Japanese
"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart." ‒Nelson Mandela
In Japanese we aim to equip our students with the means to excel in a global society where the understanding of another language and of another culture is of paramount importance. We want our students to be able to form lasting relationships with those from other countries and to understand that international links are invaluable to us in business and in friendship. In our lessons, we strive to challenge our students, to engage them in stimulating dialogues, to peak their interest and to help them become independent learners. With our very successful and popular Japanese exchange and our strong links with Japan, we hope to help our students to become global citizens.
In the first half term of Year 7 students study 5 lessons in the 4 languages (French, German, Japanese and Spanish) that we teach at Hendon School as part of a carousel. These lessons consist of language and culture.
In October students choose their first language as either 1) Japanese or 2) French, which they then continue for the rest of Year 7.
In Year 8 students will study a second language either 1) German or 2) Spanish
Students have 3 lessons per week in year 7 and 2 lessons per week in year 8 and 9.
|
Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
|
|
Year 7 |
Hiragana Greetings and Numbers Age |
Classroom Objects Days of the week Birthdays |
Pets Origin |
| Year 8 |
Food and Drink Family |
School Leisure Activities |
Time and Daily Routine Transport |
|
Year 9 |
Free Time and Social Activites Parts of the Body and Appearances |
Adjectives and Opinions Last Weekend |
Clothing Shopping |
Outside the classroom
Hendon students studying GCSE Japanese are offered the chance to participate in our Japanese school exchange. In Year 10, 20 of our students spend nearly 2 weeks in Japan, visiting Tokyo and then spending time with Japanese host families in the city of Hamamatsu. They also attend our sister school, Konan High School. In March, 20 of the Konan students visit Hendon and our students from Year 9 upwards have the opportunity to be a host family. They can then share their own culture with the Japanese students. Our Year 13 students are also given a chance to organise their own trip to Hiroshima, in Japan, to support their A2 exam research. We are furthermore launching new opportunities for independent study outside the classroom through our KS3 independent homework projects.
Progression pathways and careers
Learning a language opens up to a world of careers. Language learners can continue learning the language at university for careers such as interpreting and translation. However, in most lines of work, knowledge of a second language helps you to communicate with other people.
Useful links
Hiragana practise- http://www.csus.edu/indiv/s/sheaa/projects/genki/hiragana-timer.html
Online dictionary- http://jisho.org/
Japanese culture- http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/
Japan Foundations Resources- http://www.jpf.org.uk/language/teaching_resources.php
Contact
Rachel Bacon Head of MFL Faculty - baconr@hendonschool.co.uk
Rachel Bacon Head of MFL Faculty - baconr@hendonschool.co.uk
