Clifton State School students discover origami, unicycle riding in virtual exchange with Japanese cl…

Clifton State School students recently discovered the intricacies of origami, unicycle riding and karate in their first virtual exchange with students from a school in Toowoomba’s Japanese Sister City, Takatsuki.

Toowoomba Regional Council Economic Development portfolio spokesperson Cr Edwina Farquhar said Clifton Year 5 and 6 students expanded their Japanese cultural knowledge during the video call with students from Years 3 to 6 at Kashida Elementary School.

Cr Farquhar said the Kashida Elementary students demonstrated numerous Japanese cultural activities including calligraphy, playing traditional instruments, unicycle riding, origami and karate.

“The Clifton students shared information about their school, the school camp, their daily activities and pets,” Cr Farquhar said.

“The video call lifted the lessons beyond instruction from books to lively discussions with students their own age in our Sister City.

“The students benefit from the chance to practise Japanese and English with respective native speakers. This helps to improve their pronunciation, vocabulary and conversational skills in a confidence-boosting experience.”

Clifton State School Principal Mrs Rosita Lever said her school’s students were fascinated to experience Japanese culture from 6000km away in the comfort of their Clifton classroom.

“There were moments where we went ‘wow’, from watching unicycles in action, seeing flawless Kanji characters inked on paper, to the excitement of an origami koala,” Mrs Lever said.

The Clifton students are eagerly anticipating their next chance to speak with their Kashida Elementary counterparts.

Students from Highfields State School, Gowrie State School and Toowoomba North State School have conducted similar exchanges under the Sister City cultural exchange banner in recent weeks.

Sister City details:

A formal Sister City agreement between Toowoomba and Takatsuki officially was established on November 13, 1991.

The Declaration of Friendship agrees to deepen the relationship through mutually beneficial exchanges in the educational, cultural, sporting and commercial arenas.

Toowoomba and Takatsuki have enjoyed a highly active relationship with many exchanges occurring over the years, including student study tour exchanges.

Takatsuki, with a population of 355,000 people, is located halfway between Osaka and Kyoto in the southern section of the Honshu Island of Japan.

Caption: Clifton State School Principal Mrs Rosita Lever and Clifton State School Grade 5 students speak with students from Kashida Elementary School in Toowoomba’s Japanese Sister City, Takatsuki.