Japan-America Society of the State of Washington

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Japan in the Schools

Japan in a Suitcase Program

The Japan in a Suitcase Program presents a day in the life of a Japanese child using visual aids and items from Japan to make the experience as real as possible.

Common items used by Japanese children in everyday life - at home and in school - are brought to the school in a suitcase and used to show how a young Japanese boy spends a typical day, from morning to night. Pairs of volunteers make the presentations: English speakers facilitate the lesson and lead discussion, while their Japanese partners provide exposure to the language and act as native experts.

Elementary students participate in Japan in the Suitcase program with Coordinator Yuka Furukawa Students are delighted to be able to see and touch the items from Japan - chopsticks, pencil cases, games, textbooks and much more. They are encouraged to look for similarities as well as differences in the lives of their Japanese counterparts. They also have the opportunity to hear and speak Japanese and even to try their hand at writing some simple Japanese characters.

The Japan in a Suitcase Program has been a big success since its inception, averaging over 2,000 students reached year year since the 1994-1995 school year.

School visits are usually scheduled between 9am and 3pm on weekdays, from September to June. Available for 1st through 3rd grade classes, presentations last approximately 50 minutes. To arrange a Japan in a Suitcase presentation, please contact the Japan-America Society at 206-374-0180.

At the end of the school year 2004-2005, we have brought our program to 1883 students in 82 classrooms at the 35 area elementary schools listed below:
Assumption St Bridget school
Bellevue Christian Elementary School
BFDAY
Brigadoon Elementary School
Cascade View Elementary School
College Place Elementary School
Dunlap Elementary School
East Ridge Elementary School
Emerson Elementary School
Endeavour Elementary School
Fairmount Park Elementary School
Island Park Elementary School
Lafayette Elementary School
Lawton Elementary School
Lockwood Elementary School
Lowell Elementary School
Loyal Heights Elementary School
M.L.King Elementary School
Maple Elementary School
Mount View Elementary School
North Beach Elementary School
Paulsbo Elementary School
Renton Park Elementary School
Ridgewood Elementary School
Sacred Heart School
Sierra Heights Elementary School
St. Benedict Elementary School
St. Thomas More Elementary School
Stevenson Elementary School
Thurgood Marshall Elementary School
Tiffany Park Elementary School
West Mercer Elementary School
West Seattle Montessori School
Wildwood Elementary School
Wilder Elementary School



Japan-America Society of the State of Washington
Information, Opportunity, Access

Offices in the World Trade Center West
2200 Alaskan Way, Suite 400
Seattle, Washington USA
Telephone 206-374-0180 FAX 206-374-0175
jassw@us-japan.org

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