Summer Holidays

 In Japan, schools finish about the second week of July until the end of August.  Similar to the school holidays I remember many, many years ago.  That is where the similarity ends, in Japan, junior high school kids have club activities and a lot of these are sports clubs, so kids are outside practicing baseball or track and field in over 30C temperatures.  Bit crazy, if you ask me!  Then there is the homework, lots and lots of homework!  There was a quiz show a few years ago, the contestant had to guess a word by clues that were given. One group had the word 'summer', the clue was 'homework', and the contestant got it on the first go!  For all my students and my kids, summer holidays meant homework. Not just read a book and do a book report, there are drill books, prints to fill out, a poster to be made, Japanese calligraphy, a science experiment that you have to think of by yourself, and a book report. The list goes on and on.  When Mikey and David were in elementary school the kids and one parent were supposed to go to the school at 6am to do exercise.  I told the teachers to stuff that idea!  

My memories of my kid's summer holidays were ones of tears and tantrums.  A few times I would go and tell the teacher that they weren't finishing the busy work.  I told the teachers that this holiday was the best chance for me to teach the kids English and they don't have time to write the same kanji character over 100 times!  Also when we had money we would go to England, to meet my family. Having that experience was a lot more important, in my mind, than spending hours doing busy work.

I don't think my summer holidays were that great.  There was nothing to do! The opposite of the Japanese kid's situation!  Every year was the same TV programs, White Horses, and Robin Crusoe are the ones I remember, maybe there were more.  After that just playing or reading. When I was about ten, I think, my Mom worked part-time, so I had to watch my brother. We would fight a lot.  We weren't allowed out on the street, we could play in the garden but I think we spent more time inside.  I'm not sure what we did all day!  I remember lying all the books up on the stairs to make a library one time.  I'm sure my brother has different memories!

Although I feel sorry for my students, having so much homework and the older kids having club activities I think they have a better time than I did. Today's kids have a lot of home entertainment to choose from. But at the same time, they have lost out on being able to play outside. It's almost 5pm and it's 35C!  

Everybody is suffering in this heat. The news shows cities throughout Japan where the temperatures are breaking records.  This year, in the Kanto area, there is the added bonus of heavy rain and thunderstorms, almost every evening, Summer is the time for firework displays, but because of the rain, a lot have been canceled.

Hot cats

Just for attention, a picture of hot cats!  They don't like the air conditioning, so they spend most of the day in the corridors, but come in and out of the living room.