Saturday Japanese Class News
March 2013
1:
Class 1 - Ms. Ozeki
2:
Class 2 - Ms. Takakura
3:
Class 3 - Ms. Umehata
4:
Class 4 - Ms. Yamada
5:
Class 5 - Ms. Oota
6:
Class 6 - Ms. Sakamoto
March Theme : Hinamatsuri ( The Japanese Doll Festival or Girls' Day )
Class 1 - Ms. Ozeki
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Learn about the origins of the Girls' Day and develop an interest in Hinamatsuri, the Doll Festival
- Participate in Spring class presentation day; sing a song on the stage
- Review hiragana and write with proper writing pressure
Class Activities:
- Learn basic origami folding methods; origami craft Hina dolls
- Review hiragana with hiragana flash cards
- Memorize the lyrics of the song for the class presentation
Grammar & Vocabulary:
Collect words that include ま、み、む、め、も, and learn how to write those words in correct writing order
Class 2 - Ms. Takakura
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Learn about the origins of Hinamatsuri and enjoy related activities
- Practice reading "karuta uta" aloud for the class presentation
- Collect Katakana words and learn how to dictate them
Class Activities:
- Origami craft; Hinamatsuri dolls
- Practice reading "karuta uta" aloud
Grammar & Vocabulary:
ひなまつり ( Hinamatsuri ) March 3, Japanese Girl's Day
おびな ( Obina) Emperor doll
めびな ( Mebina ) Empress doll
ひなあられ ( Hina arare) Japanese salty cracker made specially for the Girls' Day
スキー ( ski ), セーター ( sweater ), ジュース ( juice ), バス ( bus ), ピーマン ( bell pepper )
Class 3 - Ms. Umehata
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Develop interest in Hinamatsuri (Girl’s Day)
- Actively participate in the class presentation practices
- Develop interest in the growth of the daikon plants and find joy in their growth
Class Activities:
- Hina doll making with origami
- Understand the meaning of Hinamatsuri
- Memorize lines for the class presentation
- Continue taking journals from the daikon observation
Grammar & Vocabulary:
- Vocabulary pertaining to Hinamatsuri
- Triangle, square, mountain fold, valley fold
- Length, centimeter, thickness
Class 4 - Ms. Yamada
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Learn the origin of Hinamatsuri (Girl’s Day March 3rd)
- Make a presentation with three sentences containing words from their own research
- Practice for class presentation
Class Activities:
- Hina doll making with Origami
- Search for fitting words in certain standard usage
- Compose three sentences from a word and explain the word from the sentences
Grammar & Vocabulary:
- Triangle, Square, Rectangle
- Girl’s Day vocabulary
- Tendon (Tempura bowls), Anpan (bread filled with Azuki bean paste) Ball, Cake
- “Nani-wa Donna-da” (describe the state (Donna) of a subject (Nani)
Class 5 - Ms. Oota
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Deepen the understanding of the Doll Festival, such as its historical origin and content
- Become familiar with interesting Japanese expressions and rhythms
- Learn to speak Japanese clearly and loudly
Class Activities:
- View actual Doll Festival decorations, such as bon-bori (paper lanterns)
- Study proverbs, idioms, and palindromes
- Practice the spring study presentation with palindromes
Grammar & Vocabulary:
- Dairi, Bon-bori
“Neko ni koban,” “Mimi ga itati,” and “Ta bu n bu ta”
Class 6 - Ms. Sakamoto
Specific Lesson Goals:
- Learn the origin of the Doll Festival, and compare the differences between the present day seasonal references and the ones found in the lunar calendar, which was used at the time when the Doll Festival was originated.
- Read Tenchi no Fumi by Yukichi Fukuzawa, and learn the differences between the Japanese calendar and western calendar, which was introduced to Japan in the Meiji Period.
- Choose the theme for the spring study presentation and start preparation
Class Activities:
- Research the name of the month in the lunar calendar for each student’s birth month
- Read aloud poems by Saigyou
- Practice listening comprehension using CDs for teaching Japanese
- If suitable for this week’s lesson goals, read Tensei Jingo
Grammar & Vocabulary:
- Conditional expression, “~tara”
- “~bakari” “nothing but” = “dake”
- ~tokoro (in the middle of)
- Know/don’t know when, where, who, etc. (noka wakaru, wakaranai)