April 27, 2021 A month into the semester

Hi, this is Jonathan, the camera man. To kick off this journal entry, here is a short video of the entrance ceremony when we welcomed our new members to the Hakusanroku Campus. It has almost been a month since the first year students joined us on April 1. At first, many of them were shy, but that has changed in the past weeks. Much of this is thanks to the friendly second year students and teachers.

Wednesday is a special day at the Hakusanroku Campus because there are no classes in the afternoon. Learning Session (nighttime school) is optional so students have the leisure to enjoy their free time afterschool. It's interesting to walk around and see all the things students and teachers are up to. Here are some of the things that were going on last Wednesday, April 21.

First, the Design & Fabrication Club held its annual orientation event, the LEGO EV3 Robot Sport Tournament. This is a competition between the first and second year students that are considering to join the club. Each year, they decide on a sport and create a robot to compete in that sport. Here is last year's article. This year's sport was bowling and the students created four teams: one second year boys team, two first year boys teams, and one girls team. Out of the four teams, the second year boys team and girls team both built a more straightforward robot. However, both the first year boys teams came up with something more creative. Team 1a found a loophole in the rules and designed a robot to push the ball through the pins. (However, they were deducted any pins knocked over by the robot body) Team 1b, who ended up winning the tournament, created a belt conveyor to lift and drop the ball towards the pins. It was extremely accurate and got two strikes and 3 spares out of the five frames of the tournament.

Later in the Living Commons, I found Anne sensei, Stephanie sensei, and Pauline sensei gathered with the students for a nail-art party. Pauline sensei would call in anybody and everybody that passed by and as result the area was bustling with students, teachers and even some staff members. It was a sight to see people of all ages and nationalities painting each other's nails. You could tell ICT is a global community.

Also, Wednesday was warm and sunny, the perfect weather for a game of basketball at our outdoor court. Some first and second year students were playing and this attracted Ed sensei, Philip sensei, Apirak sensei, and some other students to start a game. Everybody was having fun and played until the sun went down. Full day classes start again from Thursday so I hope this was a good opportunity for everyone to refresh themselves and get ready to tackle to rest of the week.

Jonathan

*All students at the Hakusanroku Campus have taken a PCR Test. Considering that all of the results were negative, they are given the choice to take off their mask during sports and/or hiking.

※白山麓キャンパスの学生は入寮時にPCR検査を実施し、全員が陰性であることを確認しています。その後も感染防止に細心の注意を払いながら活動していますが、スポーツや登山の際は、安全面からマスクを着用していない場合があります。

こんにちは、カメラマンのジョナサンです。上に掲載した動画は入学式のダイジェスト版です。1年生が入寮した4月1日から約1か月が経ち、すっかり上級生や先生と打ち解けてました。先週の水曜日はそれがよくわかる一日だったので、このジャーナルで紹介したいと思います。水曜日は午後の授業がなく、ラーニングセッション（夜の学校）も自由参加となるため、放課後を自由に使うことができます。水曜日の午後は学校を歩き回ってみると様々な活動が行われていることがあるので面白いです。

4月21日（水）に行われていた活動のひとつが、デザイン＆ファブリケーションクラブの恒例行事、LEGO EV3を使ったロボット球技大会です。これは入部希望者の１、２年生による対抗戦で、毎年違う球技を競うロボットを製作します。去年の記事はこちらです。今年の球技はボウリングで、2年生男子チーム、1年生男子２チーム、女子合同チームの計４チームが参加しました。堅実なロボットを作った2年生男子チームと女子チームに対して、1年生男子両チームは独創的なロボットを製作しました。優勝したのはベルトコンベヤでボールを持ち上げてピンに向かって落とす独特の投球フォームの１ｂチームで、５フレームでストライクを2回、スペアを3回出しました。１ａチームはルールの隙を突いてロボットごとボールを押す作戦を決行しましたが、ロボット本体が倒したピンを減点されてしまいました。

リビングコモンズで行われていたのはアン先生とステファニー先生によるネイルアート大会で、ポーリン先生が呼び込み人となり、通りかかる学生や教職員を片っ端から引き込みました。年齢性別国籍構わずお互いの爪を塗り合う光景は、さすがはグローバルコミュニティの国際高専そのものでした。また、中庭のバスケットコートでは暖かい日差しに誘われて１、２年の学生とエド先生、フィリップ先生、アピラク先生が集まって試合を始めました。楽しい時間で汗をたくさん流して、気づけば日が傾いていました。白山麓キャンパスの１、２年生は身も心もリフレッシュし、木曜日からの勉学に臨みます。

ジョナサン

March 9, 2021 Sports Day

Hi, it's Jonathan, the camera man. Today I would like to share some pictures I took for the Sports Day event held on February 22 in the Hakusanroku Campus gym. This was the second sports day event held at Hakusanroku Campus this year. The first and second year students enjoyed the first one some much that we planned a second one. Check this entry if you want to read about the first Sports Day. 

こんにちは、ジョナサンです！今日は2月22日に白山麓キャンパスの体育館で行われた1・2年生のスポーツデイ（第2弾）の成績と写真を掲載したいと思います。前回のスポーツデイについて知りたい方はこちらの記事をご覧ください。種目はバスケットボール。サッカー、バレーボール、バドミントンで、1日で４つすべてプレイしました。

This time students and teachers competed in basketball, soccer, volleyball, and badminton. All in one day! Here are the results and pictures.

Basketball

First year vs Second year
Score 8-9

Teachers vs Students
Score 18-4

Soccer

First year vs Second year
Score 9-8

Teachers vs Students
Score 0-2

Volleyball

First year vs Second year
Score 12-25, 15-25

Teachers vs Students
Score 25-19, 16-25

*Badminton was mixed and I could not keep track of the individual records.

Since this was the final event with the current second year students, Matsushita sensei ended the event by saying "Today was a hard schedule but you all played very well. I'm glad this was the final event we spent time together, and I am very very proud of you."

現2年生と白山麓キャンパスで過ごす最後のイベントだったため、終わりのあいさつで学科長の松下先生が「今日はとてもハードでしたが、みんなよく頑張りました。皆さんのことを誇りに思います」と言葉を残しました。

ジョナサン

December 7, 2020 JOES-ICTオンライン体験型ワークショップ

こんにちは、ジョナサンです。2020年11月29日（日）、JOES-ICTオンライン体験型ワークショップが白山麓キャンパスで開催されました。JOES（海外子女教育振興財団）の小中学生を本校に呼んだサマーワークショップを毎年夏に行っていますが、今年はコロナ禍で中止となったため、オンラインでの代替イベントを開催する形となりました。

イベントは13時に開始され、参加した小学生27名がPCやスマートフォンでログインしました。双方のあいさつと、国際高専の簡単な紹介ビデオのあと、化学を担当するナグワ先生と数学を担当するアラー先生によるワークショップが始まりました。第1部は「Chem-melody」と題され、10円玉と1円玉を塩水につけてスピーカーから音楽を流すという実験で電流の仕組みについて解説しました。クイズも出題され、参加者はZOOMのアンケート機能を使って回答しました。

第2部は「DIY実験 フルーツバッテリー制作」と題され、事前に準備をしていただいたレモン、バナナ、トマトなどのフルーツに刺した様々な金属の釘をケーブルでつないでLEDランプが点灯するかを実験しました。参加者はZOOMのビデオ機能で手元を映して作業をし、ナグワ先生とアラー先生はその様子を見ながら指示を出したり、質問に答えたりしました。映像を見ていると子供たちは待ちきれない様子で、説明を聞くや否や、準備したフルーツにケーブルをつないだり、点灯したLEDランプをカメラにかざして見せたりしていました。第3部の「Interactive Computer Simulation」ではオンライン上で回路を組めるブラウザソフトでオリジナルの回路を作って、スクリーンショットをチャット欄に共有しました。個性的な回路がたくさんあり、ナグワ先生は参加者たちの積極性に感激している様子でした。

オンラインという形になりましたが、ワークショップを開催できてよかったです。来年は対面になるのか、同じくオンライン開催になるかわかりませんが、楽しみにしています。

ジョナサン

Hi, it's Jonathan, the camera man. On November 29 (Sun), 2020, the JOES-ICT Online Workshop was held at the Hakusanroku Campus. We host a summer workshop with Joes (Japan Overseas Educational Services) students every year. However, this year it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 situation, and an online event was created instead.

The online workshop began at one in the afternoon and 27 elementary students logged in from their home. After some opening words from both sides and a short introductory video about ICT, Nagwa sensei and Alaa sensei (in charge of chemistry and math respectively) started the workshop. The first part was titled "Chem-melody." First, Nagwa sensei gave a lecture about how electricity works. Then, she connected 10 yen and 1 yen coins to a speaker and music chip before putting them in salt water; displaying that electrons were in fact traveling through the circuit as music came out of the speaker. There were quiz questions during the experiment which the participating students answered using Zoom's survey function.

In the second part of the workshop, titled "DIY Experiment Fruit Battery Making", Nagwa sensei showed the participants how to make a battery using fruits, such as lemons, bananas and tomatoes. The fruits were connected to a LED lamp via cables and nails made of different metal. Participants had prepared these items in advance and apparently could not wait to do the experiment because we could see them starting even as Nagwa sensei was still giving the instructions. Nagwa sensei and Alaa sensei watched their progress and answered any questions the students had. In the third part, "Interactive Computer Simulation", participants created an original circuit using a browser software, took screenshots of their work and posted it in chat. There were many creative circuits and Nagwa sensei expressed her joy for their enthusiasm.

I'm happy that we were able to continue the tradition of this relationship with JOES, even if it wasn't in the flesh. Hopefully the situation will be more favorable next year.

Jonathan

October 20, 2020 Mt.Hakusan Climb

こんにちは、カメラマンのジョナサンです。2020年10月18日（日）、ネイチャー＆アドベンチャークラブの白山登山に同行してきました。白山は石川県と岐阜県にまたがる標高2702mの活火山で、富士山と立山と並んで日本三霊山のひとつです。ネイチャー＆アドベンチャークラブでは白山登山が恒例行事となっていますが、今年は9月の予定日が台風と重なってしまって18日が最後のチャンスだったのですが、ありがたいことに天候にも恵まれて実施ができました。私たちは早朝5時に玄関前に集合し、登山口の別当出合へ移動しました。前日17日に白山の初冠雪が報道されたためか、たくさんの登山客が来ていました。

準備ののち、6時半に登山を開始しました。早朝の空気は冷えていましたが、中飯場に到着する頃には上着を脱ぐほどに温まっていました。甚之助避難小屋付近では紅葉が始まった山々のパノラマが見られるようになり、学生たちは双眼鏡やカメラを使って眼中に収めていました。参加した学生のほとんどが初の白山登山で、苦しい時間もありましたがペースを調節したり声を掛け合いながら奮闘しました。黒ボコ岩を越えた弥陀ヶ原からはスカッと晴れた空をバックに御前峰が見えました。室堂に近づくと雪の出現とともに本格的に冷えてきました。全員防寒具を装着して最後の登りに臨みました。

室堂の先は気温が一気に氷点下に下がりました。風も強くなり、体感気温は真冬の雪山のようでした。頂上に到着した私たちを待っていたのは雪化粧がされた御前峰と、能登半島まで見渡せる澄み切った空でした。登頂時刻は11時頃でした。寒さで体力の消耗が激しかったので滞在時間が限られていましたが、学生たちは景色を見たり、叫んでみたりして石川県のてっぺんを堪能しました。室堂に戻ってからは昼食をとり、下山しました。黒ボコ岩まで戻ると気温も上がり、涼しいと思えるようになりました。別当出合に到着したのは15時半頃で、最後の集合写真を撮りました。辛かった者、余裕だった者、楽しかった者、様々でしたが全員が日常生活を離れ、普段見れない景色、できない体験をした貴重な一日となりました。

ジョナサン

Hello! It's Jonathan, the camera man. On October 18, 2020, the Nature & Adventure Club held their annual Mt. Hakusan climb. Mt. Hakusan means "white mountain" in Japanese and is located across Ishikawa prefecture and Gifu prefecture. It is 2702m high and is one of Japan's three sacred mountains along with Mt. Fuji and Mt. Tateyama. The Nature & Adventure Club was scheduled to climb Hakusan in September but this was canceled because of a typhoon. October 18 was our last chance and we were rewarded for our patience with perfect skies. We gathered at front entrance of the Hakusanroku Campus at 5 am and drove to Betto-deai, the starting point on the Ishikawa prefecture side. It just snowed for the first time this year on the day before, and the parking lot was full of climbers, possibly prompted by the news.

We began our assent around 6:30 am. It was chilly at first but warmed up as the sun came up. The leaves were beautifully colored with many reds, oranges, and yellows. After Jinnosuke Cabin, the scenery opened up and we could see the panorama of mountains surrounding Hakusan. Students enjoyed this view, some with cameras and binoculars. For most of the students, this was their first time climbing Mt. Hakusan and the going was not always easy. However, students pushed on at their own pace. After Kuroboko-iwa, we could see the white peak across from Mida-ga-hara, with a blue sky background. The temperature began to decline as we approached Murodo. There, we geared up and made the final climb to the peak, Gozen-ga-mine.

The temperature dropped below 0 degrees celsius past Murodo and wind felt like a blizzard in mid winter. When we finally reached the top around 11 am, we were greeted by a freshly coated Gozen-ga-mine and blue skies so clear that you could see Noto peninsula in the distance. We enjoyed the awesome view as long as we could bear. Some students even began shouting for the fun of it. After returning to Murodo, we all ate lunch and began our decent. Temperatures finally rose again after Kugoboko-iwa and we could appreciate to cool breeze. We arrived at Betto-deai around 3:30 pm, concluding our trip with a group photo. The students' reactions to the experience differed. Some enjoyed it, some found it easier than they expected, and some vowed to never do it again. In any case, it was an unique opportunity to see new sites and try something new.

Jonathan

September 28, 2020 Some of the things students have been doing in September

Hi! It's Jonathan, the camera man. Today I would like to briefly talk about some of events that happened during September. Students returned to the Hakusanroku Campus between late August and early September. However, classes did not begin until the 24th. Instead, there were several special events organized as we waited for the two weeks to confirm the lack of COVID-19 to pass. (There was none, thank god.)

こんにちは、ジョナサンです！2020年9月の白山麓キャンパスで行われたイベントをいくつか紹介したいと思います。1，2年生は8月の終わりから9月頭にかけて白山麓キャンパスに戻ってきましたが、授業が開始されるのは24日です。その間は新型コロナウィルス対策として2週間の自粛期間として特別活動期間に設定されました。（感謝すべきことに戻ってきた学生たちの中に感染者はいませんでした）

World Language

On September 10, several teachers organized a special class to teach languages "other than English". This special class was titled "World Language" and students could choose two languages from Arabic, Malay, Thai, and French. Teachers native to these languages taught the basic alphabet, some common phrases, how to write your name, and other interesting things depending on the teacher. The Arabic class was conducted by Nagwa sensei and Alaa sensei, the Malay by Hazwan sensei, Thai by Apirak sensei, and French by Jason sensei. 

ワールドランゲージ

9月10日（火）、外国教員による英語以外の外国語特別講座「ワールドランゲージ」が実施され、1、2年生がアラビア語、マレー語、タイ語、フランス語から２つ選択して受講しました。講座では文字の読み書き、あいさつなどの簡単な話し言葉、名前の書き方など、担当教員によるオリジナリティ溢れる講座となりました。アラビア語講座はナグワ先生とアラー先生、マレー語講座はハズワン先生、タイ語講座はアピラク先生、フランス語講座はジェイソン先生によってそれぞれ行われました。

Book Review

On September 16, the first year students gave their book review presentations. Each student chose three books to read during the summer and give a brief presentation in English and Japanese. There were novels, how-to books, English books for beginners, and many unique books depending on the students' interests. All the presentations were extremely interesting, however we had to choose a "best book review" and so teachers and students voted on three presenters. You can see the first year students giving their presentations and the results in the pictures below.

ブックレビュー

9月16日（水）、1年生によるブックレビュー発表会が開催されました。学生たちは夏休みの間に読んだ本の中から3冊を選んで、日本語と英語を交えたプレゼンテーションを行いました。発表された本には小説、専門書、技術書、初心者向けの英語の本、画集など、学生たちの興味に合わせてさまざまな分野のものがあって大変面白かったです。担任の津田先生も「興味がある本を知ることで、君たちのことがもっと知れたようで嬉しかった」と語りました。また、「ベストブックレビュー」が学生と教職員の票によって選ばれました。発表の様子と上位3名は下の写真でご覧ください。

Sweet Potato Harvest

A group of second year students planted sweet potatoes as part of their Engineering Design project during the first semester. September marked the time for harvest. Actually, this is our second attempt at growing sweet potatoes. Last year, we were raided by the local monkey population just before harvest and lost 90% of our crop. To avoid the same outcome, students built a electrical fence and decided to harvest at the first signs of monkey attack. As a result we succeeded in collecting about 95% of this year's sweet potatoes. The four students of the group really got their hands dirty as they dug through the soil. You can see them and the sweet potatoes in the pictures below. These sweet potatoes will be branded, packaged, and sold by the students at local shops and farmer markets. I cannot wait to see what that will be like.

さつまいも「紅はるか」収穫

前学期のエンジニアリングデザインの活動として、国際高専の前にある畑にさつまいも「紅はるか」を植えた2年生のグループがいます。そのさつまいもがいよいよ収穫の時を迎えました。実は去年も同じようにさつまいもを植えた学生のグループがいましたが、猿の襲撃によって収穫のほとんどを奪われてしまいました。今年は対策として電気柵を設置し、猿が現れたら即座に収穫するという電撃作戦のおかげで植えたさつまいものうち、9割以上を収穫することができました。グループ4名の学生は手で土を掘って、芋を回収しました。下の写真でその様子を見ることができます。これらのさつまいもは学生がデザインしたブランド芋として包装されて、地元のスーパーやファーマーズマーケットで販売されます。去年の無念を乗り越えたさつまいもがどうなっていくのか、今後の活動が楽しみです。

Sports Day

On September 17 and 19, we held a special Hakusanroku Sports Day. This Sports Day event was organized by the P.E. teachers to give the students a chance to blow their steam from being crammed in isolation. Three teams: first year, second year, and teacher and staff, played against each other in basketball, volleyball, and badminton.

Basketball was a battle between the second year students and the teachers all star team. The teachers are much larger and more experienced. However, basketball is a popular free time activity among many of the second year students and they had secretly practiced leading up to this event. Teachers dominated the first half, but the second year team fought back and ended the exciting game with a draw of 8-8. Volleyball was also a close game between all three teams. Students enjoyed it so much that they created a student all star team to challenge the winning teacher and staff team after the tournament. 

The badminton tournament was a twelve-round three-way competition. There were three courts and each team chose two pairs to compete each round. The winner would be the team with the most wins and the least losses. The great part of this system was that more people had the chance to play. Each team was hungry for the final victory, and each round was both competitive and fun to play and watch. In the end, the first and second year teams ended with the exact same points. Takimoto sensei was about to end the event with a draw, but the students insisted on a deciding match between the best two pairs. The second year students won this game and were declared the winners of the badminton portion.

Voting Simulation

On September 18, the second year students participated in a voting simulation by the election association of Ishikawa prefecture and Hakusan city. Students first listened to Ms. Natsumi Nakao from the Ishikawa Election Committee talk about the importance of voting, laws of to voting and election campaigning, and the how the election system works. Afterwards, the students participated in a simulation where they considered the manifest of two imaginative candidates and went through the process of posting a vote. The simulation was quite realistic and hopefully gave the students a taste of deciding their representor in the future.

選挙講話

9月18日（金）、2年生対象の選挙講話が石川県選挙管理委員会、白山市選挙管理委員会、白山市明るい選挙推進協議会の協力によって行われました。まず、石川県選挙管理委員会の中尾夏美さんが、選挙の大切さ、投票や選挙運動の注意点、選挙の方法について話をしました。その後、本物の選挙さながらのシミュレーションが行われ、学生たちは架空の立候補者2名のマニフェストを吟味した上で、受付、記入、投票までの流れを体験しました。選挙の重要性を知って実際に体験することで、18歳になった時に納得が行く代表者選びができるようになることを願っています。

July 7, 2020 Writers’ Celebration

The Writers’ Celebration is an opportunity for students to showcase their writing to students, teachers, and staff in the ICT Hakusanroku community. First and second year students in World Literature and English Expressions displayed various writing pieces--name affirmations, short stories, essays, etc.

We held Writers’ Celebration last year and it was beneficial for both students and teachers. Students who displayed pieces received feedback and compliments, as well as suggestions for improving their writing. Other students got to read each other’s writing and practice giving feedback and comments. Teachers had the chance to see what students were writing about, how they expressed themselves, and get to know the students a little better through their writing.

The night before the start of the celebration, many students, even those who were not displaying writing this time, stayed in the library until curfew to help set up and decorate. Even before the celebration started, there was already a festive atmosphere. Students were drawing characters, making sentences with word magnets, and putting up balloons and decorative washi tape. The students had to be chased away to make it to curfew on time.

During the Writers’ Celebration, students and teachers gathered to read the writing pieces, eat snacks, and talk and laugh together. Chips and salsa were provided and Mr. B made a special bacon cheese dip that was a huge hit with all the students. Each student’s board had a comment sheet where students and teachers could give feedback and encouragement.

Although students can often view writing as a tedious or boring part of school, the Writers’ Celebration gives our students a chance to be proud of their work and builds positivity in our community. For teachers, we get the chance to get to know our students more and reading their honest opinions and views in their writing is a delight.

Anne Isobel Tan

Writers' Celebrationは学生たちが自分の書いた作品を白山麓キャンパスの他の学生と教職員に披露できるイベントです。世界文学と英語表現を受講している１、２年生は様々な作品（Name Affirmations、短編小説、エッセイ等）でその才能を発揮しました。

去年開催したWriters' Celebrationは学生にとっても先生にとっても有益なものでした。作品を掲示した学生はフィードバックや称賛の言葉、アドバイスを貰いました。他の学生は他人の作品を読む機会と、フィードバックと称賛を与える側を体験できました。先生たちは学生がどんなことについて書いているのか、どんな風に自身を表現するのかを見て、その作品を通して学生のことをもっとよく知ることができました。

前夜は多くの学生（作品を掲示しない学生も）消灯時間まで図書室に残って飾り付けをしました。ですので、開始前からすでに会場は盛り上がりを見せていました。学生たちはキャラクターを描いたり、単語のマグネットで文章を作ったり、風船やマスキングテープで飾り付けをしたりしていました。消灯時間になっても帰らないので、追い出さないといけなかったくらいです。

Writers' Celebration開催中は学生と先生が作品を読むために集まって、スナックを食べたり、楽しくお話したりしました。チップスとサルサソースが登場し、Mr.B特製のベーコンチーズディップは学生たちに大ウケでした。それぞれの学生のボードにはコメントシートが用意されて、他の学生や先生がフィードバックや称賛の言葉を書けるようになっていました。ライティングの課題は地味でつまらない作業というイメージもありますが、Writers' Celebrationでは学生が自ら書いた作品を自信もって披露しますので、クラスの雰囲気も良くなります。先生にとっても学生が普段思っていることや、率直な意見を読むことが出来て大変嬉しいです。

アン・イソベル・タン

January 20, 2020 Global Winter Camp

Hello, it's Jonathan, the camera man. Last month we held the Global Winter Camp where fourteen student from Thailand came to ICT to take STEM courses and learn about Japanese Culture. This year's Global Winter Camp was a week long program starting on December 15. During the program, the Thai students stayed in our dormitories at Hakusanroku campus and participated in STEM classes and Japanese cultural classes hosted by ICT teachers, various activities, and visited a local elementary school and tourist spots in Ishikawa prefecture.

Day 1

Sadly there was no snow yet at ICT.

On the first day, students arrived at Hakusanroku campus after a long journey and checked in. We held a orientation ceremony and introduced our school and each other. In the evening we held a mini workshop to make key chains using the laser cutting machine.

Day 2

On day two, students first received a lecture on Japanese culture and language. In the afternoon, we visited the Hakusan Folk Museum in Shiramine, which is a town about fifteen minutes up the mountain from ICT. We also cut and made cups out of bamboo and experienced cooking rice over a bonfire.

Day 3

Group photo with Hakurei six-graders.

Day three was the day we visited Hakurei Elementary School, a local public school about five minutes from ICT. Both students had prepared a presentation of their culture and a kids game that they could play together. The Japanese students introduced the game "Darumasan-ga-koronda." In this game, one person covers their eyes and the other players sneak up on him/her while the person says "Darumasan-ga-koronda", which means "the daruma falls down." When the person opens their eyes, all the other players must freeze and cannot move or else they will be captured. After they are touched, the person has ten steps to tag another player.

In exchange the Thai students introduced a type of stilts made out of two cut coconuts and string. The students practiced walking with these coconuts and finally faced off in a race of Thailand vs Japan. You can see both games in action in the video at the bottom of the article. We also challenged ourselves with cooking some Japanese "dango" (dumplings). Both students mixed, boiled, and covered the dumplings with kinako powder. Afterwards, we ate lunch together in the Hakurei cafeteria.

In the evening back at ICT, the students enjoyed bouldering with the assistance of Philip-sensei.

Day 4

The STEM courses began from the fourth day. These include the Digital Fabrication Introduction by Omi-sensei, Circuit Board Decoration Workshop by Hayato-sensei, Chemistry & Biology Workshop by Nagwa-sensei and Jason-sensei, and the Paper Rocket Design Challenge by Anne- and Ryan-sensei.

Day 5

On day five, students participated in the Design Thinking Workshop by Omi-sensei, Drone Programming Workshop by Maesa-sensei, Laser Cutter Workshop by KK-sensei, and AI & IoT Workshop by Fukuda-san. The students experienced a wide assortment of STEM courses during the span of two short days, hopefully sparking an interest as a engineer of the future.

Day 6

The sixth and final full day was dedicated to sightseeing in Ishikawa prefector. We first departed ICT for Kaga Fruit Land to pick strawberries. There were green houses where you could pick and eat as many strawberries as you want. The strawberries were fresh and delicious and everyone ate their fill.

Next, we moved to Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT) to eat lunch in the cafeteria and take a campus tour. Students especially enjoyed the PMC's (Popular Music Collection) collection of records and special chairs to listen to them. After KIT, we did some sightseeing in Kanazawa city. Kanazawa is often called "small Kyoto" and we made time to visit Nagamachi Samurai District, Kenrokuen Garden, Kanazawa Castle, and Higashi-chayagai. At Nagamachi, we visited Nomura-ke, which is a samurai residence open to the public. Here, the students had their first taste of Matcha green tea. At Kenrokuen Garden, some students discovered their love for Mitarashi-dango. (dumpling with sweet soy sauce) Finally, we joined a gold leaf experience at the shop "Sakuda." Here, students decorated small boxes with gold leaf. We returned to Hakusanroku and packed our bags for it was our last night at ICT.

Day 7

On the final day, students gave presentations on their experience at ICT. It was interesting to see how each students had taken alike to a different activities. I am glad that they all have special memories that they will take back to their homes in Thailand. You can see a video of their presentations and some scenes during the trip. I look forward to the next camp and hopefully seeing our friends from Thailand again someday. Thanks for coming and take care!

Jonathan

December 4, 2019

　Hi everyone, its Ryan again! Today I’d like to talk about one of the highlights of November, the school’s Sports Festival (球技大会).
　On 11/16, the S class students travelled down the mountain to compete with their classmates in the school’s annual Sports Festival. This year, the S1 and S2 students combined forces in badminton, basketball, and dodgeball to compete against the upperclassmen. 
　The S class teams faced tough opposition against bigger, stronger, and more experienced students, but they still fought hard. Their tenacity and enthusiasm were impressive, and the underclassmen were able to win many matches against their seniors. Ultimately, S class teams were able to secure 5th place in both the basketball and dodgeball tournaments. 
　Results aside, the festival was a good opportunity for the students to break up the monotony of their schoolwork while working together with their classmates. The students enjoyed their chance to get moving and test their skills while being supported and cheered on by their friends and cleverly took advantage of the nearby bookstore to purchase the latest volumes of their favorite manga and light novels.
　In the end, the Sports Festival was a great experience for all the students. The only complaint that anyone seems to have is that they weren’t able to stop at McDonald’s on the way back!

Ryan J. Vicencio

　やあ、みんな！ライアンだよ！今日は11月にあった球技大会のハイライトを紹介していきます。
　11月16日、Ｓ科の学生が恒例の球技大会に出場するために山を下りました。今年はS1とS2の学生がひとつのチームとなってバドミントン、バスケットボール、ドッジボールの種目で先輩たちと対決しました。
　Ｓ科が相対するチームは自分たちより身体が大きく、力が強く、経験値も勝る上級生たちでしたが、必死に食らいつきました。その粘り強さと根性は目を見張るものがあり、年下にもかかわらず先輩に勝利する試合がたくさんありました。結果的にＳ科はバスケットボールとドッジボールのトーナメントで5位に入賞することができました。
　結果はさておき、球技大会のおかげで毎日の学業から離れて仲間と力を合わせる良い機会となりました。身体を動かして、友達に応援されつつ自分の力を試すことを楽しみました。また、ちゃっかり近くの本屋で好きな漫画の最新刊やライトノベルを購入する気転も見せました。
　球技大会は全学生にとって素晴らしい体験となりました。唯一聞こえた文句は帰り道でマクドナルドに寄れなかったことです！

ライアン・J・ビセンシオ

December 2, 2019 BBQ Party

Hello, it's Jonathan, the camera man. On November 30 (Sun), we held a barbecue party at the Hakusanroku campus. This was no regular barbecue party with  beef, pork, and yakisoba. We had wild boar, venison, and bear meat as well, and lots of it!  There was even bear soup cooked "tonjiru" style with vegetables and miso. The nurse ladies also brought a wood stove, which the students used to make original pizzas. Students and teachers sat down around the grills and ate delicious food to their heart's content. Thankfully, we had sunny blue skies and the heat from the flames kept us warm. There was a lot of chatting, laughing, and merriment all around. This event was only made possible with the help of many people. It has been an annual event for two years and I hope it continues to be so.

Jonathan

皆さん、お元気ですか？ジョナサンです。2019年11月30日（土）、白山麓キャンパスでバーベキュー大会が行われました。牛肉、豚肉、焼きそばのレギュラーメンバーに加え、なんとイノシシ、鹿肉、熊肉が出ました！しかも大量にです！豚肉の代わりに熊肉を入れた豚汁ならぬ「熊汁」も登場しました。また、クリニックの看護師さんが薪ストーブを持参し、学生がオリジナルのピザを焼くこともきました。学生と先生はグリルを囲んで満足のいくまで美味しい物を食べて会話を弾ませました。ありがたいことにこの日は晴天に恵まれ、冷たい風が吹いていましたがバーベキューの炎と愉快な仲間で暖かい時間を過ごしました。このイベントはたくさんの方々の協力のおかげで実現しました。去年に引き続き2回目ですが、来年も行われることを願っています。

ジョナサン

November 8, 2019 餅つき

高専祭の開催やその詳細などいくつかの話題はすでにホームページ等にて紹介されていますが、改めて今年度は[Connect]をテーマに、高専・工大がキャンパスを共有して行われました。テーマに沿ったかのように、学科、学年、部活などの垣根を超えた[Connect]が多くの場面で見られました。その中で、学校と保護者の[Connect]が力強く見られたのが、高専祭名物の「お餅つき」です。日曜日のみの１日限定での開催となりますが、長蛇の列が並ぶほどの人気を毎年みせ、数時間で300個から400個の売り上げを出しました。このお餅つきは日本の食文化に繋がる伝統行事であり、国際色豊かな本校でもこういった日本の文化を大事にしていければと思います。また、技術の発展で、機械でついたお餅も十分においしいかとは思いますが、昔ながらの「気持ち」と「力」のこもったつきたてのお餅は格別のおいしさだったと思います。

前日からもち米の下準備を用意した役員の皆さん、当日は早朝より参加し2キロもある杵を何百回も振りかざしたお父様方、あんこと黄粉で絶妙の味を引き出したお母様方、また杵や臼等を貸してくださった教職員の方々、ありがとうございました。

津田 明洋

There are already some articles about the "Kosensai" on the website, but I would like to talk some more about our school festival. This year's Kosensai was subtitled "Connect" and was a collaboration between ICT and KIT. As if to fulfil this theme, there were sites of connection between various departments, ages, and clubs. One good example of a strong connection between the school and guardians is the annual "mochi-tsuki (sticky rice pounding)." It was only held on Sunday. However, it was so popular that there was a long line to buy the mochi, which we sold about 300 to 400 packages in a few hours. "Mochi-tsuki" is a Japanese tradition and I hope ICT will continue to cherish local Japanese cultures like this even as we transform into an international community. Also, technological advancements make automated mochi pounding possible, but I believe the mochi we made with our hearts and hands tasted much better and special.

I would like to thank the staff who prepared the rice, the fathers who pounded the rice several hundred times from early morning, the mothers who flavored the mochi with anko and kinako, and the teachers who lent us the hammer and mortar. Thank you so much.

Akihiro Tsuda