TIS Director's Blog

The Senri & Osaka International Schools in conjunction with the Australian Stuttering Research Centre of the University of Sydney, hosted a stuttering (kitsuon in Japanese) workshop specifically for local speech therapists November 3-5, 2017. Leading the conference were Dr. Brenda Carey, a distinguished speech & language pathologist in the area of stuttering and Yokohama International School Learning Support teacher and speech & language pathologist. Over 50 Japanese speech therapists and researchers received training in the Lidcombe Method, a therapy for young children that reduces stuttering. This was the first of its kind in the Kansai region.

The early intervention therapy for stuttering is new to Japan, so these types of workshops are critical in treating children. It is the goal that the highly successful Lidcombe Method will be used regularly in Japan.

Dr. Carey and Ms. Yandeau graciously delivered professional development workshops to our teachers and met with students and parents about speech development.

The workshop resonates with one of the SOIS belief statements, “We believe that one of our goals is to demonstrate new ideas, practices, techniques, and systems to other schools around Japan and the world.”

We are proud to have supported the Australian Stuttering Research Center and the University of Sydney in their work in Japan. A big thank you to Dr. Carey and Ms. Yandeau for helping our community and speech pathologists in Japan.

The elementary school students were thrilled to learn the skills of American football from former National Football League (NFL) player, Adam Seward. Besides teaching them some basic fundamentals of throwing and catching a football, he emphasized the smart choices he made with nutrition and training for him to excel at the highest level of the sport. Adam made many sacrifices to be the best and the students looked to him to be a role model for them developing physical fitness and a healthy diet. The elementary school is placing a special emphasis on healthy eating this year and this effort is being led by physical education teacher, Ms. Leanne Entwistle. Adam’s example of healthy choices left a powerful impression on the students.

He is shown above during his career with the Carolina Panthers. Adam graduated from the University of Nevada at Las Vegas and was a special teams star and linebacker for the Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars during his 4-year career. After his playing career, he worked for the NFL in Mexico and China, promoting the sport and commentating on games.

Mr. Seward is completing a physical education teaching program with the education department of California. He is an intern teacher in our middle school and high school physical education department this trimester. Our students have benefited from his energy, enthusiasm and professional sports experience.

American football is quite popular with Kwansei Gakuin schools and the university team is the most successful in Japan, with 27 national titles. “The Fighters” are undefeated this season and play archrival Ritsumeikan University Panthers Sunday, November 19 at Expo Memorial Stadium at 13:00. Tickets are available at the game or via the website.

Thanks to Adam for taking time out to inspire the elementary school students and PE teacher Ms. Entwistle for facilitating the visit.

All students, teachers and parents are invited to attend the presentation by a representative of the Asian Rural Institute on Monday November 13 at 3:45 PM in the 3F conference room.

It is part of the Osaka International School’s mission to contribute to the global community. The elementary school students, teachers and parents have been fundraising for various causes close to home and around the world. Below is a list of charities that benefit from the work of our community.

• Ronald Mcdonald House – Osaka Japan – 30,000
• Demelza Hospice Care for Children – Kent, England – 30,000
• Seed Peace School – Kabul, Afghanistan – 20,000
• SOIS School of Hope – Cambodia – 20,000 & school supplies
• Avasara Leadership Institute School for Girls – Pune, India – 30,000
• Rhinosaverz – South Africa – 30,000 for paying anti-poaching staff salaries and internet fees
• Chengeta Secondary School – Zimbabwe – 10,000 for funding a water pump

Parents in our community, including myself can put a lot of pressure on our children to succeed. With an uncertain and changing global economy, it sometimes feels like our children have to be equipped with superior skills, experiences, work ethic and test scores to be competitive for entry to university and a career path.

Best-selling author Rosalind Wiseman of “Queen Bees and Wannabes” and other books on teens and children, reminds parents that the combination of a highly academically rigorous school and high-pressure parents may exhaust children. Her article in the Washington Post, tells the perspective of a grade 8 boy.

Wiseman asks parents to reflect on the questions below:

• Do I ever take the time to just look at my child?

• When I begin conversations with my child are they usually about something they haven’t done?

• Do I know what makes my child want to get up in the morning and start the day?

• Is there anything that I say that kills his/her spirit?

• What do I do to make my child feel seen and heard?

The article reminded me that our children are home for only a short time and 18 years goes by quickly. Enjoy their company! She finishes with some good advice for parents.

…the next time you see your child, especially at the end of the day, don’t greet them with a thousand even well-intentioned questions. Just say you love them, and you’re grateful they’re in your life.

The innovative chefs from the Esaka restaurant, Volare, gave an engaging workshop on Japanese-Italian fusion cooking. The workshop was another in our series of Culture & Cooking events. I find that working in the kitchen brings people together, as it is human nature to be involved in food preparation. People make connections with each other over food. Many international schools hold food fairs, but this is a more intimate and deeper experience. Last year we featured Russian, Afghanistani and Middle East (Saudi Arabian/Egyptian) cooking and culture nights.

The team of chefs from Volare prepared four dishes. A beetroot risotto wrapped in shiso leaves, raw chicken breast marinated with konbu (kelp) and three types of mushrooms added, a veggie broth pasta and “aquapazza” a seafood and veggie stirfry. All the dishes were delicious, healthy and creative. Everyone was quite satisfied. I especially liked learning about kelp and how it can flavor many dishes.

Osaka is a foodie paradise and it is good to highlight one of the hundreds of outstanding restaurants in the metropolitan area.

I would like to thank the OIS Parent Teacher Association for sponsoring the event. I also highly recommend Volare for a fabulous night out. All of their dishes are excellent and the service and attention to details, make for a guaranteed, amazing night on the town. Arigato gosaimasu to Kohei and Yuya!

For the second year, OIS students provided some light-hearted moments in the performance October 2 at NHK Hall in downtown Osaka. Elementary and middle school students played the role of birds from around the world to help the water fairy clean the canals, rivers, and bays of Osaka in the Noh play, “The Fairy of the Water”. Noh is an ancient form of Japanese theatre and actors from the Yamamoto Noh Theatre company trained the students in the art form. The students even got the chance to speak, several of them boasting of the beautiful waterways of their home countries in their mother tongues.or the second year, OIS students provided some light-hearted moments in the performance October 2 at NHK Hall in downtown Osaka. Elementary and middle school students played the role of birds from around the world to help the water fairy clean the canals, rivers, and bays of Osaka in the Noh play, “The Fairy of the Water”. Noh is an ancient form of Japanese theatre and actors from the Yamamoto Noh Theatre company trained the students in the art form. The students even got the chance to speak, several of them boasting of the beautiful waterways of their home countries in their mother tongues.

The play was backed by the Kansai Philharmonic, which played pieces of music with a water-theme, including Strauss’s The Blue Danube. The theme of the evening was East Meets West and that certainly was the case with European classical music juxtaposed with Noh theatre.

The students designed their own costumes, learned about makeup and dance and performed in front of a crowd of 1,400 people. The evening performance kicked off the Osaka Beyond 2020 campaign, sponsored by the Osaka city government. The goal is to promote international relations and the fine arts in anticipation of the Tokyo 2020 summer Olympics.

We appreciate the efforts of the Yamamoto Noh Theatre company, OIS parent Chizuko Bobrove and everyone at OIS that made the activity a success.