Name ():

Example: Eng. I b (Tue. 2nd)

Course:

Date:

Mottainai Grandma National Public Radio, October 8, 2007 http://sn.im/mottainai What do you do to conserve energy and resources at home? What does mottainai mean to you? Do you practice mottainai at home? Did your parents or grandparents say mottainai to you? Vocabulary Japans population has been decreasing in recent years. Modern daily life in Japan requires the use of a lot of electricity. Mottainai Grandma looks a little stern. She has a compulsive need to get every bit of usefulness from an object. Her father made her eat all of her food as a child; it was a traumatic experience for her. The goal of the Kyoto Protocol was to reduce carbon emissions. Many scientists have said that humans have caused changes in the earths climate. How much should we sacrifice to help protect the environment? She says it is part of the Japanese peoples psychology. Conservation of energy and resources is important in improving the environment. She says the idea of mottainai is having a harmonious relationship with nature. Comprehension 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Junko Takahashis father made her eat all of her [rice / vegetables / natto] when she was a child. Japans carbon emissions have [gone up / gone down / stayed the same] since 1990. Ikuzo Fujimura wants to buy [a hybrid car / a Hummer / an airplane]. The book Mottainai Grandma has sold about [4,000 / 40,000 / 400,000 / 4,000,000] copies. [ T / F ] Mariko Shinju wrote Mottainai Grandma because her son eats too much. Which of the following is NOT true about Wangari Maathai? a. She is from Kenya. b. She won the Nobel Peace Prize. c. She talks to Japanese people about mottainai. d. She is a sociologist.
a Hummer

a. what someone thinks or believes, and how this affects what they do b. an experience that is so shocking and upsetting that it affects you for a long time c. behavior that is very difficult to stop or control, and is often a result of a mental problem d. to stop having or doing something you want in order to get something more important e. f. serious and strict, and showing strong disapproval of someone's behavior g. a gas or other substance that is sent into the air h. the typical weather conditions in a particular area i. preventing something from being lost or wasted j. all of the people who live in a particular area, country, etc. k. describing a situation in which people are friendly and helpful to one another

Discussion

1. Did you have a parent or grandparent like Mottainai Grandma? Describe a time when they said mottainai. When and why did they say it? How did you feel when they said it? 2. Ms. Shinju says that mottainai is something that has been largely forgotten. Do you agree? Explain. 3. Professor Kawanishi says, The whole idea [is] that we are part of the nature and therefore we should be in a very harmonious relationship with the nature. Its very much a deep part of the Japanese peoples psychology. Do you agree? Explain and provide examples.

Lesson created by Steve Silver, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Japan. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/

Name ():

Example: Eng. I b (Tue. 2nd)

Course:

Date:

Wangari Maathai on Mottainai NHK http://bit.ly/maathai March 12, 2010 reduce / reduction destroy / destruction planet animals coexist / coexistence materialistic / materialism reuse 1. Wangari Maathai say the three Rs are r______________________________, r______________________________, and r______________________________. She also says mottainai includes the concept of r______________________________. 2. Wangari Maathai says that there is a lack of respect for ______________________________, other ______________________________, and the ______________________________. 3. Wangari Maathai says that without respect for others, you have ______________________________ for them, you e______________________________ them, and you d______________________________ them. 4. She says another important concept is g______________________________. In m______________________________ cultures, she says, we tend to think of people as things we need to e______________________________. If we cannot e______________________________ them, we consider them ______________________________s. 5. She says when we understand the concept of mottainai, we want to save the ______________________________ and c______________________________ with other forms of life. 6. Recently, Wangari Maathai went to a temple in [ Kenya / Kyoto / India ] where she talked about the concept of [contempt / coexistence / exploitation] with the head priest. She says all of us would be better off if we learned to ______________________________ with other forms of life and with each other. Discussion 1. Wangari Maathai says that the concepts of respect, gratitude, and coexistence are important in the world. Think about an example of respect, gratitude, or coexistence in the world (for example, a personal experience, a story you read in a newspaper or saw on television, etc.) Describe this example and explain how it shows respect, gratitude, or coexistence. 2. What is an additional concept which you also think is important? Describe the concept and provide an example (personal experience, story, etc.) and explain how it shows this concept. Assignment Choose one of the discussion questions (from either Mottainai Grandma or Wangari Maathai on Mottainai) to write about. Write at least seven sentences and use at least three vocabulary words. Use specific details, such as examples, personal experiences, data, etc. to explain and support your opinion. Extra credit Who is Wangari Maathai? What did she do? How has she made an impact on her home country and the world? Research her and write a report about her. Dont copy and dont translate from another source use your own words. (1-2 pages, up to 5 points) More information Mottainai campaign http://mottainai.info The Green Belt Movement http://greenbeltmovement.org useless respect human beings recycle contempt exploit / exploitation

Lesson created by Steve Silver, Kwansei Gakuin University, Nishinomiya, Japan. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/