Kids Web Japan

The sixth graders are going to dance to "YMCA" at the Snow Festival.

Rehearsing in the gym to learn the dance moves and rhythm.

Every February there is a certain tension in the air around Tokamachi. This is because everyone is busy preparing for the biggest event on the city's calendar, the snow festival, which is held in the third week of February. At the festival, over 100 giant snow sculptures are created all around the city. The main stage, which is made using 2,000 dump trucks' worth of snow, is so big that it is featured in the Guinness Book of Records. A fireworks display and other events are held during the three-day festival, which attracts over 250,000 visitors from around Japan every year.

The students of Tokamachi Elementary School are also involved in various activities at the snow festival. The sixth graders will appear on the main stage at the opening ceremony on February 15, dancing to the tune of "YMCA" with the cheerleaders of the local pro basketball team.

The performance. The kids' costumes and dancing were just right!

"We're going to wear fluorescent yellow costumes and make pompoms. I'll be so nervous!" says one of the sixth graders, already excited even though there are still two weeks to go until the big day. The sixth graders from the wadaiko club will also appear on stage, performing numbers like "Kodomo Bayashi" (meaning children's music) and "Sekka" (snowflakes).

The first to fifth graders, meanwhile, were tasked with making snow sculptures. Splitting into groups of about 10, they used shovels and snow scoops - and sometimes even spoons! - to sculpt snow into statues of cartoon characters, animals, and other shapes.