Sky (5-year-olds)

A New Year in Sky Class!

感じる・伝える・つながる Skyクラス 

Jungle A＆B (3-year-olds)

Earth Day

Welcome to Jungle A! The new school year has begun with a mix of both familiar and new faces, and for everyone, it marks the start of an exciting new adventure.

This term, our Unit of Inquiry is How We Organize Ourselves. We have started exploring the routines, structures, and responsibilities that help us become successful Jungle friends. At the beginning of the year, our lessons focused on how we organize our belongings, understand and express our feelings, and respond to challenging situations. Together, we have been learning not only how to take care of our classroom, but also how to care for the world around us.

This term also coincided with Earth Day, a global event that celebrates environmental protection and sustainability. The students observed photos and videos of polluted rivers and began to inquire into how they became that way and what we can do to help prevent it. Inspired by these discussions, we practised picking up litter, sorting trash, and even cleaning muddy toys in our classroom.

Our learning came to life during a special trip to Ogicho Park, where the students had the opportunity to care for their environment in a real and meaningful way. Wearing gloves, they worked hard to collect litter that had been left behind by others. It was not easy work, but the sense of pride and satisfaction at the end was clear on every face.

Thank you, Jungle friends, for your care and responsibility- from cleaning our classroom toys to helping keep our community clean.

Ms. Megan

Welcome to the Jungle...

... We've got fun and games! Our new Jungle friends have settled very nicely into their new roles in the CGK community. We have some friends coming up from Ocean who have adjusted to the changes with enthusiasm and curiosity. We also have some new friends who have hit the ground running, joining our family at CGK as if they too graduated from Ocean class. 

We didn't hesitate in trusting our new Jungle friends to take risks by jumping straight into P.E lessons and bus trips to the park. Everyone has helped make the transition incredibly smooth, and we are already so proud of all the students. 

Furthermore, we are already learning about the responsibilities of everyone in our community by helping to clean up a local park, in conjunction with Earth Day. This was a great learning experience, and we even had time to play when we were finished.

We're very much looking forward to the rest of the year, and we we can't wait to share more experiences with everyone!

Jungle B Teachers

新しい一年が始まりました！クラスには進級児も新入園児もおり、はじめは新しい環境への不安から泣いたり、お家を恋しがったりする姿も見られました。しかし、周りの様子を観察したり、少しずつ活動に参加するうちに、少しずつそして確実にスクールでの生活に慣れてきています。
朝の支度や一日の流れも徐々に理解し、自分でできることが増えてきています。在校生は昨年度にOceanクラスで身につけた習慣を活かし、新入生はそれぞれの場所で身につけたスキルを使いながら、Jungleクラスという新たな環境と習慣にスムーズに適応しつつあります。また、自分のことだけでなく、すすんで先生やお友だちのお手伝いをする姿も見られ、「I can do it!」「やってあげる！」と自信に満ちた姿にはいつも驚かされます。お友だちへの意識も芽生え、「一緒に遊ぼう！」と声を掛け合ったり、想像力豊かなごっこ遊びが毎日繰り広げられています。時には思い通りにいかず悲しそうな表情を見せることもありますが、それも人との関わり方を学び、友情を深めていくために必要な過程の一つです。相手の言葉に耳を傾け、理解し、解決策を見出す力は、今後の成長に大きく影響していきます。また、進級・入学から間もない子どもたちですが、少しずつ自分の好みや気持ち、考えを自信をもって効果的に伝えることができるようになってきており、言葉でのコミュニケーションが活発になってきています。子どもたちからは「なぜ？」「どうするの？」といった質問が聞かれたり、先生からの「どう思う？」「どうしたらいいかな？」といった問いかけにも、自分の言葉でしっかりと答える姿が見られています。今後は、子どもたちが今持っているスキルと知識、探究心をもとに、自分と他者との共通点や相違点に気づき、互いを尊重しながら過ごすことを大切にしていきたいと思います。自分でできることは自分でやり、難しいときは言葉で「手伝って」と伝えるなど、互いにとって心地よいコミュニケーションを通じて共に成長していける一年にしていきたいと思います。

Ms. Chieko

Elementary School / Middle School

CoL Musical Performances 

At CGK we have been finding more and more opportunities for our students to perform music.  However, our most involved performances happen at CoL. I’m proud of the music our students created and performed on stage for parents and students this year.  Each class chose interesting and unique ways to perform and make their voices heard. Student performances manifest differently year to year and show their learning in unique ways. As we perform, our goals are to play and perform music that is engaging to students, further their knowledge into musical subjects, and to produce music that is enjoyable to listen to. This requires a balance requires creating a genuine interest in the selected music, allowing students to explore instruments that interest them, and selecting or composing music that aligns with their current abilities.
In first grade, students play pianica to learn keyboard skills and better understand Do Re Mi. This year both Grade 1A and Grade 1B played their piancias on stage, but in different ways. Grade 1A used their melodic compositions they created in class to play interesting, live background music in groups during their stage play. Grade 1B created a class composition which was a powerful anthem and played it together as a class. While the composition assignment was the same, the project looked different from class to class. Grade 1B worked well as a team so their composition was written as a team, while Grade 1A worked better in smaller groups and practiced this way. Playing their own compositions gave students a sense of ownership over their performance which made them more passionate about the music they played. 

Many classes are given provocations that help to guide them in directions that they may want to take their music. However, Grade 5 took things in an entirely different direction.  They wanted to put together their own musical consisting of two songs.  One group of students showed their abilities as leaders and to put together a melody based around lyrics they wrote, and others wanted to create a rap battle based around a conflict. This seemed like a perfect match with their idea, a conflict at the United Nations.

First, the melody group needed help on creating an accompaniment.  We chose Garageband together to help them get going, starting with drums, then adding chords, bass, and synths to fill in the rest.  Most of the learning involved understanding how chords and melody work together to give a piece of music direction and movement.

Secondly, the rap group did an amazing job of writing their lyrics and working with the beat. The overall theme of conflict at the UN worked well for a battle rap scenario.  What they needed help on was attitude, accenting their rhythms, and their hip-hop aesthetics.  Stomping, clapping, and cheering was replaced by one hand in the air, heads bobbing, and jeering at opponents.
Students performed their musical passionately and had fun performing the genres they enjoyed. 

Our first year of MYP music proved to be a resounding success. During the first term, students selected instruments and developed strategies for playing and transcribing their chosen songs. A challenge we encountered was managing the diverse range of ideas, which sometimes made it difficult to find complete consensus and maintain high enthusiasm for the musical selections.

As term three came, students decided they would do “Music Through the Decades” which seemed to be a challenge as they had played their instruments for less than a year. This time, since students were passionate about their choices, they practiced individually and in groups, and worked hard to accomplish their goals to put on a three-song, mini concert. One group chose to do a cover of and 80’s song by listening to the recording and following various tutorials. The other two groups played songs and chose fill out their missing sounds, (for example a missing bass, or a missing vocalist) by going back to the original recordings, isolating the missing tracks, and playing along with their instruments in a “music-minus-one” fashion.

While these performances differed greatly from last year, the curriculum stays similar year to year. Space for student agency is of the utmost importance for self expression. Students are given inquiries, “Why do we choose the instruments we play?” and “Why is it important that we choose how to perform? or “What song will we practice?” They eventually understand that by having a personal connection what they perform, they become more invested, more passionate, and learn more from the music.  

PYP and MYP students are continually developing their abilities to play and perform, but even now are capable of delivering performances that are truly sonically engaging. Each performance was wonderful to listen to. The key to this success lies in balancing three elements: finding a genuine interest in the selected music, allowing students to explore instruments that interest them, and selecting or composing music that aligns with their current abilities. This year, our students consistently exceeded these expectations, demonstrating that authentic expression often transcends technical perfection.

Mr. Matt

Study Abroad and Global Initiatives
海外留学・グローバルの取り組み

2025 Summer CGK Study Abroad

Study Abroad Highlights (Video)

Currently recruiting participants for study abroad programs
◆現在参加者募集中の留学プログラム◆

Accepting short-term international students from overseas - Wanted host families
海外からの短期留学生受け入れ　～ホストファミリー募集～