Another Asian Adventure

We just completed our study of Japan, as we work our way through Asia in Galloping the Globe. The kids learned the meaning of the word "archipelago" and added it to their geography notebooks. They learned that Japan consists of 6,852 islands and contains 108 active volcanoes. The red dot on the flag symbolizes the sun.

In addition, I found a wonderful site called Kids Web Japan, which has illustrations, articles, and games about Japanese culture, all geared towards kids. We read a few Japanese folk tales and learned about Japanese houses and meals, sumo wrestling, origami, bonsai, kimonos, and bento boxes.

Last week, we made an Americanized version of a Japanese meal for dinner. I made a large pot of Ramen noodles in beef broth and served them with matchstick carrots, shredded napa cabbage, and sugar snap peas to mix into the soup. At the beginning of the meal, the kids said, "Itadakimasu (I receive this food)," and at the end, they exclaimed, "Gochito sama deshita (It was quite a feast)!"

Today, as we wrap up our study of Japan and move on to India, I surprised the kids with homemade bento lunches. They loved them and ate every bite, even Becca who normally doesn't eat raw peppers or cabbage!

Contents: Egg yolk and cheddar cheese sun, egg white clouds, bread land, grape and cheddar cheese flower, shredded mozzarella dandelion, green pepper leaf and stems, and napa cabbage grass.

We enjoyed learning more about Japan, and we look forward to "galloping" the rest of the way around the world as well. What a fun way to learn about geography!