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The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles Newsletter
March, 2018: Breeze Issue #125
https://www.jflalc.org/pub-breeze125

Greeting From The DirectorGreetings!
As we are coming to the end of the current Japanese fiscal year, which goes from April toMarch, it is time for us to reflect upon the past 12 months and plan ahead for the upcoming
fiscal year. It has been a wonderful adventure for JFLA to go through our office renovation lastsummer and to provide a much larger number of events than before, especially during the daytime (e.g. mindfulness Wednesdays) mainly for our neighbors in the Miracle Mile district. Ithas been a great success in terms of raising our profile in the community but we aspire toreach out more widely in the coming year. One of the most common complaints I receive isfrom those who are outside the greater LA region about not being able to attend all of theinteresting events we host here. We have tried many different ways to share our wonderfulexperiences with people outside of LA through our blog, SNS, and YouTube, but obviouslythat was not enough.
As I mentioned in the past, each and every event we host here is a product of a very longdeliberation process among the staff about the ultimate stories we should get across throughour activities. Please let me know if you have any innovative ideas for getting across thosestories to those who are not physically present in a very pleasant, but not boring way!
Sincerely,Hideki Hara, Director

Onigiri (Rice Ball) Art Workshop
Saturday, March 3rd 3pm-3:30pm
InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown
The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles will once again team up with Table For Two to organize an
Onigiri (Rice ball) Art Workshop on Saturday, March 3rd at the 2018 Japanese Food Festival. Joinus and have fun while creating delicious art! Click Here for tickets and details.
Note: A ticket for the Japan Food Festival is required to attend this workshop.

Bilingual Yoga at Lunchtime
Wednesday, March 7
12:30/1:00PM (2 sessions, 20min/ session)
Just Show Up!
Wellness Wednesdays: We offer Wellness programs every 1st and 3rd Wednesday at lunchtime!

March 7 is Yoga day! In this program, no need to change clothes or use a yoga mat; you will beseated in a chair receiving relaxing instruction from a bilingual (English and Japanese) instructor.
Learn simple Japanese phrases during the instruction and stretch your mind as well as your body.
There will be two free sessions beginning at 12:30pm and 1:00pm. No reservation necessary, allare welcome.
Read More

Photo Exhibition: Helen Keller and HachikoCurated by Yumi McDonald
March 9 - 23, 2018 (Monday-Friday: 10am-7pm, Closed on Weekends)
Admission: FreeSpecial Preview Nights: Wed., March 7* & Thur., March 8** @7-9pm*Movie screening is scheduled.
**Akita dog lecture is scheduled with Curator Yumi McDonald.
Helen Keller loved the famous loyal Akita dog Hachiko. When she visited Japan in 1937 she wasgiven an Akita puppy from people in Akita. The exhibition introduces much less-known relations
between Helen Keller, Hachiko and her Akita dogs.
The exhibition is a rare opportunity to look at the pictures collected from Tokyo, Akita, New York,Boston and Westport, Connecticut where Helen Keller used to live.
Read More

Photo Exhibition Special Preview Night ScreeningDogs Without Names（⽝に名前をつける⽇(107mins, 2015)
Directed by Akane Yamada
Date: Wednesday, March 7 @7PM
In Japanese with English Subtitles
This film combines documentary footage on the lives of dogs collected over a four-year periodwith a drama about a female TV director. Direction and screenplay by Yamada Akane of All to theSea.
A TV director Kanami Hisano (Satomi Kobayashi) is devastated by the passing of her beloved dog
Natsu to illness. Then, at the suggestion of an esteemed senior movie director, she starts filming amovie with dogs as the theme, going to adoption centers and shelters caring for dogs within the20km "red zone" of the Fukushima nucler accident. It changes her life. Encountering people
thoroughly devoted to the daily struggle of saving even one more animal life, Kanami istremendously moved. Realizing that action speaks louder than words, Kanami resolves to dosomething important.
Trailer

JFLA Lecture Series 49
Akita Dog 101 (Wan Oh Wan!) w/ genuine Akitas in the House
Lecturer: Steven Takamatsu (President of Akita Inu Hozonkai, LA Branch)
Thursday, March 8 @7pm---Photo opportunity with Japanese Akitas!--Free to Attend, RSVP RequiredSince 2018 is the year of the dog, we would like to talk about dogs. An Akita dog, originating fromOdate in the prefecture of Akita, is a quiet, strong and loyal companion. She is also very cutelooking. Helen Keller had one, Russian President Vladimir Putin loves his, and Russian Figure
Skating Gold Medalist (Winter 2018) Alina Zagitova hankers for one. In this lecture, the presidentof Akita Inu Hozonkai, Los Angeles Branch, Steven Takamatsu explains the basic history of Akita
dogs in the U.S. including their characteristics, charms, and difference between Japanese andAmerican Akitas breeds.

An Anime Adaptation of Mary Stewart's Fantasy Novel "The LittleBroomstick"
Mary and The Witch's Flower (102mins, 2017)
Directed by Hiromasa YonebayashiDate: Wednesday, March 14 @7PM
In Japanese with English subtitles
From Academy Award®-nominated Hiromasa Yonebayashi - animator on Studio Ghibli
masterpieces Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, and Ponyo, and director of When Marnie Was
There and The Secret World of Arrietty - comes a dazzling new adventure about a young girlnamed Mary, who discovers a flower that grants magical powers, but only for one night.
Mary is an ordinary young girl stuck in the country with her Great-Aunt Charlotte and seemingly noadventures or friends in sight. She follows a mysterious cat into the nearby forest, where she
discovers an old broomstick and the strange Fly-by-Night flower, a rare plant that blossoms only
once every seven years and only in that forest. Together the flower and the broomstick whisk
Mary above the clouds, and far away to Endor College - a school of magic run by headmistress
Madam Mumblechook and the brilliant Doctor Dee. But there are terrible things happening at theschool, and when Mary tells a lie, she must risk her life to try to set things right.
Based on Mary Stewart's 1971 classic children's book The Little Broomstick, Mary and The
Witch's Flower is an action-packed film full of jaw-dropping imaginative worlds, ingenious
characters, and the simple, heartfelt story of a young girl trying to find a place in the world.
Trailer

Meditation With Japanese Singing Lin Bowl
Relax With Sound During Lunch
Wednesday, March 21
12:30/1:00PM (2 Sessions, 20 Min/ Session)
Just Show Up!
Wellness Wednesdays: We offer Wellness programs at lunchtime!
The Singing Lin Bowl harmoniously combines the healing qualities of the Tibetan singing bowl andits Japanese counterpart, the Lin bowl. Relax and feel your stress dissipate into thin air as thesounds of the singing-Lin bowl lead you into a meditative state.
There is no charge and no reservation required. All are welcome to come, sit, listen, and refresh!
Read MoreJF Nihongo Classes - Spring TermApril 28 - July 7
Register Now!
Your potential blooms this spring! The registration period for our JF Nihongo Spring term will startin a few days!
People interested in learning Japanese at JFLA will have three beginner-level Japanese-language
courses. In each class, students will learn concepts and communication skills which are essential
to having a well-rounded understanding of everyday Japanese! Register by April 13th and get a
10% early bird discount!
Read More

2018-19 JAPANESE LANGUAGE GRANTS ARE NOW AVAILABLE
We still have grant programs available during our Fiscal Year 2018-19 to support JapaneseLanguage Education in the United States.
They include the following:
1. Learners Event Grant previously known as "Speech Contest Grant" (Deadline: 9/1/2018)
2. Teaching Material Purchase Grant (Deadlines: 3/15/2018 & 9/15/2018)
3. Salary Assistance Grant for Japanese Language Courses (Deadline: 4/10/2018)
4. Japanese-Language Education Project Grant (Deadline: 2 months prior to project startdate)
Read MoreJapanese Language Education Update #52:
Report from USC and UCLA's Extensive Reading Workshops
Over the weekend of Feb. 17 and 18, we attended USC and UCLA's Extensive Reading
Workshops, held on their respective campuses. There, we had the pleasure to learn about thecurrent state of extensive reading from teachers around the country and how they haveincorporated it into their Japanese language program.
We had introduced extensive reading, or tadoku, in a previous issue of Breeze, but to summarize,
the gist is that learners read widely from books that are of interest to them. A crucial point to takeaway is that although there are certain guidelines to follow, what is most important is readercenteredness. That is, the reader reads what he or she wants, and enjoyment is key.
While it sounds simple, there are in fact a number of considerations to keep in mind in order toprovide the most impactful tadoku program.
One is the setting for readers to have this opportunity. Depending on your specific conditions suchas budget and administrative support, you may prefer to have a tadoku component in to yourclass, have it separately as a club or extracurricular activity, or have it as a course in itself. Assessyour resources to see what would be more effective.
Another common concern is the process of acquiring materials. Collaboration is key. Someteachers have worked closely with their campus library or other staff members to acquire
Japanese books. One school, for instance, collaborated with their campus library to add anextensive reading collection, from which over time the library's collection grew not only forJapanese books, but also prompted additional collections for Chinese, Korean, and otherlanguages! And don't forget that we also offer grants that can be used to help build tadoku
collections, through our Teaching Material Purchase Grants (deadlines are generally mid-Marchand mid-September, so if you do not make this upcoming deadline, keep us in mind forSeptember's deadline!).
Other considerations include, but are not limited to the dividing of collections. Should books begrouped by reading level, type, or should no division be used? What specific genres wouldstudents find most interest and what is the best way to evaluate tadoku classes or activities? How
do you manage reading logs?
And so setting the environment is important. But it is rewarding. With a good setup, you will be
rewarded to see students being engrossed in what they are reading and finding books that
resonate with them deeply. Through that, the source for inspiration is limitless.