Regular English- As a part of my degree program I have to complete 70 hours of service. This isn't common in most graduate schools and it's one of the reasons I chose to go to Loyola. I volunteered at an orphanage when I was in Japan and before that I was a volunteer EFL class assistant so I really like to volunteer. It makes me happy and I like being helpful. Plus it gives me a new point of view and helps me become a better person. Anyway, at the begining of the year a bunch of different organizations came to campus. I chose to go to a public school in Chicago. I haven't been in an American school since I was a student (which was a long time ago. I graduated from high school in 2003...). I've worked in a Japanese classroom but it's very different in some ways. But I can't give a lot of details about my school because this is a public blog and I want to respect everyone's privacy.
大学院のプログラムの一部として、私は７０時間でコミュ二ティサービスをしなければなりません。大学院では通常じゃなくてそれは私がロヨラ大学に入る理由の一つです。日本に住む時に私は孤児院でボランティアをして、その前にEFL*の教師のアシスタントをしました。実はボランティアをすることが大好きです。私はボランティアをすることが幸せにして役に立つことが好きです。その上、新しい視点の事を考えさせていい人になることを役に立ちます。兎に角、年度の初めにたくさんの団体がキャンパスに来ました。私はシカゴの公立学校に行くことを決めました。私は生徒時以来、アメリカの学校の中にいませんでした（それ昔なの。２００３年高校学校に卒業した。。。）。日本の教室で働いていましたが、境遇がとても違います。でも、公共のブログなので、私は学校の細部を伝えられなくて皆のプライバシーを尊びたいです。
（翻訳者ノート：*EFLとは「English as a Foreign Language」の意味です。他の言語を話す人に英語を教えることです。）
But I'll talk a bit about American education. First of all, it can look different based on where you live. CHicago Public Schools, which is a huge system, looks very different from my school in Kentucky. At the school I volunteer at "elementary school" goes until 8th grade when students go to high school. At my school in Kentucky it was that k-5 was elementary school, 6-8 was middle school, and 9-12 was high school. I started going to school when I was 4 years old. Some kids will go to pre-school if they can afford it. It can be very expensive to go to preschool and some very elite preschools (which I think are silly) cost almost as much as I pay for university. There are also programs for families with less money and some preschools are a part of churches. I went to preschool at my mother's church. I mostly learned to sing, play outside, share, and things like colors and how to say my ABCs. Brian went to preschool was not a part of a church but he says he doesn'T remember what it was like. My brother's preschool taught him to read a little so it can be very different.
そして、アメリカの教育の事を話します。先ず住んでいる場所に基づいて異なれます。巨大なシステムであるシカゴの公立学校はケンタッキー州から異なるらしいです。学校でボランティアをする事では「小学校」が八年生まで続いてその後に生徒が高校に通ります。私のケンタッキー州で卒業した学校では、小学校が幼稚園から５学年までで、中学校が６学年から８年までで、高校が９学年から１２学年までです。私は４歳の時に学校に入りました。余裕があったら、何人かの子供がプレスクールに通ります。プレスクールは時々とても高いで、いくつかの清栄なプレスクール（それおかしいと思ってる）の値段はほとんど私の大学院の値段です。貧しい家族のためにプレスクールがあっていくつかのプレスクールは教会の一部です。私は母の教会でプレスクールを通りました。私は歌うし外で遊ぶし分け合うし色の名前が分かるしABCを話す方法を習いました。ブライアンの通るプレスクールは教会の一部でわありませんが、ブライアンはどうだったのを覚えていないと言います。弟の通るプレスクールでは弟が読むの方法を少し習いました。そのため、とても異なれます。
（ブライアン：その通り、覚えてない。ごめんなさい。 m(-_-)m ）
After preschool we go to kindergarten, which is usually public. There are private kindergartens too, some of them are faith-based and others are just charter schools (I'll explain about charter schools in a later post. It's a mess.) It's very different to be in kindergarten now than when I was a kid. Now there are standards that teachers have to meet and things kids have to know in order to go on to 1st grade. When i was in kindergarten as long as you could basically write your ABCs, cut out shapes, and count to 100 you could move up. My kindergarten did have fun "units" of lessons. Like one unit was on the rainforest, which I was very interested in, and we decorated our class like a rainforest for a whole week (which felt like a month to a kindergartener). Also some places have "half day" kindergarten but there's a movement for full day kindergarten as well. I went only in the afternoons. Brian doesn't remember kindergarten.
プレスクールに通る後に子供が通例公共の幼稚園を通ります。 私幼稚園もあります。いくつか事は宗教教育で他のはチャータースクールです（後でチャータースクールのことを説明しよう。めちゃくちゃよね）。今は幼稚園に通る事が私が子供だった時よりとても異なります。今は一学年に入るのために教師が満たさなければならない教育水準と生徒に知られなければならない事実があります。私が幼稚園を通る時に、ABCを書けるし、形を切れるし、１００まで数えれる事を卒業できました。でも、私の幼稚園は楽しい授業もありました。例えば、私にとても好きだった授業は熱帯雨林のことで生徒は一週間熱帯雨林みたいのために教室を飾っていました（園児には一ヶ月のように感じた！）。ある場所が半日の幼稚園がありますが、全日制の幼稚園のムーブメントもあります。私は午後だけ通りました。ブライアンは幼稚園を覚えていません。
Then we start "real school" as a friend of mine says. 1st grade-5th grade all have things you need to learn. Now in America most of them take tests that are supposed to tell how well the school is doing. I don't think these tests always do this but that's another post for another day. Elementary school in Kentucky starts later than the middle and high schools. My school started at 8:30 in elementary school and we finished at 3:30 (like Japanese high schools!). In some places elementary schools start earlier because kids need less sleep. In some places we have recess time, which is separate from lunch time. My school that I volunteer at doesn't have recess. This is sad! Kids need to play outside!
その後、私の友達が言うとして「本物の学校」を始めます。一学年から５学年まで知られなければならない事実があります。アメリカでは生徒が学校の改良のことを知らせる試験を受けます。私はその試験があまり完遂しないと思っていますが、それは後日のために他の書き込みです。ケンタッキー州では小学校が中学校より遅く始まります。私の小学校は午前８時半に始まって午後３時半に終わりました（日本の高校学校みたいよね！）子供は睡眠があまり必要なので、所々で小学校はもっと早く始まります。所々で昼休みと別れられる外の休憩があります。私がボランティアをする学校は外の休憩がありません。悲しいですね！子供は外で遊ぶことが必要です！
Also some schools have breakfast programs. Actually most schools do because some kids can't eat breakfast at home for reasons like poverty or parent's jobs. So the school provides breakfast and lunch for kids. If your parents don't have a lot of money you can get free or reduced cost lunch and breakfast. Also some schools have after school activities and others don't. My elementary school didn't but in 5th grade we had before school activities like chorus (which I was in!). Brian doesn't remember most of elementary school but I wrote a lot then so I have journals to help me remember.
いくつかの学校は朝ご飯のプログラムがあります。実は、貧困や両親の仕事のような理由なので、何人かの生徒が家で食べられませんので、そのプログラムがほとんど学校であります。それから、学校は生徒に朝ご飯と昼ご飯を賄います。両親はお金がなかったら、無料か引き値の昼ご飯と朝ご飯が賄われます。いくつかの学校は放課後活動があっていくつかの学校はその事がありません。私の小学校ではありませんでしたが、５年生の時にコーラスなんて（私はそれ入っていた！）朝の活動がありました。ブライアンは小学校を覚えていませんが、私はその時によく書きましたので、思い出す事を役に立つのため日記があります。
Easy English: Hey guys, I promised I would write about American school. I volunteer at a school here in America. I help a teacher in a classroom, it's almost like when I was an ALT in your classes! But I can't talk too much about that because I would get in trouble.
In America we can start going to school when we are 3 or 4 years old. We call this preschool (pre means before so preschool is before school!). It can be very expensive and not everyone goes to preschool. I went to preschool at my mother's church so it was cheaper. Some preschools can cost as much as I pay to go to university! How strange! In preschool I learned to share, to sing, and to say my ABCs and colors. But it is different in every preschool.
When we are 5 we go to kindergarten. Kindergarten comes from a German word that means "children's garden". Kindergarten is very different now from when i was a kid. now they have to take tests but I never had to take tests. We often did fun things. Once we made our classroom look like the rainforest, it was really fun.
When we are 5 or 6 we start "real school." ALmost every year students take big tests that show how well the school is doing. If the school is doing well then they can get more money. If the school does badly they can get in trouble and lose money. My elementary school started at 8:30 and ended at 3:30, much like a Japanese high school! There aren't many clubs for elementary school students but older kids can do clubs before school. My school had a 5th grade choir.
Kids in America can eat breakfast and lunch at school. This is because sometimes kids can't eat breakfast before school so the school prepares it for them. If parents can't pay then they kids can get free lunch or pay less for lunch. Kids also have recess at some schools. The kids at my school do not have recess which I think is sad. Kids need to play outside! It's very important I think!
Next time I will write about American middle school. Do you all have any good memories from elementary school?
