Educational Outreach One of the Japan-America Society's most important missions is to reach out to the next generation of young Americans and interest them in Japan and the world beyond our shores. We strive to promote this intercultural understanding through our "Japan-in-a-Suitcase" program. JAPAN-IN-A-SUITCASE (JiS) is a free program which packs a little bit of Japan in a suitcase and brings it to area children at schools, libraries and festivals. This program promotes understanding of Japan and Japanese culture to school children in Grades 3 and up through hands-on activities, games and demonstrations. School Visits-Elementary School The Japan-in-a-Suitcase program can primarily be found visiting local public and private elementary schools. A team of JiS volunteers comes to the school with a suitcase filled with all kinds of things - picture panels, maps, clothes, schools supplies and more - that illustrate contemporary life in Japan. In a typical JiS visit, students learn basic Japanese greetings, get a hands-on look at the daily school life of Japanese children, practice counting in Japanese and try on some traditional Japanese clothing. Japan-in-a-Suitcase can perform a onetime 90 minute assembly for multiple classes or make repeated visits to individual classrooms (up to 5 times per school and class). o Sample Assembly Lesson Plan for Elementary School o Sample 5 Time Visit Lesson Plan for Elementary School If you are a teacher interested in arranging a school visit for your students, please click here for the procedures and an application or contact us with questions at jisdc@us-japan.org School Visits - Middle School Our newest program takes Japan-in-a-Suitcase up to the middle school level, giving students a chance to learn about Japan and the Japanese language in more detail while still enjoying memorable hands-on activities and games. o Sample Assembly Lesson Plan for Middle School o Sample 5 Time Visit Lesson Plan for Middle School If you are a teacher interested in arranging a school visit for your middle school students, please click here for the procedures and an application or contact us with questions at jisdc@us-japan.org. Visit Japan at your Library Conducted by our volunteers at area public libraries during the summer months, this program offers a more in-depth, interactive, hand-on learning experience for children. The libraries also display books about Japan for the children to borrow and take home. Because this is a new program, it is not yet offered in all counties in the area. We hope to expand the program throughout the region in the years ahead. If you are a library that would be interested in hosting a "Visit Japan at your Library" day over school vacations, please click here for the procedures and an application or contact us with questions at jisdc@us-japan.org. Japan Festival Booth We also set up booths at elementary school cultural fairs and international festivals, as well as at other public and private events. The content at our Japan festival booth is aimed at elementary students and promotes an understanding of Japan through fun crafts and games. If you are planning an event and would like us to show Japanese culture with origami, kimono fashion shows, traditional children's games and more, please click here for the procedures and an application or contact us with questions at jisdc@us-japan.org. FOR VOLUNTEERS If you are interested in volunteering for our educational outreach programs, please click here for more information. We are always looking for volunteers who have first-hand experience with Japanese culture. Americans who have lived in Japan or Japanese citizens who are currently living in the DC area are strongly encouraged to volunteer. You are sure to love interacting with all the friendly and eager children at our events. Thank you in advance for your help! LEARN MORE Do you want to know what is going on with our educational programs today? Interested in a presentation on a specific aspect of Japanese culture? Just contact us! The Japan-America Society of Washington, Inc. 1819 L Street NW, Level 1B, Washington DC 20036 (T) 202-833-2210 (F) 202-833-2456 Email: jaswdc@us-japan.org