Students write a compare and contrast essay. In this writing skills lesson, students learn about life in Japan through a video of a Japanese third grader. Students use notes written on the video to write a four-paragraph...

In this ESL worksheet, students read or listen to an article about increasing violence in Japanese elementary schools. Students complete all or some of the 100 activities available here including discussion, listening, vocabulary and...

First graders develop a connection with students in a first grade classroom in Japan. They begin to develop a curiosity about Japan--the landscape, the people, and their culture, while developing an understanding of the Five Themes of...

Young scholars descirbe everyday events typical in the lives of contemporary, young, Japanese school-age children and understand some of the underlying reasons for various practices. They see that Japan and the state of Washington have...

Young scholars use the internet to gather information on the Japanese Gardens. They discuss topics with a horticulturist and build a replica of the gardens at their school. They work together to identify different types of plants.

First graders use literature, maps, and globes to explain how physical environments in various parts of the world are similar to and different from one's own, and that certain areas have common characteristics and can be called regions.

High schoolers, while studying the "day-in-the-life photographs" of a Deai student, compare and contrast the lives and activities of Kojiro, one other Deai student and themselves. Sequential order plays an important role within this...

This compelling plan based on the letters in the book Dear Miss Breed engages readers in learning what it was like for Japanese Americans following the attacks at Pearl Harbor. After reading the letters, young scholars will...

Introduce "The Inn of Lost Time" by Lensey Namioka to your middle schoolers with a reader's resource page. It includes links to different activities, including a creative writing prompt about losing fifty years of your life, and a...

Bridge to Terabithia is a story about friendship that brings magic into ordinary life. Study guides may not be magical, but the guided questions, graphic organizers, extension activities, vocabulary, and discussion questions help...

Students listen to a story and view Japanese artifacts. They use the internet to explore the writings known as Hiragana. They create their own Japanese pictionaries and share them with the class.

First drafted in the year 996, The Pillow Book contains reflections of those met by a lady-in-waiting in the Japanese court. A brief summary, historical context, and discussion questions are provided on the first two pages. Then, two...

Students write from differing points of view, and act out stories in pantomime as another student narrates.

This A Boy At War PowerPoint introduces the historical context of the novel and information about the novel's author. Facts and trivia about Pearl Harbor that are relevant to the novel's plot are reviewed. Historical photos and a map of...

High schoolers discover through an examination of The Tale of Genji the importance of calligraphy to courtship rituals in the Japanese court culture of the late Heian period ( 897-1185). Three possible enrichment activities are included

Learners discover the techniques of creating Japanese Tanka poetry through in-class discussions and a fun group competition. This lesson is an excellent introduction to Japanese literature and/or poetry.

Students complete cross-curricular activities to study the culture and humanity in Japan. Students read the book Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes and complete social studies and art lessons related to the book as well as develop an...

In this Kobe Bryant worksheet, students read a selection about the athlete's life, then complete a variety of comprehension activities. An answer key is included.

Students investigate the life and work of the Japanese poet, Matsuo Basho as the Japanese poetic forms are studied. Nature, symbolism, and history are probed as the lesson is developed.

Twelfth graders research the history to Haiku Poetry. They read classical haiku to comprehend their special sensibility and form. Students encounter the Buddhist philosophical background of this poetry and its roots. They write original...

Learners look at how animals are shown in literature and art as representing emotions, telling a story, or sending a message in this elementary school Language Arts and Visual Arts instructional activity.

Students examine the principles of Haiku as they relate to idealss found in Zen Buddhism in this High School lesson plan. The lesson plan concludes with the creation of individual haikus by each student.

Students practice the art of storytelling by examining scroll writing techniques of Asia and applying them to a monthly story of their own classroom. This lesson is in two parts (Part II continues throughout the school year).

Have your class explore the effects of war by reading Eleanor Coerr's story, "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes." This is a story about a sixth grader who lives in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb is dropped. Learners answer questions,...