Merrimac Elementary School recently hosted visitors from Japan named Kanae and Shiho, who were in town to learn about the Leader in Me program, which Merrimac is known for nationally thanks to its “Lighthouse School” status.
The guests teach English to Japanese speaking children in Tsuda Elementary School, a suburb of Osaka.
Merrimac students, Ava Elgohary and Jared Mitchell, took the visitors on a tour of the school where they visited several classes, including Mrs. Recupero’s first grade class, Ms. Degenhardt’s music classes, Ms. Martinez’s library class, and Mrs. Kessinger and Mr. Romano’s physical education Classes.
Fifth grade students, Nick Bergo, Alexa Weber and Emily Gardocki, from Ms. Alvarez’s class, shared their leadership notebooks with the traveling guests.
A special thank you to our music teacher, Ms. Debbie Degenhardt, for inviting Kanae and Shiho to our school. She met them this summer when she visited their school in Japan. During her visit, Ms. Degenhardt taught her own music program, “Literacy Through Music”, to the Japanese students.
“What a great day for Merrimac,” said Merrimac Principal Veronica DeCicco. “Our students learned that there were many similarities between our schools. The students enjoyed teaching our Japanese guests about the 7 Habits, mission statements, and the importance of goal setting and tracking data. The students also asked questions about their school day, culture and earthquakes.”
