Mifunegaoka Elementary School visit

Today we went to the largest elementary school in the area with over 700 students. A welcome assembly was held and the 6th grade students played instruments and sang for us. They practiced for 2 months for our visit. They did an awesome job!

The American teachers observed in different classrooms. There are up to 40 students in a class. The classrooms were very organized, structured and consistent.
The students serve lunch to their fellow classmates in the classroom. Then there were a few minutes of recess, followed by cleaning the school. Every student had a cleaning assignment.
The Japanese and American teachers met to share information and ask one another questions. I was surprised to hear that most Japanese teachers work until 7 or 8:00 at night!

In the evening, we went to a fall festival. There were tug of war contests, dancing, and drum performances. I ate corn on the cob and chicken on a stick. Several of the students from the school that we visited came up to us or waved at us. A good time was had by all.