"My Fair Lady" At NIHS

By Ryoko GOTO

London theater company, "One World", will be performing "My Fair Lady" at NIHS on November 10th.

The musical is based on George Bernard Shaw's 1916 play, "Pygmalion". "My Fair Lady" was made into a hit movie in 1964, starring Audrey Hepburn in the leading role of the flower girl, Eliza Doolittle.

The story is about a professor of linguistics who overhears a London flower girl speaking and is shocked by her terrible accent. He makes a bet with his friend and says: "I can make her speak like a noblewoman in six months." The flower girl hears this and visits the professor the next day because she wants to learn how to speak well. The professor is interested and accepts the challenge.

He is a very strict teacher but she works hard. Over time, they begin to fall in love but the professor is a stubborn man and only thinks of winning the bet. To test his success in changing the girl's accent and behavior, he introduces her to rich people to see if they can be fooled into believing she is a noblewoman. The professor wins the bet but loses the flower girl.

Brit Teacher Joins NIHS

Christopher Pickering
Originally uploaded by NIHS.

By Kie WATANABE

Young Englishman Christopher Pickering, 24, joined our school on September 1st.

He graduated from Oxford University three years ago. Since leaving university, he has done many things such as starting his own web-design business with his best friend. But he gave it up because his partner moved to Europe. He also tried investment banking but quit because it was boring.

He began teaching English because he wanted to travel while he worked. Last year, he taught at an academy in South Korea and then, London before coming to Japan. He enjoys teaching because he gets to meet many different people.

He has visited nearly 40 countries. His favorite places are Costa Rica because it is sunny and relaxing and Iran because it is so different and the people are friendly.

He loves football (soccer) and dreamed of becoming a professional football player for Liverpool when he was younger. He also enjoys watching movies, listening to music and reading books.

His message to students who want to improve their English: "Try watching non-Japanese movies."

When Disaster Strikes!

Public workers protecting people
Originally uploaded by NIHS.

By Erika BAN

No one knows when a big disaster will come. In our lifetime, most of us will experience a natural disaster in one form or other. Luckily, there are people who will be there to ensure our safety when disaster strikes.

The famous 1923 Tokyo earthquake which killed about 1,000,000 people taught us how important it is to be prepared for a disaster. In our city, there are many workers whose jobs are protect us in times of crisis.

All public workers play an important role in securing the safety of residents. For example, traffic control by police officers, putting out fires by fire fighters, retrieval of electricity when there is a blackout by the power companies and providing safe drinking water by the water services.

These people work hard every day to provide security so that when a disaster happens, we will have a better chance of survival.

Why Earthquakes Don't Make Us Shake

By Taichi NAGAO

Unless you have been living on another planet, you will have noticed the many earthquakes recently. Over three days we have had four earthquakes.

Earthquakes are not unusual in Japan and most people say that the big 'Tokai' earthquake will come soon. Experts predict that it will be bigger than the 1995 'Hanshin' quake that devastated the city of Kobe and other parts of Japan.

Surprisingly, people seem very calm about earthquakes. Many people feel that it is something that is out of their hands. Student Mitsuhiro Shima, 18 said: "I'm not afraid of earthquakes because it cannot be helped." Teacher, Anton Luiten said: "It doesn't make me feel nervous because in life accidents happen such as car accidents and tornadoes."

Another reason why people appear to have a relaxed attitude about earthquakes is because we do not have first hand experience. Student Yasuo Yumoto, 17, said: "I'm not sure how I feel about earthquakes. I have seen very big disasters on TV but I have not experienced it. So it is hard to imagine."

SPORTS: First Sports Festival in Ten Years!

By Miyuki ASAI

NIHS will have its first sports festival in ten years on October 8th. The goals of the festival are to make friends, good memories and have fun!

We will have competitions that include running, long skipping rope and five-legged race. The boys will have a mock cavalry battle. Teachers are now hard at work planning the programme.

Sports teacher, Masaki Hayashi said: "The Junior High School has just started. We couldn't have a festival in the past because we didn't have enough students. Now we have a enough students and it will bring the school together."

New Zealand Teacher Joins NIHS

Petra McSporran
Originally uploaded by NIHS.

By Yasuo YUMOTO

New teacher Petra McSporran, from New Zealand, joined NIHS on September 1st.
She has only been in Japan for two weeks, but she has been here before. Last time, she visited Hiroshima and worked at a ski resort for three months. She says that Japanese people are very friendly and kind. For example, when she was lost, she asked a man for directions and he kindly drew her a map.
Before coming to Japan, she lived in London, UK where she worked as an English teacher. She said it was good but some students were too 'active' and naughty. They did not listen to her, talked a lot and did not like to work. So, it was a tough job.
She thinks our school is impressive and has good students, teachers and a nice building. She has a message for all the students: "Please talk to me anytime."

Australian Students To Visit NIHS

By Yui FUKAHORI

From September 25 to September 30, 11 students and two teachers will come to our school from St Andrew's Lutheran College near the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. We will have tea ceremony, calligraphy, flower arrangement and make Japanese "soba" with them.

Trailblazer Goes Online!

Nagoya International Senior and Junior High School's school newspaper can now be accessed on-line. Articles by the journalism students will be posted weekly so the students, parents and teachers can get up-to-date information and news about the school and local community. If you have anything that you would like to share, please email teacher in charge, Taeko Tofts: taeko@nihs.ed.jp.