Readers' Corner

Readers’ Corner: Summer Vacations Full of Joy

When I was in the sixth year of elementary school, I was tackling my jiyu-kenkyu, an independent research project, on the last day of the vacation. I intended to make a tank, but it ended up as just a plain square box with four tires glued to it. My friends laughed at it, and I was ashamed. I decided to finish the summer homework BEFORE summer the next time. I asked my teachers to tell me about the summer homework after the term-end exams. In those days, the school had a week of half-days after the exams. I rushed home every day and worked on the homework until late at night. I finished all the homework BEFORE the summer vacation began! I continued to do that for three years, and my junior high school summer vacations were full of joy without any worries.   (143 words) You can send me a comment or your own

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Japan’s Tennis Stars

Oda Tokito is amazing! He is only 19 years old, but he already has a career Golden Slam. You need to win the four big tournaments, called Grand Slams, and an Olympic or a Paralympic gold medal. He had already won Wimbledon, the French Open, and the Australian Open, and he had a gold medal from the Paris Paralympics last year. On Saturday, he did it! He won the men’s wheelchair singles at the U.S. Open. He wasn’t the only Japanese hero though. Kamiji Yui won the women’s wheelchair singles. She has also had a great season, winning all of the Grand Slams except for Wimbledon. We can look forward to her getting a career Golden Slam, too.  (118 words) You can send me a comment or your own story at jaremaga@gmail.com

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1,200 Tornadoes a Year

I talked about tornadoes in Japan on Monday. Today, I’m going to talk about tornadoes in the U.S. Japan has about 25 tornadoes a year, but the U.S. has about 1,200 tornadoes! Why are there so many tornadoes in the U.S.? It’s because of geography. Many tornadoes are created when cold dry air from the Rocky Mountains meets warm dry air from the Southwest and warm wet air from the Gulf of Mexico. Tornadoes occur from Texas in the south all the way to Minnesota in the north. People often build special underground shelters. That’s because tornado winds are so strong that they can destroy everything above the ground.   (109 words) You can send me a comment or your own story at jaremaga@gmail.com

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A Special Coming-of-Age Ceremony

There was excitement in Tokyo last weekend. Prince Hisahito, the son of Crown Prince Akishino, had his special coming-of-age ceremony on Saturday. On his way to the ceremony, he waved to the people along the street from the car. They were waving Japanese flags and shouting, “Banzai!” Prince Hisahito is the first prince in 40 years to have this ceremony. At the main ceremony, he wore a long yellow robe. After he greeted the Emperor and other members of the royal family, a special black hat given to him by the Emperor was put on his head. Now Prince Hisahito is an adult.   (103 words) You can send me a comment or your own story at jaremaga@gmail.com

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Tornadoes Are Small but Very Dangerous

Typhoons bring strong winds and a lot of rain. The biggest ones are hundreds of kilometers wide. They can cause floods and mudslides. Tornadoes are different. They are small, but they are very dangerous. Typhoon No. 15 hit Japan on Friday and moved along the Pacific coast. When the typhoon got to Shizuoka Prefecture, a tornado started in one town and pulled off the roofs and the walls of several buildings. Later, when the typhoon reached Hitachi in Ibaraki Prefecture, there was another tornado. This one lifted up a car and turned it over. Luckily, there was nobody in the car.  (102 words) You can send me a comment or your own story at jaremaga@gmail.com

Readers' Corner

Readers’ Corner: Going Back Wasn’t Easy!

I went to Expo 2025 Osaka on August 13 with my family. We had a really good time, and at about 10 p.m., we started walking to Yumeshima Station to go back to our hotel. We found the entrance of the station was closed, and suddenly, we heard an announcement that the Osaka Metro Center Line had suspended its service. Everybody waiting for the train was frustrated because of the heat and exhaustion. Some people shouted angrily, “Open it! Open it now!” I got scared. Then, one of the security guards said, “Everyone! Please listen. You want to go home as soon as possible, right? We feel the same. So please listen carefully! First, let families with small babies go….” We gave up getting the train at Yumeshima Station and took a taxi instead. It was 2 a.m. when we finally arrived at the hotel. (145 words) You can send me a comment or your