About this resource:
The nature of the learners
At this level, children are developing awareness of their social worlds and of their memberships of various groups, including of the Japanese class. They are further developing literacy capabilities in English, and while this highlights differences between writing in alphabetic and character-based languages, it also assists to some degree in learning Japanese. They benefit from varied, activity-based learning that builds on their interests and capabilities and makes connections with other areas of learning.
Japanese language learning and use
The development of oral proficiency at this stage continues to rely on rich language input in different modes. Learners listen and respond by actions to build active listening and comprehension skills. They participate in classroom routines and tasks and use some spontaneous language to describe feelings related to classroom activities. They participate in games and activities and engage with texts through teacher-generated questions and prompting. They give short presentations related to their personal worlds, including simple descriptions. With support they create labels, captions and short sentences. Language experience and input include authentic texts with some modification, familiar vocabulary and simple sentence structures. Children are supported to expand their use of the language in familiar interactions and situations, such as exchanging simple information and participating in shared tasks, performances and play. They continue to control simple grammatical forms and build vocabulary that can be adapted for different purposes. Students learn the use of diacritic marks to create voiced sounds. They learn to produce and pronounce characters with the support of flashcards, mnemonics, digital games and exercises. They read and write words written in hiragana and in high-frequency kanji with support and scaffolding. There is a combined focus on grammar, vocabulary building, pronunciation, and non-verbal and cultural dimensions of language use through purposeful communicative activities and experiences.
Contexts of interaction
The context in which learners interact is primarily the language classroom and the school environment, with some access to wider communities of Japanese speakers and resources through digital technology.
Texts and resources
Children develop literacy skills and textual knowledge through supported interaction with a range of spoken, written, visual and multimodal texts. Imaginative and interactive texts such as picture books, stories, puppet plays, songs and games develop the expressive and cultural dimensions of language. To support the development of cultural knowledge, learners may have access to resources developed for Japanese children, such as storybooks, songs, television programs or interactive games.
Features of Japanese language use
Learners recognise the predictable nature of pronunciation in Japanese and apply their knowledge of sound-letter associations to spell new words. They recognise and use elements of grammar such as simple verb forms, adjectives, interrogatives and some particles to understand and create simple spoken and written texts. They use appropriate word order and sentence structures, including time, counter classifiers, and present, past and negative forms. Learning Japanese contributes to learners’ general literacy development and to the process of making sense of their worlds that characterises this stage of their development. As they encounter elements of Japanese language they make comparisons with their own language(s) and culture(s) and consider their own ways of communicating.
Level of support
This stage of learning involves extensive support. Tasks are carefully scaffolded. Teachers provide models and examples; introduce language, concepts and resources needed to manage and complete the task; make time for experimentation, drafting and redrafting; and provide support for self-monitoring and reflection. Learners use the hiragana chart as a systematic framework to support reading and writing.
The role of English
Learners are supported to use Japanese as much as possible for classroom routines, social interaction, structured learning tasks and language experimentation and practice. English is used for discussion, explanation and reflection, enabling learners to develop a language (metalanguage) for sharing ideas about language and culture systems and experience. Using both Japanese and English in the classroom develops awareness of what it means to be bilingual.
About this record:
http://rdf.australiancurriculum.edu.au/elements/2018/05/8390f146-4819-468e-8ffd-660a10af222d.rdf