One highlight of the school year was the chorus competition. Each class of the the grade/year compete against each other. Every class choses a song to sing. All members of the class sing. One of the class plays a piano accompaniment. It seems that a lot of Japanese children learn to play the piano.

The competition takes place in the school gym. Some parents also attend. Each class takes its turn and the teachers, including me, grade the singing. The principle gives certificates to the winning classes. The chorus contest also had a suprise entry. The teachers, including me, had prepared a song. The students were very excited. We performed well but singing in Japanese was difficult and required practice.