Week 25: 21st January 2026
1pm – Food (for Beginners & Elementary)
What did you have on the Christmas and during your winter holidays? Do you like brussels sprouts? What kind of food do you like, or dislike? Can you describe the taste of food in easy Japanese? Let’s learn useful vocabulary and phrases for talking about food.
Level: A0-A1. This session is for complete beginners to elementary level learners.
2pm – Food (for Upper levels) You might have talked about food in Japanese a lot before. But, can you explain the dish which your listener has never had? Where can we have the dish? Can we cook it in the UK? How about ingredients? Let’s start the new term to talk more about food in Japanese.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 26: 28th January 2026
1pm – Colours (for Beginners & Elementary) Can you say the 7 colours for a rainbow in Japanese? Which colour do you like the most? What would you image from the colour White? Can you say that in Japanese? We will check basic vocabulary and grammatical contents, and practice a conversation in very basic Japanese.
Level: A0-A1. This session is for complete beginners to elementary level learners.
2pm – Colours (for Upper levels) Colours are tricky in Japanese. Some are expressed as adjectives, but also nouns. How do we use them in sentences? We will check the words for colours and how to use them grammatically in sentence, and practice them in a conversation.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 27: 4th February 2026
1pm – Setsubun festival (for All) Setsubun (節分) is a Japanese festival marking the day before spring begins. In 2026, the festival is on the 3rd of February, so why don’t we cerebrate it together? In this session, after learning interesting facts of the festival at the seminar room, we will go outside to try a traditional ritual of bean-throwing. Please wrap up yourself if you join the session!
Level: A0-C2. Everyone is welcome.
2pm – Setsubun festival (for Upper levels) Shall we learn and discuss more about Setsubun in Japanese? In the second session, we will focus on Japanese words and phrases used to explain traditional seasonal festivals of Japan and how to use them in a conversation.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 28: Reading Week – no classes
Week 29: 18th February 2026
1pm - Illness (for Beginners & Elementary) If you get unwell while you’re visiting Japan, how would you explain that to a Japanese medical doctor? We will check basic vocabulary and phrases for the topic, and practice a conversation through a role-play between a doctor and patient.
Level: A0-A1. This session is for complete beginners to elementary level learners.
2pm - Illness (for Upper levels) In the second session, we will check more detailed symptoms of illness and how to describe them, including levels of pain on different parts of the body by using onomatopoeia (i.e. the words that imitate the actual sounds they describe).
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 30: 25th February 2026
1pm - Fashion (for Beginners & Elementary) “Pants” are not an underwear, and “trainer” is not a pair of shoes in Japanese. What does “one-piece” mean? And several words for “wear” depending on parts of the body?! Let’s learn basic vocabulary for fashion and describe what you and others wear in Japanese.
Level: A0-A1. This session is for complete beginners to elementary level learners.
2pm - Fashion (for Upper levels) What kind of fashion do you like? Does your country have traditional clothes? How do you describe it? In the second session, we will talk about wider areas about the topic.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 31: 4th March 2026
1pm – Hinamatsuri festival & Origami (for All) Hinamatsuri (ひな祭り; Doll Festival) is Girl’s Day, the seasonal festival on the 3rd of March to pray for girl’s health and happiness. Japanese people celebrate it by displaying ornamental hina-ningyo dolls. Instead of the huge and expensive display, shall we try making dolls by folding origami paper to celebrate the festival at Kent? You will be also given a short lecture of the festival with some Japanese language practices.
Level: A0-C2. Everyone is welcome.
2pm - Hinamatsuri festival (for Upper levels) In the second session, we will learn and discuss more about the festival in Japanese.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.
Week 32: 11th March 2026
1pm – Haiku (for Beginners & Elementary) We will finish the term with a creative challenging – making a Haiku poem in Japanese. You may know that Haiku (俳句) is the shortest style of poem in the world, developed in Japan. Let’s use your Japanese knowledge and originality to make a simple but nice Haiku and share them with others!
Level: A0-A1. This session is for complete beginners to elementary level learners.
2pm - Haiku (for Upper levels) In the second session, we will learn some Kigo (季語), season-related words or phrases in Haiku, understand their cultural backgrounds, and make your original Haiku by using one of the Kigo.
Level: A2-C2. This session is for upper level learners. Pre-intermediate and Intermediate & Advanced students will be in separate groups to practice a conversation.