Skip to main content

Daniel- Japanese Elementary Schools

Japanese Elementary Schools [ 小学校 ] (Daniel)

As I had mentioned before, part of being a Hippo intern includes traveling to various elementary schools in Tokyo to give presentations about the HIPPO Family Club as well as multilingualism and multiculturalism.

A Typical Japanese Elementary School

Interestingly, multilingualism and multiculturalism is sort of a big deal in Japan. Japan is an ultra-homogeneous nation with a population that is 98.5% ethnically Japanese. 

Although Japanese study English, schools only focus on reading and writing. As a result, people don't have enough practice speaking and are too shy to try. Many of them are left believing that it is impossible to be proficient in more than one, maybe two, languages.

HIPPO members and I go to elementary schools to demonstrate that isn't true. Language acquisition is based on the language spoken in one's environment. If you create a multilingual environment, you will create a multilingual person. That is exactly what we do in HIPPO.

 Multiculturalism At Its Finest

During the school visits, I give a small presentation in English and in Japanese about my life in America. Although I don't know very much Japanese, I memorized the words of my presentation, to make it seem like I do. The children are surprised to hear me speak Japanese and try to talk to me afterward, thought I have no idea what they are saying.

 My friends and I


An interesting thing about Japanese schools is that you have to take your shoes off before you enter. The students put their shoes into these cubbies and change into their special school shoes.


There are also a bunch of rubber slippers, usually dark green, for visitors.


Wearing these green rubber slippers is no ordinary task for me.

My American Bigfoot Feet Don't Really Fit Into Japanese Slippers.
  

Oh well. At least they make a fun photo!

I have never been a famous, but I assume that it feels similar to what I experience in Japanese elementary schools. The kids crowd around me, hug me, tickle me, fight over who gets to hold my hand, all while yelling "Danieru! Danieru!" [my Japanese name.]

At one elementary school, the kids crowded around their classroom window to yell goodbye to me as I was leaving.




These kids are such cute little angels.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Maddie- The First of Many New Experiences

The First of Many New Experiences So, what have my first weeks been like in Japan? ABSOLUTELY BUSY! But, also...AMAZING! Truly, it has been a busy couple of weeks here, but not overwhelmingly so. Furthermore, I`d prefer to be kept busy! Too much free time = too much thinking = homesickness. By keeping a full, fun schedule, with some relaxing and downtime, I can keep engaged with my surroundings, make new friends, and stay sane. To prevent a wall of text, let me break down for you some of my recent activities. So far, I have: Presented about my life in Wisconsin to classes of middle school and elementary school students. Eaten kaiten-zushi, or conveyor belt sushi.  Been interviewed about my biggest surprise when I came to Japan (it`s bluntness in regards to appearance, people won`t hesitate to call someone fat, or tell you that you`ve gotten skinny since they last saw you. As I`ve seen it, it`s never been malicious, just matter-of-fact).  Post filming. To my ...

Daniel- Okutama

Okutama (Daniel) This past week, my eyes were opened to the fact that Japan is much more than a concrete jungle of lights and high-rise buildings. For the first time, I was able to head west to Okutama, a mountainous region on the west side of Tokyo Prefecture. Unlike the city, Okutma is covered with forest and greenery. The abundance of nature makes it a beautiful place to visit in the fall. Not too far from Okutama is Heirinji Zen Temple in Saitama, where I was blown away by the beauty of autumn in Japan. The purpose for my being in that area was to visit a kindergarten and to give a HIPPO presentation along with other HIPPO members. Among them was a younger gentleman nicknamed Tango, whom I hadn't met before. Tango and I got along very well, and he invited me on a hike, along with his friend, the next day. Tango's family owns a very quaint Soba restaurant in Okutama. The surrounding mountains and nature really give it a traditional Japanese feel. The three of u...

Stephanie-こんにちは!Konnichiwa! Hello!

こんにちは!Konnichiwa! Hello! My host sister Asuka and I in 小えど, Japan Hi everyone!  My name is Stephanie, but in Japan I've already been given the nickname  Su-chan  す-ちゃん    (su from Stephanie since the Japanese pronunciation is su-teh-fah-nee, and -chan is added to the end of a name when you are speaking to a younger person or a friend), so you can call me Su-chan! I am one of the five Hippo interns working in the LEX headquarters office in Tokyo this year. In addition to me, from Wisconsin, the intern team is made up of Tino from Mexico, Sakun and Ken Ken from China, and Hiu-chan from Korea. It's great to have such an international group!    Before coming to Japan I attended the University of Wisconsin and graduated with a degree in fine art. During that time I also worked for Wisconsin 4-H International Programs, which is how I first learned about Hippo through the 4-H/Hippo summer and yearlong exchanges. Last summer I had the opportun...