HotChalk
Hot Chalk: Lesson Plans Page: A Thousand Paper Cranes
This historical fiction lesson plan is for students reading Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr, in which they can discuss the tragedy of Hiroshima and its impact as well as other themes.
Huntington Library
Huntington Library: Garden Lesson Plans: Elements of a Japanese Garden [Pdf]
A multi-faceted activity where students learn about the elements of a Japanese garden, then construct a peepshow book that demonstrates their understanding of foreground, middle ground, and background to represent a Japanese garden....
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Education: Japan Images of a People
A wonderful three instructional activity unit that examines the art of Japanese screen paintings. Following some valuable information on the culture and country student will have an opportunity to create their own screen.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Suminagashi Self Portrait
In this lesson, students learn about the Japanese technique of suminagashi by viewing a podcast and then using the technique to create a self portrait. Podcast is linked in the lesson plan. [9:49]
Other
Kodak: Social Studies Lesson Plans
This Kodak site has twelve lesson plans submitted by teachers from every grade level. Each activity integrates photography into the lesson.
John F. Kennedy Center
The Kennedy Center: Oceans: A Sensory Haiku
In this lesson plan, students use the ocean and their five senses as inspirations to create their own unique haikus. Lesson provides assessment criteria and a list of sources.
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Learning Lab: Japan: Images of a People
Students learn to view Japanese paintings, they make a screen, and they learn about the culture of Japan. There are three lesson plans and all allow all needed materials to be downloaded.
American Forum for Global Education
American Forum for Global Education: Haiku as a Cultural Icon
These detailed lesson plans let students research about Shiki and Haiku, compose on their own poetry, and learn about Japanese culture.
California State University
Origami
Students of all ages love learning origami. This lesson gives good outlines on how to set up a classroom for this challenging, yet fun art form. There is a great suggestion to incorporate the picture book "Sadako and the Thousand Paper...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Say Hi to Haibun Fun
In this lesson plan, students will consider Say Hi to Haibun Fun which looks at a Japanese style of writing called haibun. Worksheets and other supporting materials can be found under the Resources tab.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Origami Geometry
Origami (ori-folding, kami-paper) is the traditional Japanese art of folding paper. Students will discover relationships between shapes as they are actively engaged in this hands on geometry lesson to learn basic geometric shapes, their...