Learn Japanese Through Culture VII: Taking in the Seasons & Nature in Japan
In this 8-week class, students learn about culture related to wildlife and nature in Japan while also learning how to use Japanese vocabulary and grammar to express their appreciation of the seasons in writing through poetry (e.g. haiku).
Jennifer M. Yoo
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(96)
What's included
8 live meetings
10 in-class hoursClass Experience
As a language is so heavily informed by that country's culture, the goal of this class is to provide cultural context that is both interesting and helpful to students developing a better understanding of Japanese. Being able to read/write Hiragana/Katakana/Kanji characters is not required but an understanding of at least a basic level of Japanese grammar and/or vocabulary is recommended in order to get the most out of this class. As the theme of this 8-week course is seasons and nature in Japan, each class will include a short presentation on cultural topics related to some aspect of how the Japanese appreciate nature and enjoy the change of the seasons through activities, food, etc. with images and video clips (when appropriate). Aside from learning about Japanese culture, these presentations are also for practicing listening comprehension and will be given at least partially in Japanese by the teacher (with keywords translated into English to aid in comprehension). A short check for student understanding and a chance for students to ask questions (in English or Japanese) will be done throughout each presentation. In addition, each class will also focus on learning key vocabulary and practicing grammar patterns related to the cultural topic introduced in the presentation. This will be done in the form of looking at examples of Japanese music and/or poetry and translating/understanding its meaning, as well as activities such as roleplaying (when appropriate) with the focus being on learning and practicing how to use them in both conversation and their own poems they will be writing for their final assignments. Week 1: Introducing the Seasonal Culture of Japan - The 72 Micro-Seasons & Seasonal Words in Traditional Poetry Week 2: Weather in Japan - Talking About the Weather and Change of Seasons Week 3: Spring in Japan - Weather, Plants, Animals, Foods & Activities Week 4: Summer in Japan - Weather, Plants, Animals, Foods & Activities Week 5: Fall in Japan - Weather, Plants, Animals, Foods & Activities Week 6: Winter in Japan - Weather, Plants, Animals, Foods & Activities Week 7: Creating Your Poetry Collections in Japanese - Playing Games with the Seasons Week 8: Student Presentations of Final Projects, Review Game & Wrap-Up **Please note that this 8-week class is the seventh part of the "Learn Japanese Through Culture" series. Each part is organized around a certain theme and is designed to be more or less independent so that students do not have to take all of the parts, nor do they have to take them in order to benefit. Some parts may have similar topics within them, but the way in which the related grammar, vocabulary, etc. is implemented in each part is informed by the theme.
Learning Goals
Upon completing this class, students will have:
- Learned more about the seasonal culture in Japan, what the different seasons and nature/wildlife are like, how the Japanese appreciate nature and how traditional poetry is written and its close connection to seasons/nature, etc.
- Learned vocabulary related to Japanese seasons, nature, etc.
- Practiced listening and speaking of Japanese in situational conversations (talking about the weather, changes in season/time, etc.).
- Practiced expressing their own appreciation for nature and the seasons in Japanese, presenting their haiku written in Japanese.
Other Details
Supply List
All audiovisual material for class (sound/video/image) will be provided as part of PowerPoint presentations (or similar) displayed for students through use of screen share on Zoom. Students may want to have a notebook and pen/pencil to take notes in class. All "follow-up worksheets" and class supporting materials (i.e. vocabulary lists) will be provided to students by the teacher in the Classroom. For their final project, students will be asked to write a small collection of poetry in Japanese, and provide some visuals to go along with their writing to show to the class as they present their poems. This can be drawn, made digitally on the computer using pictures found on the internet, etc. however the supplies needed to complete the design part of this final project will vary accordingly.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Joined April, 2020
4.9
96reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Doctoral Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from University of Hawaii at Manoa
I have studied Japanese for more than 12 years and am fluent in the language. I also am experienced in tutoring middle school, high school, as well as college students in Japanese and I have lived accumulatively in Japan for about 5 years.
In terms of knowledge about the seasonal culture in Japan, aside from what I have learned from the experience of living there, I have studied Japanese art, its poetry, and its close connection with nature and the seasons in both college and graduate school. I have also traveled throughout Japan and taken in the seasons as well as natural sights over the course of the 5 years I have lived there. Reviews
Live Group Class
$80
for 8 classes1x per week, 8 weeks
75 min
Completed by 1 learner
Live video meetings
Ages: 13-18
2-6 learners per class
