Project Platypus - creative Kana

Check out Kana's fantastic artwork! Truly the best artist I think I've ever had in my English classroom...put her mind to Australia's most shy creature and also narrated her description of it, as an after  reading project (using Chatterpix). I love this app, as it is personal yet maintains our students' privacy :)

How would you rate Kana's work (I'm at A++)?

 

 

China's snow bird - a writing & speaking project

 You've read the book, and enjoyed the thrills & spills with familiar characters...digested new vocabulary and recycled more; read bits out loud and shown understanding of the text.

Make your own character - a snow animal - including a bit of 'dictadraw' (add a scarf/hat etc), then write a description of your new animal with words from the glossary...and then read your work.

Win win using chatterkids app (students quickl learnt how to manipulate/edit/enhance their own creations!), following up our OUP Read & Imagine graded reader. After reading = fun activity & a legacy moment!

Talking text - Chiharu's Snow Rabbit

 

Listen to super Chiharu describing her "Snow Animal", an after reading project from OUP Read & Imagine graded reader "In the Snow". Extensive reading really works for our students' four skills and is an excellent outside of class  learning component; boosts language (grammar as well as vocabulary recyclying), imagination, reading large chunks of text & coping with comprehension questions quickly > great exam preparation too.

Creating this work = loads of fun as well - self & class as a group proof-reading & practicing, encouraging and giggling :)

Harrison Ford - a biography

 Harrison Ford was born in the United Stated on July 13, 1942.

After working for a local theater compnay, he moved to Los Angeles to become an actor. He made his debut in 1966 and appeared in many films, but he took a break from acting because of dissatisfaction and doubts about his way of becoming an actor.

After that, he studied by himself and became a carpenter. He thought of an opportunity to be  active as an actor while renovating house and making furniture. After that, he was introduced to Fred Roth, whom he met through carpentry, and appeared in the movie "American Graffiti". He was a ppreciated for his positive attitude, such as coming up with various ideas for his his role, and gained the trust of derector George Lucas, and was also noticed by Francis Ford Coppola, who was also the producer of the film, and continued to appear in many films.

Harrison Ford as Han Solo, Star Wars

In 1977, he auditioned for "Star Wars" through the introduction by Fred Roth, and the uneasy state of mind & manly atmosphere at the time of participation were the deciding factors, and he decided to play the role of Han SOlo, and with the explosive hit of the film, he became a world-famous star.

After that, he appeared in many films, such as Working Girl" and "Patriot Game", and he explanded his career as an actor by appearing in a wide range of genres from romantic comedy to suspense. In addition, in 1993, he achieved great box office success in the role of Richard Kimble, the main character in the film "The Fugitive", and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award, establishing himself as a Hollywood money-making star. I

In May 2023, the Honorary Palme D'Or was awarded to him at the 76th Cannes International Film Festival.

Posted for Ayumi

Hikaru Utada - a biography

 Utada Hikaru is one of the most famous singers in Japan.

She was born in New York in 1983, and lives in London now. She debuted in 1998 when she was only fifteen years old. She became quickly popular because of her beautiful & unique voice. So her first single "Automatic" sold more than two million copies and her first album "First Love" topped the Japanese album sales chart.

Hikaru Utada

Her songs were were getting more & more famous. Therefore, "Flavor of Life", which was released in 2007, recorded first place of degital songs sales in the world. She also received a prize named 'Artist of the Year' in japan Gold Disc Grand Prize. However, in 2010, she suddenly declared a pause. Nobody knew the reasons. It made many people sad and they though she might not come back. 

Then, in 2016, she suddenly started her activities again. Actually, she married and gave birth to her baby. "Fantome, which was first released when she came back was recorded first place in Billboard Japan. It show how she is loved by many Japanese people. 

Today, Utada Hikaru's songs are used by many daramas, animes, and movies. She and her songs are loved by many people all over the world.

Posted for Akane

J.K. Rowling - a biography

J.K. Rowling's journey to success was filled with hardship & resilience.

Born in England in 1965, she loved writing stories from a young age. After university, she worked various jobs but never felt fully satisfied. She dreamed of becoming an author, yet life presented challenges. Her mother passed away, her marriage failed, and she returned to England as a single mother, struggling financially & emotionally. Despite these challenges, Rowling started working on a story about a young wizard named Harry Potter.

Sitting in cafes, she carefully wrote while her baby daughter slept beside her. Rejection after rejection came from publishers, but Rowling didn't give up. Finally, in 1997, a small publisher took a chance on her manuscript. The first Harry Potter became an instant success, transforming Rowling's life.

The Harry Potter series went on to become one of the best-selling book series in history, leading to films, merchandise, and a dedicated fan base worldwide. Rowling;'s story is a powerful example of perseverance, proving that even in the hardest times, holding onto your dreams can lead to amazing outcomes.

Posted for Miki

Our Amazing Picnics - after reading project from young learners

Reading is a crucial part for any language learners' path to vocabulary acquisition/activation, familiarity & flexibility with grammatical structures, coping with long texts, exploring new as well as familiar topics...and letting imaginations run away (a bit like the robot character does in this yarn when it gets supercharged by 'fantastic' lightning!).

This after reading project page, in an Oxford Read & Imagine level 2 graded reader (The Big Storm),  was all about personalising the background story to the adventure > going for a picnic. Sub-topics here recycle vocabulary sets of food (likes & dislikes), friends (physical descriptions), weather, places to go around town...we all love recycling language! (This is approx CEFR A1; 450 Headwords at this level, 689 words in this title)

As with all young learners, some love drawing & in Japan, have ninja-like skills - others (like me) have a complete phobia about blank drawing spaces and will produce the bare minimum as quickly as possible (and only after considerable cajoling!). NB This was not an arts/crafts lesson - rather, get us some content to work off, with the writing aspect my targetted outcome. (As with any open-ended task like this in my classroom in Japan, I try hard to minimise the use of erasers...a quick correction or fine tune is fine; rubbing out/erasing 20 minutes-worth of work & starting over is not!).

Regardless of artistic skills, we all needed encouragement to look back through the book to get 'more' ideas...and the same applied to finding the words we subsequently 'needed' to produce the written output. Importantly, don't cramp the artwork with this 'news' in advance (otherwise you'll end with carefully chosen/limited drawings!)...so then to find the words/structures we need to describe our work. From the story already (quizlet set of the glossary here by the way!)

 

Yona's favourite song - "Strong"

I would like to explain about the song "Strong" from Cinderella. At fist I chose this song because I
watched the movie when I was a little child. After I watched it, I came to like it and I found this song on the internet.

Sonna Rele

I like Disney aniimation and movies so I watched movies other Disney movies. I longed to be a princess, just like little girls do. This song has not only ephemeral but also about courage. The lyrics express the power of endurance in the face of difficulty. I felt Cinderella's own strength and her kindness.

This song was written by Sonna Rele in 2015. Sonna Rele is a singer songwriter from UK. Before it was released she was an ordinary person while she found by Ne-Yo and after that she debuted. "Strong" was a very big hit so she became more and more famous and she recorded other music, for ecample "Kaise Juda Rahein", Just like kiss me", "Time" and "Something's Gotta Give". However, the most famous song is "Strong".

Cinderella had animation and live-action. "Strong" was released especially when the movie was produced into a movie. All six songs played in the movie, but this music became very famous and popular with popular with other people who watched Cinderella. Many people were interested in the songs Finally, this song is very famous right now.

I was attracted to the bright tune, positive lyrics and the powerful singing voice. It is synchronixed with Cinerella's life and when I liste to this song, I am reminded of the world view of the movie.Of course, there is a difference between the world of fairy tales and the real world, but I like this song because it gives me a push at times like that. I will continue to listen to this song and nowadays I wish lots of people will listen to this song.

Posted for Yona

Yo Hitoto - my musical role model

Yo Hitoto

Yo Hitoto is a singer-songwriter who is from Tokyo in Japan.

Her friend became paralyzed from the waist down due to a sudden accident. Yo Hitoto  went to a local city with her to assist her wheelchair life. They faced difficult 'barea' (barriers) ...Yo Hitoto felt  (that) people who face hindrances find life difficult. Therefore she wanted to do something to help.

At first, in 1999, she worked for a wheelchair users magazine company "Chairwork Wawawa". Later, she made a band with wheelchair users internet staff. They started performing at social welfare facilities, old people's homes and hospitals. A famous comedian was impressed with their performance on stage, so they made a demo tape.

Finally, she debuted as a singer-songwriter in 2002. She did more charity events because her mother, who had hidden her illness, died when she was a high school student. She was sad because she couldn't take care of her mother. As a result, she is continuing to perform even now. She said that everyone who listened to her songs & felt happy, so she felt music was miraculous. She thought about happy children, who have obstacles which thay can't explain conversationally, but were hugged & cried in reaction to her songs. Yo Hitoto has done over thirty charity concerts, not only domestically but also abroad, for example  in Cambodia, Myanmar and Kenya.

She has spent twenty years as a singer songwriter now. She made a gigi project in order to spend good times and meet people. She thinks life is happy when people want to listen to her tunes. I wish her creativity will continue to be listened to for 100 years.

Posted for... a keen HS fan

The amazing Taylor Swift - most admired musician

Taylor Swift is a really famous singer, al over the world. Amazingly, she has already won 12 Grammy Awards. However, she hasn't only performed music. She has shown us heart-warming contributions to society.

Taylor is a 34 year-old singer songwriter, who is from the USA. Her hit songs, which she composed, have been enjoyed by countless people. I think there is no one who has never heard her music on the Earth. She is a really successful celebrity!

While Taylor has been developing her music and adored by her fans, she has made a lot of contributions to society. She has donated millions of dollars to people in difficulty. Maybe most famously  was donating millions of dollars after a tornado in Tennessee, where she is from. She didn't only donate, but also launched "Speak Now...Help Now" fund. This funding institution has helped victims of tornadoes and floods. 

Following this, she has met a lot of children in difficulty, like those who are in hospital. The most heart-warming episode is that she made a song "Ronan" for a young kids Ronan, who died of cancer aged three. How kind a person is she?

In conclusion, Taylor Swift is making a big difference to people all around her. She was selected as a celebrity who contributed to sociaty by dosomething.org, an American charity group in 2014. She is a real role model for us all!!!

Posted for - a Japanese HS teen fan :)

The musician I admire most - Motoki Omori

Motoki Omori is the vocalist of Mrs. Green Apple. The band was formed in 2013. "Mrs. Green Apple", the band name, means "we want to keep going like a green apple - never ripen". "We want to project a soft, androgynous image as a band".

Motoki Omori

He has been active for a long time. When he was a high school student, he established the band with his friends. He was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1996, and loved music from when he was young. Omori, who was influenced by "Mongol 800", bought an Epiphone bass guitar when he was in sixth grade at elementary school. Then he formed the band "1733" (one seven double three) with his classmates and a teacher, motivated by the desire to stand out at the graduation party. With his band, they performed their first original songs and Mongol 800 cover songs.

When he was in the first year of junior high school, he started DTM. At the time, Omori said "I didn't understand the concept of programming, so I was just groping around and trying things out" He didn't know how to recors guitar, so he played drum sounds on an electric paion and recorded the rhytm by putting a microphone close to the speaker.

Later, wanting to learn chords, he started playing the guitar. He had a toy guitar at home, so he took it to a music store and learned how to change the strings - and bought a Les Paul type guitar from an unknown manufacturer. He was self-taught in songwriting at the time, but he used his experience, starting out with the bass, to create his songs from chord progressions. In addition to creating original songs, he copied 'Radwimps' and 'One OK Rock'. 

Now he is very popular, and he is widely loved by fans of all ages, not just young people. Songs which his band wrote are positive and make people cheerful. His positive and interesting character makes us curious about him. He and his band have never forgotten their original intentions, that made them more and more popular. Nowadays, they are famous not only in Japan, but in foreign countries too. Do you think that they could be more famous or popular? I think they will be!

Posted for ...a high school student

Hinata's musical postcard

 

Dear Jim,

I went to a big music festival in this weekend. First day, I enjoyed my favorite artist live. I like this artist more.

Today I went to the world Natural Heritage in this city. That's place is one of Japan's most beautiful and unspoiled national parks. I enjoyed the view and take many picture.

I will do my homework tomorrow. Because I have a lot of homework but I didn't do my homework in today and yesterday. I want do that tomorrow.

Thank you

Yurina's musical postcard

Dear Jim,

Today I went to a live house in Italy. A man, whose hair is curling, was playing drums and other instruments were played. I really enjoyed the music.

I'll go to eat pizza tomorrow. Eating pizza in Italy was my hope for long years, so I can't wait!!

See you next time.

Yurina

Moeka's musical postcard

Dear Jim,

I'm travelling in the United States. I'm in New York now.

I saw the Statue of Liberty yesterday. I was surprised that is was bigger than I imagined.

Today I see a circus. Animals like lions and monkeys were performing. It was very pretty and exciting.

I'm going to listen to jazz. That will be cool!

I will talk a lot when I get back.

Your student, Moeka
 

Triggering creative writing in teens

Album artwork (unseen)

This activity is an oldie (like me), but still a worldie!

My high school class on Thursday evenings has been focussing on music recently - what we listen to, when, how it makes us feel etc. Obviously, as the fuddy-duddy in the room, I have no clue about the J-pop & k-pop sounds they are into...and they have no comprehension of what a CD collection is!

With a (scary) blank piece of paper, they were tasked to draw any image that came into their heads from some music I'd chosen (an EP, for vinyl fans = more time to be creative!)...and to then pass their picture on to the left & keep drawing, in the vein they were inspired to be feeling/imagining, and so on until they got their original picture back, with everyone else's contributions 'on top'.

Once the imaginative juices had been fired up, the follow up task was to keep the music in mind & use the artwork created to 'see' an imaginary holiday experience, and to write a postcard thus inspired. You will see unique takes on Bob Marley's Iron Zion Lion reggae track here in the next few days - I hope you'll enjoy!

Artists at work!

I'm never critical about 'drawing' or art skills - I'm rubbish! I was hoping that my students would show their imagination & reactions to the team pictures & the vibe from the music, and explain their holiday so far, current activity, and plans for the next day or two > subliminal aim = demonstrate control of a variety of tenses. How did they do? Any other tips on getting cool music into high school students' doamin?!

Kenichi vs Godzillla - a write your own adventure story

Once upon a time, a young man called Kenichi met Godzilla on an unknown planet. He fought the monster and it came near him quickly. Kenichi shouted because he was scared. He saw another type of monster called King Ghidroah, which had three heads and was huge.

Kenichi tried to kill the scary monster with a branch he had picked up under an enormous oak tree. He couldn't kill the monster because its skin was too hard, so he ran away.

After running for five minutes, the boy found a secret temple with four colored doors. One door was gold, the second was silver, the third blue, and the last one was brown. He went through the first one, because he thought there might be treasure. He was wrong.

Godzilla, who was hungry, ran toward Kenichi. The boy hid inside a deep dark cave. Unfortunately, Kenichi fell into an underground lake. 

The End. 

Posted for Kenichi

Kaoru's best friend

 My best friend

My best friend is Mitsutoshi. We met for the first time at our elementary school. We went to different high schools and met again in the toy department of Aeon when we were university students.

He is as tall as me, but he is well built. We are the same age, so he is also going grey.

He is an employee of GP, and works in beverage sales. He is very kind. After the Great East Japan Earthquake, when my family was living in Tokyo, he sent us a box of bottled water. We were very grateful to him because we could not buy water at stores at that time.

He was a member of the modeling club during his university days, so he is very good at making plastic models. He taught me the technique of plastic model making.

During the pandemic of COVID-19, we have not seen for about two years.

Washington Square - a happier ending

Catherine went off with Morris as soon as she arrived in New York from Europe.  Doctor Sloper was furious about it and Catherine was denied any fortune from him.  Sadly their marriage didn't last long, as Doctor Sloper had predicted, with Morris leaving her without waiting for the birth of their daughter, who was incredibly beautiful.

Their charming daughter grew up into an intelligent and adorable girl with her mother's loving much love and care, but she was physically fragile under their simple life.  As a result, when she was seven years old, she became seriously ill and desperate Catherine begged her father for his help.  As soon as he saw his granddaughter, Doctor Sloper loved her, as she reminded him of his loving wife and his cold stiff heart melted with love.  

Doctor Sloper had changed his will again, to have his granddaughter inherit all of his property, and he invited Catherine and her daughter back to his house and they lived together happily ever after.

Meanwhile Morris got on a Hudson River ship, which had just started their business as a pleasure boat, and looked for a new position.  He was so handsome and amusing that many women were attracted by his charm but all was just temporary because they found out his lazy nature easily.

The Captain of the ship was interested in Morris' reputation, he employed him as an official host of his pleasure boat to entertain people, which was perfect for Morris and soon the Hudson River Cruise became very popular and successful, Morris enjoyed himself on the boat for the rest of his life.

Posted for Sayuri

Being brave

The bravest decision of mine for 30 years was making a trip alone to Leipzig to attend the 12th congress of World Association for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH) in 2010. It had been 23 years since I traveled abroad visiting friends in UK in 1987. WAIMH is a NPO for scientific and educational professionals promoting the mental wellbeing and healthy development of infants throughout the world, considering cultural, regional, and environmental variations, and to generate and disseminate scientific knowledge.

The information struck me that WAIMH is the one I should join. It was only 2 months before the congress was held but I could manage to organize everything to attend the congress and even planed an extra trip to Berlin after the congress. The atmosphere of the congress was very friendly, and I could make friends with participants from different countries, enjoyed the program and learned a lot. In Berlin I visited a kindergarten in woods to see how the outdoor nursery work well. I visited the East Site Gallery and other monuments for WW2, which were very impressive. They made me realize how silly human was to start the war and how brave the citizens to destroy the walls. 

I felt like that I had restored a balance between mind and body through the 10 days travel. An adventurous open-minded character was brought back to me.

Posted for Kyoko

Seasons personified - inspired by "The Selfish Giant"

Spring has brown hair and brown eyes. She is about 40 years old and she wears a blue-green dress.

In her hands, she has lots of birds. She lives inside a cherry tree. She plays with birds there.

She is a kind person, who loves cherry blossoms.

By ShiTei

Winter is a wizard. He is about 120 years old and he wears an ice crown and a black coat. In his hands he

 has lots of magic wands. He causes snowstorms. He lives in the snowy mountains. He is feared by

 everyone because he is scary.

Spring

By Kosuke

Spring has brown hair. She is about 30 years old and she wears a

 blue and yellow dress. In her hands she has birds. She cleans the

 woods. She lives in the woods. She is very kind.

By Ryusei