The 44th Annual Japanese Speech Contest for Elementary School Students
2016/7/6
On Sunday, March 13th, the 44th Annual Japanese Speech Contest for Elementary School Students was held at the Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Northern California. This event was co-sponsored by the Northern California Japanese American Association (Hokka Nichibei Kai) and the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.
39 students from local elementary and Japanese language schools demonstrated their Japanese language skills at this year's competition. An audience of approximately 150 people, including family, friends, and Japanese teachers, came out to cheer on the contestants. All contestants had clearly devoted a lot of hard work into their speeches. Thanks to our contestants, schools, judges, sponsors, and everyone who helped make this year's contest such a great success.
39 students from local elementary and Japanese language schools demonstrated their Japanese language skills at this year's competition. An audience of approximately 150 people, including family, friends, and Japanese teachers, came out to cheer on the contestants. All contestants had clearly devoted a lot of hard work into their speeches. Thanks to our contestants, schools, judges, sponsors, and everyone who helped make this year's contest such a great success.
Result: Group A (1st- 3rd Grade)
Category 1: Students who come from a background where Japanese is not spoken at home
| 1st Place: | Shoichiro Lau, “Japanese New Year’s Feast” (2nd Grade, San Mateo Nippon Gakuyen) |
| 2nd Place: | Siena Tess Bianchi, “Fencing” (3rd Grade, Clarendon Elementary School) |
| 3rd Place: | Keira Gerstley, “Dance Rocks!” (3rd Grade, Clarendon Elementary School) |
Category 2: Students who come from a background where Japanese is spoken at home
| 1st Place: | Kai Alexander Trudeau, “Three Magic Candy” (1st Grade, Sakura Gakuen) |
| 2nd Place: | Isabelle Sakura Cox-Garleanu, “My favorite thoughts” (1st Grade, Sakura Gakuen) |
| 3rd Place: | Nanami Ling, “My Magical Wish Is” (2nd Grade, Sakura Gakuen) |
Result: Group B (4th Grade and above)
Category 3: Students who come from a background where Japanese is not spoken at home
| 1st Place: | Isabel Naomi Rodriguez, “My Favorite Uncle Aki” (5th Grade, Clarendon Elementary School) |
| 2nd Place: | Thomas Morgan Robinson-Kronrod, “Where I want to Go in Tokyo” (3rd Grade, Sakura Gakuen) |
| 3rd Place: | Keira Hideko Shimamoto Tong, “Paper cranes” (5th Grade, Rosa Parks JBBP Elementary School) |
Category 4: Students who come from a background where Japanese is spoken at home
| 1st Place: | Erika Kawano Spargo, “I wish I were there for you” (4th Grade, Sakura Gakuen) |
| 2nd Place: | Ken Hongo, “Come, come, Summer Break” (5th Grade, Clarendon Elementary School) |
| 3rd Place: | Sebastian Ryo Sugiyama, “My Father” (5th Grade, Clarendon Elementary School) |
Speech Contest Judges:
Mr. Nobuhiro Watanabe (Deputy Consul General, Consulate General of Japan)
Ms. June-ko Nakagawa (Executive Director, Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Northern California)
Mrs. Nobuko Takamatsu (President, Northern California Japanese Teachers’ Association)
Ms. Yukie Kato (Language Class Coordinator, Japan Society of Northern California)
Mr. Evan Galloway (Publishing Licensing Coordinator, VIZ Media LLC)
