By Virginia Cooper

Here on the Farm, we only have two options for world language: Spanish and French. But some students decided to seize the opportunity to learn a different language by starting a Japanese club.

This is the first year of the club with social studies teacher Theresa Flannery as sponsor and club leaders seniors Dante DeGraff and Matt Arellano. The club has only been running for a couple months, but the turnout is better than expected with around ten participants. The club is open to anyone who wants to learn about the Japanese culture. The club meets in Flanery’s room on Fridays between three and four.

Arellano decided that some other kids must have the same passion for Japanese culture as he did, so he figured why not make a club. Arellano says, “I had a passion for the Japanese culture and language, and the school had no outlet for me to develop my language so I started this club.” He was right in thinking several individuals would share in his interest. Even DeGraff felt the club would be a good idea saying, “I had a passion like Matt for Japanese, and I felt it would be great to teach and even inspire others to learn Japanese.”

As these students indulge in a new learning opportunity, Arellano and DeGraff have to figure out exactly how to teach the language. “We usually just use handouts and normal note taking, but sometimes it is a challenge to get everyone to take notes.” These fellow Farmers are learning the same way the world language classes are tackling the job but with a harder subject. The most rewarding aspect of the class will be for the students to master the alphabet and read at a basic level.

The most challenging part of the club is that there are not many people to practice speaking with because no one in the club is a native speaker. That is the problem that swarms the room. “It isn’t that hard to teach, but it is hard to find someone to practice with and hear the pronunciations that native speakers would have” DeGraff says.

The ultimate advantage of this club is the ability these students have to open up their interest in the Japanese culture and even other cultures. The club is designed to share in a similar interest of the Japanese culture and the club leaders are fueling this desire to learn.

Both Arellano and DeGraff will use this club as a way to learn more about the language and culture, so when they venture off to Japan this summer they can apply what they learn. They hope that the club inspires other individuals to ponder over the thought of traveling to Japan.