On Tuesday, Stage 3 students ‘travelled’ to a Japanese classroom in Osaka, to participate in a language and cultural exchange. We were able to link up via Skype and the children were very excited to see each other.  Our children introduced themselves in Japanese, sharing information about their age, members of their families, their travel experiences to Japan and also their favourite Japanese things.

The Japanese students didn’t know where in the world we were and took turns asking our children things about our national flag, animals and climate. After a few failed attempts such as Russia, Canada and New Zealand, they then picked Australia. They also shared some Japanese culture items with us. They really enjoyed being able to speak English and share their learning with us. Similarly our students had a wonderful time conversing in both Japanese and English.

Learning a foreign language can be difficult without contact with native speakers, so this opportunity was fantastic in allowing the students to hear and speak Japanese and be understood. Many of the children received a round of applause from their Japanese friends which was both encouraging and affirming.

We are looking forward to our next Skype.

次回もお楽しみに！

Amanda de Jongh