Last weekend, Genki JACS students were invited along to a fantastic FILE Club get together at Nokonoshima where we played games and had delicious grilled food. FILE Club even sent a member to pick us up at the school Sunday morning, and escort us to the ferry port where we sailed to Noko island.
Sam led us all in a few name games to get to know each other, then we were split into teams and sent off to find 7 mystery locations on the island and capture them on film. Finding the exact same shot captured in film on our list of tasks was interesting, but by using the clues and friendly residents on the island, we all made it back in time for BBQ near the port, and burgers, sausages, and vegetables were grilled with fresh fruit and potato crisps.
FILE Club members come from all over the world, and after lunch we spent a few hours chatting and talking with people from various locations, getting to know each other before we played a few last games and did a bit of mental magic. Fabien, Ginie and myself were there from Genki, along with 15 or so members from FILE Club. FILE Club will have another outing in a few weeks time teaching outdoor cooking. Inquire with Sam at File Fukuoka on Facebook, or their website at fileclub.jp.
nks to John from FILE Club for all the pictures
John captured an action shot of the name games.
Ginie's team plans strategy before hunt begins
.
Fabien and I looking a bit lost with our team.
and the victors look like they are having fun!
The Ferry from Nokonoshima
Sam led us all in a few name games to get to know each other, then we were split into teams and sent off to find 7 mystery locations on the island and capture them on film. Finding the exact same shot captured in film on our list of tasks was interesting, but by using the clues and friendly residents on the island, we all made it back in time for BBQ near the port, and burgers, sausages, and vegetables were grilled with fresh fruit and potato crisps.
FILE Club members come from all over the world, and after lunch we spent a few hours chatting and talking with people from various locations, getting to know each other before we played a few last games and did a bit of mental magic. Fabien, Ginie and myself were there from Genki, along with 15 or so members from FILE Club. FILE Club will have another outing in a few weeks time teaching outdoor cooking. Inquire with Sam at File Fukuoka on Facebook, or their website at fileclub.jp.
nks to John from FILE Club for all the pictures
John captured an action shot of the name games.
Ginie's team plans strategy before hunt begins.
Fabien and I looking a bit lost with our team.
and the victors look like they are having fun!
The Ferry from Nokonoshima
Every Thursday night at Genki JACS we have MOVIE NIGHT! A Japanese movie is picked each week for the students to watch on our large projector screen in the lounge. The movies range from comedies, to samurai films, to horror movies, to just pure crazy satire (like last week's Survive Style 5+). Tomorrow night, we'll be watching Maiko Haaaan!!!, a 2007 movie about a salaryman obsessed with maiko (apprentice geisha).
Perhaps the best part about movie night is all the snacks (popcorn, senbei, chocolates, etc.) in the lounge for the students and teachers to snack on :)
Perhaps the best part about movie night is all the snacks (popcorn, senbei, chocolates, etc.) in the lounge for the students and teachers to snack on :)
Choosing the Japanese school you'll study at can be a very difficult thing to do, as you often have almost no way to know if the language school's website is accurate, or if the school even really exists at all! This is part of the reason that some students choose to book their study through a trusted agency instead. It's also the reason why GenkiJACS places such a high importance on our accreditation by IALC, the premier international language school accrediting organization. Their accreditation means that you can trust that the school has been inspected by a professional inspector, and found to meet their high standards.
But I wanted to mention another factor that is often overlooked when comparing language schools, the length of classes. Most schools offer either 3 or 4 classes per day as their core package, and of course a school offering 4 classes should be a third more expensive than a school offering only 3 classes per day. But it's important to check the length of each class as well. Most schools run 45-minute classes. At Genki Japanese, however, our classes are 50 minutes long each. Let's do the math:
4 classes per day, 45 minutes each = 15 hours per week
4 classes per day, 50 minutes each = 16 hours 40 minutes per week
Difference: 1 hour 40 minutes, or 11% extra per week!
So even if two schools are priced the same, if one of them offers 50-minute classes, you get 11% more study time!
Does this mean that our teachers work harder than teachers at other schools? We like to think so, and it's all for you! If you need any more information, check out Genki Japanese language school website, or email us!
But I wanted to mention another factor that is often overlooked when comparing language schools, the length of classes. Most schools offer either 3 or 4 classes per day as their core package, and of course a school offering 4 classes should be a third more expensive than a school offering only 3 classes per day. But it's important to check the length of each class as well. Most schools run 45-minute classes. At Genki Japanese, however, our classes are 50 minutes long each. Let's do the math:
4 classes per day, 45 minutes each = 15 hours per week
4 classes per day, 50 minutes each = 16 hours 40 minutes per week
Difference: 1 hour 40 minutes, or 11% extra per week!
So even if two schools are priced the same, if one of them offers 50-minute classes, you get 11% more study time!
Does this mean that our teachers work harder than teachers at other schools? We like to think so, and it's all for you! If you need any more information, check out Genki Japanese language school website, or email us!
26/08: I ♡ FK
"I ♡ FK" (I Love Fukuoka) is a group of volunteers who came together to promote everything that is wonderful about Fukuoka. Recently, they've been going around the city asking people what they like about Fukuoka and taking pictures to post up on their website and include in their pamphlets. WELL...
Last week, they came to Genki JACS to get the students' impressions of Fukuoka!! We told them everything we love about this great city and the pictures are finally here. Enjoy!
Here are close-ups of some of the students' answers-
And some interesting answers...
And look at these happy students-
It was really fun to have the I ♡ FK people here and see what our students think about Fukuoka. If you would like to see the rest of the photos, here's their website- http://love-fukuoka.me/
We ♡ Fukuoka!
Last week, they came to Genki JACS to get the students' impressions of Fukuoka!! We told them everything we love about this great city and the pictures are finally here. Enjoy!
Here are close-ups of some of the students' answers-
And some interesting answers...
And look at these happy students-
It was really fun to have the I ♡ FK people here and see what our students think about Fukuoka. If you would like to see the rest of the photos, here's their website- http://love-fukuoka.me/
We ♡ Fukuoka!
University students in Fukuoka are joining together to break a Guinness World Record by making 100,000 origami cranes!! They decided to join forces with Genki JACS students and stopped by yesterday to teach students how to make the cranes. It's a great way to make Japanese university friends!
They'll be stopping by a couple times each week for the next couple weeks so we can all work together to reach the goal of 100,000 origami cranes.
一緒に頑張りましょう！★
They'll be stopping by a couple times each week for the next couple weeks so we can all work together to reach the goal of 100,000 origami cranes.
一緒に頑張りましょう！★
This week we were joined at Genki Jacs by four teaching interns and Japanese as a Second Language students from Fukuoka Jogakuin University, Ryoko, Hanae, Marie, and Kaori. They assisted our students with supplemental lessons, review, conversation, and great patience. The beginner students were assisted with building their vocabulary, while more advanced students enjoyed conversations with the interns.
Between their lessons, I was able to interview two of the interns visiting, Ryoko and Kaori. I asked them about teaching, and about their goals and motivations for it. Both expressed enthusiasm for their field of Japanese education, despite its challenges, such as getting expressions across to students, or helping them to understand a grammar point, but like all true teachers, find satisfaction in those shining moments of success. They chose their field of Japanese education, because they enjoy their own culture, as well as other cultures, finding cultural exchange stimulating. As someone who studied at university Teaching English as a Second Language, I can readily relate to their feelings, and hope to follow the same path. They wish to experience other cultures, but perhaps think starting that following their graduation this year, it may be easier to start out here in Japan, so perhaps they will stay here in Fukuoka to teach at Genki Jacs in the future.
The students at Genki Jacs seemed to enjoy their lessons and conversation with them as well, and perhaps were able to advance their studies in Japanese further yesterday thanks to help from Kaori, Marie, Ryoko and Hanae. Mata ne interns, and arigato.
Between their lessons, I was able to interview two of the interns visiting, Ryoko and Kaori. I asked them about teaching, and about their goals and motivations for it. Both expressed enthusiasm for their field of Japanese education, despite its challenges, such as getting expressions across to students, or helping them to understand a grammar point, but like all true teachers, find satisfaction in those shining moments of success. They chose their field of Japanese education, because they enjoy their own culture, as well as other cultures, finding cultural exchange stimulating. As someone who studied at university Teaching English as a Second Language, I can readily relate to their feelings, and hope to follow the same path. They wish to experience other cultures, but perhaps think starting that following their graduation this year, it may be easier to start out here in Japan, so perhaps they will stay here in Fukuoka to teach at Genki Jacs in the future.
The students at Genki Jacs seemed to enjoy their lessons and conversation with them as well, and perhaps were able to advance their studies in Japanese further yesterday thanks to help from Kaori, Marie, Ryoko and Hanae. Mata ne interns, and arigato.
If you're already in Japan or are coming soon, JAL is now offering "oneworld Yokoso/Visit Japan Fare" for flights within Japan. You essentially pay only ￥10,000 (or USD100) for a flight from one Japanese city to another (this can be up to 80% off regular fares)!
You can buy up to 5 of these tickets, but cannot buy them once you are in Japan...so plan ahead!!
It's a great, cheap way to tour around Japan. You could fly from Fukuoka to Tokyo to Sapporo to Okinawa if you wanted.
For more information, you can visit their website-
http://www.ar.jal.com/region/en/flight_planning/fares/yokoso.html
Happy flying!
You can buy up to 5 of these tickets, but cannot buy them once you are in Japan...so plan ahead!!
It's a great, cheap way to tour around Japan. You could fly from Fukuoka to Tokyo to Sapporo to Okinawa if you wanted.
For more information, you can visit their website-
http://www.ar.jal.com/region/en/flight_planning/fares/yokoso.html
Happy flying!
08/08: We Love Daimyo
Daimyo, Daimyo, Daimyo! ★
Daimyo is one of the areas of Fukuoka and has got to be one of the coolest places ever. With winding streets, vintage shops, hidden restaurants, and all sorts of quirky decorations and architecture, it's easy to roam around for hours. Even if you explore Daimyo everyday, you can find something new each time ♪♪
Horses!-
A little kebab stall with one seat right in front for a customer-
Local BAPE store-
At the hair salons, you even have a "dreadlocks" option-
If you're ever at Genki JACS (or if you're already here), please check out Daimyo! We're technically located in Daimyo, so it's about a 2 minute walk to get into the shopping area/hair salon/food part of Daimyo (where these photos were taken).
Daimyo is one of the areas of Fukuoka and has got to be one of the coolest places ever. With winding streets, vintage shops, hidden restaurants, and all sorts of quirky decorations and architecture, it's easy to roam around for hours. Even if you explore Daimyo everyday, you can find something new each time ♪♪
Horses!-
A little kebab stall with one seat right in front for a customer-
Local BAPE store-
At the hair salons, you even have a "dreadlocks" option-
If you're ever at Genki JACS (or if you're already here), please check out Daimyo! We're technically located in Daimyo, so it's about a 2 minute walk to get into the shopping area/hair salon/food part of Daimyo (where these photos were taken).
As announced in a previous blog entry, FBS (local Fukuoka TV station) had Genki JACS featured on an episode of Mentai Wide!! ☆☆ Well, they've done all their editing and cutting and subtitle-adding and we have the video uploaded for you to see!
They looked at our cosplay room and then asked students to explain what has surprised them since they've been in Japan. There's all sorts of strange things...
Enjoy!
They looked at our cosplay room and then asked students to explain what has surprised them since they've been in Japan. There's all sorts of strange things...
Enjoy!
Now that August is here, the rainy season is officially over, and the weather has been absolutely beautiful this week. The horizon is a Carolina blue worthy of the Ol' North State, while the sky above is a deeper, brighter blue than one could possibly expect from anywhere outside the tropical South Pacific. Dotted across all of this are fluffy white clouds granting brief respites from the heat of the summer, which although great, no longer holds the stiffling humidity of the rainy season.
Everywhere around us the plants of Fukuoka are rising up green and revitalized by the now finished rainy season, and the waters of the rivers, canals, lakes, and oceans about Fukuoka are sparkling with all the brilliance of the stars upon surface, reminding us of the now finished star festival, tanabata.
Each day, as I pass maizuru koen with the huge lily pad-like lotus plants, I can easily believe that the ancient peoples of South Asia thought them to have magical and mysterious properties. The animals also appear to be grateful for the warm clear skies, as, instead of becoming sluggish while hiding from the heat, the birds and turtles of Maizuru koen graceful slide over and under the waters. The short rains that have graced the skies this week have been soft and warm, lasting just long enough to cool the the air and bless the greenery. These are pictures from Maizuru koen this week.
Everywhere around us the plants of Fukuoka are rising up green and revitalized by the now finished rainy season, and the waters of the rivers, canals, lakes, and oceans about Fukuoka are sparkling with all the brilliance of the stars upon surface, reminding us of the now finished star festival, tanabata.
Each day, as I pass maizuru koen with the huge lily pad-like lotus plants, I can easily believe that the ancient peoples of South Asia thought them to have magical and mysterious properties. The animals also appear to be grateful for the warm clear skies, as, instead of becoming sluggish while hiding from the heat, the birds and turtles of Maizuru koen graceful slide over and under the waters. The short rains that have graced the skies this week have been soft and warm, lasting just long enough to cool the the air and bless the greenery. These are pictures from Maizuru koen this week.
