Girls' Lunch. Hina Matsura is The Doll Festival or Girls' Day in Japan. In Japan, families set up special dolls for Hina Matsura. We sampled sushi, miso soup, and rice. We shared our special dolls.
Tango-no-Sekku, the Boys' Festival, is Japan's way of celebrating the healthy growth and development of young boys. Families with boys hang carp kites outside their homes called Koi Nobori. Because the fish swim upstream, they are a symbol of strength and determination. We celebrated Boys' Day on Wednesday. Just like Girls' Day we sampled some Japanese food.
Children in Japan are a lot like you! There are things about their homes, schools, family and food that are like yours. But, many things are different, too. Let's find out what is the same and what is different.
We celebrated Hina Matsura with a
Let's learn about Japanese culture!
Language:
Konnichiwa means Good afternoon.
Arrigato means Thank you.
Sayonara means Goodbye.
How to count to ten in Japanese:
1 - ichi 6 - roku
2 -ni 7 - shichi
3 - san 8 - hachi
4 - shi 9 - ku
5 - go 10 - ju
O genki desu ka? (How are you?)
Hai Hai. (fine)
Food:
In Japan, people eat their food with chopsticks instead of forks and knives. Have you ever eaten with chopsticks?
Celebrations:
The people of Japan love to celebrate. There is a special day in every month of the year. Some celebrations recognize the change in season. Others honor religious beliefs. Some just observe a special moment in life. May 5th is Childrens' Day in Japan. This day celebrates the healthy growth of all children. Families with boys fly fish shaped windsocks outside.
Land:
The country of Japan consists of 4 large islands and hundreds of small ones. The Northern most island, Hokkaido, has a wintery climate for some of the year. Honshu is the largest and most populated island. Kyushu, the southern most island, stays warm all year. The fourth island is Shikoku. Japan is separated from the rest of the Asian continent by water. Shima (SHE-ma) means island.
