Students at Hibarigaoka Elementary school are able to study a variety of subjects as they make their way from first to sixth grade. In third and fourth grade, students study Japanese calligraphy and learn different techniques for writing kanji.

This week our third-grade students focused on a special stroke used when writing Japanese kanji called, “harai”. It is used when writing many different Japanese kanji and can be described as a light finish to the ending of a stroke. Students first had the chance to practice making individual strokes that ended with a harai. They began by imagining the stroke and imitating the necessary movement in the air with their hands in place of the brush. Then they wrote it a few times on one of their sheets of paper using the calligraphy brush.

Students then moved on to writing the kanji for “river” (川). In this kanji the students needed to have a harai at the end of the first stroke. Some of the students had a bit of difficulty manipulating the brush to be able to achieve the type of stroke they envisioned but they were able to try many times and get in a lot of practice. Using the techniques they will learn in their calligraphy class and through continued practice, the students will surely be able to produce kanji that they will be able to proudly show off to all.