At the beginning of the class, the PE kakari leads the warm-up exercises.

Art RoomArt Room

• From 4th grade, an art teacher teaches us art in this room. We draw pictures and do crafts.

Home EconomicsHome Economics

• From 5th grade, we take home economics classes here. In home economics class we learn to sew and to cook.

Computer RoomComputer Room

• There are a lot of computers. We use the Internet to look up information, and use a word processing program to write research papers.

Integrated StudiesIntegrated Studies

We have the integrated-studies period starting in 3rd grade. In groups or individually we do things that we think will be good for our school and our community. For a graduation project, the 6th graders do research on environmental problems and care for the elderly.

Science ClassScience Class

• "Don’t spill." "I know!"This is science class. We are doing an experiment in groups to separate salt from salt water. Starting in 4th grade we sometimes use the science room for experiments in science class.

Break TimeBreak Time"Go!""Get in!"We are playing double-dutch in the school field during recess. Double-dutch is a game where two people turn two ropes, and other people jump over the ropes, one by one. Because it’s really hard, the ropes get tangled easily and we can only get about two or three jumps in at one go.

Breaks between classes are usually ten minutes long. The break between the second and third periods is recess, and lasts twenty minutes. During this break everybody goes out to the school field to play soccer, basketball, jump rope, or use the playground equipment

Break TimeBreak Time

Freeze Tag Sharing Tea

Talking about TV Dramas

Monthly DrillsMonthly Drills• I don't want to do any drills!"

"We've got to be prepared, so, come on, let’s be serious."Here we are, after practicing evacuation of the school buildings, waiting for everybody to finish lining up in the school field. We aren't allowed to take our bosai zukin (a protective hood made of heavy quilted material) off until everybody is lined up.Schools in our area have drills once a month.

There are two kinds of drills: earthquake drills and fire drills. In an earthquake drill we first crouch under our desks. In a fire drill, we cover our mouths with our handkerchiefs so we don't breathe in any smoke. After listening to the directions on the school broadcasting system, we put on the bosai zukin that we have hanging on the backs of our chairs and evacuate to the school field. Then we count the number of people to make sure everyone is accounted for. We record the time it takes for everyone to line up and try to beat that time at the next drill.

Monthly DrillsMonthly Drills

Teacher’s OfficeTeacher’s Office

 This is where the teachers work. When we enter the teachers’ office, we knock and say "Shitsurei shimasu" (Excuse me.)

School Kitchen School Kitchen This is where they make our lunches. The certified cooks do their best when they make our meals. We're always excited to see what’s for lunch.

Principal’s Office Principal’s Office

• The principal is writing something.

• Photographs of past principals are hanging on the wall.

Nurse’sNurse’s Room

When we get hurt or sick at school, this is where we come to get first aid or rest until we feel better.

After SchoolAfter School

• After school lets out, students pass the time in a variety of different ways. There are still many students who either play with their friends on campus, at parks, and at home, or attend cram school or study. For students whose parents work, there are also clubs that take care of students after school.

Tutoring schools and cram Tutoring schools and cram schoolsschools

Cram schools focus strictly on preparing students for university entrance examinations.

 

Academic tutoring schools have a more general goal of helping students keep up with and go beyond their regular school work, although exam preparation is frequently emphasized.

Attended by: – 39% of public elementary school students – 75% of public junior high school students– 55% of private junior high school students

Thank You !