Japanese language instruction at Mount Claremont Primary School is delivered using the WA Syllabus in Japanese. Last year the curriculum was reviewed, and this year (2026), it is being trialled, with full implementation next year. It is as full and varied as in previous years, with very few changes.
Japanese is taught once a week from Year Three onwards for an hour by an experienced and enthusiastic teacher. Reporting to parents happens at the end of each semester. During the term formative and summative assessments take place at least once.
The teaching of the basic hiragana script is a priority. It is introduced at the beginning of Year Three and continues until the end of Year Six. A limited number of kanji are also taught. Art and crafts are taught when relevant to the topic at hand.
Japanese culture is a feature of at least one lesson a term – including setsubun – New Year Bean Throwing Festival; hinamatsuri (The Doll Festival); comparing population ratios between Perth and Tokyo – multi person dwellings; hanabi – summer fireworks tradition; ohanami – cherry blossom viewing; kodomo no hi – (Childrens Day), Golden Week and shichi go san (7 5 3 festival) .