Konnichiwa! - Key School

N I H O N M AT S U R I
April 8th, 2010
Dear Fourth Graders and parents:
Konnichiwa!
We are starting an exciting new unit ‘Nihon Matsuri.’ During the
next eight weeks we shall explore the geography, culture and arts of
the island nation of Japan. During the course of our unit we shall
read, ‘The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn’ by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler, and delve into 18th century Japan, (also the Samurai Period)
through the eyes of a fourteen year old boy who yearns to become a
Samurai himself. As this book will introduce us to cultural facets of
Japan’s feudal society, many of which will be new to you, we shall
read and discuss this book in class.
In addition, we shall also read a few other books in class: Japanese Children’s Favorite Stories compiled by Florence Sakade,
Samurai by Kids Discover and Rise of the Shogun-Life in Medieval
Japan which is a Calliope magazine.
During Nihon Matsuri you shall be paired up with one of your
classmates for the entire duration of this study. Together you choose
a family crest but you will choose and work independently on your
research topic. Your research presentation shall include a written
report and a 3-D project as well as a skill that you can teach your
classmates about what you learned from your topic.
For instance, if your topic is Samurai Warriors, you can teach your classmates about designing and creating a Samurai Crest with their family
name.
During the duration of the Matsuri, you will also have a The Ghost
in the Tokaido Inn test each week on Thursday. The schedule follows:
April 15th, 2010 > Preface, Chapters 1-7 (pages 1-54)
April 22nd, 2010 > Chapters 8-12 (pages 55-105)
April 29th, 2010 > Chapters 13-18 (pages 106-155)
May 6th, 2010
> Chapters 19-25, Author’s Note (pages 156-214)
The final test for Nihon Matsuri will be on Wednesday, May 19th,
2010. The presentations of your research will take place the following
week of May 24th, 2010.
After you have given your research presentations to the class and
shared your knowledge, we are going to celebrate our study by having a
real festival or Matsuri on Tuesday, June 1st, 2010. At that time, you
will teach your understanding of Japanese culture to the rest of the
fourth graders. This festival, will require plenty of parent support.
I look forward to studying about Japan with you and I know this
will be a great experience for all of us.
Domo Arrigato Gosaimashita!