Stickers

One of the things that most surprises me about Japan is how obsessed children are with stickers. When I say 'children' I am referring to students between fifth and ninth (!) grade. I use stickers as a motivator for a less enjoyable activity, or to encourage some of the better students to do extra work. Thus far, anytime I bring stickers almost all the students vigorously engage in whatever activity I have.



For some reason, juvenile delinquents in Japan are referred to as 'Yankees'. These kids can be real trouble, but typically nothing too bad. Although there aren't really any 'Yankees' at my school, some kids are referred to as 'bad boys'. The worst thing they do is ignore the dress code around shy teachers and not pay attention in class. Nevertheless, when I bring stickers to class these kids get giddy as, well, a Japanese school girl.