A Japanese class for elementary school children enrolled in kindergarten and first grade was held at Iowa State University’s Child Development Laboratory School, weekdays, July 28-30 and August 2-5, 2004. The children’s class was part of the institute Rethinking the PK-12 Foreign Language Curriculum: Intrinsically Interesting, Cognitively Engaging, Culturally Connected, and Articulated, which was sponsored by the federally funded National K-12 Foreign Language Resource Center at Iowa State University. This national institute is designed to provide professional development in effective teaching strategies for experienced and practicing pre-kindergarten through 12th grade foreign language teachers and foreign language teacher educators who serve as methods professors at institutions of higher education.

Goals of the program for children:

• To develop skills in language comprehension and oral communication through the active involvement of children in learning experiences.
• To increase children’s global awareness and to enhance their sensitivity to foreign and national cultures and values.

What the children did:

• Children’s curiosity and motivation to learn was stimulated as they heard their teachers communicate with the language in a natural and non-threatening way in the classroom.
• Children’s confidence in their ability to communicate with the language was enhanced as they participated in the varied classroom activities.
• Children developed awareness of and appreciation for diversity as they experienced the daily customs and/or festivals of the countries where the language is spoken.

IMAGES FROM 2004 JAPANESE CLASS

The teacher of the children’s class was Jessica Lee Haxhi who has been a Japanese teacher for grades PreK-5 in Connecticut for nearly ten years. She has taught in various foreign language professional development summer institutes and has served as the president of the National Council of Japanese Language Teachers.