Soko Gakuen Japanese Language School
1881 Pine Street, San Francisco, California 94109
Telephone: 415-928-9608
Semester: Spring 2022 2/5/2022 – 6/4/2022
Class: Beginning 1&2 Location: Room 101
Teacher: Chris Leger E-mail: heychrisleger@gmail.com
Meeting Day & Time: Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Course Objectives:
At the end of the semester, the student should be able to:
Play with other children and enjoy studying Japanese.
Understand Japanese sentences used by the teacher.
Memorize, read, and write the 50 Kana sounds.
Carry on simple Japanese dialogues.
Learn and use nouns for everyday objects.
Count from 1 to 50 in Japanese.
Speak Japanese with friends.
Textbooks & Materials:
Yasashii Nihongo Elementary Japanese. (1994.) The California Association of Japanese Language Schools. Tokyo, Japan: Seibido.
Handouts, picture books, Hiragana cards, and Origami etc.
Evaluation & Rewards:
At the end of the semester:
The student's listening, speaking, reading, spelling, penmanship, and communication skills will be evaluated with the following letter grade: A = 90-100, B = 80-89, C = 70-79, D = Needs Attention, and F = Failure. Homework, attendance, punctuality, attention, effort, motivation, manners, and responsibility will be evaluated by the following letter grade: E = Excellent, S = Satisfactory, U = Unsatisfactory. See the Report Card if necessary.
A final exam will be given.
3. Awards: KAIKINSHO (Perfect Attendance Award) will be given to any student who has had perfect attendance during the academic year, and SEIKINSHO (Good Attendance Award) to any student who has had only 1 or 2 absences during the academic year. DORYOKUSHO (Effort Award) may be given to any student whose effort throughout the academic year was laudable.
Course Descriptions:
The instructor will make use of the following each week to retain language comprehension.
Year, Month, Day, Days of the Week, Weather
Numbers: From 1 to 50
Greetings (Ohayou gozaimasu, Sayounara, Arigatou, etc.)
Action Verbs (Tatsu, Suwaru, Shizuka ni suru, Kasu, Taberu, Nomu, Yomu, Kaku, Kiku, Miru, Iku, Noru, Kuru, etc.)
Kana syllables (Gojuuon, 50 sounds/characters)
Karutatori (learned nouns and Hiragana will appear in Karuta card games) **
Songs
Picture Books
Seasonal Events (Hina Matsuri, etc.)
Notes to Parents:
Students will receive homework assignments every week. Please help them check their work with the homework checklist, as well as their weekly quizzes and classwork (graded quizzes and tests will be returned to students the following week).
During recess, students will go to the gym. Please have them wear gym shoes. **
We have snack time between 10:15-10:30 after recess. Please let your children bring their own snacks (healthy, natural snacks are encouraged).
Please have your children bring a basic 1-inch, 3-ring binder with their name and 4 tab dividers. Their class work, weekly quizzes, and homework will be filed along with their sticker chart, as well as a homework check sheet – please sign this each week.
Procedures:
The instructor will follow the class schedule (see next page).
Between 10:00 and 10:15, pupils and instructors will engage in physical activities in the gym to encourage kinetic development. This will also help to lessen stress and anxiety in the students.** Due to the Covid situation, we instead offer optional “bonus phrases” activities during the break time. Students can earn stickers for their sticker charts, which when filled completely allows the student to select from among an assortment of small prizes related to Japanese culture.
Calendar/ Weekly Schedule (Tentative)
Textbook Subject
Week 1 (Feb. 5) Beginning of 2nd Semester
P35-38 Introduction, Animals
Week 2 (Feb. 12) P35-38 Animals, Body parts, colors
Week 3 (Feb. 19) P35-38 Animals, Body parts, Adjectives
Week 4 (Feb. 26) P53-56 Shopping, Counters
Week 5 (Mar. 5) P53-56 Shopping, How much?
Week 6 (Mar. 12) P53-56 Shopping
Week 7 (Mar. 19) P57-60 Treasure Hunting, directions
(Mar. 26) ~ ~ Spring Break (NO CLASS, but don't forget your homework!) ~ ~
Week 8 (Apr. 2) P57-60 Treasure Hunting, directions
Week 9 (Apr. 9) P61-64 Transportation & Destination
Week 10 (Apr. 16) P61-64 Transportation & Destination
Week 11 (Apr. 23) P65-68 Verb Past Tense ( -mashita)
Week 12 (Apr. 30) P65-68 Verb Past Tense ( -mashita)
Week 13 (May. 7) P69-72 Sickness, (…ga itai)
Week 14 (May. 14) P69-72 Sickness, (…ga itai)
Week 15 (May. 21) Review for the final exam Parent-Teacher Conferences **
Week 16 (May. 28) Final Exam
Week 17 (Jun 4)** Graduation & GAKUGEI-KAI (pupils’ presentation) **
** may or may not happen depending on the Covid situation at the time