|
|
|
 |
Curriculum
Foreign Languages
JAPANESE I
(one year)
Japanese I is an introductory
course in which students master
two sets of phonetically written
syllables (Hiragana and
Katakana) and characters
(Kanji). Students develop an
understanding of basic
grammatical structures and study
verb
tenses in the polite form of
speech. Students learn basic
vocabulary and useful idiomatic
expressions based on several
different themes and perform a
number of interactive and role
playing activities. Students
acquire communicative skills to
convey and comprehend mostly
factual information on a
variety of familiar topics.
Students are also familiarized
with
many elements of Japanese
culture such as their lifestyle,
annual holidays, food and
traditional arts.
An elective course for Upper
School students.
JAPANESE II
(one year)
Japanese II reinforces the
mastery of the three written
forms
(Hiragana, Katakana, and Kanji)
through further review and
addition of new vocabulary,
expressions, and characters.
Students continue to perform
interactive and role-playing
activities and write an
increased number of
compositions.
Students expand their
conversational topics and
further develop
their communicative skills.
Plain verb forms, honorific, and
humble expressions are
introduced along with more
advanced
grammatical structures. Students
learn to construct more
complex sentences and start to
incorporate them in speech and
writing. A wide range of
cultural topics are explored and
more
closely examined and students
develop their own areas of
interest.
Prerequisite: Japanese I.
An elective course for Upper
School students.
JAPANESE III
(one year)
Japanese III students learn an
increased number of new
vocabulary, Kanji characters,
and more complex grammatical
concepts at a faster pace. The
emphasis of this course is
simultaneously placed on all
aspects of language skills
(writing,
reading, speaking, and
listening) to develop balanced
language
proficiency. Students acquire a
greater ability to comprehend
others and express themselves
through active interactions,
role playing activities, and
more frequent listening
exercises. There is
a student laboratory program
used at home for additional
practice. Students also complete
projects, reading, and writing
assignments to improve their
literacy skills. Students
continue to
learn many aspects of Japanese
culture through relevant
readings
and authentic audio-visual
cultural materials.
Prerequisite: Japanese II.
An elective course for Upper
School students.
JAPANESE IV
(one year)
Japanese IV offers a
comprehensive review of
vocabulary, Kanji
characters, and grammatical
concepts studied at Japanese III
level. Students expand and
deepen their knowledge of
vocabulary, Kanji characters,
and various verb forms and
improve
their comprehension level in
both spoken and written
language.
Students are introduced to
different levels and
characteristics of
speech and become familiarized
with the appropriate language
usage in a variety of social
situations. Students complete a
variety
of writing assignments,
projects, and reading and
listening
exercises with authentic
materials. Active participation
and
interaction in the target
language is continuously
encouraged.
Students continue to expand
their knowledge and
understanding
of Japanese culture through
audio-visual materials,
culturally
relevant readings, and
discussions.
Prerequisite: Japanese III.
An elective course for Upper
School students.
JAPANESE V
(one year)
Japanese V is a course designed
to help students to attain
greater
language proficiency and prepare
them for further advancement
in the future. This course
begins with a comprehensive
review or
previously studied grammatical
concepts, vocabulary and Kanji
characters. Students continues
to develop and integrate all
language skills at a higher
cognitive level. Students
understand
different forms and
characteristics of speech and
use appropriate
communicative styles in various
settings. The conversational
topics range broadly from
personal to general interests
and
discussions become more detailed
and in depth. Students are
expected and encouraged to
continuously expand their
vocabulary and repertoire of
expressions through spontaneous
conversations, class
discussions, and journal
entries. Students
complete several projects and a
variety of relevant readings to
further deepen their
understanding of cultural
practices and
perspectives.
Prerequisite: Japanese IV or
Japanese IV Honors.
An elective course for Upper
School Students
|
|
|
|
