If you have been working through these worksheets, you will have written about your strengths, interests, hopes, expectations and fears about being a Japanese language user, as well as someone with a career and as a good human. This unit makes this visual. This step was a key turning point for me when I was first researching student motivation in less commonly taught languages. I saw a presentation about the Possible Selves process – and when the speaker shared this activity, I was immediately drawn to it. Sketching who you are as a language user (in our case, as Japanese language users) makes it real.
Note to reader: This lesson is usually taught in early – mid-March. Currently I am posting writings from my graduate program in preparation for a speech in November.
This is UNIT 4 in the Possible Selves program: Sketching Me and My Possible Selves as a Japanese language user, a professional, and person. This is the Create section. Here’s part of the teaser to get students invested in thinking.
You can find links to the other units here: Possible Selves as a Japanese Language User
Possible Selves – Sketching who I am
In the Possible Selves program for developing motivation, the fourth step is Sketching your strengths, interests, hopes, expectations and fears when it comes to being a Japanese language user, a professional, and a person. You can find a simple overview of Possible Selves here: https://www.slideserve.com/denton/possible-selves
How to use the CREATE worksheets
Observations of Authentic Materials
I like to approach Japanese as an ethnographer. How is the language being used? What are people doing with the language? What can I discover about the language and culture I’m studying by observing?
This set of worksheets begins with a map showing the area covered by the Great Tohoku Earthquake on March 11, 2011. If you or your students are unfamiliar and did not do Language part of this unit, please take some time to watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvG8LGKyC24
Next, watch the video of people using the song 上を向いて歩こう for encouragement during the recovery effort, and record observations.
The global pandemic also saw this song being used to help connect isolated people around Japan and across the world and help alleviate fear it caused. Have the students record their observations on the worksheet.
Music is not the only source for encouragement in Japanese society. The image of the cherry blossom also causes one to pause and enjoy the fleeting beauty of the blossoms that only last a few days. Near the site of the Fukushima nuclear disaster is a 1000 year old tree known as Miharu Takizakura (三春滝桜). It is cherished as the most iconic sakura tree in Japan, as was designated a national treasure in 1922. Students explore two online resources in Japanese about this tree and then record their observations.
Discovering oneself
In the next section students will create a tree that represents them, their hopes, expectations and fears of being a Japanese language user, a professional, and person in general.
Students first gather their responses to the create section for Units 1 – 3 and complete the chart. The will use this information about themselves to create their POSSIBLE SELVES TREE.
- Draw a tree where the different parts of the tree and environment represent different elements.
- Label these parts with the words and phrases you used in your reflections and identified in the chart.
- Your tree must include the following: Roots, limbs, branches, and things that could attack or damage its health.
Here are some examples from my Pinterest board
Don’t skip this activity! This tree can be used as motivation for students and should be added to their language portfolios or placed where they will see it often. Hopefully the lesson has given them hope to persevere even when things are tough. Japanese learning is tough, too! It can be frustrating when they cannot see their progress. Having a vision of the future will hlep.
Tomorrow I will post the final part of Unit 4 Sketching Me and My Possible Selves Tree
Please like and subscribe to my blog – there are still 3 more amazing multi-literacy units that will help motivate you and your students towards proficiency in Japanese.
If you would like to discuss how this multi-literacy method could be adapted to your classroom or to your self-study or homeschool program, please contact me below.
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