Reflection
First of all, in Japan, there are not many activities that take place outside of school, so it was very refreshing. I was especially excited about wall climbing because it was a sport I had not done very often. Through this activity, I think I gained the ability to persevere and challenge myself until the end. Many times during the activity, I thought I might not make it to the top, but I was able to persevere while thinking about where to grab the rocks and what route to take to get to the top. It had been a long time since I had exercised, so it was a lot of hard work, but it was a lot of fun. During this class, I had the opportunity to talk with students I had never talked to before, and although it was an individual competition, we cheered each other which I felt was one of the strengths of the activity.
Educational Context
I think rock climbing is a very valuable activity in an educational setting.
Reason 1
Effective in improving physical skills
Wall climbing is associated with various physical abilities such as muscle strength, flexibility, and balance. It is a great way to develop all the skills needed for physical activity at once.
Reason 2
It leads to improved concentration
Although the focus is often on physical ability, wall climbing is a sport that also requires concentration. Children need to think with their minds while using all the muscles in their bodies to find the best position for their limbs to climb the wall and to keep their bodies balanced. This leads to improved concentration.
Reason 3
It leads to improved ability to achieve goals
Wall climbing is a sport that improves the more you do it. The more you climb to the top, the more times you will experience success, which improves your ability to achieve your goals. It will help you develop a never-give-up attitude toward your goals, the ability to finish what you set out to do, and self-confidence.
Creative Ideas
Ideas for activities suitable for the educational context
1 Vegetable Growing Experience
In Japan, lunches are provided by schools. By growing our own vegetables used to prepare school lunches, we can learn to appreciate food and the hard work of farmers.
2 Iroha-Karuta (Japanese playing cards)
In Japan, there is a game called Iroha-karuta.
The cards are consists of two sets of 100 cards. One set is the ‘Reading Cards’ and the other set, the ‘Playing Cards’. On each card of ‘Reading Cards’ of Iroha-karuta, a proverb is written, and on ‘Playing Cards’, a picture matching to the proberb and the first Hiragana letter of the proberb is written.
How to play Iroha-Karuta --One reciter and 2-10 (or more) players--
1) Spread the all Tori-fuda (playng card with picture) on the floor.
2) The reciter reads a Yomi-fuda (reading card) randomly.
3) The player who touch the matching Tori-fuda first gets the card.
4) After all the card read, the player who has most cards becomes the winner.
Reference: http://karuta.game.coocan.jp/karuta-e.html
By working together as a class to create and play with the pictures and sentences on those cards, I believe that the students will be able to relearn traditional Japanese characters while developing the imagination needed to create pictures and sentences, and the instantaneous power needed to take the cards.
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