As they experience success in applying strategies such as predicting and inferring meaning based on clues, students develop the confidence required to continue to learn Japanese. Ask students to create individual maps of their neighbourhoods and label the school, their homes, and any other significant buildings. As an extension, show an overhead transparency of a neighbourhood map. Encourage individual students to plot significant locations and explain to the class their routes to and from school. Provide students with task sheets showing the steps in incorrect order, and have them renumber the steps correctly.
Students then create collages of pictures related to the demonstration and give short commentaries.
Ask students in pairs to survey others about their favourite books, foods, clothing, and restaurants. Have each pair compare results with other pairs or with students from another Japanese class. Before students view authentic documents such as menus, have them brainstorm information they usually find on menus. Encourage them to apply this knowledge to make educated guesses about Japanese menus. Provide students with a selection of age-appropriate articles, magazines, and reference materials.