Monday 25, August 

How is your summer vacation so far? The weather has been so hot everyday, I find it difficult to be outside! 

One of my favorite activities to do in summer is hiking. Even though it has been very hot, I have gone on a couple very fun hikes! My two favorite hikes were Oze National Park and Shiratani Unsuikyo on Yakushima!

Have you ever been to Oze? It is near the boarder of Gunma, Niigata, and Fukushima. It is a protected national park, with many wild animals and beautiful scenery. I hiked for 3.5 hours to reach my campsite and stayed over night. The nature was beautiful! I saw many animals such as a baby bear and fireflies! When the sun rose, the marsh was covered in peaceful fog. 

Shiratani Unsuikyo is on Yakushima in Kyushu. It is the forest that inspired the Studio Ghibli movie 「もののけ姫」! To get to Yakushima, I had to take a 1.5 hour boat. The hike was not too difficult, and the view was amazing! I also saw a family of monkeys on the hike! 

Do you like hiking? I recommend these hikes if you can go!

-Charlotte (3rd grade level) 

Tuesday 1, July 

July 1st is Canada Day! It is a day to celebrate Canada's birthday. Canada is a very young country compared to countries like Japan. Canada became a country in 1867, which means it is 158 years old this year. Since July is often hot and sunny, we have outdoor parties and parades to celebrate! People cook BBQ, hang out with friends, and watch fireworks.  And of course, everyone wears red and white colors.

Even though Canada as a country has only existed for 158 years, that doesn't mean that people didn't live there before. The indigenous people of Canada have lived there for thousands of years.  It is important that when we celebrate Canada Day, we also acknowledge the people who lived there before us. 

-Charlotte  

Thursday 26, June 

Summer is here, and it is so hot! 

How do you like to spend your free time in the summer? When I'm free, I like to go swimming outside. Do you know that Canada is famous for having the most lakes of any country? Canada has around 879, 800 lakes! So its not surprising that Canadians love to hang out at the lake when the weather is hot. Many people think that Canada is cold all the time, but this is NOT true. Canada can get VERY hot in the summer, especially the in the  middle of Canada. It often reaches 30-40 degrees. 

It is more difficult to find lakes to swim in Japan, but last weekend I went to Shimonita with my friends to swim in the river! The weather was so hot so many families were at the river to swim too. We had so much fun jumping in the water a swimming around. After, we ate yakiniku and fruit on the beach. 

If you have time, you should go!

-Charlotte (2nd grader level) 

Tuesday 3, June

Hello! I recently returned to Canada for a week to visit my family and friends! 

I love living in Japan, but there are many things I miss in Canada. Of course, I miss my family, friends, and pets. But, I also really missed western style food! When I was in Canada I ate so much delicious food and snacks! My mom made turkey dinner for me, and my dad made homemade hamburgers. I also filled my suitcase with potato chips and other snacks to bring back to Japan, because I like American style potato chips more than Japanese ones. Did you know that all Japanese chips have a sweet taste to foreigners? My Japanese friends don't think they are sweet, but every foreigner I ask thinks that they are. Have you tried chips made in America or Canada? Try comparing them to Japanese chips and see if you can tell the difference! 

-Charlotte (3rd year level) 

Friday 16, May 

Are you interested in cryptids/monsters (幻獣) ?  I think cryptids are very interesting because they usually have cultural importance. 

In North America (Canada and America), there is a famous cryptid named Bigfoot. Bigfoot are named after the very big foot prints that people have found (see photo).  Bigfoot are a kind of half ape (猿) half human (人). They live in the deep forest. People say that they smell so bad that you know a Bigfoot is near by the bad smell.  The aboriginal (先住民族) people believe that Bigfoot is not dangerous, and are from the spirit world. 

What do you think? Are Bigfoot real? I think that it is fun to imagine they are. I recommend watching a Bigfoot "Documentary" to learn more. 

-Charlotte (First grade unit 1 grammar) 

Wednesday 30, April  

Hello! This week the weather was so nice. Last weekend, I went camping in Tateyama in Chiba with my friends! Our campground was near the beach, therefore the view was so beautiful!

I love the ocean, but there is no ocean in Gunma. It was so nice to spend the day on the beach. I walked in the water and collected sea shells. It was so fun! 

Do you know Tateyama is famous for peanuts? In Tateyama I tried peanut soft cream for the first time. It was delicious. Have you tried peanut soft cream? I recommend it!

-Charlotte

Monday 7th, April 

一年生, welcome to Daichu! And welcome back 二年生 and 三年生! Did you have a fun spring break? What did you do?

My friend from Canada came to Japan to visit me! It was her first time visiting Japan. We went to Saitama to see cherry blossoms. Last week, Omiya park had a cherry blossom festival. We enjoyed walking around, eating snacks, and taking pictures!  There are cherry trees in Canada too, but I have never seen so many beautiful cherry trees in one place before! 

Japanese sakura are my favorite flowers. I love the color pink the most! 

-Charlotte 

Tuesday 25th, February

How was your weekend? 

My friend from Hong Kong came to visit. My friend's favorite movie is Disney's Rapunzel, therefore they wanted to go to Disney Sea. I have been to Disney Land in California USA, but it was my first time at Tokyo Disney. It was very crowded but the weather was nice! I ate a lot of yummy food. We went on the Rapunzel ride, as well as many other rides. My favorite was Tower of Terror and Indiana Jones Temple of Doom. I like the scary rides the most! Have you been to Disney Land? What is your favorite ride?  

-Charlotte (2nd grader level)

Tuesday 18, December

It's December 18th, which means Christmas is in exactly one week! Do you have any plans for winter vacation?  At Christmas time, people have many different traditions that they do every year. 

In Canada, my family and I have many Christmas traditions that we enjoy doing together.  Because I am in Japan this year, it is difficult to do most of those traditions such as baking cookies, eating turkey, and putting up the Christmas tree. 

Despite not being able to do most of my Christmas traditions, I was able to do one of my favorite traditions last night! Every year I love to go to the Nutcracker ballet. Takasaki City Theater hosted the Ukrainian State Ballet who preformed the Nutcracker. I went with my friend and it made me so happy to continue that tradition. Watching the show and listening to the music reminded me of home.  

Have you ever seen the Nutcracker ballet? It is a very old story by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, who is my favorite classical music composer. If you haven't, I recommend it because the music is very beautiful. 

-Charlotte

Wednesday 4, December 

Wow! It is already December! That means Christmas celebrations are happening all around the world. Christmas is a relatively new holiday in Japan, but there is one Christmas tradition in Japan that is well known overseas. In Japan, many people eat fried chicken every year on Christmas. Many people do not know why this tradition started, and many do not know that in North America  we never eat fried chicken for Christmas. Instead, we eat roasted turkey and mashed potatoes. So how did fried chicken become a Christmas tradition in Japan? 

Once apon a time... (1970), the first Kentucky Fried Chicken opened in Japan. By 1981, there was 324 stores across Japan! During this time, not many people celebrated Christmas in Japan yet. One day, a foreigner came into a KFC restaurant in Tokyo and said, "I can't get turkey in Japan, so I will have to celebrate Christmas with Kentucky Fried Chicken". This gave KFC an idea. They decided to market KFC chicken as a traditional American Christmas meal, even if that wasn't true. The marketing worked really well and many Japanese people made KFC a Christmas tradition. 

In order to celebrate Christmas Japanese style, I ordered KFC for Christmas! Do you also eat KFC for Christmas?

-Charlotte

(3rd grade level) 

Tuesday 26, November 

Last week, went to Kyoto for the first time! Kyoto has been a place that I have wanted to visit for many years. The beauty and culture of Kyoto is known worldwide. Every year the prefecture of Kyoto is visited by millions of tourists from all over Japan and the world. 

Why do so many people visit Kyoto? For one thing, Kyoto has 17 World Heritage sites! The sacred shrines, temples, and castles have influenced a lot art. One of my favorite artists, 川瀬 巴水 , was inspired by Kyoto's beauty for many of his prints. 

This art was done by 川瀬 巴水, and a shrine in Kyoto can be seen in it. I think his art is so beautiful. 

-Charlotte 

(Second grader level, grammar and vocab from unit 7)

Thursday 14, November

This week and next week my younger sister is visiting me in Japan! 

This is my sister's first time in Japan. There are many things she wants to do during her time here! In Canada, Japanese Kawaii culture is very famous. We want to look for Kawaii things while in Japan! 

My sister is a person that loves cats a lot! Look at the first picture. This is a picture of coffee that we got at a cat café. The one with a picture of Suchan on it is my coffee, and the one with a picture of Mochikina on it is my sister's coffee. So cute! 

We also went to a photo booth to take Kawaii style photos in Tokyo. This is a photo that we took in Shibuya. The girl who has pink hair is my sister! 

-Charlotte 

(3rd grader level, unit 5 grammar) 

Wednesday, October 31st 

Happy Halloween! 

In Japan, Cosplay is a well known activity where people of any age can dress up as whoever or whatever they want and go to conventions. In North America, for most people, Halloween is the only time they can dress up in costumes! I always dress up every year and go out with my friends! This weekend, I am going to Minakami with some friends to stay in a lodge. We are going to have a Halloween party! This Halloween I am going to be Hannah Montana. Do you know this Character? She is from a TV show in the 2000s. 

I hope you had a fun Halloween! 

-Charlotte 

Tuesday, 29th October 

When Charlotte is not in English class, what is she doing? She is making a Canadian information board! 

There are lots of interesting facts about Canada that Charlotte wants to share with you! Have you seen the Canadian information board yet? She decorated it with Canadian flags and colorful pictures! You can learn about Canadian animals, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Indigenous art, and more.  The information is in Japanese and easy English!

Charlotte is preparing more interesting information,  so please don't forget to read it when you have time. 

-Charlotte 

(1st grade, unit 6 grammar and vocab) 

Thursday, 5th September 2024

Hello everyone!

My name is Charlotte, and I am the new ALT from Canada! Thank you for welcoming me to Daichu. I am very excited to be here!

A month ago, I came to Japan for the first time and have experienced so many new things. During summer vacation, I went to the Takasaki Festival. Did you go to the Takasaki Festival as well? I wore a yukata for the first time and ate yakisoba. It was so much fun! Although it rained a lot during the festival, the rain stopped before the fireworks began. The fireworks were beautiful.

I hope everyone had a fun summer vacation!

-Charlotte 

(1st - 2nd grade level)

Friday, July 12th 2024

Hello! It's been a little while, hasn't it?
I have been getting ready to move home. My five years in Japan is almost finished. So this week, first and second year students played the Final Game.

Third year students will play it next week, so I can't tell you much about it yet. But it was very difficult. I think it was too difficult, because no one could finish it... Oops. But I hope everyone had fun.

-Caitlin

(2nd grader level)

Thursday, 9th May 2024

During Golden Week, I went to Mt. Akagi with my friends.
It has been a  long time since I went there.  But there was a cool red sign at the top of the mountain, and my friends wanted to take a picture of it with their car.  Do you know this car?
If you have watched the anime or read the manga called  Initial D,  I think you will recognise this car!
I think that cars are popular with Daichu students. Many students have keychains on their pencil cases, or talk to me about cars.  Talking to students makes me happy.  So please tell me which cars you like the most!

-Caitlin
(3rd Grader level)

Thursday, 2nd May 2024

I like food! I often go to restaurants with my friends. I like going to new places each time.
Look at this picture. What is this?
That's right. It's pizza! But it's a little different to normal pizza. This is a doner pizza. It has meat and sauce inside the crust.
It's so delicious!  Let's eat pizza every day! 🍕

-Caitlin
(1st Grader level)

Friday, 26th April 2024

Recently, it has been very warm in Midori City. Today is 24 degrees!
It became spring very quickly. I really like this weather, but I don't like having allergies! The last month has been full of pollen so that flowers and trees can grow, but it makes me sneeze. And it makes my eyes itchy. I look like a goldfish. Achoo!

-Caitlin
(2nd grader level)

Tuesday, 9th April 2024

On the weekend, I went to a shrine near the school for a tea ceremony. It was my first time going to a tea ceremony. There were more people than I thought, so we had to wait a few minutes.
There was a woman playing the koto at the shrine, so we listened to music while we waited. It was very nice.
I ate some traditional Japanese sweets and drank matcha, green tea. It was delicious and relaxing. I also saw two students! One is still at Daichu, and one has already graduated. It was nice to see them both!

After that, I went to hanami, flower viewing. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom now, so all the trees are very beautiful.  
We don't have cherry blossom trees in Australia, so I'm always happy to see them while I'm in Japan. But I don't really like cherry blossom flavored food... do you?

-Caitlin
(2nd grader level)