Theme 3: School — School Activities: School Trips, Events, and Exchanges
Konnichiwa! Welcome to your revision notes for School activities: school trips; events and exchanges (Theme 3: School). Whether you are sharing a memory about your own school sports day, describing a dream trip to Kyoto, or discussing how Japanese high school festivals work, this topic is packed with useful vocabulary and sentence structures that frequently appear across all four GCSE exam papers (Paper 1 Listening, Paper 2 Speaking, Paper 3 Reading, and Paper 4 Writing).
Don't worry if Japanese school terminology feels unfamiliar at first. We will break down every key word, grammatical rule, and cultural difference step-by-step so you can approach your exams with complete confidence!
1. Essential Vocabulary: School Trips and Exchanges
In the GCSE Japanese exam, you will encounter various types of educational trips and international exchange programs. Here are the core terms you need to know:
Core Trip & Travel Words:
• 修学旅行 (しゅうがくりょこう / shūgaku ryokō) — School excursion / educational multi-day trip (e.g. overnight trips to historic cities like Kyoto or Nara)
• 遠足 (えんそく / ensoku) — Single-day school excursion / field trip / picnic
• 留学 (りゅうがく / ryūgaku) — Study abroad
• 交換留学 (こうかんりゅうがく / kōkan ryūgaku) — Student exchange program
• ホームステイ (hōmusutei) — Homestay (staying with a local host family)
• 泊まる (とまる / tomaru) — To stay overnight (e.g. ホテルに泊まる = to stay in a hotel)
• 見学する (けんがくする / kengaku suru) — To visit for study/observation / field visit (e.g. お寺を見学する = to visit and tour a temple)
Memory Tip: Notice the difference between 修学旅行 (shūgaku ryokō) and 遠足 (ensoku). Shūgaku ryokō contains the kanji for "study" (学) and "travel" (旅行), which reminds you it is a big multi-day educational journey. Ensoku is just a single-day outing!
Key Takeaway: When discussing visits and trips, make sure you know whether the trip is a single day (遠足) or an overnight journey (修学旅行), and pair stay-overs with the verb 泊まる (tomaru).
2. Key Annual Japanese School Events (日本の学校行事)
Japanese schools have exciting traditions and formal ceremonies that run throughout the academic year. The Japanese school year traditionally starts in April and ends in March.
Major School Events & Ceremonies:
• 入学式 (にゅうがくしき / nyūgakushiki) — School entrance ceremony (traditionally held in April)
• 卒業式 (そつぎょうしき / sotsugyōshiki) — Graduation ceremony (held in March)
• 始業式 (しぎょうしき / shigyōshiki) — Opening ceremony at the start of a school term
• 終業式 (しゅうぎょうしき / shūgyōshiki) — Closing ceremony at the end of a school term
• 運動会 (うんどうかい / undōkai) or 体育祭 (たいいくさい / taiikusai) — Sports day / athletic festival
• 文化祭 (ぶんかさい / bunkasai) or 学園祭 (がくえんさい / gakuensai) — School cultural festival (students set up stalls, plays, and exhibitions)
• 音楽祭 (おんがくさい / ongakusai) or 合唱コンクール (がっしょうコンクール / gasshō konkūru) — Music festival / choir contest
• 試合 (しあい / shiai) or 大会 (たいかい / taikai) — Sports match / tournament
Did You Know? The suffix 〜式 (しき / shiki) means "ceremony" (as in 入学式 and 卒業式), while 〜祭 (さい / sai) means "festival" (as in 文化祭 and 体育祭). Spotting these suffixes will help you instantly identify what kind of event is being discussed in Paper 1 and Paper 3!
Key Takeaway: Japanese school events foster team spirit and community. Ceremonies mark term boundaries, while sports and cultural festivals showcase student creativity and effort.
3. Action Verbs and Activity Vocabulary
To write high-scoring sentences in Paper 4 or speak fluently in Paper 2, you need to describe how students prepare for and participate in school activities.
Essential Activity Expressions:
• 準備する (じゅんびする / junbi suru) — To prepare / get ready
• 練習する (れんしゅうする / renshū suru) — To practise
• 参加する (さんかする / sanka suru) — To participate / take part in (Always use particle に: e.g. 文化祭に参加する)
• 発表する (はっぴょうする / happyō suru) — To present / announce (e.g. giving a presentation on stage)
• 思い出 (おもいで / omoide) — Memories (e.g. いい思い出 = good memories)
• 楽しみにする (たのしみにする / tanoshimi ni suru) — To look forward to (e.g. 修学旅行を楽しみにしています = I am looking forward to the school trip)
Key Takeaway: Strong verbs like 準備する, 練習する, and 参加する allow you to show a timeline of events: preparing, practising, and finally participating on the big day.
4. Grammatical Structures for School Activities
Here are the key grammar points required by the Pearson Edexcel specification to describe past experiences, day itineraries, future plans, and cross-cultural comparisons.
A. Expressing Past Experiences: [Verb Plain Past た-form] + ことがある / ありません
Use this pattern to say that you "have" or "have never" experienced a particular school event or trip.
• 日本の学校に行ったことがあります。
(I have been to a Japanese school before.)
• ホームステイをしたことがありません。
(I have never done a homestay.)
B. Chaining Actions & Itineraries: [Verb て-form]
When recounting what you did during a school trip, connect sequential actions using the て-form, and put the final verb in the past tense (〜ました or plain past 〜た).
• バスに乗って、お寺を見学して、お土産を買いました。
(We rode the bus, toured temples, and bought souvenirs.)
C. Expressing Intentions and Desires: つもりです & 〜たいです
Use these forms to talk about upcoming school events or future exchange plans.
• [Verb Dictionary Form] + つもりです (Plan/intend to):
来年、日本で交換留学をするつもりです。
(I plan to do a student exchange in Japan next year.)
• [Verb Stem] + たいです (Want to):
文化祭で歌を歌いたいです。
(I want to sing a song at the cultural festival.)
D. Comparing School Life (UK vs. Japan)
The Edexcel specification requires you to compare school life in your home country with Japan.
• A のほうが B より [Adjective] です (A is more [adjective] than B):
日本の文化祭のほうがイギリスのイベントよりにぎやかです。
(Japanese cultural festivals are livelier than British events.)
• A も B も (Both A and B):
イギリスの学校も日本の学校も運動会があります。
(Both British schools and Japanese schools have sports days.)
• A は B と違います (ちがいます / chigaimasu) (A is different from B):
日本の学期はイギリスの学期と違います。
(Japanese school terms are different from British school terms.)
Key Takeaway: Combine the て-form for itineraries, たことがある for experience, and つもりです for future plans to demonstrate a full range of tenses in speaking and writing!
5. Mastering Particles for School Events
Particles are vital for accuracy. Here are the core rules for this topic:
1. Location of an Event or Activity (で):
When an action or event takes place somewhere, mark the location with で.
• 体育館で運動会があります。 (The sports day will be held in the gymnasium.)
• 学校で文化祭の準備をしました。 (We prepared for the cultural festival at school.)
2. Destination of a Trip or Direction (に / へ):
Mark the destination of a trip with に or へ.
• 京都に修学旅行に行きます。 (Going to Kyoto on a school trip.)
3. Participation Target (に):
Verbs like 参加する (to participate) and 出る (to enter / participate) take the target particle に, NOT を.
• スピーチコンテストに出ます。 (I will participate in the speech contest.)
• 試合に参加します。 (I will take part in the match.)
Standard Word Order Reminder: Place Time and Location before the event:
[Time] に [Place] で [Event] が あります。
十月に 学校で 文化祭が あります。 (There is a cultural festival at school in October.)
6. Common Pitfalls & Examiner Tips
Examiner reports frequently highlight avoidable errors. Keep these in mind:
Pitfall 1: Confusing 遠足 (ensoku) and 修学旅行 (shūgaku ryokō)
Make sure you do not mix up a one-day picnic/field trip (遠足) with an overnight, multi-day educational study trip (修学旅行).
Pitfall 2: Using the wrong particle with 参加する / 出る
Remember: English says "participate in", but do not translate literally. In Japanese, use particle に, never を (e.g. 運動会に参加する, NOT 運動会を参加する).
Pitfall 3: Inconsistent Tenses in Past Narratives
In Paper 4 (Writing), when recounting a past trip, keep all completed actions consistently in the past tense (〜ました / 〜た). Avoid accidentally switching to present/dictionary forms halfway through a story.
Pitfall 4: Katakana Spelling Slips
Pay attention to long vowel marks (ー) and small kana in loanwords:
• ホストファミリー (Host family) — Remember the long vowel ー at the end.
• コンクール (Contest) — Don't forget the long vowel ー.
• ホームステイ (Homestay) — Notice the long vowel ー after ホ.
7. Quick Topic Review
Let's do a quick final check of the most important concepts:
• Trips: 修学旅行 (overnight educational trip), 遠足 (day trip), 留学 (study abroad), ホームステイ (homestay).
• Events: 入学式 (entrance ceremony, April), 卒業式 (graduation ceremony, March), 運動会 / 体育祭 (sports day), 文化祭 (cultural festival).
• Key Structure 1: [Verb た] + ことがある (have done something before).
• Key Structure 2: [Place] で [Event] が あります (an event takes place at a location).
• Key Structure 3: [Event] に 参加する / 出る (participate in an event).
Ganbatte kudasai! (Good luck with your revision!)