華道ーーーエマ先生

On Monday, I went to Ikebana club and tried Japanese flower arrangement for the first time! It was so much fun and I really enjoyed it. I have been interested in trying Ikebana, but didn’t know anything about the theory behind it, so it was very interesting to learn more. Ikebana is so much more than just putting flowers in a vase. It is a disciplined art form with a long history and established rules. Ikebana brings together nature and humanity. The artist uses natural materials, but puts a part of themselves into the arrangement. I have always felt a deep closeness with nature, and Ikebana honors this feeling. I also like the visual style of Ikebana. It is much more simple and minimal than western style floral arrangements.  I’m quite pleased with how my first arrangement turned out, and I definitely want to try Ikebana again!

 

合唱祭（アメリカとの相違) －－－マーレン先生

This week was the Fujimura Chorus Festival. It was very exciting to see all of the students perform. For the past month and a half they have been singing and practicing after school and during lunch. It has been very enjoyable to hear them as I walk from class to class and made seeing the festival so much more fun! I was very excited to see that one of my classes won first place!

 

In the United States, only the students in the choir class would perform at a choir concert. All students, however, could perform in a Talent Show. Usually there will be a Talent Show once a year at American schools and students can audition with a song, dance, or other talent. Only a handful of people get to perform. I like that everyone gets to be involved in Japan! It’s cool to see a new spin on a familiar tradition.

日米入学試験比較ーーーエマ先生

Entrance Exams

Recently, we have had shortened or cancelled classes because of Junior High School entrance exams. This is a very interesting concept for me, because in America, there are no entrance exams for either Junior or Senior High School. Students are assigned to schools based on where they live, not on exams. The good thing about this system is that students live near their schools, within an area where they can ride a school bus for free. I was very surprised by how long some students commute to get to Fujimura each morning, and by the fact that there are no school busses. In America, some families will move in order to get their children into a certain school district. In Japan, there is more responsibility on the student, and it starts from a young age. There is pressure for students to get into a good Junior High School, so that later they can get into a good High School, so that later they can get into a good university. In America, the important University entrance tests don’t usually start until 11^th or 12^th grade. There are other standardized tests, but overall, I think that exams are more important in Japan than in America. I think that there are pros and cons to each country’s way of doing it, and I have enjoyed learning more about the Japanese system.

-          Emma Sletteland

日本の映画館 ～「沈黙－サイレンス」を観て －－－マーレン先生

This past weekend I went to a Japanese movie theater. I was very surprised! In the United States, you cannot choose your own seats. It was so nice to have assigned seats and not have to wait in line or run to grab enough for everyone. I was also very surprised at the amount of concessions that were available. I did think movie theaters served chicken, hot dogs, French fries, and more than one type of popcorn! Normally, American theaters only offer butter and salt, not caramel, sweet corn, or bbq. It was very interesting to see.

 

The movie we saw was a historical fiction film about part of the edo era called “Silence.” It was really interesting. While I did not understand all of it (some of the Japanese lacked subtitles) it really made me more interested in learning about that time in Japanese history. My friends and I all went to a café afterwards and talked about the movie, Japan, and life. It was a very nice experience!

 

日本でのスキー －－－エマ先生

I heard that some of the high schoolers are on a ski trip in Kamui, Asahikawa right now. I went on a ski trip myself last weekend, to Hakuba Goryu in Nagano Prefecture. It was a group of one hundred and fifty people, most of them foreigners, from all over Japan. My friends and I rented a car and drove from Tokyo, which took about four hours. It was an interesting experience to see Japan from a car, as I’ve only ever travelled by train so far. On Saturday morning, we woke up to a ton of fresh snow on the ground, and it was still snowing! I rode for the full day, and it was one of the best days snowboarding of my life. I grew up skiing and snowboarding, so I was very happy to go for my first time this season, and for my first time in Japan. The resort was a little smaller than what I am used to in Colorado, but I still had a great time, and all the fresh snow made up for it. I also saw many foreigners working at the resort. I hope the high schoolers had as a great a time in Kamui as I did in Hakuba. Hopefully one day I can go to Kamui too!

『オズの魔法使い』 高校3年選択授業 ーーーマーレン先生

It is a new trimester at Fujimura, which means the third-year high school students get to take elective courses. This surprised me because in America elective courses are open to all high school students, not just seniors. One of the Japanese teachers of English I work with asked me if I would like to help teach the theater class and I was very excited! In the United States I taught a theater for ESL course, so it was something I am very familiar with. We planned a lesson where our two students would memorize and perform a scene from The Wizard of Oz.

 

We met for four hour long classes and worked on emotions, movement, memorization, and performing. The students were amazing! I have taught many different students theater, but the Fujimura girls really are talented. The scarecrow was full of emotion and Dorothy full of confidence. We performed the scene for some junior high students as well as sang a song for them. I loved teaching theater again and it was so nice. I hope I can teach more theater classes in the future!

アメリカでの年末年始 ーーーエマ先生

During winter vacation, I went home to the United States. First, I went to San Diego, California, where my mom and brother live. The weather was very nice and warm, and we went to the beach. We bought a Christmas tree and decorated it, and celebrated Christmas Eve together with a big meal and presents. Then, I went to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to see my dad and my friends. My dad and I cooked Christmas dinner together. I ate a lot of spicy Mexican food, which is what I missed the most about home. Then, I went to Denver, Colorado, to see my friends. We celebrated New Year’s Eve together, which was so much fun! It snowed a ton while I was in Denver – nearly 20 cm. It was very cold, but my friends and I still went out to eat, went shopping, and enjoyed spending time together. It was a great trip and it was very nice to see my all my friends and family. Now, I am happy to be back in Japan and excited for what the New Year will bring!