Since Yana has been at hoikuen for about a month and a half now, I thought I would write about her language progress. My plan is to do this every so often, to keep track of how she's doing.
We don't really do much in the way of studying at home. Everything she has learned has been from hoikuen, daily interaction with people [herself or watching us/others], or watching Japanese TV.
Words she knows:
konnichiwa [hello]
ohayou gozaimasu [good morning]
sayounara [good bye]
kawaii [cute]
baka [idiot]
dame [bad]
itai [ouch]
itadakimasu [let's eat]
ichi, ni, san [1, 2, 3]
-chan [used to address friends]
She also sings tunes which she's obviously learned at school, and some of the sounds she makes seem like words or Japanese sounds, but mostly its just blabbering. She may also know some other words, but this is just what I hear from her at home.
Anyway, this is a pretty short update, but I'm hopeful she'll catch on quickly, as she's already learned this much from just a month and a half.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Saturday, January 17, 2015
Applying for the JET Program: JET Interview Sample Questions
When I was applying to JET I decided to scour the internet and make a list of all the interview questions I could find that people were actually asked. I'm going to share the list I made below in case it helps anyone else. Note that these will widely vary based country and even consulate.
Additionally, certain situations will probably lead to different and more detailed questions. For example, a CIR or (mythical) SEA will probably get questions more specific to their job responsibilities. A family JET may get grilled about what their family members will do and how they will cope.
Protip! A lot of answers to hypothetical situation questions can be found in the General Information Handbook, under the work section. It's definitely useful to read those and get an idea of what they want to hear as an answer to those kinds of questions.
Also, if you're applying from Toronto, you can check out my personal interview experience.
Most Important Questions
You will be asked these or something similar, so know your answers and make them good!
1. Why JET?
2. Why Japan?
3. Why do you want to be an ALT?
4. What skills and qualities do you possess that will be beneficial to the JET Programme?
Other Questions
A note about questions regarding knowledge of Japan - don't stress too much about it. If you don't know things, that's fine. Just make sure you have a good answer as to why. For example, if you don't know the 4 main islands of Japan, just say something about how you're looking forward to having the chance to learn more about Japanese geography first hand.
5. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
6. How does JET factor into your future goals?
7. You list X position as work/volunteer experience on your application. How do you think this position could help you as a teacher on JET?
8. How would you deal with working with an uncooperative Japanese teacher of English? An uncooperative principal?
9. X, Y, and Z are listed as your hobbies and interests on your application. How do these relate to your culture? How would you teach people in a Japanese community about your hobbies?
10. What are some famous places in Japan that you know?
11. Who are some famous Japanese people that you know?
12. What are the 4 main islands of Japan?
13. Who is the Prime Minister of Japan? The Emperor?
14. What would you do if you were receiving unwanted attention/being harassed?
15. How would you present your culture in a lesson?
16. What if your students don’t want to learn English?
17. What is your favourite part of Japanese culture?
18. What 3 props would you use to teach about your country?
19. Are you familiar with the current economic situation in Japan?
20. What’s happening in Japanese news?
21. Can you name two Japanese celebrities?
22. Describe current (your country)-Japan relations.
23. How can JET help (your country)-Japan relations?
24. Tell me about your teaching experience.
25. How would you motivate disruptive students?
26. Why did you request placement at x, y, z?
27. How would you handle being placed in a rural area?
28. How would you handle culture shock?
29. Teach us about animals/colors/food/holidays/numbers/abc/body parts/asking permission.
30. How would you work to interact with your students?
31. What age group are you interested in teaching?
32. Introduce yourself in Japanese.
33. What cultural event would you like to see in Japan?
34. Sing a song.
35. What did you learn about Japan from your visit? [If you've visited before.]
36. Tell me about your course on (subject). [If you've taken an Asia/Japan related course.]
37. What would do you if you are asked to make tea for your coworkers? [For females.]
Family JET Questions
I personally didn't get any questions like this except for number 5, but my mom also told me beforehand that is is illegal to ask those questions in Canada for job interviews, so maybe that was why? I know that many family JETs have written about this though. It is understandable, as a JET participant bringing along a spouse and/or child(ren) could be considered somewhat more prone to breaking contract if someone is unhappy. Anyway, I would recommend knowing the answers to these sorts of questions. Make sure you go into the interview prepared to explain the plans for your spouse and/or child(ren).
1. What will you do if your spouse hates Japan?
2. What will your spouse do in Japan to keep busy?
3. What will your child do or who will care for them?
4. What if your child has to deal with racism or harassment in school?
5. What if you have to go on business trips away from home?
6. What will you do if your child gets sick?
Ask Your Own Questions
Additionally, it is advisable to prepare a list of questions you want to ask. At the same time, try to think of questions during your interview that can relate to the people on your interview panel - for example, something you can ask an ex-JET or consulate worker specifically. Make the questions meaningful and show that you are thoughtful and interested in the program. Some ideas:
1. How many schools does a JET typically teach at?
2. What was the most valuable thing you took away from the JET program?
3. Do JETs have the opportunity to participate in school clubs?
4. What are some ways a JET can get involved in the community outside of school?
One last thing - good luck!
Additionally, certain situations will probably lead to different and more detailed questions. For example, a CIR or (mythical) SEA will probably get questions more specific to their job responsibilities. A family JET may get grilled about what their family members will do and how they will cope.
Protip! A lot of answers to hypothetical situation questions can be found in the General Information Handbook, under the work section. It's definitely useful to read those and get an idea of what they want to hear as an answer to those kinds of questions.
Also, if you're applying from Toronto, you can check out my personal interview experience.
Most Important Questions
You will be asked these or something similar, so know your answers and make them good!
1. Why JET?
2. Why Japan?
3. Why do you want to be an ALT?
4. What skills and qualities do you possess that will be beneficial to the JET Programme?
Other Questions
A note about questions regarding knowledge of Japan - don't stress too much about it. If you don't know things, that's fine. Just make sure you have a good answer as to why. For example, if you don't know the 4 main islands of Japan, just say something about how you're looking forward to having the chance to learn more about Japanese geography first hand.
5. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
6. How does JET factor into your future goals?
7. You list X position as work/volunteer experience on your application. How do you think this position could help you as a teacher on JET?
8. How would you deal with working with an uncooperative Japanese teacher of English? An uncooperative principal?
9. X, Y, and Z are listed as your hobbies and interests on your application. How do these relate to your culture? How would you teach people in a Japanese community about your hobbies?
10. What are some famous places in Japan that you know?
11. Who are some famous Japanese people that you know?
12. What are the 4 main islands of Japan?
13. Who is the Prime Minister of Japan? The Emperor?
14. What would you do if you were receiving unwanted attention/being harassed?
15. How would you present your culture in a lesson?
16. What if your students don’t want to learn English?
17. What is your favourite part of Japanese culture?
18. What 3 props would you use to teach about your country?
19. Are you familiar with the current economic situation in Japan?
20. What’s happening in Japanese news?
21. Can you name two Japanese celebrities?
22. Describe current (your country)-Japan relations.
23. How can JET help (your country)-Japan relations?
24. Tell me about your teaching experience.
25. How would you motivate disruptive students?
26. Why did you request placement at x, y, z?
27. How would you handle being placed in a rural area?
28. How would you handle culture shock?
29. Teach us about animals/colors/food/holidays/numbers/abc/body parts/asking permission.
30. How would you work to interact with your students?
31. What age group are you interested in teaching?
32. Introduce yourself in Japanese.
33. What cultural event would you like to see in Japan?
34. Sing a song.
35. What did you learn about Japan from your visit? [If you've visited before.]
36. Tell me about your course on (subject). [If you've taken an Asia/Japan related course.]
37. What would do you if you are asked to make tea for your coworkers? [For females.]
Family JET Questions
I personally didn't get any questions like this except for number 5, but my mom also told me beforehand that is is illegal to ask those questions in Canada for job interviews, so maybe that was why? I know that many family JETs have written about this though. It is understandable, as a JET participant bringing along a spouse and/or child(ren) could be considered somewhat more prone to breaking contract if someone is unhappy. Anyway, I would recommend knowing the answers to these sorts of questions. Make sure you go into the interview prepared to explain the plans for your spouse and/or child(ren).
1. What will you do if your spouse hates Japan?
2. What will your spouse do in Japan to keep busy?
3. What will your child do or who will care for them?
4. What if your child has to deal with racism or harassment in school?
5. What if you have to go on business trips away from home?
6. What will you do if your child gets sick?
Ask Your Own Questions
Additionally, it is advisable to prepare a list of questions you want to ask. At the same time, try to think of questions during your interview that can relate to the people on your interview panel - for example, something you can ask an ex-JET or consulate worker specifically. Make the questions meaningful and show that you are thoughtful and interested in the program. Some ideas:
1. How many schools does a JET typically teach at?
2. What was the most valuable thing you took away from the JET program?
3. Do JETs have the opportunity to participate in school clubs?
4. What are some ways a JET can get involved in the community outside of school?
One last thing - good luck!
Friday, January 2, 2015
Christmas and New Year's in Japan
On December 22nd I had my JHS bonenkai. I was able to get a ride with the nurse and the vice principal to the Tottori Prefectural Museum, where it was being held. Every staff member makes an effort to attend the bonenkai, unlike regular the regular enkai. So the office ladies, nurse, etc. were all there too. I was glad of it, as I'm fond of them and they seem to feel the same for me.
The party was held in the museum's cafe. It was quite different and modern, compared to my ES bonenkai, which was traditional style - sitting at low tables in a large tatami room. We were separated into 2 different tables. As is typical of work parties here, we had a lottery to determine where we would sit. In this case we drew a prefecture's name and had to find the matching nabe [one pot] dish. Since I had no idea about any of that, I was helped, although it conveniently turned out that I was standing across from my seat to begin with. This kind of seating makes me a bit nervous, but I ended up sitting across from the head teacher, diagonal to the vice principal, and beside the home economics teacher, who also teaches the special education students with me. It wasn't too awkward.
Every enkai begins with kampai - cheers. Sometimes we do a whole chain and walk around the room, but this time was mostly just everyone you could reach from the general vicinity of your seat. After that we ordered drinks and the food began coming out.
I wish I had taken photos of the food because it was incredible! Not everything was my favorite, but the plating was lovely and what I did eat was great. Also - REAL CRUSTY BREAD. I gorged myself on the slices of fresh bread, usually rarity here. So the appetizer was a mixed plate, with a slice of quiche, a tiny hamburger, sashimi, bread with some kind of herby butter spread, and a bowl of beef and konnyaku. I can't recall all the other dishes precisely, but there was salad, pasta, savory pastry cigars, calamari, roast beef with mashed potatoes, and to end it all, some kind of rum raisin pudding (as in the British kind) with sauce and vanilla ice cream.
Throughout the party there was lots of fun and games. Everyone was given a sheet of paper and had to write down who they thought would win. The first games were taste testing - beer and canned coffee. Like at the ES bonenkai, there was guessing of the year's top school news stories. We also played bingo - and - I WON! I was shocked and everyone cheered and applauded me. As a reward, I was able to pick a gift (everyone had brought 1 gift). Next we played a massive game of rock paper scissors. It began with the principal standing up and everyone who played the same or winning sign was able to continue on. Somehow I managed to predict it every time, and in the end it was me, one of my JTEs, and the nurse playing against each other. At this point the principal stepped down, and it was a 3-way battle. We knocked out my JTE and then - I WON! I couldn't believe it! All the teachers were roaring outrageously and I got lots of high fives and hugs. My prize this time was a massive bottle of locally brewed sake. I spent the rest of the night getting congratulations and comments about how strong I was.
After nearly 4 hours the party had died down a bit and it was time for us to leave. I caught a taxi with the vice principal and another teacher. Since it was a short distance, the driver kindly let us out without paying. About half the teachers were going to the afterparty, but I was tired and was already catching the last train, so if I stayed out I would have had to stay until 6am the next morning. As it was, I had to wait a while for the train, so I rather awkwardly sat with my vice principal in the train station. Then we slept on the train ride home.
Christmas in Japan is not much of a holiday - well, in fact, its not a holiday at all. I had to go to work that day! Thankfully it is winter vacation and there were no classes, so I was able to arrive late. I woke up Yana early and she opened her presents. One of my predecessors bought a little fake Christmas tree, so happily we were able to use that. I was planning on celebrating Japanese style, with fried chicken and roll cake, but by the time I went to the store after work it was all sold out! So I ended up buying the mixes to make them ourselves. Overall, not a very eventful Christmas, but Yana really enjoyed getting some new toys.
New Year's in Japan is a much, much bigger deal that Christmas. We didn't do much to celebrate. I watched the popular music TV show that airs every New Year's Eve here. We put Yana to bed early and stayed up until midnight. People here typically visit a temple, but we decided not to, because I wasn't exactly sure what to do once I got there and we didn't feel like keeping Yana up so late. Maybe next year!
Sunday, December 7, 2014
A Day at Suwa Hoikuen
On December 1st I took paid leave and used the chance to attend preschool with Yana.
We arrived for 9:00am. Yana already knew where her shoe cubby was and as soon as her shoes were off she bolted up the stairs and to her classroom, leaving me awkwardly standing there and unsure of where to go. She is in panda-gumi (Panda class) and knows exactly where it is.
I'm not sure if we were a bit late and missed this, but when Justin went with her he said that the kids eat a small piece of seaweed each morning. This is supposed to help them have good dental health.
Next the kids go to gargle water and wash their hands.
After that they change into their shorts - each kid wears the same school shorts. They have to tuck their shirts into the shorts. Then they line up and walk down to the gym.
In the gym they have a musical exercise program with one or two other classes of similar age. Yana's teacher plays the piano and two other teachers help lead the kids. They do stretches and then run around and do different movements to the music (like hopping on one foot or running with arms outstretched like an airplane).
Once their exercise time is finished, the kids went back upstairs and had to clean the floors in the traditional Japanese way.
Then the kids change back into their regular clothes.
They wash their hands again.
Next its library time. The kids go down to the library for a few minutes. They have time to browse and read a few books, and if they want they can check out a book to take home.
After the library they go back to the classroom and the teacher reads a story to them which she selected from the library.
Next is time for activities. They did drawing and after that played with clay for a while.
After activity time the kids wash their hands again because its lunchtime.
They eat lunch at 11:30am. It is kyuushoku, so school lunch. All the kids eat the same thing. On this day they had some kind of pasta gratin, egg soup, rice, tea, and salad. Yana was not pleased.
After lunch they brush their teeth and have quiet/nap time for quite a while. They change into pajamas for this time.
After naptime, they change back into regular clothes again.
They have a snack, which tends to be some kind of bread. I think they may drink milk as well.
Soon after snacktime is pickup time, around 3:00-3:30pm.
And that's generally how Yana's days at Suwa are spent!
 |
| Yana's symbol is a peach and its on all of her belongings, including her shoe cubby. |
We arrived for 9:00am. Yana already knew where her shoe cubby was and as soon as her shoes were off she bolted up the stairs and to her classroom, leaving me awkwardly standing there and unsure of where to go. She is in panda-gumi (Panda class) and knows exactly where it is.
I'm not sure if we were a bit late and missed this, but when Justin went with her he said that the kids eat a small piece of seaweed each morning. This is supposed to help them have good dental health.
Next the kids go to gargle water and wash their hands.
After that they change into their shorts - each kid wears the same school shorts. They have to tuck their shirts into the shorts. Then they line up and walk down to the gym.
In the gym they have a musical exercise program with one or two other classes of similar age. Yana's teacher plays the piano and two other teachers help lead the kids. They do stretches and then run around and do different movements to the music (like hopping on one foot or running with arms outstretched like an airplane).
Once their exercise time is finished, the kids went back upstairs and had to clean the floors in the traditional Japanese way.
Then the kids change back into their regular clothes.
They wash their hands again.
Next its library time. The kids go down to the library for a few minutes. They have time to browse and read a few books, and if they want they can check out a book to take home.
After the library they go back to the classroom and the teacher reads a story to them which she selected from the library.
Next is time for activities. They did drawing and after that played with clay for a while.
After activity time the kids wash their hands again because its lunchtime.
They eat lunch at 11:30am. It is kyuushoku, so school lunch. All the kids eat the same thing. On this day they had some kind of pasta gratin, egg soup, rice, tea, and salad. Yana was not pleased.
After lunch they brush their teeth and have quiet/nap time for quite a while. They change into pajamas for this time.
After naptime, they change back into regular clothes again.
They have a snack, which tends to be some kind of bread. I think they may drink milk as well.
Soon after snacktime is pickup time, around 3:00-3:30pm.
And that's generally how Yana's days at Suwa are spent!
Saturday, December 6, 2014
Tottori SDC 2014
One thing I didn't know about when I applied to be a JET was that every prefecture has a mid-year Skills Development Conference (SDC). There's no official time during which all prefectures have their conference, but they tend to be around this time of year. In Tottori this year, ours fell on December 4th and 5th (Thursday and Friday). This means that I got those two days off of regular work!
My BOE was super awesome and gave me my business trip reimbursement before I even left. Usually we have to turn in a form and then get reimbursed at some random later date. They also gave me enough to take the super express trains, instead of the local trains! Anyway, as it turns out, I didn't even need all the money. I managed to hitch a ride with R, L, and J from Koge, so it was only a couple hundred yen and a 1/2 hour train ride. Then we drove the rest of the way, which was fun. At one point we were worried that traffic was going to make us late, but luckily we arrived with time to spare - and we even stopped at a convenience store to buy R a pen!
Our SDC is held in Kurayoshi at Mirai Chushin, which is the Pear Museum. Yes, Tottori is so obsessed it even has a museum dedicated to pears. But what can I say, they're freaking delicious - I would build a shrine to them, too.
9:40-9:55 Registration
When we arrived most everyone else was already lined up. We had to sign in, which basically consisted of grabbing some papers and our PA, M, crossing our name off the list. Since the SDC is mandatory, this is one of the few times every single ALT in Tottori prefecture is in the same room. It was pretty cool!
10:00-10:15 Opening Remarks
First up we had the very Japanese opening ceremony. It was pretty short, though, and we moved right in to the first workshop.
10:25-12:25 Workshop I: Creating Activities Using the Shuttle Chat Booklet
We were divided up into several rooms and then into groups of 2 or 3. I was in a group with H. As a JHS ALTs, our task was to use this Shuttle Chat workbook and create an activity using any grammar point. We chose "can/can't". We spent about one hour preparing our activity and then another hour doing all our presentations. Although the Shuttle Chat is complete crap to work with, it was nice to share ideas with other ALTs. There wasn't a whole lot of feedback going on, though. So I guess either we were all awesome or everyone was too nice to be mean.
12:25-13:20 Lunch
After that we had lunch. Our room ended late, so I had lost my carpool buddies. Luckily I ran into R2 and ended up going for lunch with him and D. We went to a cafeteria-type restaurant just outside the museum. I ordered tonkatsudon, which ended up being this massive portion which I could not finish. It was a nice lunch though; nice to catch up with those two.
13:25-13:55 Workshop II: English Education in Tottori Prefecture
After lunch we had another workshop. However, it was really more of a lecture about the changes happening to the way English is being taught in Japan. It was good to know, but I felt like we could have used the time to discuss more important things. Anyway, one shocking statistic showed that as JHS students get older, the teachers use more and more Japanese in the class! It should be the opposite! The thing is, its definitely true - I see this every day at work.
14:05-15:35 Lecture: Demotivating Students
The last item for the 4th was a lecture from a professor from TUES. I was kind of dreading the 1.5 hour lecture, but it actually turned out to be the best part of the entire day. The speaker was a really engaging and wonderful public speaker and she was addressing us like college graduates instead of dumb foreigners. It was wonderful. She addressed some really great issues as well. I just loved it. Definitely the most helpful part of the day.
After that day 1 was over! I had a while to wait before my train, so I hung out with a bunch of other JETs and ate pear softcream. Then we took the bus to the station together - literally only a bunch of foreigners on a bus. Most of us were going back towards Tottori-shi, but my BOE seemed to be the only one who paid for the super express, so I hoped aboard alone. By the way - it was my first time riding it and it was crazy! It leans into turns, which makes the whole world shift as if you're on a rollercoaster. Actually, it started making me feel sick after a while...
The next morning was another early one. This time I had to take the train all the way to Kurayoshi. I rode the local to Tottori and then changed to a super express train from there. I arrived in Kurayoshi pretty early, so I just sort of hung around until the bus arrived. A bunch of other ALTs rode the bus with me, which I was glad of, because I wasn't sure about the stop.
9:40-9:55 Registration
Same as Thursday. This time we just had to pick up the day 2 survey.
10:00-10:00 Opening Remarks
10:15-11:45 Workshop III: Elementary School Visits.
There were several other workshops, but this is the one I had to attend. We were divided into groups of 5-6 people and had to discuss various aspects of ES visits. We talked about issues, things we did outside of class, and what we thought of the textbook Hi Friends!. It was a good chance for discussion, but it was really negative, I thought.
11:45-12:40 Lunch
Lunchtime! I was going to go for okonomiyaki with R, L, and J, but I met up with A and A2 on the way and they were going for curry, so....yeah, I jumped ship for curry instead. We went to this cute little restaurant and I ordered hamburg curry, which was a plate of curry sauce, rice, two hamburger patties, and a boiled egg. It was pretty good, but a bit too spicy for me! Anyway, I really enjoyed the opportunity to talk with A and A2.
12:45-14:35 Workshop IV: Team Teaching Examples and Ideas
I'm not sure the title of this workshop was entirely accurate. There were 3 ALT presenters. The first presenter was S, who basically gave an overview of her shadowing day (which I attended) and then talked about the importance of phonics and how she introduced it into her school. The next speaker was M, who also briefly talked about her shadowing day, but focused more on how to deal with a teacher who doesn't utilize you. She had some good strategies to share. Lastly was R3, who talked about basically an English program he created and introduced to his schools. Basically he only teaches his own class, which is an entire period of interactive story telling based on the appropriate grammar being studied. It was pretty interesting, but kind of a rare circumstance.
14:45-15:45 Workshop V: Sharing Ideas for Using the Shuttle Chat Booklet
The last workshop! In this workshop we actually got to work with our JTEs. We were in groups, so I was with two other ALTs and their JTEs. We had to present the Shuttle Chat activities we had created the day before. Actually, our JTEs had been there all day, but had their own separate workshops during the previous part of the day. It was a good workshop, but unfortunately kind of limited to that silly booklet.
So that was my first SDC! I actually enjoyed it a lot, despite early mornings, long days, and lots of train travel. It was kind of a good refresher to get me out of a funk. I feel a lot more energized and motivated now, so I'm excited to hopefully do more at school.
My BOE was super awesome and gave me my business trip reimbursement before I even left. Usually we have to turn in a form and then get reimbursed at some random later date. They also gave me enough to take the super express trains, instead of the local trains! Anyway, as it turns out, I didn't even need all the money. I managed to hitch a ride with R, L, and J from Koge, so it was only a couple hundred yen and a 1/2 hour train ride. Then we drove the rest of the way, which was fun. At one point we were worried that traffic was going to make us late, but luckily we arrived with time to spare - and we even stopped at a convenience store to buy R a pen!
Our SDC is held in Kurayoshi at Mirai Chushin, which is the Pear Museum. Yes, Tottori is so obsessed it even has a museum dedicated to pears. But what can I say, they're freaking delicious - I would build a shrine to them, too.
9:40-9:55 Registration
When we arrived most everyone else was already lined up. We had to sign in, which basically consisted of grabbing some papers and our PA, M, crossing our name off the list. Since the SDC is mandatory, this is one of the few times every single ALT in Tottori prefecture is in the same room. It was pretty cool!
10:00-10:15 Opening Remarks
First up we had the very Japanese opening ceremony. It was pretty short, though, and we moved right in to the first workshop.
10:25-12:25 Workshop I: Creating Activities Using the Shuttle Chat Booklet
We were divided up into several rooms and then into groups of 2 or 3. I was in a group with H. As a JHS ALTs, our task was to use this Shuttle Chat workbook and create an activity using any grammar point. We chose "can/can't". We spent about one hour preparing our activity and then another hour doing all our presentations. Although the Shuttle Chat is complete crap to work with, it was nice to share ideas with other ALTs. There wasn't a whole lot of feedback going on, though. So I guess either we were all awesome or everyone was too nice to be mean.
12:25-13:20 Lunch
After that we had lunch. Our room ended late, so I had lost my carpool buddies. Luckily I ran into R2 and ended up going for lunch with him and D. We went to a cafeteria-type restaurant just outside the museum. I ordered tonkatsudon, which ended up being this massive portion which I could not finish. It was a nice lunch though; nice to catch up with those two.
13:25-13:55 Workshop II: English Education in Tottori Prefecture
After lunch we had another workshop. However, it was really more of a lecture about the changes happening to the way English is being taught in Japan. It was good to know, but I felt like we could have used the time to discuss more important things. Anyway, one shocking statistic showed that as JHS students get older, the teachers use more and more Japanese in the class! It should be the opposite! The thing is, its definitely true - I see this every day at work.
14:05-15:35 Lecture: Demotivating Students
The last item for the 4th was a lecture from a professor from TUES. I was kind of dreading the 1.5 hour lecture, but it actually turned out to be the best part of the entire day. The speaker was a really engaging and wonderful public speaker and she was addressing us like college graduates instead of dumb foreigners. It was wonderful. She addressed some really great issues as well. I just loved it. Definitely the most helpful part of the day.
After that day 1 was over! I had a while to wait before my train, so I hung out with a bunch of other JETs and ate pear softcream. Then we took the bus to the station together - literally only a bunch of foreigners on a bus. Most of us were going back towards Tottori-shi, but my BOE seemed to be the only one who paid for the super express, so I hoped aboard alone. By the way - it was my first time riding it and it was crazy! It leans into turns, which makes the whole world shift as if you're on a rollercoaster. Actually, it started making me feel sick after a while...
 |
| Aboard the Super Hakuto 12! |
The next morning was another early one. This time I had to take the train all the way to Kurayoshi. I rode the local to Tottori and then changed to a super express train from there. I arrived in Kurayoshi pretty early, so I just sort of hung around until the bus arrived. A bunch of other ALTs rode the bus with me, which I was glad of, because I wasn't sure about the stop.
9:40-9:55 Registration
Same as Thursday. This time we just had to pick up the day 2 survey.
10:00-10:00 Opening Remarks
10:15-11:45 Workshop III: Elementary School Visits.
There were several other workshops, but this is the one I had to attend. We were divided into groups of 5-6 people and had to discuss various aspects of ES visits. We talked about issues, things we did outside of class, and what we thought of the textbook Hi Friends!. It was a good chance for discussion, but it was really negative, I thought.
11:45-12:40 Lunch
Lunchtime! I was going to go for okonomiyaki with R, L, and J, but I met up with A and A2 on the way and they were going for curry, so....yeah, I jumped ship for curry instead. We went to this cute little restaurant and I ordered hamburg curry, which was a plate of curry sauce, rice, two hamburger patties, and a boiled egg. It was pretty good, but a bit too spicy for me! Anyway, I really enjoyed the opportunity to talk with A and A2.
12:45-14:35 Workshop IV: Team Teaching Examples and Ideas
I'm not sure the title of this workshop was entirely accurate. There were 3 ALT presenters. The first presenter was S, who basically gave an overview of her shadowing day (which I attended) and then talked about the importance of phonics and how she introduced it into her school. The next speaker was M, who also briefly talked about her shadowing day, but focused more on how to deal with a teacher who doesn't utilize you. She had some good strategies to share. Lastly was R3, who talked about basically an English program he created and introduced to his schools. Basically he only teaches his own class, which is an entire period of interactive story telling based on the appropriate grammar being studied. It was pretty interesting, but kind of a rare circumstance.
14:45-15:45 Workshop V: Sharing Ideas for Using the Shuttle Chat Booklet
The last workshop! In this workshop we actually got to work with our JTEs. We were in groups, so I was with two other ALTs and their JTEs. We had to present the Shuttle Chat activities we had created the day before. Actually, our JTEs had been there all day, but had their own separate workshops during the previous part of the day. It was a good workshop, but unfortunately kind of limited to that silly booklet.
So that was my first SDC! I actually enjoyed it a lot, despite early mornings, long days, and lots of train travel. It was kind of a good refresher to get me out of a funk. I feel a lot more energized and motivated now, so I'm excited to hopefully do more at school.
Hello December!
November ended with an insanely warm weekend of 18 degree weather, and then - BOOM - December. It was like the seasons changed literally overnight. Like some sort of official start to Winter, the first snow came on December 2nd. It started off light, but built up to a pretty thick flurry at one point. However, it ended pretty quickly and melted as soon as it touched the ground.
The next day it snowed again. It still melted pretty quickly, but some did build up on rooftops and on the mountain peaks for a short time.
The next day it rained.
Anyway, here's a photo of the first snow.
Yeah, as you can see, not very substantial.
It feels very odd to me. I can't believe this is the month of Christmas! Its probably the first time for me to experience this kind of warmth and lack of snow at this time of year. That said, I love it. I wish it was even warmer! At this point I'm beginning to regret not requesting Okinawa. However, apparently it snows a ton here and Chizu even has a snow festival. I expect it to get a lot colder and snowier. I think by the end of February it should be back to liveable temperatures. Until then, I hibernate under blankets and many, many layers.
The next day it snowed again. It still melted pretty quickly, but some did build up on rooftops and on the mountain peaks for a short time.
The next day it rained.
Anyway, here's a photo of the first snow.
Yeah, as you can see, not very substantial.
It feels very odd to me. I can't believe this is the month of Christmas! Its probably the first time for me to experience this kind of warmth and lack of snow at this time of year. That said, I love it. I wish it was even warmer! At this point I'm beginning to regret not requesting Okinawa. However, apparently it snows a ton here and Chizu even has a snow festival. I expect it to get a lot colder and snowier. I think by the end of February it should be back to liveable temperatures. Until then, I hibernate under blankets and many, many layers.
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| Woke up to more significant snow on December 6th. |
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| Woke up to more significant snow on December 6th. |
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
November to December
I've had a fairly busy last week of November here!
On Wednesday Yana started at preschool! She attended for three days with Justin, while I was at work. She struggles a bit, but has made a best friend already and she seems to enjoy it well enough.
On Friday I had a very uneventful day, as the JHS students had tests. I pretty much sat at my desk all morning, after which I felt guilty, so in the afternoon I made up a game for my 2nd graders to play.
On Saturday afternoon we headed to a nearby JET's house for a Thanksgiving celebration party. American Thanksgiving, that is. Which is kind of ironic, because the host is from New Zealand. Anyway, that was really fun! And we got to eat lots of yummy food - even a Turkey! Yana enjoyed herself too, and got lots of attention as usual.
On Sunday Chizu ES had a happyoukai, a recital, from 12:15 to 3:45. I brought Justin and Yana along to watch. Each grade did a performance and at the end all the students in the school played an instrumental song together. This year they chose Let it Go (surprise, surprise). We spotted Yana's friend Shi-chan from preschool, so the two of them played together Shi-chan fell asleep. Then Yana smashed her face off the floor, so I had to take her out because she was crying. People are so nice here, so one of the office staff gave her a juice box and that helped.
On Sunday evening the ES teachers had a bonenkai - end of year party - which I attended. I took a rented bus into the city with some other teachers. We had the party at the Hope Star Tottori hotel. It was up in a pretty nice and huge Japanese-style room. The party was fun because we played team games and in the end our team won! We got prizes too, a soup mug. The meal was mostly seafood, so I didn't eat much, but there was a tiny steak and a slice of melon which I enjoyed (I did eat some of the other food too).
On Monday the JHS has tests again, so I decided to take paid leave. I used to opportunity to go to the preschool with Yana. I was able to meet her teacher and see what kinds of things they do. I also took the opportunity to write down the massive list of things the kids need (pajamas, apron, face mask, hand washing towels, etc.). Yana seemed to be doing alright, although she really struggles with lunch. Took her about half an hour to get down one mouthful of food. I feel for her, but all the kids eat the same lunch, so hopefully she can learn to deal with it.
On Tuesday I worked at the ES, but in the afternoon I went over to the JHS with the 5th and 6th graders for a very special ceremony. In Japan, they have traditional ceremonies to bless newly built buildings. There was a whole Shinto ceremony going on on top of the roof, but unfortunately I couldn't really see what was going on. At the end a bunch of important delegates chucked hard lumps of mochi off the roof for people to catch. Everyone was talking about how fun it was, but it was actually terrifying! One piece hit my hand and actually cracked my thumbnail in two places! It was definitely interesting, but to be honest I'm not keen to experience it again!
On Thursday and Friday I have the SDC - Skills Development Conference. Each prefecture has one sometime around now. Its basically an ALT conference. I will make a separate post about how that goes.
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| Yana ready for her first day of preschool...in Japan! |
On Wednesday Yana started at preschool! She attended for three days with Justin, while I was at work. She struggles a bit, but has made a best friend already and she seems to enjoy it well enough.
On Friday I had a very uneventful day, as the JHS students had tests. I pretty much sat at my desk all morning, after which I felt guilty, so in the afternoon I made up a game for my 2nd graders to play.
On Saturday afternoon we headed to a nearby JET's house for a Thanksgiving celebration party. American Thanksgiving, that is. Which is kind of ironic, because the host is from New Zealand. Anyway, that was really fun! And we got to eat lots of yummy food - even a Turkey! Yana enjoyed herself too, and got lots of attention as usual.
On Sunday Chizu ES had a happyoukai, a recital, from 12:15 to 3:45. I brought Justin and Yana along to watch. Each grade did a performance and at the end all the students in the school played an instrumental song together. This year they chose Let it Go (surprise, surprise). We spotted Yana's friend Shi-chan from preschool, so the two of them played together Shi-chan fell asleep. Then Yana smashed her face off the floor, so I had to take her out because she was crying. People are so nice here, so one of the office staff gave her a juice box and that helped.
 |
| Chizu Elementary School happyoukai. That's the entire student body. |
On Sunday evening the ES teachers had a bonenkai - end of year party - which I attended. I took a rented bus into the city with some other teachers. We had the party at the Hope Star Tottori hotel. It was up in a pretty nice and huge Japanese-style room. The party was fun because we played team games and in the end our team won! We got prizes too, a soup mug. The meal was mostly seafood, so I didn't eat much, but there was a tiny steak and a slice of melon which I enjoyed (I did eat some of the other food too).
On Monday the JHS has tests again, so I decided to take paid leave. I used to opportunity to go to the preschool with Yana. I was able to meet her teacher and see what kinds of things they do. I also took the opportunity to write down the massive list of things the kids need (pajamas, apron, face mask, hand washing towels, etc.). Yana seemed to be doing alright, although she really struggles with lunch. Took her about half an hour to get down one mouthful of food. I feel for her, but all the kids eat the same lunch, so hopefully she can learn to deal with it.
On Tuesday I worked at the ES, but in the afternoon I went over to the JHS with the 5th and 6th graders for a very special ceremony. In Japan, they have traditional ceremonies to bless newly built buildings. There was a whole Shinto ceremony going on on top of the roof, but unfortunately I couldn't really see what was going on. At the end a bunch of important delegates chucked hard lumps of mochi off the roof for people to catch. Everyone was talking about how fun it was, but it was actually terrifying! One piece hit my hand and actually cracked my thumbnail in two places! It was definitely interesting, but to be honest I'm not keen to experience it again!
 |
| The mochi cakes I caught. |
 |
| Note the student covering his head. |
On Thursday and Friday I have the SDC - Skills Development Conference. Each prefecture has one sometime around now. Its basically an ALT conference. I will make a separate post about how that goes.
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