Birds of Yokosuka--updated links

This is an older post, but I noticed that some of the links are broken.  I am unable to update the original post, so here is a new one. 

I remember that one of the first things I saw out the window of the Navy Lodge our first morning in Yokosuka was a pair of cormorants flying just above the water. It seemed like something out of an exotic children's story. Then when my husband walked us around to show us the base, I couldn't keep my eyes off of the huge raptors that were perched on poles and buildings around the base. But identifying the birds here can be a bit tricky. 

The library has a couple copies of Birds of Japan, which is sadly out of print and hard to find used. Birds of East Asia is a newer book, but it is both big and a little expensive for casual users. But I have found a nice website, created by a local geography teacher that includes a section on the Birds of Yokosuka 

One of our friends printed the bird ID section as a handout for scouts who had to do some bird watching. It was nice to only have a few pages instead of a huge book. I have seen some other birds out at the campgrounds at Ikego, notably Common Kingfishers and Spot Bill Ducks. 

Book List

KPHS is taking on a new project.  What started as trying to find some books on a particular subject, has become a spreadsheet of books on various topics dealing not only with Japan, but also other parts of Asia too.  I see this being a fantastic resource and would love to hear your ideas and suggestions to add to it. Perhaps we can expand it to other areas and subjects as well.  Please contact us with your additions or comments.

Literature Adventure

The KPHS Yokosuka Literature Adventure will be concluding another year shortly. Our reading list this year has been quite varied, and the kids have really enjoyed it. We met with dragons in Dealing with Dragons, the first of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. We discussed if we'd want to live forever, and at what age, after reading Tuck Everlasting. We discussed the classics and mythology with the Aeneid, only to find that the kids much prefer Homer over Virgil. After the New Year, we read a book that really pertains to us as Americans living overseas, Homesick, by Jean Fritz, the fictionalized story of the author's life in China and her move to the US in the 1920s. As a companion work, the parents were encouraged to read Third Culture Kids by David Pollock and Ruth E Van Reken.

This has been a very eye-opening book and thoughtful read. I had so many ah-ha moments while reading it. For this lesson, we put out a small, informal survey to get an idea of how our group compares with others, particularly those at home in the US. We didn't get as many entries as we would have liked, but the information made the kids think. Some of them realized that growing up overseas makes them different, others didn't see the big deal. Pollock and Van Reken define a Third Culture Kid as someone who "spend(s) a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents' culture." I think the biggest impact will occur when these kids move back to the US. I have always found that the reverse culture shock, is so much more difficult to deal with than the initial move. As Ms. Van Reken states in the book:

". . .disappointment was greater because they had always presumed if they could make it 'home,' they would no longer feel so different from others. . . . Friends, relatives, and classmates are shocked at the TCK's ignorance at the most common practices necessary for everyday living. If they were true immigrants, no one would expect them to know all of these things." Pages 227-228

Being in the military world, moving often is common place and moves overseas always a possibility. Summer is approaching and that means PCS season.  Van Reken's comment about being sure to unpack and "plant trees" upon arriving really resonated with me. One can't relax or enjoy life, if you're always looking for that next move. Yes, it can sometimes come faster than expected, but it may not happen for some time either. When I think it about it, we planted our first garden only three years ago. Prior to that, there had always been the thought of why bother, we're just going to move. So yes, she really says to plant trees! Plant something and watch it grow while you're here. Take advantage of all that your host culture has to offer. and perhaps someday you'll be able to return to see the fruits of that tree.  

Do you have any suggestions or advice for a move overseas?  Something you did to help make the transition easier?  What about the "re-entry," how did you deal with those stresses? We'd love to see your comments.

Our Survey Results:

College Credit By Exam

Burning Question: Where to take CLEP/DSST while stationed here in the Kanto Plain of Japan? Do you have a high schooler, especially a Jr/Sr level schooler and wants--nay, needs to take the CLEP/DSST?

Well I found info... Que audience applause... Thank you, thank you.

Now, as I had discovered through half a school day spent on the phone being bounced around from one office to another, not much help is available to us through college hill on base if you are not active duty military or a high school graduate dependent of a DOD sponsored individual. Thanks to the lack of support and services, I have been keeping this pot simmering on my back burner to find a way around this quandary and have been richly rewarded.

I recently (as of this morning) came across information in how to get CBE: Credit By Exam. This is done via CLEP or DSST. While in Japan, you can take CLEP without constraints (ex: must be military or already enrolled at the college etc...) at Temple University, Tokyo; and DSST also in Tokyo at CAS and Temple University. 

I hope this helps out. Below are the links of where I garnered this informaiton along with the addresses of the two sites in Tokyo. 

Good Fortune and Happy Monday--oh, and Holidays too!

Article concerning CBE http://www.rosettastone.com/homeschool/articles/new-approach-to-college

CLEP in Japan http://apps.collegeboard.com/cbsearch_clep/searchCLEPTestCenterResults.jsp?searchCategory_country=Japan&DBACTION=SEARCH_TC&clepSearchType=International&x=35&y=10

DSST in Japan In the search criteria box enter "Japan" and for Region select "International." http://www.getcollegecredit.com/search.html

CLEP and DSST

http://www.tuj.ac.jp/default.html
Temple University - Tokyo

3F, Test Center
2-8-12 Minami-Azabu, Minato-ku
Tokyo,   106-0047
03-5441-9877

DSST 

http://www.cas-jpn.com/aboutus-en.html#en2

CAS Center for Advanced Studies 

Sanei-Hoshino Bldg., 3F, 

10-2 Sanei-cho, Shinjuku-ku, 

Tokyo, 160-0008, JAPAN
International Phone : (+81)3-3226-7462　

Fax : (+81)3-3226-7465　E-mail :info@cas-jpn.com

Japanese History and Art Activities

Ellen McHenry's Basement Workshop site has some interesting hands on activities that would be fun for homeschoolers. Check out the history section, which includes some Japanese activities, like a pop up Bunraku stage. Bunraku is Japanese puppet theatre like what is described in The Master Puppeteer.

Hat tip: Our Nest of 3

Hiking Around Yokosuka

Here are some hiking trails in the area.

Daibutsu hiking trail. This is a longish trail in Kamakura that can be hiked in several different segments. We started in Hase (near the Great Buddha), hiked the ridgeline, then came down into town and hit a couple of the Kamakura shrines. You can also hike all the way up into Kita Kamakura. Pretty gentle hike once you get to the top of the ridgeline, but would be very slippery when wet. More walks and hikes in Kamakura

This is my source for other hikes around Yokosuka. The site is in Japanese, but I use Google translator. The trail maps are all in Japanese and don't translate, but I've had pretty good luck by matching up the kanji for the train stations to figure out where the trail goes. These range from easy city strolls to trail hiking.

Last week we did the hike from Keikyu Taura to Yokosuka. This one is about 5 miles, but has a lot of change in elevation. It goes up to a plum forest park in Taura that has a really great kids' playground if you are taking younger kids as tag alongs. We hiked this one by taking the train to Taura and hiking back to the base. Lots of vending machines along this route, so you don't have to carry a ton of water. There are also drinking fountains and bathrooms at both parks where you can refill water.

I also like the Dollars to Yen blog for hiking and park/playground ideas. The blog author lived in Ikego for a couple years and recently moved down to Okinawa. She has posts with good pictures of several of the local trails.

Books in the base library that are useful include 40 Day Trips Around Tokyo and 40 More Day Trips Around Tokyo as well as Trails of Two Cities. Another fun book is Kamakura: Fact and Fiction. This has wonderful history tidbits about what you will see all around Kamakura. All of these are in the Japanese interest section beyond the internet computers.

Boy Scout Troop 15 in Tokyo has a series of historic trails laid out through the Tokyo metro area. If you hike three of the trails, you can then buy one of the historic trail patches. (Trails are about halfway down the page.) This page also has a good reference for plants and poisonous animals in Japan.

Getting Excited About Japan

Something that I've struggled with on this tour is not really knowing what it is that I want to see and experience in Japan. Unlike France or Germany, I didn't have much of a mental image to go with Japan.

I thought that might be the case with some other people here or who are on the way. I have often turned to the Japan National Tourism Board site, which has not only city specific info for travel planning, but also a lot of good general cultural info about Japan. The KIE section, for example has several pages of information about the traditon of moon viewing in Japan. (The big full moon festivals are right around the corner in August.)

Meigetsuin Temple in Kamakura

Another great temple to see hydrangea and iris flowers is the Meigetsuin temple in Kamakura.

To get to the temple, you head on the JR train to Kita-Kamakura, one stop past Kamakura. From there, you cross the tracks (coming from Yokosuka), make a right, and a pleasant, short walk until you reach the end of the street. Turn left and you'll run right into the temple entrance.

The fees into the main part of the temple are reasonable at Y500 for adults and Y300 for students. There is a fee for the "hidden" back part of the temple, another Y500 per person. If you like iris flowers, it might be worth going into once.

There are several varieties of hydrangea all over the temple grounds.

The historical aspect to this temple is interesting.

All in all, a beautiful temple.

Kris

Hydrangea Time

June brings the hydrangea to the area. I'm sure you've seen them along the roads in all their incredible colors. The place to go, though, is the Hasedera temple in Kamakura, not far from the Great Buddha. I went up there yesterday on a photo safari and boy were we treated to a surprise of color. The temple was crowded, but it was well worth it. In addition to the hydrangea, there were also many irises in the ponds. I've been to the temple several times during different parts of the year, and I have to say this is one of the most colorful. I never knew there were so many different varieties of the flower. At the top of the temple, you can get a free fan with a map of the area and photos of the various varieties.

To get to the temple, you take the JR line to Kamakura then connect to the Endoshima Line and exit at Hase station. Exit the train station and go up the hill towards the Buddha, turn left at the Hasekannon intersection. The temple is at the end of the road--just follow the crowds! Entrance is 300 yen for adults and 100 for children 6-11.

Birds of Yokosuka

I remember that one of the first things I saw out the window of the Navy Lodge our first morning in Yokosuka was a pair of cormorants flying just above the water. It seemed like something out of an exotic children's story. Then when my husband walked us around to show us the base, I couldn't keep my eyes off of the huge raptors that were perched on poles and buildings around the base. But identifying the birds here can be a bit tricky.

The library has a couple copies of Birds of Japan, which is sadly out of print and hard to find used. Birds of East Asia is a newer book, but it is both big and a little expensive for casual users. But I have found a nice website, created by a local geography teacher that includes a section on the birds of Yokosuka.

One of our friends printed the bird ID section as a handout for scouts who had to do some bird watching. It was nice to only have a few pages instead of a huge book. I have seen some other birds out at the campgrounds at Ikego, notably Common Kingfishers and Spot Bill Ducks. The section on the Yokohama Nature Sanctuary has pictures of these birds.

Common Japanese Spiders

One of the challenges of homeschooling overseas is trying to do nature study when you can't read any of the guidebooks.

Hooray for the internet. You can find a lot of information out there, just by searching something like "common spiders Japan" or "snakes of Japan." If you search through Google images, you can often figure out just what you're looking at.

If you're trying to identify just what spider has spun a web over the trampline or what the huge arachnid over the door of Chili's is, you might want to check out Common Spiders in Japan, which has photos of spiders grouped by season of the year.

Welcome to Yokosuka Homeschooling

Yokosuka Homeschooling is a blog by, for and about homeschoolers in Kanto Plain Home Schoolers, CFAY families considering homeschooling and homeschoolers who may be taking orders to Yokosuka.

Blog posts will highlight the opportunities on base and in the community for fun and education. Hopefully it will make both homeschooling and Yokosuka feel a bit less daunting and more like our home.