Here it comes finally...my third lesson plan! This is for advanced learners...I mean, the book is all in English and should be no problem, but the task students are dealing with is a bit challenging. I made a similar lesson in my interdisciplinary lesson project when I audited an Education class a couple of years ago. I look forward to your comments and contructive feedbacks!
長らくお待たせいたしました。新しいレッスンプランです。上級者向けという設定ですが、課題図書の
Desert Exileは全て英語で書かれているので、難しいのは日本語でディスカッションやアクティビティを進めていくことだけだと思います。過去に同様のレッスンを（そのときは他教科の先生と合同で）作りましたが、今回は日本語の授業に焦点を当てた設定にしてあります。ご意見ご感想お待ちしております。
Japanese Social Structure: Japanese Aspects of Life in Internment Camps
Content: The lesson is a series of seven 50-minute class periods with the focus on Japanese social structure. The book students will read for the lesson is
Desert Exile by Yoshiko Uchida. This lesson is designed for advanced level Japanese classes and appropriate for students with intermediate or advanced proficiency. This implies that students should be able to 1) read all three types of Japanese alphabets (hiragana, katakana, and basic kanji) with an adequate proficiency, 2) understand basic classroom instructions, and 3) express their opinions by oral communication and writing. They are not required to be able to write sentences using many kanji characters; however, they should be encouraged to do so. The lesson also addresses cultural aspects of Japanese social structure. Therefore, students should be prepared for the differences between Japanese culture and their own culture.
Goal: The goal of this lesson is to understand how Japanese people interact in various situations without hurting one another
Objectives:
Cognitive: Students will be able to 1) appropriately address their opinions logically, 2) write letters in Japanese using the basic format, and 3) respond to challenging situations in a manner appropriate in the Japanese society
Metacognitive: Students will be able to 1) analyze their classmate’s opinion and provide a constructive feedback, 2) analyze the challenging situations described in the book and express their opinions in a thoughtful manner, and 3) plan to respond to a challenging situation in a manner considered polite in the Japanese society
Social: Students will be able to 1) discuss a controversial issue in Japanese with respecting their classmate’s opinion, and 2) work in a group to determine the best strategies to handle a challenging situation
Affective: Students will be able to 1) understand social aspects of life of Japanese teenagers and college students, and 2) compare Japanese young cultures to those of their own generation
Materials: the book
Desert Exile, a sample letter format, costumes for the skit activity (optional)
Procedure:
First Two Days: Students will have a discussion on the assigned book. On the first day they discuss the first half, and on the second day the last half. The teacher first introduces a general background of Japanese Internment Camps during WWII. After that, the teacher asks students to express their opinions regarding the book. During the discussion, the teacher might want to address topics such as family structure, relationships with neighbors, loyalty of people of Japanese origins, frugality and patience of Japanese people, and differences between Japanese and American societies.
Day 3 and 4: Students will write a letter to the Japanese family described in the book. On the first day the teacher introduces the basic letter format using the sample he/she prepared. Since the family had lived in two of the Internment Camps (
Tanforan, California and
Topaz, Utah), each student chooses a destination of the letter. The main focus of the letter should be their thoughts and consideration on the situations the family had to overcome. This includes offering a thoughtful comment, expressing their willingness to help the family, and providing encouraging words. While working on the letter, the teacher should remind them of using the grammar patterns they learned such as “I wish I could do X” and “I’d be happy to do Y”.
Day 5 though 7: Students are divided into groups of three or four to work on the skit project. In the skit project, each group chooses one situation from the book which describes the challenges the family had to overcome. For example, it can be the scene in which the family had to ask an unwelcome visitor to leave or the scene in which the family had to respect government authority against their will. Students write down the script for the scene and practice rehearsing it in Japanese for the skit presentation. They spend the fifth and the sixth days for practicing the skit, and the seventh day could be either classroom presentation day or performance day outside the classroom. While creating a skit for the presentation, they determine carefully the strategies the family use to handle challenging situations without behaving rude to others.
Evaluation: Cognitive objective (1), metacognitive objective (1), and social objective (1) can be all evaluated through the discussion part of the lesson. The teacher should lead the discussion to encourage students to express their thoughts on a given topic and at the same time monitor each student’s participation. Cognitive objective (2) and metacognitive objective (2) are evaluated through the letter writing activity. While evaluating students’ letters, the teacher should look at the way they express their opinions as well as vocabulary and grammar usage. All other objectives are evaluated through the skit activity. The teacher evaluates the skit performances, and also monitors each group’s progress and participation of each student. While evaluating the performances, the teacher should take notes on their usage of patterns, pronunciation, and fluency. The teacher should also take notes on their application of Japanese speech manners and strategies to handle difficult situations.
Accommodation: For hearing-impaired students, subtitles can be prepared during the skit presentation. For students with ADHD, the teacher should let them outline their letters first before starting writing in Japanese. That way they don’t have to sit for a long time just brainstorming ideas. During writing a letter, the teacher should check their progress and help them get on task if they need.
