You Gotta Be Here

Nippon TV interviews Hamilton Elementary student Avery Taylor.

Grade 5 and 6 students at Hamilton Elementary in Richmond were recently featured on a Japanese morning news program about the activities they’ve been doing in school as part of British Columbia's Ministry of Education’s Adopt a Country program.

The students adopted Japan and learned about that country’s culture, customs, geography, economy and the education system.

Hamilton teacher Kam Sahota said the learning experience was a rewarding one for students, “It's part of the curriculum but it's important for students to understand that countries around the world are different and that they are influenced by a variety of factors such as geography, history, culture etc.  It's also important for students to develop tolerance and respect for other countries and cultures and understand that we are all part of one global community.”

With the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games approaching, it made sense for the students to learn about the Japanese athletes who are competing at these Games. Students researched the athletes and created a special bulletin board highlighting their goals and achievements.

Nippon Television spent an afternoon filming the students doing various activities related to their learning. Teacher Kam Sahota said the visit from Nippon Television gave her students extra motivation and made the learning experience more meaningful, “Thank you for the Adopt a Country Program. I can't think of a better way to motivate students and have them engage in meaningful learning!”

This assignment wasn’t just about reading books. Students did hands-on activities as part of the regular curriculum and were treated to a guest speaker who taught them about the kimono and the correct way to wear one.

At times, the learning was quite tasty, as students learned how to make sushi. Learning also focused on sumo wrestling, samurai warriors and crafts related to Japanese holidays and festivals.  

Students practiced Kanji, the Chinese characters used in Japanese writing and also honed their literary skills through discussions about the novel “Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.” 

One part of Hamilton Elementary's Adopt a Country project as part of the 2010 Games.