Kentucky, the
state famous as the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln and Kentucky Fried Chicken
seems an interesting birthplace for AICJ's newly appointed top librarian. Ms.Margaret
Spiers, our new IB Librarian, is the latest staff to join the AICJ team.
But it's more
than her hometown that makes her an ideal candidate for the job.
Ms Spiers has a
long and impressive connection with Japan. During high school she was an
exchange student in Tottori City on the AFS Intercultural Exchange Program.
During university
she studied English literature and Japanese and took part in an exchange
program with a university in Shiga for 6 months. She has also taken the level 2
test in Japanese language proficiency which requires knowledge of approximately
1000 kanji!
So what else do
we know about Ms Spiers. "Well my favourite foods are okonomiyaki and sushi and
I really enjoy Japanese manga." Some of her favourite manga are "Miyazaki" and
"Studio Ghibli".
So what are her
first impressions of AICJ. "The level of English of AICJ students is very good
and the students seem to really enjoy reading English books."
As part of the school's
English program all students in grades 7-9 are required to read fiction books
for approximately 20 minutes. So any parents out there, you can ask your
children what book they are reading at the moment. Students choose their own
books, which teachers or Spiers check for the level of difficulty. The idea is
that students read extensively in order to improve their general English
reading abilities.
"If any students
would like a particular book from the library which we don't have please ask me
and I will try to find it for you. Also any teachers, parents or students
please don't be shy to come and talk to me at anytime. I am here to help."