1. Japan By: Ekom E.

2. Language • Japanese language is very different from Chinese language, though it originally came from ancient China. • Japanese language once were characters that were called kanji. • Children learn 1,006 kanji in elementary school and 939 in middle school.

3. Culture • The culture of Japan is mixed with Asian culture. • Japanese anime is now all over the world that entertain kids all over the world. • Concerts are held all over the country. A scene from the noh play Dojoji

4. Government • Japanese citizens are able to vote in elections when they are 20 years old. • Unlike America and France Japanese people don’t choose their president. • The members of parliament (The Diet) choose the prime minister. A plenary session of the Diet

5. Foods • The word “meal” in Japanese is gohan. • Gohan really means rice but rice is an important meal so now the word gohan is now for any meal. • Japanese rice is sticky so they use chopsticks. A traditional Japanese meal

6. Clothing • A traditional dress in Japan is the kimono. • Kimonos are made of silk. • Kimonos have large sleeves. • Kimonos are tied around with a belt. Children wearing casual, everyday clothes

7. Education • Most of the middle school students in Japan are in club activities. • In Japan’s elementary classes they are divided in small groups. Students eating lunch together

8. Money • Yen is the Japanese unit. • There are four different kinds of bills. • Six kinds of coins. • All of the bills and coins are different sizes. Japanese Money - BillsShizuko Mishima

9. Sports • Martial Arts like judo and kendo are very popular. • Japanese go to the seas to surf and scuba dive. • They go snowboarding and skiing in the winter. Children practicing judo, which has been an Olympic sport since the 1964 Tokyo Games (Kodokan)

10. Population • The population of Japan is about 127,417,244. • The growth rate for the population is about 0.05. • Almost the whole population is Japanese. • Most of the rest of the population that is not Japanese is Korean.

11. Tokyo Tower • It was completed in the year 1958. • To get to the top floor it cost 1,500 yen per adult. • One of Tokyo's major temple is by the tower.

12. History • One of the oldest schools in Japan is called the Kaichi School. • In stone age people lived by hunting and gathering. • In 1639 Japan became closed to the world.

13. Writing Japanese • They used to have pictures to write Japanese but now they use writing. • Three types of characters are used to write Japanese.

14. Bibliography • http://web-jpn.org/kidsweb/index.html • http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ja.html • http://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1000.html • http://gojapan.about.com/cs/japantravelhelp/a/japanesemoney.htm • http://www.k111.k12.il.us/king/japan11c.htm • http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e3009.html