Everest - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
A Japanese alpinist-adventurer who became the youngest in the world to stand atop the highest peaks in the seven continents by scaling Mount Everest at the age of 25 in May 1999 returned to the world's tallest mountain a year later to clean up garbage left by his peers over the years.

Bike Trek - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Two Japanese schoolboys, accompanied by their parents, are in the middle of a trans-America trek on mountain bikes from New York to San Francisco, an adventure covering a distance of some 5,000 kilometers in two-and-a-half months.

Smileys - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
People always keep in touch. But while many people who were reluctant to write letters now send large volume of electronic correspondence, it is said people have grown away from the warmth of handwritten messages. Perhaps to make up for some of the facelessness, emoticons (emotive icons) created with symbols and the letters of the alphabet are often used to convey a range of emotions. Writers can show everything from pleasure and sadness to anger and embarrassment. When accompanying a text message, these "smileys" can fill in the emotional gaps in electronically transmitted text.

Kenya - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
On April 2 Yoshitake Sakurada, then parliamentary secretary for foreign affairs, visited the Kakuma Refugee Camp in northwestern Kenya to fulfill then Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's promise of giving a pencil to every child there. He handed over about 110,000 pencils, notebooks, and other stationeries to children after inspecting a hospital and elementary school in the camp. The following morning, he attended a ceremony presenting an ambulance to the hospital and writing materials to schoolchildren in the refugee camp.

Mascot - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
The names of the mascots for the 2002 FIFA World Cup were announced in Japan and Korea on April 26, 2001, which marked exactly 400 days before the start of the soccer tournament on May 31, 2002. The names were chosen through a vote by soccer fans in Japan, Korea, and other nations all over the world. Nearly one million people participated in the vote. The three mascots, symbolizing energy particles in the atmosphere, were named as Ato, the team coach wearing yellow, Nik, a player wearing a blue uniform, and Kaz, a player in a purple uniform.

Jobs - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
When Japanese kids from kindergarten to sixth-grade were asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, baseball player came out as the boys' top choice, while cook or restaurant owner was ranked top among girls for the fourth straight year, according to a nationwide survey by Dai-ichi Mutual Life Insurance Co. Soccer player was the boys' second choice.

Excursions - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Without question, the most anticipated school event in the lives of Japanese students is the class trip. When Japanese elementary and middle school students reach their final school year, they get to take a trip lasting around three days and two nights. These exciting excursions usually take place in late spring, early summer, or autumn. Among the many different destinations, the most popular are Kyoto and Nara, which are known for their many old shrines and temples. Recently, some schools have begun venturing abroad to such places as South Korea, China, and Southeast Asia.

MONTHLY NEWS - July 2001: Japanese Fathers Get a New Image
Kind MONTHLY NEWS July 2001 Japanese Fathers Get a New Image Reference Noboru Shimomura, Noriko Matsui (illus.), Kanji no hon (Book of Kanji) vols. 1-6 (Tokyo: Kaisei-sha Publishing Co., 1994).

MONTHLY NEWS - August 2001: Japanese Fathers Get a New Image
Smile MONTHLY NEWS August 2001 Japanese Fathers Get a New Image Reference Noboru Shimomura, Noriko Matsui (illus.), Kanji no hon (Book of Kanji) vols. 1-6 (Tokyo: Kaisei-sha Publishing Co., 1994).

MONTHLY NEWS - August 2001: Japanese Fathers Get a New Image
Work MONTHLY NEWS August 2001 Japanese Fathers Get a New Image Reference Noboru Shimomura, Noriko Matsui (illus.), Kanji no hon (Book of Kanji) vols. 1-6 (Tokyo: Kaisei-sha Publishing Co., 1994).

MONTHLY NEWS - August 2001: Japanese Fathers Get a New Image
Big MONTHLY NEWS August 2001 Japanese Fathers Get a New Image Reference Noboru Shimomura, Noriko Matsui (illus.), Kanji no hon (Book of Kanji) vols. 1-6 (Tokyo: Kaisei-sha Publishing Co., 1994).

MONTHLY NEWS - August 2001: Japanese Fathers Get a New Image
Strength MONTHLY NEWS August 2001 Japanese Fathers Get a New Image Reference Noboru Shimomura, Noriko Matsui (illus.), Kanji no hon (Book of Kanji) vols. 1-6 (Tokyo: Kaisei-sha Publishing Co., 1994)

What Is Poetry Boxing?
Web Japan Kids Web Japan Archives > Monthly News > Poetry > Explanation What Is Poetry Boxing? Similar to boxing, poetry boxing is done in a ring. Two poetry boxers read their original poems in a ba

Cranes - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
After the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, students in schools all over Japan are reaching out to support the children of New York City. This support often comes in the form of origami cranes that the students have worked hard to fold themselves.

Instruments - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Koto, shamisen, shakuhachi (bamboo flute), wadaiko (Japanese drum), fue (another kind of flute), hichiriki (bamboo oboe). . . all of these are very old Japanese musical instruments with a history of more than 1,000 years. Even many adults probably don't know what they are. But beginning in April 2002, National Curriculum Standards will require all students in Japan to study how to play at least one of these traditional instruments throughout their three years of music classes in middle school.

Haiku - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
It's a sunny March morning, and the kids are in a Japanese-style garden, looking for signs of spring. The willow bends to a gentle breeze that carries a faint scent of daphne, while carp lie still at the bottom of the pond. A girl opens her hand to reveal a piece of tosamizuki - tiny yellow flowers that grow into a conical cluster. "I've already got an idea for a verse," she says happily.

Gold - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Wakayama Prefecture lies just to the south of Osaka. Two years ago in Wakayama City, two brothers, one now in the first year of middle school and the other in the fourth grade of elementary school, discovered gold in the mountains. The brothers, Toshiki and Yoshitomi Matsumoto, were working on an independent-study project during their summer vacation and had gone out with their father to look for and collect minerals.

Elephants - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Japan has received a surprise gift from Thailand: a pair of baby elephants. The elephants were a thank-you gift for a tree-planting project carried out in Thailand by a Japanese volunteer organization.

Mobile Suits - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
Do you watch Gundam on TV, make plastic models, simulate battles with Mobile Suit figures, and have shelf full of collectibles? Then the new Gundam Museum is just the place for you!

Qrio - Monthly News - Archives - Kids Web Japan - Web Japan
More than 80 years ago, Czech writer Karel Capek first created the word "robot" in his Science Fiction novel R.U.R. Since then, much progress has been made in developing the kind of humanoid robots that Capek envisaged. The latest news is that robots can now "run."