February was a busy month for J’s children as they visited the police station, the dentist’s office, took a field trip to Kidzania, made cookies and pastries in the “bakery,” and celebrated Dr. Seuss’s birthday with the classic Green Eggs and Ham snack.
After the confusion of mid-March, followed by spring vacation, the J’s community resumed their regular activities, and lots of laughing, playing, learning, and growing went on in each class. Teachers have been taking extra care to make sure students feel safe, have fun, and experience a stable environment during this time of unease.
May’s theme is spring, so the children are planting, watering, and growing their own gardens, as well as talking about the environment — discussing the concepts of “reducing, reusing, recycling” and what individuals can do to care for the world. Everyone at J’s welcomes the change of season, as they look forward to more picnics and outdoor exploration, as well as the addition of a new drawing class to Wednesday’s schedule.
J’s International School supports the relief and recovery work of OGA for Aid, a small volunteer organization that has been working from a base in Minami Sanriku Cho to help those in need along the northern Tohoku coast. This organization has been on the ground and delivering supplies since March 19, and J’s International School has offered its space in Tokyo to serve as a donation drop-off centre. Food, goods, money, vehicles, and even letters of encouragement to the affected families and towns are welcomed — please call J’s on 03-3452-2078 to coordinate donations for OGA for Aid.
J’s aims to be a pillar of support to the children and families that survived the earthquake and tsunami disaster of March 11. J’s hopes to bring moral support and courage through writing and drawing cards and pictures, and sending photos. All are welcome to become “OGA for Aid penpals.” Please contact [email protected] for more information. — ANGELA ORTIZ
