Through the magic of video conferencing, elementary schools in Japan, Australia and New Zealand on Oct. 26 linked up to share their experiences during a recent spate of natural disasters.
Through the magic of video conferencing, elementary schools in Japan, Australia and New Zealand on Oct. 26 linked up to share their experiences during a recent spate of natural disasters. Fifth- and sixth-year students at Yasawa Elementary School in Minami-Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, one of the towns hardest hit by the Great East Japan Earthquake, participated in the class with students from Milton State School in Brisbane, Australia, and from Cashmere Primary School in Christchurch, New Zealand. Brisbane experienced a massive flood in January that killed more than 10 people, while Christchurch suffered a major earthquake in February that claimed more than 160 lives, including 28 Japanese.Mika Numauchi, 12, a sixth-year elementary school student at the Yasawa school, and one of her friends showed photographs of the deadly tsunami triggered by the March 11 quake to students from the other two schools. "Thousands of people were killed, and a number of houses were swept away in the tsunami," Numauchi explained to her foreign peers.Pupils from Australia and New Zealand also shared their experiences with the students from other countries. At the end of the class, all students from the three countries sang "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" together, a positive song to show how they are remaining upbeat, despite the disasters.The class project was coordinated by Green Cross Japan, a foundation working to protect natural environments, and other groups.