Asakusa Explorers: Discover, Document, Design!
Students visit Asakusa or study field notes from the visit. In pairs, they talk with people working in Asakusa and record what they learn about the place, its people, and what makes it popular for visitors. Then they compare Asakusa with their own city. They identify differences and write ideas for what could be good for their city. Each student creates a poster with a clear heading, two or more comparisons, and one recommendation. Students share their posters with classmates and with people working in Asakusa, then reflect on what they learned about the essential question: What is Asakusa?
Steps
| # | What teachers do | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduce the essential question, “What is Asakusa?”, and invite students to identify what they need to observe and ask to understand the place. | 15 min |
| 2 | Prepare pairs for fieldwork by co-creating respectful interview questions, assigning interviewer and note-taker roles, and reviewing boundaries, consent, travel safety, and appropriate conduct. | 25 min |
| 3 | Supervise pairs as they explore Asakusa, respectfully interview consenting people who work there, and record observations about the place, its people, and its popularity with visitors, or guide students through provided field notes if a visit is not possible. | 70 min |
| 4 | Facilitate a class evidence discussion in which pairs share specific field observations and interview findings while distinguishing recorded evidence from personal opinions. | 25 min |
| 5 | Guide students to compare Asakusa with their own city and select at least two evidence-based differences and one practical recommendation that could benefit their city. | 30 min |
| 6 | Conference with students as each creates a clear, readable poster containing a heading, at least two comparisons, supporting field evidence, one recommendation, and a response to “What is Asakusa?” | 45 min |
| 7 | Host a poster exhibition where students present their work to classmates and invited people working in Asakusa, receive respectful feedback, and celebrate varied perspectives. | 20 min |
| 8 | Lead a final reflection in which students revise or annotate their posters to explain one new understanding of Asakusa and one idea they would carry forward for their own city. | 10 min |
| Total | 240 mins |
Preparation
- Arrange the Asakusa visit, transportation, permissions, accessibility supports, and meeting points. Confirm a 240-minute schedule that includes orientation, paired fieldwork, poster creation, sharing, and reflection; prepare field notes or photographs for students who cannot attend.
- Coordinate with people working in Asakusa who are willing to answer brief student questions and view the finished posters. Share the purpose, timing, approved interview questions, and expectations in advance, and remind students not to photograph or record anyone without permission.
- Prepare a field-notes page or notebook layout with sections for place or business, person’s role, observations, interview notes, reasons visitors come, and possible lessons for students’ own city. Include the essential question, “What is Asakusa?” and prompts that help students notice differences between Asakusa and their city.
- Gather clipboards or firm writing surfaces, pencils, local maps, poster paper, markers, rulers, and removable display materials. Prepare reference information about students’ own city, such as maps, photographs, visitor information, or prior class notes, so pairs can make evidence-based comparisons.
- Create a visible poster checklist requiring a clear heading, at least two specific comparisons, one recommendation for students’ city, and evidence from field observations or conversations. Reserve wall or table space where classmates and community partners can view and celebrate the posters.
- Plan pairs and assign rotating roles such as interviewer and note-taker so every student participates. Prepare sentence starters, translated prompts, visual vocabulary, and an option to present verbally or with recorded teacher support for students who need language or accessibility accommodations.
Teacher Notes
Before the visit, confirm permission with Asakusa businesses or workers, arrange chaperones, review respectful interview behavior, and prepare a field-notes page with spaces for place observed, person’s role, key ideas, and visitor appeal; provide teacher-created notes for students unable to attend. During fieldwork, ensure pairs ask permission before speaking with or photographing anyone, avoid recording personal information, and gather specific evidence about what makes Asakusa popular. Guide students to compare Asakusa with their own city and create an individual poster containing a clear heading, at least two evidence-based comparisons, and one practical recommendation for their city. Conclude with an exhibition for classmates and participating Asakusa workers, then have students use the poster as reflection evidence to answer, “What is Asakusa?”
Student Instructions
In pairs, visit Asakusa or review the provided field notes, observe the area, and respectfully ask people working there for permission to interview them about the place, its people, and its popularity with tourists. Record key details, then identify at least two differences between Asakusa and your city and discuss which features could benefit your city. Individually create a poster with a clear heading, at least two evidence-based comparisons, one recommendation for your city, and a brief reflection answering, “What is Asakusa?” Share your poster with classmates and people working in Asakusa, listen to their responses, and celebrate the completed work.
Success Criteria
- I can explain what Asakusa is using specific information from field observations or conversations with people who work there.
- I can identify at least two clear differences between Asakusa and my city.
- I can recommend one realistic idea that could benefit my city and support it with evidence from my comparison.
- I can create a clear, accurate poster with a heading, at least two comparisons, and one supported recommendation.
- I can present my poster clearly to classmates and people working in Asakusa and respond respectfully to their questions or feedback.
- I can use my poster to reflect on and answer the essential question, “What is Asakusa?”
Differentiation
- Provide a field-note structure with four headings: person and role, observation or response, what makes Asakusa popular, and connection to our city. Model one example before fieldwork without supplying students’ conclusions.
- Give pairs clear field roles—interviewer and note-taker—and allow students to switch roles between conversations. Provide question starters such as: “What do visitors value here?” and “What helps this area succeed?”
- During poster planning, conference briefly with students to check for a clear heading, at least two evidence-based comparisons, one realistic recommendation for their city, and a connection to “What is Asakusa?”
- Preteach and display useful terms with visuals and examples: tourism, local business, tradition, attraction, crowded, accessible, compare, and recommend. Invite students to add relevant words from their home languages.
- Provide bilingual dictionaries and sentence frames: “Asakusa is similar to our city because…,” “One difference is…,” “According to a person working in Asakusa…,” and “Our city could…because….”
- Allow students to rehearse interview questions and poster explanations with a partner before speaking. They may record notes first in their strongest language, then work with a peer or teacher to create the English poster text.
- Ask students to categorize their comparisons by culture, transportation, tourism, public space, or local business, then explain how two categories influence each other.
- Have students strengthen their recommendation by considering one possible benefit, one challenge, and one stakeholder who would be affected.
- Invite students to create a brief bilingual caption or QR-linked audio explanation for the exhibition so more classmates and community partners can access the poster.
- For students with IEP or 504 plans, provide printed interview questions, a visual schedule for the 240-minute activity, chunked deadlines, and check-ins after field notes, comparisons, and the poster draft.
- Offer accessible participation options during fieldwork, such as observing and photographing approved public features, taking notes for a partner, conducting a teacher-arranged seated interview, or studying teacher-provided field notes when travel, mobility, sensory, or anxiety needs limit participation.
- Allow approved alternatives for demonstrating learning, including speech-to-text, typed or enlarged poster text, audio-recorded explanations, reduced handwriting, a quiet work area, and extended time while maintaining the required comparisons and recommendation.