Grade 9 - Acquiring Information

This sub-organizer contains the following sections:
Prescribed Learning Outcomes
Suggested Instructional Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
Recommended Learning Resources

PRESCRIBED LEARNING OUTCOMES

It is expected that students will:

locate and process information from age-appropriate Japanese-language resources to complete authentic tasks
convey acquired information in oral and visual forms, and in writing using hiragana and some katakana
record hiragana and katakana language items in logical categories

To view the prescribed learning outcomes for Acquiring Information in other grades click on an icon below.

SUGGESTED INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

Students are generally interested in acquiring information when it is related to a meaningful purpose. Select age-appropriate Japanese materials such as magazines, brochures, videos, and Internet addresses. Students should be asked to gather only the information needed to complete simple tasks.

Bring to class a variety of Japanese youth magazines and ask students to select articles or sections that interest them. With the help of dictionaries, students highlight familiar words and phrases and predict the meaning of the texts. After verifying the key information, students exchange their articles along with three questions they have written to be answered by their classmates.
Have students examine Japanese bus or train schedules (with furigana ). Ask them to use these to determine arrival, departure, and length-of-trip times in response to teacher- or student-generated questions. Ask students to plot schedules of activities that involve taking the bus or train, and convey the information using postcards, e-mail , or faxes to real or imaginary host families or friends who have agreed to meet them upon arrival.
Provide students with authentic Japanese pen pal letters and ask them to pay particular attention to common expressions and key information. Assist students in writing letters to pen pals in Japan, using similar expressions and asking for general personal information. Students could send their messages electronically by e-mail or fax, or send letters or audiotapes by post. Invite students to share any replies with the class.
Challenge students in groups to create memory aids for identifying hiragana symbols and present them to the class.

SUGGESTED ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES

Students at this level are able to deal with an increasing range of resources and tasks and to write basic hiragana and katakana . Assessment focusses on how students use their strategies to deal with Japanese materials, and how they represent the information they acquire.

Have students demonstrate their abilities to gather meaning from written material by responding to it appropriately and accurately. For example, ask students to follow written directions, or provide them with a written description and ask them to use drawings or diagrams to represent the information.
After students have written replies to Japanese pen pal letters, look for evidence that they are able to:
- refer to information in the letters and respond accordingly
- use appropriate formats
- request personal information using common structures and vocabulary
- write clearly in simple, understandable Japanese
- include relevant, meaningful information
- display in logical ways
Assess students' abilities to extract key information when listening to Japanese. Note to what extent students can:
- respond appropriately and accurately to instructions and directions
- identify the gist of dialogues and respond appropriately
- answer direct questions with appropriate answers
- summarize key points and sequences of events from stories they hear or view, using a combination of pictures and words
Ask students to keep sections of their notebooks for setting personal goals for acquiring or extending specific language skills. Have them chart their progress regularly and make comparisons to previous performance and goals. Students might use the notebooks for self-assessment by documenting effective strategies they have used.

RECOMMENDED LEARNING RESOURCES

Print Materials

Basic Japanese-English Dictionary
Collins Shubun English Japanese Dictionary (New - First Edition)
Everyday Japanese
Japan: An International Travel Map
Japanese - An Appetizer
Kenkyusha's Furigana English-Japanese Dictionary
Martin's Concise Japanese Dictionary
NTC's Basic Japanese

Multimedia

Japanese Language and People
Kimono
Moshi Moshi
Niko Niko

CD-ROM

Exotic Japan

Revised: January 26, 1999

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