Enter the Japan Webpage Contest for Schools and win up to £1,000 worth of prizes for your school! We know that many schools are teaching Japanese or doing other projects about Japan, and we want to hear more about it.

Open to:
Any UK primary or secondary school that is teaching Japanese or doing any kind of project related to Japan. Your school does not need to be teaching Japanese to enter.

To enter:
- Make a webpage about the work that your school is doing with Japanese or Japan.
- This can be a blog, wiki, or a page on your school’s website.
- You can enter an existing webpage or create a new webpage from scratch.
- It can be made by just one teacher, or by teachers and students working togethe

The contest is supported by ALL, the British Council, CILT, the Embassy of Japan, the Consulate-General of Japan in Edinburgh, and the Japan Society. Visit the contest website for full details: www.japanwebpagecontest.org.uk

The Japan Foundation’s 2010 touring film programme looks at contemporary Japanese cinema made about and, in some cases, by women. Touring to five venues during February and March, the programme is composed of works from the past few years and showcases how Japanese contemporary filmmakers, from the very established, such as the late Jun Ichikawa, to young and promising filmmakers, like Satoko Yokohama, approach the issues facing women and adolescents.

This season also includes works by female directors, reflecting the exciting trend of a marked increase in the number of female directors working in the Japanese film industry. This is a unique collection of films not to be missed!

Film line-up:

‘Talking Contemporary Japan’ is a series of evening classes designed for adult learners interested in updating and refreshing their knowledge about Japan whilst practising their Japanese language skills. Classes are conducted in Japanese and participants should have Japanese language ability equivalent to JLPT level 2 or above.

Applications are now closed for the next Talking Contemporary Japan course, entitled Getting down to business! - Language and etiquette in Japanese Society'. The course comprises 4 evening sessions between 2nd and 25th March. Participants can attend the course on either Tuesdays or Thursdays (content is the same on both days). Please click on the attachment below for more information.

This newly created Japan Foundation touring exhibition comprises works by 14 Japanese artists, born between the late 1960s and early 1980s, whose style of work can be defined as Micropop. The artistic expressions of these artists have the distinct appearance of modesty and anonymity, using inexpensive or expendable materials, and frequently adopting apparently "easy-to-attain" methods of drawing and video as their main means of expression. From paintings to simple drawings and moving images, the exhibition, categorised by three sections, ultimately attempts to present modest but flexible art forms that capture the fundamental activities of the human mind and body.

'Head Start' is a free one-day course on introducing Japanese at your school, plus a Japanese language taster. The event is aimed at secondary heads of MFL, primary language coordinators, senior managers from schools and local authority language advisors. Please click on the attachments below for more information and an application form.

Celebrating his receipt of The Japan Foundation Award for Japanese Studies & Intellectual Exchange, Professor Arthur Stockwin will give a lecture looking at the performance and implications of the new Democratic Party Government in Japan. As the founding Director of the Nissan Institute for Japanese Studies and Fellow of St Antony’s College at Oxford University, Professor Stockwin has made a great contribution to the field of Japanese Studies in this country, through his writing on modern Japanese politics and promotion of intellectual exchange between the UK and Japan.
This event is co-hosted by The Japan Foundation and The Embassy of Japan.

In this training day for StepOutNet volunteers, participants will receive new ideas for lesson activities, discuss previous visits to schools and network with other teachers of Japanese.

If you would like to become a StepOutNet volunteer and provide Japanese taster sessions at UK schools, please click here.

As part of a European tour, the talented and dynamic Japanese pianist Makoto Kuriya will take part in two special events at The Pheasantry in London.

27th March 2010, 8.30pm Performance by the Makoto Kuriya Trio
Admission: £10 in advance, £12 on the door. Bookings can be made by telephoning 0845 6027 017 or by emailing mrbolygo@bolygomusic.com.

28th March 2010, 2.00pm Masterclass by Makoto Kuriya
Admission: Tickets for this event are £6. For tickets and further information, please call 0845 6027 017 or email mail@bolygomusic.com. 

This is a Japanese Speech Contest for Secondary School pupils.

KS3: Write a 2-3 minute speech on the theme "My Favourite Person".

KS4 & KS5 Pre GCSE learners: Write a 3-4 minute speech on a theme of your own choice.

KS4 & KS5 Post GCSE learners: Write a 4-5 minute speech on a theme of your choice.

Closing date for entries: 5th April 2010.

The Japan Foundation will be making a presentation on 'Japanese from Scratch' at Language World 2010.

Come along to find out how you can introduce it at your school, the benefits of learning Japanese, the wide-range of enrichment opportunities it provides and the support available from various institutions.