Greetings, Parents!
This is just a short message to say how very pleased I was by the way that the UK trip went this year and how you, as parents, can be very proud of the way your sons behaved themselves. They really were wonderful ambassadors for Japan, Tokai and for your families.
They participated wholeheartedly in the lessons and afternoon activities and every member of staff at Marlborough Summer School told me how much they were a positive influence and how pleasant and polite they were at all times. They joined in the evening activities nicely and made lots of friends with the other kids at the Summer School. They helped and looked after each other too and had a very nice group energy. Their two leaders, Issei and Kensei were very helpful in that respect.
Every single boy behaved with decorum at all times and they were considerate to those around them when in public. In fact there were no problems of any sort with behaviour during the time we were in the UK. On the trip to London they were careful to keep together and when we visited museums and travelled on public transport they were quiet and considerate of where they were. When we visited the Imperial War Museum and Peace Garden they were respectful and appropriately thoughtful. Finally, for the first year ever, nobody lost or forgot anything!
Perhaps most importantly, they were very lucky to have had such kind and welcoming host families. In every case, these families did many extra things with them such as taking them on trips and so on and the boys were appreciative and showed their gratitude and affection for their host families. It was very moving seeing them say farewell and I know from talking to the boys on the bus to the airport, that they felt the warmth of this welcome into an English home. In the families with small children they bonded with and played with them and made happy memories not just for themselves but for the whole family. The host families all told me how much they enjoyed having a Tokai boy to stay and some have already told me that they would like one next year. I hope that the boys will all send some sort of card or thank you message to the families to let them know how they feel. I also hope that they appreciate how their teachers Mr Bond and Mr Yokoi have given of their family time to support this project.
One of the highlights of the trip was the Japan Corner where the boys shared some things about Japan with the other participants at the Summer School. They did a great job with this and I hope that they were happy to see how interested everybody was to find out about Japan. This was a joy to watch, as people from the UK and many other countries crowded around their tent and the boys wholeheartedly showed off all sorts of items to the crowd. By doing this they could feel how people are interested in, enjoy and appreciate their culture and they did a great job of building a positive image for Japan in Marlborough. The same can be said for the day they went to St. John's Academy and met the students there.
I spoke to the boys on the bus back to Heathrow Airport and every single one of them told me that they had enjoyed the programme and had a good time in England. I personally very much enjoyed getting to know them over the two weeks. They are all so different in personality and I felt that they had all grown up in the time they were in the UK. I hope that they spread this positive energy, and stories of their trip, back in Japan, particularly in their English lessons. They have experienced firsthand the power and pleasure of using English to communicate with people in the wider world beyond the shores of Japan world and I hope this gives them a boost in motivation to them as they progress to higher levels of language study. I also hope that the boys will keep in touch with their host families, with myself and with the friends they made on the trip.
I said this was going to be a short message but it has becoming a long one!
What I really want to say to you, the boys and the Tokai teachers who accompanied the group, is a big THANK YOU! A project like this is so important, as we build bridges between Japan and the wider world. The success of the program, thanks to you all means that we can continue to do this.
Now that your son is back in Japan, please give your him a big pat on the back. He did you proud! Give yourself one too. You've brought up a gentleman.
Warmest Regards,
Patrick
