South Africa Festival in Town

Yesterday we had South Africa Festival in town, which was really more like a seminar, but it was a very cool event. It started out with an apartheid experience: the attendees were given cards that defined them as white or black. Whites could register for the event in Japanese, drink juice and tea, and were treated with courtesy; blacks had to sign up in English, were not allowed to have refreshments (at the beginning, that is!) and were treated coldly. While there was a lot of positive feedback about the event as a whole, a lot of people talked about the experience and how it really gave them a taste of discrimination.

The highlight of the day was a talk by my friend Safiyya, who came out from Matsuyama and gave an hour-long introduction to South Africa, complete with a few maps and an awesome powerpoint presentation on projector. She discussed the different racial groups, the history, the present day and her own experiences, covering a ton of topics and linking them together seamlessly. Nate did an amazing job translating everything into Japanese while I had the much less challenging task of switching the slides for Safiyya and snapping the occasional picture.

They took a few questions and had a short break (with beverages for all) before putting on the movie Cry Freedom, a 1987 film directed by Richard Attenborough about anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko and journalist Donald Woods. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. Steve Biko was an important and inspiring speaker on black empowerment and self-worth, and his cruel death at the hands of the police was publicized by Donald Woods, a close friend who had to flee the country after being targeted by the government for his efforts to expose police brutality.

Afterward we split into groups for discussion, English and Japanese. The four groups discussed various topics at length and then shared their observations with the whole. We ended the afternoon by raffling off some juice and rooibos tea, and several people came up to talk to Safiyya and ask her a few more questions. The event was definitely a hit, and Nate hopes to do similar ones in the future.

Now That's A Lesson Plan

A few people have inquired as to my long hiatus from the blog, and I'm terribly sorry if I've alarmed anyone! I'm doing fine, just busy, and though I actually have a few entries waiting in the wings pending photo uploads, I thought I'd do a quick one now.

I've been teaching a lot of elementary school lately thanks in part to the reduction in my number of schools and then to the Ministry of Education for making "international activities" mandatory for fifth and sixth graders. I go to each of my six elementary schools at least once a month now, and though I usually spend significant time with the fifth and six graders, I do get to teach the younger grades, too. Even with the older students, who have an English "textbook" and need to learn specific things, I still play a lot of games and get to be fun and silly with them.

Today was one of my 6-class days, which are pretty rare and only happen at elementary school, but it was not without its rewards. Not only did I teach colors, fruits, numbers, body parts, directions and the names of the months, but I also played enough active games to get my exercise for the day (maybe even two!). I played Fruits Basket with the first and second grade classes respectively, Red Light Green Light with the third and fourth graders (again, two separate classes), and a pretty action-packed game of Cops & Robbers during recess.

My crowning achievement of the day, however, was performing part of the Thriller Dance for the fifth years and teaching them how to do it. A teacher actually suggested it after hearing of my Halloween performance, and I've been practicing the dance here and there for fun, and in earnest for the past week or so. I had taught them body parts and numbers last time, so we reviewed these first, and I had the kids moving their shoulders in tune as I sang and danced around. Then I got them to do the key moves of the chorus, and they did it! And loved it! Apparently they've asked their teachers if they can get the lyrics and perform it themselves at a mini concert sometime soon.

Now I know that if nothing else sticks in these students' memories, they'll remember this and tell their friends in years to come: "Yeah, I know Thriller. I learned it from this American teacher named Emily back in fifth grade." Even if that's all they remember, I don't think I'd mind!