SOJA SISTER SCHOOL

Japanese Students visit Kew High School

During Week 4 of Term, a group of Japanese students and two of their teachers visited Kew High School. The students were from Kew High School’s Sister School located in Soja City, which is in Okayama Prefecture, Japan.

During the week, the Japanese students participated in normal classes such as Maths and English to gain an insight into how our classes run. They also took part in specialist classes to learn about the Australian culture such as bush dancing, Australian food cooking, Australian football and indigenous art practice.

The Japanese students stayed with host families from Kew High School. Below are some highlights and fond memories from those students who hosted a Japanese student.

I really enjoyed being able to show my Japanese student around the city and go to Bounce. Our family was very happy towards the end of the trip as her English improved a lot and she was able to communicate with us in nearly perfect English. She cooked us udon noodles. She bought the main ingredients from Japan, which was surprising and fun. We cooked together and she explained to me all the ingredients and how to cook them. – Jia Yi Ong, Year 10 Student.

My Japanese student was very kind and great company to be around. We have stayed in touch since she has gone home. My highlight was when my family took her to see an AFL game. She enjoyed it a lot. The thing I found most surprising was that she repacked her suitcase every night! – Annie Opie, Year 8 Student.

While my Japanese student was in Melbourne, I really enjoyed learning about her life in Japan. It was hard to communicate in English so my brother who speaks a small amount of Japanese had to help out. – Mimi Lye, Year 12 Student.

I had fun doing things with my Japanese student, for example, going to cafes. I would recommend the experience for others in the future, as you get to get to experience how people from Japan differ from people in Australia and you can learn different things about their culture. – Mia Sagar, Year 9 Student.

I enjoyed making my buddy feel comfortable to stay in Melbourne and keeping her busy so she wouldn’t get homesick. We ate lots of rice and meat dishes while she stayed here. – Felicia Kang, Year 9 Student.

Andrew Cerini

Japanese Teacher