Target audience: Students

Number of employees: 1-5

Year founded: 2002

Tag words: After-school Program, community service, volunteer, beauty services for seniors, Japanese Conversation Partner

Explore Japanese Culture After School

Description: The objective of this program is to offer children in the local communities of New York an experience in another culture to expand their global perspectives and learn to accept differences in, for instance, people’s culture, so they can grow up to become global citizens.

This program met two hours in the evening, gathering almost 30-60 children between the ages of six and thirteen, and provided them with a multifaceted experience in Japanese lifestyle and culture, including Japanese language, Japanese games, Japanese food, Japanese martial arts, Japanese tea ceremony, and Japanese dance. Furthermore, we invited guest speakers as role models for these children, who are Americans with experience living abroad in Japan.

Today, in a world where diversity education is sought more than ever, this type of hands-on cultural experience program is a first, even for New York City. The children learned about Japan, a country on the other side of their world, which they knew little or nothing about, learned about other viewpoints, and started to cultivate interest more strongly in the unknowns. On the final day of this program, many children expressed a wish to study Japanese and visit Japan soon, showing interest in continuing their global experiences introduced by this program.

Fees for services: $5000 for 8 times session

Ages of students: 6-13

Schools/sites: Recreation center, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation

Contact person: Noriko Hino noriko@nydevolunteer.org 212-932-7208