日本: back to school #1

So, as I have been reminded I have been slacking on writing here in awhile. So I actually need to back things up a bit now and explain a few things that have happened since my last post.

Well this month, I moved back to my first school, Hinode. Its been a bitter sweet move, as I enjoy working with the kids here, but feel that I am better utilized at Itako 2nd. In other words there I actually feel somewhat like a “real teacher”, more or less this is the way that both students and teachers view me too. But here at Hinode, I don’t really get much input into lesson planning, and when I do present ideas, they seem receptive, but then never really follow through with them, so all the work I’ve put into it ends up being a waste of time, very frustrating! This school is also just a little more ‘prim and proper’, this mood is really established by the Kyoto Sensei (vice principal, the guy that runs the show), because when he is not around everyone is a lot more relaxed and actually seems to be having fun. The two schools are like being in two separate worlds.

Anyway, even though I am at Hinode this month, I went to Itako 2nds Bunkasai (cultural festival) the first weekend of November. I was prepared to be bored beyond belief as I had been at Hinode’s, but was pleasantly surprised when I spent the entire Saturday there from 8am to 6pm, and was pretty much entertained the entire time.

A little run down of the days festivities included, viewing a movie made by students that had something to do with playing on the volleyball team but not being happy, and then magically a few rabbits appeared and helped these students find what they should be doing instead, art, basketball and music. It was a bit strange, but entertaining.

The day had various music and performances. The highlights of the performances being the girls dance group being accompanied by one of the male teachers dressed up in a cheerleaders uniform and dancing the routine with the girls. The principal joing a group of students doing some very high energy dance (I was quite surprised by this because I literally thought this principal hated kid and did nothing but sneak smoking cigarettes and sleeping in his office. I had never seen him interact with any students). And finally the “fantastic eleven” a group of 11 boys who ran around the auditorium dancing in nothing more than their swim shorts (the ones that look like spandex shorts). It was hilarious! There were even two, 1 hour long plays written and performed by students. One of which made many people cry (I didn’t cry, I was just happy that I could understand what was going on, since it was all in Japanese)

choir

brass band

Fantastic Eleven

girls dance

principal is in the middle somewhere there

In addition to all the performances, every class had set up a different display or activity around the school (carnival like, I suppose). We were given about 2 hours to explore all of these, but this was not nearly enough time. Some of these displays included a junkan (rock, paper, scissors) tournament, a paper making room, a under the sea room with math games, a gigantic model flower, and a haunted house.

There were also different displays of kids work all around the school, and I’m proud to say that my jack-o-lantern was displayed alongside all of the students art work, by the art teacher. Haha

Anyway, it was interesting day, and I’m glad that I went. The students kept dragging me around to various places, because they wanted to show me all of their hard work. It was all quite impressing.

various pictures...

the flower room, i swear the room was even scented with floral aroma

crazy kids!

a few girl students

chaos in the hall

junkan contest

girls visiting itako 2nd from hinode (their boyfriends go to school there, they were all so embarrassed when i figured it out, but they didnt do a very good job hiding it)