Pupils become familiar with family crests in general and Japanese family crests in particular. Students become familiar with the history of Japanese family crests.

Middle schoolers compare and contrast the two forms of poetry. They are concerned with practicing the styles of both in order to reproduce their own creative work. Research is done to look for the backgrounds of both styles and how they...

Sixth graders engage in the reading of a non-fiction text in order to acquire character traits as displayed in the text.The story builds reading fluency through the teacher modeling correct style and speed.

Students are introduced to the time of the samurai warriors using the guided reading of "The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks". The teacher reads the story to the students and they make connections from the text about the history of the samurai.

Learners research and experience the culture of Zen Buddhism. They engage the practice of meditation by practicing themselves in a variety of contexts with different cultural readings.

Students read a first person account of the bombing of Hiroshima written by a Japanese physician. By reading Michihiko Hachiya's journal, they discover the fatalities caused by the bomb itself and later by radiation poisoning. To...

Learners listen to the story of "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes." They discuss the events of Hiroshima, effects of the bombing, and methods people can make a difference in achieving peace in the world. Students use orgami paper and...

Students lie in the grass on their backs for fifteen minutes. They let go of any inner dialogue and simply see, feel, hear, and smell. When the time is over, students write down words about what they experienced.

Seventh graders make connections with the history of Japanese art with the modern use of ancient warriors in the popular Yu-Gi-Oh trading cards. They journal and reflect upon the research and comparison of the ancient to modern art.

Students read the tale of 'Three Strong Women' looking for facets of culture that create a 'face' of the Japanese people. They create a Venn Diagram comparing Japanese tall tales with factual research about Japanese culture. One side...

Art is a wonderful way to express feelings of social unrest or change. Learners will examine the works of two contemporary Japanese artists, and how they each have used art to say something big. They analyze the work of Katsuhiro Saiki...

Kamishibai (paper drama), is a Japanese form of storytelling that uses emakimono (paper picture scrolls), to relay a moral lesson. As part of a series of resources that examine Japanese art and artists, learners watch a video...

Now these are learning activities full of fun, art, and cultural exploration. Kids consider the art of storytelling through comic book images. They then look at the Tale of Genji as it was written in the 11th century. They discuss...

A perfect resource for encouraging an understanding of the world's religions and note taking skills. Text is broken into a classic note taking style, ideal for teaching good habits. Content includes a break down of major religions,...

If your really want your history class to know everything about old and new imperialism, look no further. This 58-slide presentation depicts, describes, and explains everything from 19th Century expansion and the Congress of Berlin to...

Go ahead. Spill the ink! Combine the study of art, social studies, and science with a Suminagashi (spilled ink) activity that produces "unique and unreproducible" works of art.

Students study the leaders of the isolationist movement within the United States and the causes of the isolationist movement, they recognize and compare the perceptions of both the isolationists within the US and those who took a more...

Upper elementary and middle schoolers research and analyze some different types of governments. Democracies, Monarchies, and Dictatorships are some of the types that are looked at. Learners use the Internet to gather information that...

High schoolers read texts, view film and video and conduct research in an analysis and comparison of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and the Kabuki piece "Chushingura". They focus their analysis on the theme of revenge.

Can literacy get any more fun than this? Learners not only have fun, but gain confidence as well when presented with familiar text in another language. Select books, songs, poems, even recipes written in another language, and using the...

One, two, three. Un, deux, trois. Eins, zwei, drei. Primary learners love to count and this instructional activity contains a series of games that encourage learners to count in English, French, German, and Spanish. The exercises develop...

Researchers say that we need to hear and see new language 12 times before we remember it! Here's a plan that details a series of games that can be used as memory exercises. Bingo, Noughts and Crosses, Pelmanism, and repetitive speaking...

What is a haibun? With this interesting lesson, writers will experience the Japanese writing form haibun, identify elements important to Japanese writing styles, analyze a haibun, and compose their own. Different from the typical journal...