Featured Content
Resource: Timeline of Global Climate Action
From the introduction of the environment as a UN problem in 1968 to efforts at reaching a post-Kyoto settlement, read on for a brief timeline of international action for environmental protection. Please add to the conversation and suggest other important events by using the "discuss" feature.
Essay: Hiroshima: History, City, Event
Indiana University Associate Professor Scott O'Bryan expands the story of Hiroshima beyond the 1945 atomic bombing. A broader history of the city and its importance in national developments are introduced, while remaining mindful of the significance of the bombing itself. Suggestions encouraging students to investigate multiple perspectives of the event are included.
Resource: Copenhagen & Beyond: A Multilateral Debate about Climate Change Policy, Overview
Climate change experts and government leaders and dignitaries from China, Japan and the US met at Japan Society to discuss the upcoming climate change summit in Copenhagen. This resource gives a background to the issue and links to video clips from the event.
Unit: Heroes and Constitutions, Imperial Japan in the Elementary Classroom
Grade Level: ElementarySubject Area: Social Studies
All modern nations struggle with issues of the balance between rights and responsibilities of citizens, formation of national identity, and use of national symbols. These lessons, using source documents and methods designed for the elementary student, use Japan to examine fundamental issues of rights and identity common to most young nations.
Resource: The Japanese Medical System
This resource offers a brief overview of the health care system in Japan, gives links to relevant Japanese and American news articles, and suggests thought questions to use in the classroom. The resource is particularly useful for classes discussing health care reform.
Lesson: Living Efficiently: Daily Energy-Saving Practices from Totoro and Today
Grade Level: Elementary,SecondarySubject Area: Science & Environmental Science
Hayao Miyazaki's much beloved film, My Neighbor Totoro, is used to spark discussion about daily energy-saving practices.
Resource: American Education About Japan: James Hunt
The Honorable James Hunt, Former Governor of North Carolina, makes a strong and practical case for the inclusion of Asia in the PreK-12 curriculum in this August 24, 2007 speech.
