George Carté, head of the Sister City Committee in Palmer and former AET, asked me to write a few short articles on recent events in Saroma for the newsletter that he puts out. I obliged him, and while I’ve written better, here they are.
Final Classes at Saroma Elementary
In Japan the school year begins in April and ends in March. Last month the 5th and 6th graders at Saroma Elementary wrapped up the year’s English activities with some fun projects.
The two 5th grade classes spent the last three English classes designing their own countries.
In groups of four, they chose their country name, designed the flag, and thought of the president, currency, economy, geography, food, and laws. They used English as much as possible. It was a very open ended activity, so it took some time to get started, but in the end I was very pleased with the range and depth of student creativity. The imagined countries included Sports Land, Junior Kingdom, and Dog Island (pictured). I’m looking forward to having these students in 6th grade!
The 6th grade class spent their last two lessons writing and performing English skits. They used all of the English they’ve learned in elementary school and then some. The skits were performed in groups of about six students, so each student had only one or two lines, but they spoke with confidence, presenting some very funny material. Skit situations included a restaurant, convenience store, police station, and mortuary. Just this week, these students entered Saroma Junior High as 1st graders (7th graders). I hope I can help continue their enthusiasm for English in the coming school year.
Snowstorm in Saroma
Coming to live in Hokkaido after 20+ years living in Palmer, I did not expect to be surprised by the winters here. But the weekend of February 21st exceeded my expectations. I awoke on Saturday morning to three feet of new snow plastered across my front door, and a seven foot high drift wrapping around the back of the house.
My car was similarly covered, although a kind neighbor used his front-end loader to clear me out. I had planned to drive to Abashiri City that Saturday, but a quick check on the Hokkaido road office website showed a “road closed” X on nearly every major highway in the area. So I stayed home and shoveled. In the afternoon, the sun came out. I braved the remaining wind and piled drifts to take a walk down the river levee toward the butter factory and back through town. Everyone in town was outside, clearing off cars, driveways and roofs. Those with snowblowers and loaders were helping out their neighbors, eager to get some use out of their expensive toys. I’m glad the weather intervened that day. Walking around Saroma on that sunny, white afternoon I felt the sense of community in this small town. And I now have nothing to brag about concerning snowy winters.
