unit
Culture of Japan
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Culture of Japan |
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overview |
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Today we are going on a scavenger hunt for information about Japanese culture! You and your partner will need to use your web savvy, reading, and thinking skills to maneuver your way through the Kids Web Japan site to find as many answers as possible. Look for clues in the questions, think about main ideas. Remember, it is a culture treasure hunt, so let that be a hint about where to begin. Off you go. Have fun!
| 1. In autumn this
tree sprouts lots of bright red berries. With its sparkling, shiny fruit, this is a very beautiful type of bonsai. It is called Japanese Winterberry or ? |
| 2. Find the
picture of the Japanese Black Pine bonsai. What is its name? How old is the one pictured estimated to be? |
| 3. How old is the tradition of growing bonsai? |
| 4. How do you
think the art of growing bonsai expresses both the Japanese respect for living things and their sense of beauty? |
| 5. Where was the World Bonsai Friendship Federation convention held in 2002? |
| 6. Which razor
sharp tool would you use to trim braches flush to the trunk of a bonsai? |
| 7. What would you use a Me-tsumi basami for? |
| 8. What are bonsai? |
| 9. What other game does Fuku Wari remind you of? |
| 10. In Japan, at what time of year are traditional games and toys still very popular? |
| 11. When did kites come to Japan? |
| 12. What is the name
of the kite made to resemble a merchant's servant, often in funny poses? How large were some community kites |
| 13. What do you use to play bei-goma, and what is the objective of the game? |
| 14. What is the name of the Japanese art of calligraphy? |
| 15. What are the
Japanese names for the three types of calligraphy? square style? cursive? semi-cursive? |
| 16. To do Shodo, you
dip the _____ into the _____ and then draw figures called _____ on the hanshi, using a _____ to keep the hanshi from moving. |
| 17. What does a traditional Japanese meal consist of? |
| 18. If you were invited to a Japanese dinner, what would you say before eating? |
| 19. What does gohan mean? |
| 20. After eating how would you say, "it was quite a feast"? |
| 21. What is the URL for the page on which you can learn to hold chopsticks properly? |
| 22. Do they eat long grained or short grained rice in Japan? |
| 23. If you order hanbagu at a restaurant, what will you be served? |
| 24. Find the folk
legend Warashibe Choja. After reading the legend answer these
two questions:
How did
the boy go from having a stalk of straw to marrying the daughter of a Why
do you think the peasants of Japan would have told this legend from |
| 25. What other legend did you enjoy, and why? |
| 26. How long does it take to acquire the technical and expressive skills for ikebana? |
| 27. In what part of the home are ikebana traditionally placed? |
| 28. What are the four main pieces of equipment for ikebana, and what is each used for? |
| 29. Who manages the Kids Web Japan site? |
| 30. Do you think this site has reliable information? Why or why not? |
| The Assignment: |
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The Topics: |
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Artisans & Merchants:
CastleTowns: Chado:The Practice of Tea
Samurai Arts: Ikebana,
Haiku, Landscape Painting & Gardens Dress & Appearance: kimono
Meditation: Zen, Monks & Nuns Swords, Armor, & Bows, Oh My
The Theater: Bunraku, Kabuki, &
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Required Elements in Presentation: |
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| Dividing the Work: |
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| Note for teachers: we use SlideShare ( http://www.slideshare.net/login?from_source ) to turn the powerpoint presentations into embeddable files for the Wiki ( http://www.wikispaces.com ). |
| Haiku is one of the most important forms of traditional Japanese poetry. Haiku is, today, a 17-syllable verse form consisting of three metrical units of 5, 7, and 5 syllables |
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Modern Haiku: The history of the modern haiku dates from Masaoka Shiki's reform, begun in 1892, which established haiku as a new independent poetic form. Shiki's reform did not change two traditional elements of haiku: the division of 17 syllables into three groups of 5, 7, and 5 syllables and the inclusion of a seasonal theme. Kawahigashi Hekigoto carried Shiki's reform further with two proposals: 1. Haiku would be truer to reality if there were no center of interest in it. 2. The importance of the poet's first impression, just as it was, of subjects taken from daily life, and of local color to create freshness. |
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How to write Haiku: |
In Japanese, the rules for how to write Haiku are clear, and will not be discussed here. In foreign languages, there exist no consensus in how to write Haiku-poems. Anyway, let's take a look at the basic knowledge: |
What to write about? |
Haiku-poems can describe almost anything, but you seldom find themes which are too complicated for normal people’s recognition and understanding. Some of the most thrilling Haiku-poems describe daily situations in a way that gives the reader a brand new experience of a well-known situation. |
The metrical pattern of Haiku: |
Haiku-poems consist of respectively 5, 7 and 5 syllables in three units. In Japanese, this convention is a must, but in English, which has variation in the length of syllables, this can sometimes be difficult. |
The technique of cutting: |
The cutting divides the Haiku into two parts, with a certain imaginative distance between the two sections, but the two sections must remain, to a degree, independent of each other. Both sections must enrich the understanding of the other. To make this cutting in English, either the first or the second line ends normally with a colon, long dash or ellipsis. |
The seasonal theme: |
Each Haiku must contain a kigo, a season word, which indicate in which season the Haiku is set. For example, cherry blossoms indicate spring, snow indicates winter, and mosquitoes indicate summer, but the season word isn't always that obvious. |
Objectives:
1. Students will understand the characteristics of a
traditional Japanese haiku
2. Students will evaluate two haiku to determine whether they
exhibit the characteristics of a traditional Japanese haiku
3. Students will write traditional Japanese haiku poems based
on photos
Materials:
Nature pictures (preferably ones which evoke a
particular season)
Instrumental music
Introduction to Haiku Powerpoint
Preparation:
Select
pictures to serve as inspiration for haikus and post around classroom (Use
laminated photos from old magazines or Creative Commons licensed photos on a
photo-sharing site such as
Flickr)
Divide students
into groups
Instructional Procedures:
Setup (2-4min)
Classroom housekeeping
Review Attributes of Traditional Japanese Haiku (5-7min)
1. Ask students what they may already know about haikus
(Likely responses: 5-7-5 syllable pattern, short poems, no rhyme)
2. Project slide with characteristics of traditional Japanese
haiku and review characteristics- not all are present in every haiku
Focus on a brief seasonal moment
Written in present tense and
Pause at the end of 1st or
2nd line and a season word-
kigo
Provocative, colorful images
5-7-5 syllable pattern
Emphasize that the 5-7-5 pattern is a part of haiku poetry,
but not the most important part.
Also,
point out translation from the language in which the poem was originally written
may result in a change to the number of syllables in the poem.
Analysis of Haikus (5-7min)
1.
Project a classic Japanese haiku on the screen
Tell students that the haiku was written by Basho- one of the
most famous Japanese haiku poets
Ask students- What words help you know
that the poem is about a particular season? What words suggest that the poem is
about nature? How many syllables do these poems have?
2.
Project a haiku from The Ghost of the
Tokaido Inn
Ask students: Does this haiku have the characteristics of
traditional Japanese haiku? Why or why not? (It does not particularly since it
does not focus on nature or a seasonal moment)
Suggestions for Starting a Haiku
(3-5min)
Project a picture of a bird’s nest- Solicit student responses
to the following questions:
What season is being depicted?
What is happening the moment the photo is taken?
What colors and textures appear in the photo
Suggest
to students that these are good questions to ask when writing a haiku
Writing Haikus (20 min)
Set up areas around the classroom with seasonal nature
photos. Students will rotate in groups of 2 or 3, but will compose their haikus
individually. At each photo, students will have about 3-4 min to write a haiku.
Project reminders of the attributes of a classic Japanese haiku on the screen.
Play instrumental music in the background. Tell students that a pause in the
music will indicate that it is time for them to move to the next picture.
Sharing Haikus (Time permitting)
If time permits, allow students to share their poems. As
poems are presented discuss words or phrases in each poem which either do or do
not meet the characteristics of traditional Japanese haiku
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Haiku booklet Writing Assignment Checklist |
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You wrote the following haiku poems: |
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2 haiku per season (that’s 8 in total) _____ 2 for fall _____ 2 for winter _____ 2 for spring _____ 2 for summer ____2 haiku about animals ____2 haiku about people (yourself or others you know well) |
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____Your haiku is in the correct format. (Three lines with 5-7-5 syllables per poem). |
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| ____Your haiku contains one simile or one metaphor | |
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____You zoomed in and
focused on the smallest details so that your reader can really visualize theimage you’ve created. |
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| ____You gave each haiku a title and underlined it. | |
| ____Your haiku is original (we haven’t heard the lines before!) | |
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Directions for making your Haiku booklet: |
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Get two strips of white paper (the long narrow strips) |
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Fold each strip twice lengthwise into fourths- (You’ll end up with four equal parts) |
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Cut off one fold (square) from each of your 2 strips (You’ll be left with three parts) |
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Glue the two strips together overlapping one square in the middle from each strip |
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Fold each crease (fold) both ways several times to create an accordian booklet |
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Choose a pale color of construction paper (yellow, peach, pink, light blue or green) |
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Carefully trace the size of the end pages (one square) on the corner of the construction paper and cut out the two pieces of construction paper |
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Get a length of yarn (About 2 feet long) |
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Put glue on one piece of construction paper (this will be the back of your book) |
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Place the yarn across the glue on the construction paper leaving an equal amount off each side |
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Place the booklet on top of the construction paper and press firmly |
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Glue the other piece of construction paper on the front of the book, the yarn will wrap around and tie in front like a bow to close the book |
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You will glue a printed haiku on each page (That’s six in total-same font please), illustrate (Yes, you have to draw. No clipart) the poem with an appropriate scene |
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*Paper clip your completed “Haiku Assessment” to your book & put in basket |
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Kamishibai is a type of Japanese
storytelling performed using picture cards. This type of storytelling was
popular in Japan during the mid-20th century. Stories told using kamishibai
cards were often folktales but also included more modern stories. Traditionally
kamishibai were told using hand-painted cards and performed on a wooden stage.
You will be making your own digital kamishibai. While the
materials you use will be different than traditional kamishibai, the importance
of a descriptive, interesting story and carefully chosen pictures will be the
same.
For your kamishibai, you will be taking the information you
have learned about the history of Japan in World Cultures and writing a
fictional story. Even though your story will be fictional, it should be
realistic (i.e. something that actually might have happened in Japan during the
period you choose).
Choosing Your Subject
Choose a subject for your story from the list below:
Day in the Life of a Japanese Hunter/Gatherer
An Apprentice to a Sword-Maker
Making a Pilgrimage to Ise Shrine
The Life of a Courtier from the Heian Period
The Mongol Invasion of Japan
Another subject related to the history of Japan which your LA
teacher approve
Your story may not be written about a samurai or samurai
culture, since we will be spending lots of time on samurai during other times in
this unit.
Writing Your Stor
Once you have chosen your subject, imagine what it might have
been like to have been a person living in that time period in Japan. What kinds
of issues or problems do you think he or she might have encountered?
It is important that there is action in the story you will
write. The characters must do something! The best stories usually involve a
problem, a character’s struggle with that problem, and some kind of solution,
although the solution does not have to be “and they lived happily ever after.”
Answer the questions below
in order to begin planning your story.
1. What will be the name of your protagonist(s)? Try to choose
a name which might have been used in Japan during the time period you chose.
2. What will be some characteristics of your
protagonist(s)? Physical appearance? Character traits?
3. What will be the character (antagonist), group of people,
or natural element which works against your protagonist?
4. What will be the main problem (internal or external)
your character will face? It does not need to be a big problem. Remember that
your story will only have 8 slides.
5. What will be the tone of your story? Scary? Mysterious?
Humorous? Tragic? Romantic?
6. What will be the setting of your story? Will it occur on
one day or over a longer period of time? In which season will the story occur?
7. What time period and physical details will you include to
help the reader know the setting of your story? (Reading is more interesting if
an author includes details to help show the reader the setting, rather than just
telling the setting.
8. Which Japan unit vocabulary words do you think would fit
well in your story? (Remember you must use 5-8 words in your story)
Once you have answered these questions, you are ready to
begin sketching the pictures for your story.
Once you have completed the sketches for your story, begin
writing the parts of the story which will accompany each of your pictures. Don’t
forget to include sensory and historical details.
The narration for each slide does
not have to have exactly the same amount of text; however, you should include at
least 5-7 sentences for each slide
Type your narration in the space below.
Narration for slide
Narration for slide 2
Narration for slide
Narration for slide 4
Narration for slide 5
Narration for slide 6
Narration for slide 7
Narration for slide 8
Planning and Drawing Your Pictures
Your pictures do not need to be elaborate. (Stick
figures are recommended!) You should focus on drawing pictures that help
illustrate the action and feeling in your story.
Vary the types of pictures you include. Here are some ideas to
get you started:
Close-up view of characters or important story details,
Long shots showing setting
A partial view of a character (a hand reaching out, two huge
feet)
A view from the top, side, back, or front*
Before you draw the final versions of your pictures, sketch
them out on the storyboard below. These should not be detailed drawings. Each
picture should have a brief title (e.g. Seikei Confronts the Innkeeper).
Step back and think, “Do the pictures I plan to draw highlight
important details of the story? Have I arranged the pictures in a logical
order?”
Create a folder in your My Documents Japan LA folder named
Kamishibai
You may use either InkArt or Paint to create your pictures.
Open Ink Art (under Start->All Programs->Microsoft
Experience Pack)
When you have completed your picture, select File->Export As
Image
OR
Open Paint (under Start->All Programs)
When you have completed your picture, select File->Save As
Save the picture as a .jpeg file (select this from the
drop-down menu) in your Kamishibai folder and name the file according to the
order of the picture in the story. For example, if your name were Bob, the first
picture in your story should be saved as BobKamishibai1.jpeg.
Repeat this process for the rest of your pictures, being sure
to save them in your Kamishibai folder
*Adapted from “Making
Kamishibai” by Cathy Spignoli
http://www.cathyspagnoli.com/yngwriters/kamishibai.htm
