Banana Kids
Pair teaching is at the cornerstone of our teaching philosophy.
Children learn English from a foreign English teacher while receiving support
from a Japanese teacher.
Children learn best when they are having fun!

Our lesson
Our program begins uses team teaching. One advantage of this system is that it offers the children a smooth transition from Japanese to English. The Japanese teacher can help out whenever there is a comprehension problem. As the children become more confident, comfortable and competent less Japanese is used. The goal is to have no Japanese spoken in the classroom.
Our teaching style does not have the teacher at the front of the classroom lecturing while the students sit passively in their chairs. We try to have an active environment where the students are participating in the lesson. We make our own materials and original lesson plans for each level. We teach by playing games, singing songs and using body language instead of translation.
We want the children to have a positive experience so they will look forward to the English class. We provide an opportunity for children to be exposed to English at a very young age, when they are receptive to learning naturally. It is our belief that a positive experience with English at an early age will give the children the confidence and ambition to continue studying the English language.

Banana Kids
Banana Kids was established in 1996. Most of our students are children that are currently enrolled in kindergarten. Presently we are teaching at 33 different kindergartens and more than 800 students. We use a pair teaching system, which means a foreign English teacher is paired with a Japanese teacher, and together provide an effective teaching curriculum. We currently employ seven full-time foreign teachers、as well as seven full-time Japanese teachers. In addition to the kindergarten classes, we also have junior high, high school, and grammar classes that are taught at our school.
Location
Our school is located in Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture. Utsunomiya is a city of about 500,000 people situated 100km north of Tokyo. The city is close to the mountains for great hiking, climbing, skiing and snowboarding. Nikko, a world heritage city, is also close by. Access to Tokyo is 90 minutes by regular train and 45 minutes by Shinkansen (bullet train). There is also a direct bus from Utsunomiya to Narita International Airport. The bus ride takes two hours and 50 minutes.

Types of Lessons
We have two types of lessons for children at the kindergartens, one we call the ‘morning lesson’ and the other is A – F lessons. We also have lessons for children at our school
In the morning lessons, foreign English teachers and Japanese teachers visit local kindergartens and teach together on location. The main purpose is for the children to enjoy English and get used to hearing English. We want all the children to have a good time with us. We do a lot of singing, dancing, games and storybooks.
For the A – C classes, the children are divided into groups depending on their age. Group A is for students 3-4 years of age, Group B is for students 4-5 years of age, and so on and group C is for students 5-6 years of age. Our D-F classes are for students in elementary school and based on the student’s English ability rather than age. There are a maximum of 10 – 13 students per class and pair teaching is used as well. The A-F lessons are more involved than the morning lessons. We work on pronunciation and writing. We are also able to use more individualized teaching than in the morning lessons.
The lessons for children at our school follow the same ideas and style as teaching on location at the kindergartens. We teach children from 2 – 18 and there are 6 or less students per class. In the two-year old classes, the mothers are in the class with their children. (same as at the kindergartens so we don’t need to explain this again). Like at the kindergartens, our A-D1 (beginner elementary level) classes are co-taught by foreign English teachers and Japanese teachers. Our higher-level classes are taught by only the foreign English teacher. At Banana Kids we make every effort to keep our teachers with the same students. It is important for the teachers and students to build a positive relationship, making our students more comfortable. This is important to more effectively measure our student’s progress.

Summer Camp
We at Banana Kids, feel that it is important for our students to be given the opportunity to apply what they have learned. Every July we organize a camping trip for our students that are between the ages of nine and twelve.
The camping trip takes place over a weekend and our students enjoy many different activities as well as having an English lesson at the campsite.

Cambridge English Test
Banana Kids is an authorized testing center for the Cambridge English Test.
This test measures the students’ proficiency in English. Speaking, writing and listening proficiency is measured. Cambridge University in England grades the tests and students are assigned a number of stars depending on their ability. Five stars is a perfect score. This test is recognized the world over. (We stopped Cambridge, right? If we did, bet rid of this whole section).