Pop Culture Passion: Armored Crysanthemum

In as far as memes can be considered pop culture, I'd like to present my favorite meme from Japan. First a little history. Following the massive earthquake earlier this year, most advertisers chose to pull their commercials to allow for longer, and in some cases continuous, coverage of the disaster. As such, most of the commercials that were left to air came directly from the Japanese Advertising Council, or AC. One such advertisement was the "Greetings Are Magic" campaign, which aimed to encourage Japanese youth to use proper everyday greetings. Here is the original in it's entirety.

Not long after, some enterprising individual, no doubt feeling a certain special something was missing from these commercials, posted this video on Nico Nico Douga. In it, one of the animal mascots leaps out of frame and transforms into a giant robot. Inspired by the hand drawn awesomeness of the first video, several others soon followed. Here are a few of my favorites.
This meme is referred to as either the Hard Lined Armored Empire or Armored Chrysanthemum (AC). It has naturally expanded a bit from the original commercials to include things such as fake anime openings and episode previews. Despite the more serious tone of these clips, I believe the idea that these animal robots are supposed to be helping children make friends has gone unchanged.

Elementary Poster

Saw a rather amusing poster about proper eating habits at my school this week. It features a comic in which a boy is steadily losing ground against his rival due to missing too many meals.


I like this frame in particular because of the way it's arranged with the folded piece of paper revealing the protagonist's score without it being said outright. I also enjoy how everyone who isn't a key player in this scenario is rendered as a simplified blob, giving a literal element to the protagonist's state of mind. To him, only he and his rival matter, with all else falling to the background.


Nothing says crushing defeat in Japan like losing a soccer game. I like the expression on his face after he fails to block the shot.


But the best part by far is the protagonist's anthropomorphic brain letting out a mighty yell as he eats. Just try to ignore the fact that this poor kid's brain has just punched two holes in his skull.


I like the notion of using cartoons to relay important messages to kids, so long as it isn't as heavy handed as some of the PSA's I've seen elsewhere. It allows for an expressiveness and freedom that is simply lacking in simple photographs or information packets.

Photo Friday: Sports Day Mascot

Every year, the sports day teams paint a mascot that is judged as part of the competition. This year, the white team chose Keisuke Honda, a famous Japanese soccer player. I joined a few of their after school painting sessions and managed to get this picture. Sadly, I couldn't get a good one of the opposing team's picture of Napoleon. The picture they chose appears on the linked Wikipedia entry under the "French Consulate" heading. I'll try to get a good shot of it come sports day.

Cursive Writing

I saw Mirei write her name in cursive on the board before science class today. After lunch, I asked her if she could write it for me again. She was really shy about showing me at first, but her writing was really good. Misato and Mei also wanted to learn how to write their names. We proceeded to spend the rest of teeth brushing time and most of recess practicing everyone's names, both first and last. All of them wrote their names in their journals and wanted to show me and see if it was alright.


This whole exchange had nothing to do with what we're learning about in class right now, but it was still a lot of fun. Due to Misato's avid interest in English, this time of the day has sort of turned into an impromptu class. Regardless of what we're doing, she'll ask me about relevant English words. Case in point, last week we were collecting bugs to feed to the school's fish and I taught the kids a good number of bug related words. Add in Mirei's boundless energy and Mei's quiet genius and it makes for some really great moments.

Children's Games: Cops and Robbers

Today, my entire fourth grade class organized a game for recess so we could all play together. First, they took suggestions of games we could play, followed by voting. The game we ended up playing was cops and robbers, though it took an awful lot of explaining and the fortuitous fact that my kids knew the word "police" despite me never teaching it to them. Basically, the game was a variation on tag, where tagged people had to go to the sandbox, or jail, until they were rescued by their friends.



There's kind of a standing rule at this school about how fast I'm allowed to run. It's a brisk enough pace to get me tired, but not so fast that catching me is impossible. One student was super excited about catching me twice. I played with them for the whole recess period and when we finished, they asked if I had fun playing with them, which I totally did. I have great students!

Children's Games: Janken Variant

For a good thirty minutes of tonight's kendo practice, I didn't actually practice kendo. Instead, me and the two girls who had showed up played a variation of janken, or rock, paper, scissors. I'd seen them play it before, but hadn't payed close enough attention to the specifics. Basically, the winner of any given game gets to advance a certain number of steps based on what they won with. Winning with paper gets you パ-イ-ナ-ツ-プ-ル (pa-i-na-tsu-pu-ru) or six steps. Scissors is チ-ヨ-コ-レ-イ-ト (chi-yo-ko-re-i-to), another six steps. Finally, rock is グ-リ-コ (gu-ri-ko) which means only three steps. The goal, for us anyway, was to be the first to make it across the dojo and back again. I realized pretty early on that the respective words began with the same sound as the object that won. For example, rock is "gu", hence the reason that every game of janken starts with 最初はぐ literally "first is rock". It took me much longer to realize we were spelling the words pineapple, chocolate, and Glico, the Japanese chocolate company. It was a strange but very amusing game that I thought I'd share it with everyone.

Well, the first thing I do is...

Recently, my friend and fellow ALT posted about her schedule and her various schools’ expectations and methods of approaching her about classes. I thought this would make a nice entry myself. So for all of you curious about what, exactly, a day in the life of an ALT is like, here is a rundown of a typical day for me:

7:00- Wake up

8:00- Leave for school

8:15- Arrive at school. In the strictest sense I’m supposed to be at school at 8:30, but I’ve found that most schools want me present at the morning meeting, despite being able to understand very little of what they are discussing.

9:00-12:30- Class time. Most of my mornings are spent at the elementary schools and I can have anywhere from two to four classes a day. Most of my schools that have me teach 1st-4th grade limit the class time to about 10 or 15 minutes while 5th and 6th constitute an entire 45-minute period. When I’m not teaching I do one of four things: plan for class, attend other classes, study for the JLPT, or write. Of those, I prefer going to other classes. There’s time elsewhere in my day for studying and writing and most of my lessons are already planned well in advance.

12:40-1:15- Lunch and teeth brushing. All but one of my schools has a lunchroom, which I’ve gathered is somewhat odd in Japan. Usually, students sit in groups by grade level, though there is one school that divides them into mixed groups. Some schools have me on a rotation that they’ve determined, ensuring I spend time with every grade or group equally, while others let me pick where to sit. Immediately following lunch is teeth brushing time. I brush my teeth with whichever group I had lunch with.

1:15-1:45- Recess. I try to stick with the grade I ate lunch with for recess, but the kids usually break off to do various things anyway and other students often approach me about playing with them instead. Popular recess activities include tag, jump rope, seesaw, soccer, hide and seek, and basketball. There are also a bunch of kids who want me to spin them, give them piggyback rides, or let them hang off my arms. Recess is usually the best part of any day.

1:45-1:55- Travel to junior high.

1:55-2:10- Cleaning time. Students in Japan are responsible for cleaning their own classrooms, a task I try to help them with every day. Just as with lunch, I try to visit various classes and areas to help them clean throughout the week. The kids usually have me sweep and move desks, though I’ve occasionally cleaned the board and washed windows. Once a week, we clean the floors with wet rags. I think the kids like me helping with that, as it’s probably the most physically demanding activity. Cleaning time is a good time for the kids to get a little English practice in or learn a few new words like cleaning, broom, etc.

2:20-4:10- More classes. It’s seemingly random whether or not I’ll have a junior high class on any given day, but I’m given a schedule for the week so there are never any surprises. Junior high classes are worlds apart from elementary. I’m always T2, or assistant, at the junior high and while I’ve made a few worksheets for class, I’m not responsible in any way for their planning or implementation. Honestly, I prefer elementary over junior high, though I know some have the opposite mindset. The same things about free time apply to this part of my day as well, though I’m a bit more likely to eschew classes for study or writing.

4:10-4:30- Prepare for sports activities. During this time, my students are having their last homeroom class. I use the time to get my things packed and change into sportswear.

4:10-???- Club activities. Depending on the time of year and a number of other factors, club activities can run anywhere from 5:30 to 7:00. On Mondays and Tuesdays, I have to leave around 5:30 for my study session and elementary kendo respectively. I don’t do club activities Friday, as I have to drive out to Kuratake to get Amanda from the port. I rotate which club I go to every day. With seven clubs, this means I visit each one about once every week and a half.

6:00-???- Evening activities. On Tuesdays, I practice kendo with the elementary kids until 8:00. Monday’s study session is “scheduled” until 9:00, but we’ve been calling it a night around 8:30. With a twenty-minute drive back home, this usually means I get back home around 9:00 anyway.

???-11:30- Me time. Depending on the day, I’ll get home anywhere from just after 4:00 to 9:00. My house is in a constant state of ruin, so I try my best to tidy it up a bit. I chat with Amanda over Skype every night. I may also read manga, study, write, watch TV, etc.

11:30- Sleep. I remember a time when I could stay up until 2:00 or 3:00 and be fine the next day, but no longer. I’d feel old if I didn’t know my exhaustion was from running around with spastic children all day.

So, there you have it. I don’t know if my experience is what you would call average, but with so many different positions and ALT personalities, I don’t really think there is such a thing. I’m just trying to make the best of the time I have left here and while the work is exhausting, it’s very rarely boring. I love my job!

Study Time

Monday nights are study nights with Anne and Emily from 6 to 9. We've picked out a few local restaurants with ample space for our books and things. Tonight we studied at Honey. I try to get through two pages each session. It's nice to have a set time to do these kinds of things. I like structure.


Emily is studying for the level one JLPT test, meaning her Japanese is much better than mine. It's nice to have her there to answer my innumerable questions. Her setup includes a small computer, an electronic pocket dictionary, and a few old JLPT tests.


I don't believe Anne is actually taking the JLPT this summer, but she nevertheless has study material for the level 5 test. Anne can speak and read Chinese, so I think the kanji is a little bit easier for her, though she has to relearn some meanings and pronunciations.


I'm studying for level 3 of the JLPT, so we have a pretty balanced group. But you can't focus all of a three hour session on studying. Here's a piece of paper sitting atop my book that soon became a small pig for Emily. Origami is a nice distraction.

Zero Context: Snow Days

Not even sure when exactly these were taken...

Photo Friday: Mos Burger Notebook

A while back, we found a communication note sitting at our table at Mos Burger. We flipped through the pages, reading a few of the messages and marveling at how awesome some of the art was. Then, we added our own messages to it. Here's mine:


Emily's:


And finally Amanda's


We went back a few weeks later and looked at the notebook again. One person had actually responded to my question with "of course". It was pretty cool.

Short Anecdotes From "Last Week"

Last week saw two rather strange events take place one after the other. When I came to the junior high, I rushed up to help 3-A with their cleaning time. On that day, they were cleaning the windows as well as the floor. One of my students got the great idea of standing on the window ledge to clean the tops of the windows. So far, nothing out of the ordinary as I had seen several kids do the same. He then decided to try and clean the outside of the windows by putting one foot on the outer ledge. This was a bit more alarming to me and I tried to tell him it was dangerous. These kinds of things are tricky, though, when you’re not used to having to discipline the kids in any capacity. He didn’t keep it up for long, returning back to the inner windowsill. Then one of girls closed the windows he was working on, which through off his balance. Before I had time to react in any way, he had toppled over backwards onto another student. His foot smacked one of the desks and, worst of all, he had spilled all the water they had used to clean the floor. The kids frantically grabbed as many students’ rags as they could and tried to clean up the mess. It took a good ten minutes of soaking and squeezing to get the floor dry again. Even after cleaning time was over, one of the girls was still working on wiping up the mess her classmate had made. I chipped in for the cleaning effort once I made sure everyone was all right. Hopefully, my students learned a valuable lesson from this fiasco.

Immediately after that was over, I had a far less dangerous yet far more bizarre experience. I came across a number of my second graders acting as they usually do, which is a little crazy to be honest. Ren had gotten a hold of Shoko’s shoe, which she proudly told me in English. I walked on to the second grade class and had a few short conversations with the students before returning to the teacher’s room. On my way there, I was joined by Shoko, who was still shoeless, as well as Saki, Ms. Mori, and a few others. I asked Shoko what happened to her shoe, pointing to help make my meaning clear. I asked if Ren had taken it, but she pointed instead to Saki, who pointed down at her right foot. I asked Saki what she had done with her shoe, and she pointed down at her foot again. Upon closer inspection, I found that Saki had put Shoko’s shoe on over her own. Why she would want to do this is still a mystery to me. I left them as they were, with Shoko having to hop the rest of the way to their next class.

Sports Stuff

As a large part of my becoming familiar with my students revolves around activities outside of class, I’ve noticed that certain types of kids are attracted to certain after school sports. This is largely conjecture on my part, but it seems that you can tell a lot from a student based off what sport they like to play. At Ariake Middle School, we have seven different club activities that I will briefly discuss: tennis, girl’s volleyball, boy’s volleyball, soccer, baseball, kendo, and music.

My all girl tennis team plays soft tennis, which is a bit different than the tennis you usually see on TV in a number of small ways. I’m not sure if the team is female exclusive by design or if, like a nearby high school, it just happened to become populated by enough girls to drive the boys to other sports. The girls who play tennis tend to be some of my strongest students. As tennis is the least demanding of the sports for girls, I think it attracts those students who want to belong to a sports club but don’t want it to be too demanding. Don’t get me wrong, the exercise routine these girls go through is still insane, but in terms of lap counts and amount of exercise required, it still falls short of volleyball. The overall impression I get from the club is that it’s populated with academically minded students. This is also the club where somewhat introverted or disinterested students tend to congregate.

Girl’s volleyball is where my genki (energetic) girls go. Their workouts are a bit more demanding and their practice slightly more complex than tennis. Highlighting their aptitude for exercise is not to say they aren’t smart, as my single highest graded student is a member, it’s just not the first thing I think of about the group as a whole. This club is also filled with some of the most polite and engaging students I have. Here is where I find my really good communicators, those students who may not know as much textbook English, but don’t shy away from trying to talk to me regardless. A lot of natural born leaders are in this group too. The downside is that this is the club where I’ve heard the most instances of bullying. I suppose the same factors that produce self-confidence can also lead to some butting of heads from time to time.

Boy’s volleyball follows a similar pattern as the girl’s, with a lot of polite and energetic kids. Sadly, this is the smallest of the clubs for boys and, in a reversal from the girl’s team, I think it’s actually the least demanding of the boy’s sports. Some of the first boys whose names I actually memorized were from this group, as they are among my better students.

Soccer is probably the hardest for me to really peg down. As far as my experiences with the team go, they tend to be good at communicating ideas and do a lot more showing than speaking when trying to convey something to me. At worst, they will shake their heads and tell me that English is impossible when I try and talk to them. The goalkeeper showed me how to do the warm up exercises and the only words he used were “come on” and it was still comprehensible. A few of my enthusiastic yet disruptive kids are also in this club. They’re excited about English class, but constantly interrupt or are noisy. I suppose overall I’d call this group middle-of-the-road in most aspects.

Baseball is where my showmen go. Many of the conversations I’ve had with these boys are about how good they are at baseball or any number of activities: whose the best batter, the best catcher, the best runner. One of the boys repeatedly tells me he is the MVP of any team he is a part of. They are really entertaining and they use English alright when it comes to things they are excited about, but they are some of my lowest students academically. All the same, being a bit brash means being outgoing and these kids tend not to shy away from English conversation, even if what they’re saying makes no sense whatsoever.

Kendo is the only club at my school that currently has boys and girls on the team. Similarly, I feel it attracts a variety of kids, but there are still a number of similarities between them. The first and most obvious is that kendo students are students for life. Without exception, every one of my current students has been practicing kendo since they were first graders in elementary school, or even earlier in some cases. Kendo also seems to be a family thing. If there is one member of the family that does kendo, chances are all their siblings do too. I also get a sense that, no matter what the student’s personal traits are, be they shy or outgoing, they have the most respect for authority. I think this is a result of kendo having clearly delineated levels of proficiency. Though everyone progresses as they play a sport and seniority plays a factor across the board, only kendo has ranks and those with higher ranks are naturally looked upon to lead. I feel these kids understand that the same principle can be applied to life experience and are always courteous to the teachers.

Music, unsurprisingly, are where the high achieving academics tend to be. Though I say this with all of three members on my schools team, they are without a doubt some of my best kids. Music also tends to attract the really introverted kids. In this case, I’m not talking about merely shy students, but those who do not talk at all and are occasionally prone to panic attacks in social situations. A good deal of the students who used to be in the music club are now club refusers and it wouldn’t surprise me if a number of the incoming first graders repeat this pattern next year.

Of course, there are a number of other factors that determine what club a student joins. I know a few who don’t have any interest in sports and only play because their friends are on the team. This is just meant to be my general observations of the clubs after a year of practicing and interacting with them. If you’re an ALT, teacher, or sports enthusiast and have noticed a similar, or completely different, trend in your clubs, I’d be really interested to hear your thoughts on the subject.

Pop Culture Passion: Mugenbines

Mugenbines are essentially Japan’s answer to construction toys like Legos or Kinex. The name Mugenbine is a combination of the words mugen, meaning infinite, and combine. Each toy consists of a bunch of interchangeable parts that can be combined to form various creatures, usually animals. Currently, they are released in series of six that can be combined to form larger figures. The larger figures are usually deities or heroes.

My first set was Egyptian themed and included things like a sphinx and an alligator. The combined figure is Anubis.

I really like the chains on his arms.

The later sets in this line had secondary releases of even smaller animals that could be combined into dragons or added to the big figure as armor. I think the blue dragon is my favorite. It was sold alongside the European mythical creature set.

In a surprising display of foresight by the creators, the last figure in the line was Mugen Satan, an antagonist for the previous six sets formed from “evil” creatures each representing one of the last six themes.

He looks suspiciously like Oda Nobunaga from the Sengoku Basara games with his gun and sword. I’m assuming this is not a coincidence.

I like the freedom toys like this offer. You can tear apart the official combinations and make whatever you want. Though Muginbines are not as basic as Legos and thus limit your options somewhat, there have nevertheless been some incredible original designs. On the negative side, because the official combinations use all the pieces from the smaller figures, there are a lot of oddly placed or unnecessary parts on the larger figures. For example, the bug head on the dragon's tail.

Also, these sets used a lot of stickers that tend to not stay on very well.

Thankfully, that nuisance has been corrected for the most recent series.

If you’re into things like Transformers or Super Sentai Mecha or toys like Legos, I’d recommend Mugenbines. They are fun, inexpensive toys with a lot of play value.

10 things Japan Will Do To Me

As I am returning stateside permanently come July, I thought it appropriate to post a list of changes my friends and family will likely take note of once I get back. I’ll have lived in Japan for a full two years, and there are a number of habits, good and bad, I’ve adopted that I don’t see going away the moment I hit US soil. So, without further ado, here are the top ten things my time in Japan will probably make me do.

10- Speak in Japanese- I’m unlikely to have full-on conversations, but for automated, short phrases like “すみません” or “ちがお” I’ll likely break into Japanese. In fact, I’ve already had one experience during a trip back to the states where this happened. I bumped into someone at HEB and the first words out of my mouth were “ごめんなさい.” Three years of limited English interaction will make you do that. It will also make you…

9- Forget English Words- Again, this is likely to only affect a few words here and there, and only because I have no need for them on a daily basis. More than once, I’ve had to stop and seriously think, “What word was I trying to say again?” I’ve also completely forgotten what I used in America to say goodbye, as here it is almost always “see you” or “bye-bye.”

8- Use Japanese Gestures- Along the same lines of #10 above, I’ve become so accustomed to indicating myself by pointing at my nose and calling people over by making a pawing motion that it’s unlikely to change once I get back to the states. I will also bow a lot. I’m sure there are others that I’m not even aware of, but will become painfully obvious once I’m the only one doing them.

7- Speak Slowly- I still hang out with English speakers, so this might not be as pronounced, but it’s likely that I’ll speak and read a bit slower than I used to. Very few Japanese people are able to understand a native English speaker going at their natural speed. It’s understandable, as I have the same problem with Japanese. The result is that I’m almost always required to speak a bit slower than I usually would.

6- Compare and Contrast Japan and America Constantly- Let’s say I go back to America and you and I decide to head to Whataburger (because screw McDonalds, we have that here). I will likely complain about the service and get really excited about the fact you can special order, which is unheard of in Japan. Reverse culture shock is very real, and one of the most common results I’ve heard from Japan to America is the feeling that everyone is a jerk. Maybe they are, depending on your standard. The thing is my standard will be at a different place thanks to Japan. As you can see from this example, there is no clear winner in this debate. I may praise the virtues of Japan in one breath and lament its shortcomings in the next. It’ll be fun times.

5- Talk About Teaching and My Kids- Take a look at my previous blog posts and you’ll notice a not-too-alarming tend. I talk about work and my students a lot. That’s because I spend 10 hours a day at school, sometimes following that up with an extra 2 hours of kendo or lesson planning at home. It may not be as clear from this blog, as it is meant to be about my experiences in Japan, but I love my job. Last time I went home, I spent hours pouring over my pictures with my family, and that was from before I started spending so much extra time at school. This will probably get annoying to some. I make no apologies.

4- Suck At Driving- Prior to coming to Japan, I had done fairly little driving in America. As a result, I‘ve actually had more experience on Japanese roads and in Japanese cars. There are a number of differences that I’m sure will become evident once I start driving in America. Japan uses the left side of the road as opposed to the right, their streets are overall narrower and the speed limits are lower. Add to that the fact that I drive a yellow-plate car, which has a smaller body and engine than any American car I can think of, and you get a rather long list of obstacles I’ll have to overcome while transitioning to American roads.

3- Get a Bunch Of Manga and Anime- Ironically enough, my time in Japan has actually cut me off of the anime and manga scene in America. Sure, I read and watch my fair share of Japanese pop, but I have no idea what’s been released stateside in the last two years. Another thing to note is that, while there are several anime series on basic cable, they aren’t on at the most convenient times for me. By and large, anime is seen as something for children, and is given timeslots that reflect this. For example, if I want to watch Bleach or Naruto, I’ll have to be up at 5:30 AM on Saturday. Furthermore, there is the growing list of manga my students have brought to my attention that I will likely look into once I don’t have to spend a good hour translating a single chapter. Also, I have about 25 volumes of One Piece to catch up on.

2- Gain Weight (Unless I Really Watch Myself)- I have at least one balanced meal everyday Monday through Friday and regularly exercise with junior high school children. Add in the myriad of delicious (and unhealthy) foods I’m going to be craving once I get back and you have a recipe for disaster. Unless I’m careful and keep up some sort of exercise, I can easily see myself putting on a few pounds.

1- Import Stuff- The ease of getting really cool stuff I would have likely never heard of without being in Japan has got me hooked on a number of products that will never get imported to America. I’ll also be returning with a Japanese Wii and PS2 (and possibly a Super Famicom), and it would be a waste not to get my money’s worth out of those machines. It will be another expensive hobby, but I don’t see it going away.

Zero Context: Stuff Around My House

Shikaki Festa

Shikaki is the school I visit on Fridays and the only one that doesn’t feed into Ariake Junior High, the students going on to Hondo Higashi instead. It’s apparently had an English program longer than most elementary schools (8 years) and has what I consider the most approachable and relaxed atmosphere of any of my schools. This is due in large part to the staff, who are always willing to include me in school events as an equal.

Many times I’ve received a written invitation from Shikaki’s vice-principal to come to a culture festival or other occasion when most schools neglect to tell me anything that the students are doing outside of class. Unfortunately, it always seems like something else comes up and I’m unable to go. Last Sunday was no different. I was invited to Shikaki Festa, which is basically the elementary equivalent to a culture and sports day. What’s more, I was asked if I would be willing to sing with the teachers during their segment of the festa. Unfortunately, Shikaki Festa fell on the same day as a walk in Hon-machi that I had signed up for a few weeks ago. I had to make a choice and, given that I won’t get many more opportunities like this again, decided to go to the Shikaki event.

The morning consisted of four plays as well as a few other performances. My first graders’ play involved an adventure with a whale that I believe was a cloud. It was adorable and, given that it was first graders, I could understand most of what happened. The second and third graders’ skit involved three mice arriving on Cat Island, disguising themselves, and having fun with the cats. When they reveal who they really are at the end of the play, the cats decide not to eat them, even though it was established that mice are their favorite food, because they had shown the cats so many fun dances and songs.

The fourth and fifth graders had a play that I didn’t really understand. At one point, they jump rope and are asked English questions. Later, I believe they are on a hiking trip and one of the kids goes missing. Then there is an interrogation scene but again this is mostly conjecture from me. The sixth graders didn’t so much do a play as they talked about what they will miss about the school and what they wanted to do when they grew up. I think some of my students picked their second career choice, as I’m pretty sure there were a lot more of them who wanted to be pastry chefs and novelists. As it was, we only had one repeat profession: hair stylist.

Between the plays, there was a performance by my two students with special needs and the teachers’ chorus. We sang “Arigatou” by Ikimonogakari. I only had a few weeks to learn the song and so only got about four or five practice runs in before we had to perform. All things considered, I think I did alright, but it made me really nervous. I suppose I got a better idea of how some of the more reserved kids must feel during these presentations.

After lunch (which was surprisingly provided by the school) I walked around the playground and watched as the students played with their parents. Once recess was over, everyone went back to the gym. We were supposed to have a game of dodgeball inside and golf outside, but it had started raining, so we did dodgeball and basketball instead. The dodgeball game seemed like a family thing, so I sat out of it and talked with a few of my former students and their friend who had shown up to watch their siblings play. I found out that one of my girls from last year and one of my current sixth graders are sisters and that their mother is the person I occasionally talk with at Jusco.

The basketball competition seemed a little more open, so my former students and I joined in. The rules for the basketball challenge were pretty simple. You had two attempts to make a basket. If you got it, you moved on to the next round where you only got one chance to make a shot. It continued with one-shot chances until only one person was left. They let the younger kids shoot closer than the older ones, who shot from the free throw line. I was eliminated pretty quickly, but all of the visiting girls moved on to the last few rounds. In the end, one of my first graders ended up winning and was invited to the stage to make a short speech. It was adorable.

Before I went home, I talked a bit with Marin, the girl who had come with my former students. We had all taken a picture together and I felt like I should at least find out a little it about her before I left. She had gone to Shikiaki too but graduated the year before I arrived. Of all the girls, she seemed the most willing to talk with me, though not always in English. It was probably easier for her as she is almost finished with her second year at junior high. I found out she played volleyball, so maybe I’ll see her at the next game I go to.

Shikaki Festa was a lot of fun. It’s a shame I won’t be able to go again though and I feel like I’m becoming more and more aware of those kinds of feelings as time goes on. All the same, I plan to make the most out of my remaining time here, so I imagine there will be more stories to post here fairly soon.

Photo Friday: S-san's Drawings

So I mentioned in my post about S-san that she likes to draw herself as a fox. Here is some of her art.




Adorable! From what I've gathered being called kitsune, or fox, is a way that some students with narrow eyes are teased. Though not necessarily malicious, I'm glad to see that S-san took this and ran with it, really making it her own.

Dinosaurs!

We visited the museum yesterday. There were a lot of interesting displays there, but I was most interested in the dinosaurs.


These two were at the entrance to the exhibit:



This one's name was Eric, just like me!


He was named after a Monty Python sketch. Strange, but awesome, choice.


Though my favorite dinosaur, the ankylosaurus, was absent, one of its close relatives was there:


Here's our current interpretation of what the velociraptor looked like. I think it looks a bit silly.


This display was pretty cool. I call it t-rex two-face:


It invited you to put your head inside. It was pretty creepy.


Lastly, we made our own dinosaur using presets on a computer. Do you think our dinosaur would survive?


Yeah, probably not.