By Sarah Kim, Cerritos High School, Grade 10
April 4, 2011___
During the week of March 21, 2011, Cerritos High School celebrated its annual National Japan Week. This celebratory week was sponsored by Cerritos High’s Chikara, the Japanese club, and the Japanese National Honor Society (JNHS). It was intended to promote the Japanese culture and activities in an interactive and exciting way.
Tonya Lee, the JNHS class three representative, explained, “All the board members worked diligently to prepare for each day’s event. Also, we really hoped that many students would come out and participate.”
The week involved exhibiting and teaching students how to play cultural Japanese games. Monday showcased the origami tournament. The instructions for an origami Welsh corgi was passed out to the participants. Tae Chang was the first to finish making the origami piece, making him the winner of this event.
On Tuesday, the contestants enjoyed the chopstick relay. Students were paired in groups of two and were required to alternate turns in taking a black bean into a small cup with chopsticks. The team with the most beans in the third and final cup was deemed the winner, which was the Jessie Lee and Jessica Jiang team.
The third day was the gomoku (connect five) tournament. Players choose white or black oval beads and then attempted to place five beads consecutively on a wooden board in a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line before their opponent was able to. Edric Chan was the most successful at making these lines and claimed as the winner.
On the fourth and final day, players engaged in a Sudoku contest. They were required to fill a nine by nine grid so that each column, each row, and each of the nine three by three boxes contained the digits from one to nine. Erica Chan finished her Sudoku puzzle in 12 minutes and won this contest.
All the winners were awarded a $5 to $10 gift card to Starbucks or Yogurtland.
“I participated in both the chopstick relay and gomoku tournament. Even though, I didn’t win, I still had fun and would like to participate in it next year,” exclaimed Angela Liu, a two year participant.
In addition to the games, Japanese music was broadcasted in the quad throughout the week. ‘I am Loved’ pins, which were spelled out in Japanese characters were also passed out. Furthermore, the Japanese club members taught students how to spell their name and other words in Japanese.
These events marked off another successful National Japan Week as students were given an opportunity to expand their knowledge on another culture, while having fun and winning prizes. Christina Lin, the JNHS sophomore representative, stated, “I felt that this week was very successful because not only did everyone who participated in the activities have fun, but they also learned a bit about Japan and its culture.”
