Bob Gómez
Denise Gómez
Kachikan (Value): Hokori, Pride
Oshōgatsu (Happy New Year Song)
YouTube links:
https://youtu.be/BRr_VLzoEpA
https://youtu.be/0RIFen9ZyWM
| Traditional Song | Phonetic version (each vowel counts as a quarter-note) |
|---|---|
| Mo ikutsu neruto Oshōgatsu Oshōgatsu ni wa tako agete Kōma omawashite asobimashou Hayaku koi koi Oshōgatsu Mo ikutsu neruto |
Moooo iikutsu neeruutooo Ooshōooogaatsuuuuuu Oshōogatsu ni waa tako ageteee Ko-oma omawashite asobimashooo Haaaayaakuu kooii kooi Ooshōooogaatsuuuuuu Moooo iikutsu neeruutooo |
| Sesame Street English Version | |
|---|---|
| How many more nights are there Till it’s New Year’s Day? When the New Year’s Day comes We’ll fly kites Play around with tops and Have some fun Oh, how I wish you came soon My dear New Year’s DayHow many more nights are there Till it’s New Year’s Day? When the New Year’s Day comes We’ll play ball Play badminton and have some fun Hayaku koi koi Oshōgatsu Oh, how I wish you came soon My dear New Year’s Day |
1st Grade
Kachikan (Value): Ganbari, Perseverance
Slippery Fish
Adapted from Words and Music by Charlotte Diamond
| Slippery fish, slippery fish Sliding through the water Slippery fish, slippery fish Gulp, gulp, gulp! Oh, no! It’s been eaten by an octopus!Spoken: “Wait a minute! Chotto matte kudasai! Let’s make the fish swim away from the octopus! Gambatte!”Tsurutsuru Sakana ga Oyoide iru Tako ga kita, tako ga kita Nigete! Get away! Spoken: “Great! Now let’s make the octopus change its colors and hide from the tunafish! Gambatte!” |
Spoken: “Now here comes the tunafish! Let’s make it swim away super fast and escape the Great White Shark! Gambatte!”Maguro ga, Maguro ga Oyoide iru Hōjirosame ga kita Nigete! Get away!Spoken: “Now the Great White Shark wants to eat everybody up! Is that okay? Daijobu desuka?” All: “I-e.” Hōjiro |
2nd Grade
Kachikan (Value): Kyōryoku, Cooperation
Kyo Wa Nani O Tabeōka? (What Should We Eat Today?) based on “Today is Monday”
| Getsuyōbi, Getsuyōbi Kyo wa O-SUSHI Minna ureshii ItadakimasuKayōbi, Kayōbi Kyo wa UDON Getsuyōbi O-SUSHI Minna ureshii ItadakimasuSuiyōbi, Suiyōbi Kyo wa O-MOCHI Kayōbi UDON Getsuyōbi O-SUSHI Minna ureshii Itadakimasu Mokuyōbi, Mokuyōbi |
Kinyōbi, Kinyōbi Kyo wa O-SAKANA Mokuyōbi GYOZA Suiyōbi O-MOCHI Kayōbi UDON Getsuyōbi O-SUSHI Minna ureshii ItadakimasuDoyōbi, Doyōbi Kyo wa KARE Kinyōbi O-SAKANA Mokuyōbi GYOZA Suiyōbi O-MOCHI Kayōbi UDON Getsuyōbi O-SUSHI Minna ureshii ItadakimasuNichiyōbi, Nichiyōbi Kyo wa TAKIKOMIGOHAN Doyōbi KARE Kinyōbi O-SAKANA Mokuyōbi GYOZA Suiyōbi O-MOCHI Kayōbi UDON Getsuyōbi O-SUSHI Minna ureshii Itadakimasu |
4th Grade
Kachikan (Value): Oya Kōkō, Honoring Parents
The Wise Old Woman
A Japanese Folktale, Retold by Yoshiko Uchida
Adapted for Kokoro no Gakko by Bob Gómez 2019
CHARACTERS (roles TBD):
- Farmer
- Old Woman
- Young Lord
- Three Samurai
- Two Villagers
ON STAGE: NARRATOR, YOUNG FARMER, OLD WOMAN, YOUNG LORD
NARRATOR: Mukashi, mukashi…A long time ago, in the wooded hills of old Japan, there lived a humble farmer and his aged mother.
FARMER: I am a farmer. I work very hard every single day.
OLD WOMAN: I am a very old woman. I help my son a lot, every single day.
NARRATOR: Their village was ruled by a cruel young lord.
YOUNG LORD: I am a rich and powerful lord. I am young. I am cruel. And handsome, too.
NARRATOR: One fateful day, the cruel young lord declared:
YOUNG LORD: Anyone over the age of seventy is of no use to anyone! They must be taken into the high mountains and left to perish! (YOUNG LORD LEAVES, STAGE RIGHT)
NARRATOR: The farmer’s mother was already well past the age of seventy.
OLD WOMAN: Omae, my son, it is time for you to do what you must do.
FARMER: Kaachan, gomennasai, I must do my duty to my lord.
NARRATOR: And so, the next morning, the young farmer took the old woman on his back, and with tears flowing from his eyes, started off up the steep mountain path.
ACTION: FARMER TAKES OLD WOMAN PIGGYBACK AND STARTS WALKING SLOWLY TOWARDS STAGE RIGHT. FARMER CRIES. OLD WOMAN DABS HIS EYES WITH HANDKERCHIEF. SHE THROWS CLOTHS BEHIND HER AS THEY WALK. CRY–DAB–THROW, THREE TIMES OR MORE.
NARRATOR: On and on he climbed, higher and higher, until the path disappeared, until no sounds of birds remained, and only the whistling of the wind rustled the trees and bamboo.
FARMER: (PUTS MOTHER DOWN GENTLY) Kaachan, dear mother, I must leave you now. Please forgive me! Gomennasai! (BOWS, FALLS TO THE FLOOR, CRIES)
OLD WOMAN: (MOTIONS FOR HIM TO GET UP) Rise up, my son, and be strong. I have left brightly colored furoshiki on the path so you can find your way home.
FARMER: Aaaah! Mother, I can’t leave you here! You thought only of me! We must return home, and I will hide you in a secret place!
(THEY LEAVE THE STAGE, PICKING UP THE FUROSHIKI AS THEY GO)
NARRATOR: And so they returned to their village, picking up the furoshiki as they went. The farmer dug a secret room below the kitchen, and there the old woman stayed, spinning and weaving. Two years passed, and no one in the village knew of their secret.
(VILLAGERS ENTER FROM STAGE RIGHT)
VILLAGER ONE: We villagers haven’t seen any old people around here for two years! We sure do miss them!
VILLAGER TWO: Yes, they were always so helpful and wise!
VILLAGER ONE: Quiet! Here comes the cruel young lord!
(YOUNG LORD ENTERS FROM STAGE RIGHT)
NARRATOR: Then one day, three fierce samurai appeared on horseback, riding in like a thunderstorm.
(THREE SAMURAI ENTER, POUNDING THEIR FEET LIKE HORSES, FROM STAGE LEFT)
FIRST SAMURAI: We represent the great and powerful Lord Higa!
SECOND SAMURAI: He is coming with his vast and fearsome army to conquer your village!
THIRD SAMURAI: Prepare to surrender or die! (ALL DRAW THEIR SWORDS) Who is the lord of this village?
(VILLAGERS POINT TO THE YOUNG LORD)
NARRATOR: The cruel young lord of the village was not a very brave person.
YOUNG LORD: (DROPPING TO HIS KNEES, CLASPING HIS HANDS TOGETHER, PLEADING) Please, onegaishimasu, spare my life, I will do anything, please please spare me!!! (BOWS TO THE FLOOR)
FIRST SAMURAI: Lord Higa knows no mercy, but he does respect a clever mind. Solve the three tasks written on this scroll, and you and your village will be spared. (HANDS THE SCROLL TO THE YOUNG LORD)
YOUNG LORD: (READING) “First, make a rope out of ashes. Second, run a piece of string through a crooked stalk of bamboo. Third, make a drum sound without beating it.” But–but–but those are all impossible!!!
SECOND SAMURAI: I know, right?
THIRD SAMURAI: We will return in one week. Prepare to surrender or die!
(ALL LEAVE STAGE, VILLAGERS AND YOUNG LORD TO STAGE RIGHT, SAMURAI GALLOPING OFF TO STAGE LEFT. FARMER AND OLD WOMAN ENTER)
NARRATOR: The young lord offered a bag of gold to anyone who could solve the three tasks. The wisest men in the village had no clue how to do it. Even the clever badger of the mountain refused to try. But the old woman in the farmer’s cellar thought carefully, and said to the farmer:
OLD WOMAN: Omae, bring me a rope, and a crooked bamboo stalk with a hole running through it, and a small drum.
FARMER: Hai, Kaachan, I will do as you say.
(BOTH LEAVE THE STAGE. YOUNG LORD ENTERS FROM STAGE RIGHT. OLD WOMAN ENTERS, IN DISGUISE, FOLLOWED BY THE FARMER CARRYING THE THREE SOLUTIONS)
NARRATOR: After a few days, a mysterious stranger appeared at the young lord’s door, claiming to be able to solve the three impossible tasks.
YOUNG LORD: Very well. Bring this stranger before me.
NARRATOR: First, the stranger brought out a blackened rope that still held together.
(FARMER HANDS HER THE ROPE)
OLD WOMAN (IN DISGUISE): I soaked this rope in salt water, and then burned it, so it is a rope made of ashes.
YOUNG LORD: Sooo, desuka??? Sugoi, ne!!!
NARRATOR: Next, the stranger bought out a crooked stalk of bamboo with a string running through it.
(FARMER HANDS HER THE LOG, ANT AND HONEY)
OLD WOMAN (IN DISGUISE): I tied a string to an ant and put honey on the other side of the log. The ant pulled the string through the log to find the honey.
YOUNG LORD: Sooo, desuka??? Sugoi, ne!!!
NARRATOR: Finally, the stranger brought out a small drum.
(FARMER HANDS HER THE DRUM)
OLD WOMAN (IN DISGUISE): I caught a bumblebee in a net and put the bumblebee inside the drum. So now this drum sounds without being beaten.
(DRUM SOUNDS ARE HEARD)
YOUNG LORD: Subarashii! Magnificent! We are saved! To whom do we owe this great debt? What wise man has saved our village, and my own precious life?
OLD WOMAN (TAKES OFF DISGUISE): It is I, my lord. (BOWING TO THE FLOOR)
YOUNG LORD: Whaaaaa? An………old……..woman???
FARMER: (STEPPING FORWARD) My lord, it was I who have kept my mother hidden for two years. If you must punish someone for disobedience, please take my life and spare my mother’s! (BOWING TO THE FLOOR)
YOUNG LORD: Hmmmmmm……(STROKING HIS CHIN, THINKING) No. Stand up. You saved all of us! It is I who must bow to you now. Never again will I send the oldest among us into the mountains to die. We will practice Oya Kōkō. The elderly will be treated with respect and honor, and will share with us–all of us–the great wisdom of their years. (BOWING DEEPLY FROM THE WAIST) Domo arigato gozaimashita. Here is a bag of gold as I promised. Enjoy. (GIVES THEM A BAG OF GOLD)
NARRATOR: The young lord, the farmer and the wise old woman went to Lord Higa’s castle and performed the woman’s amazing solutions to the three tasks. The village was spared, and the farmer and his mother lived in peace and prosperity for the rest of their days.
The End
(ALL ENTER STAGE AND BOW TWICE)
5th Grade and 6th Grade
Kachikan (Value): Kansha, Gratitude
“Aloha `Oe”
(Lili`uokalani/Converse, 1877)
https://youtu.be/qoU9xAQIReY
| Traditional Song | PHONETIC VERSION (each vowel counts as a 1/8 note) |
|---|---|
| Ha`aheo `e ka ua i na paliKe nihi a`ela i ka naheleE uhai ana paha i ka likoPua `ahi hi lehua o ukaAloha `oe, aloha ‘oeE ke onaona no ho i ka lipo One fond embrace |
Haa-aa-HEOOO Eka-UUU-a-III-na-PALIIIIIIIIKee-NIHIII Ae-LAAA-ii-KAAA-na-HELEEEEEe-uu-HAII Ana-PAAA-ha-III-ka-LIIIIIIII-koooPua-aa-HIII HIII-le-HUAA OOO-uu-KAAAAa-LOOOO-HAAAA-OOee Aa-LOOOO-HAAAA-OOeeEE-kee-OOO-na-OOO-na-NOOO Ho-II-kaa-LIIIIIII-pooooo One fond embrace |
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