Tokyo: City of Contrasts
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Explore Tokyo – A Virtual Journey Through Japan’s Historic, yet High-Tech Capital! 🇯🇵🌸
What makes Tokyo one of the most fascinating cities in the world? How does it blend ancient traditions with cutting-edge technology? What’s it like to ride the fastest bullet trains, explore bustling shopping districts, and step inside historic temples all in the same city? Now, your elementary students can take an exciting virtual field trip to the heart of Japan’s incredible capital—Tokyo!
📽️ “Tokyo: A Virtual Field Trip” is a visually stunning, curriculum-aligned educational video that takes students through the skyscrapers, shrines, shopping districts, and peaceful gardens of Tokyo. From the Imperial Palace to the world-famous Shibuya Crossing, students will experience the history, culture, and modern marvels that make Tokyo unlike any other city on Earth!
💡 What Your Students Will Learn:
✅ Where Tokyo is located and why it’s the largest metropolitan area in the world
✅ The Imperial Palace, home to Japan’s emperor and rich with history
✅ The Ginza shopping district, where land is so valuable that a single square meter costs millions of yen!
✅ The Tokyo Tower, standing taller than the Eiffel Tower, offering panoramic city views
✅ The Shinkansen bullet trains, speeding passengers at over 200 miles per hour
✅ The Kabuki Theater, where actors wear traditional makeup and perform dramatic plays
✅ The ancient Asakusa Kannon Temple, a sacred site dating back to the 7th century
✅ The contrast of city life—from high-tech robots and neon lights to peaceful cherry blossom gardens
🌟 Why Teachers Love This Video:
🕒 No-Prep, Standards-Aligned Content – A full, engaging lesson ready to go!
🎥 Visually Captivating & Student-Friendly – Keeps students excited and engaged.
🎯 Brings Geography, History & Culture to Life – Helps students experience Tokyo without leaving the classroom.
📚 Perfect for Social Studies, Geography & World Cultures Lessons – Encourages curiosity, discussion, and global awareness.
💡 Take Your Students on an Unforgettable Journey to Tokyo!
Give your students a front-row seat to the history, innovation, and culture of Japan’s capital—without ever leaving the classroom! Subscribe today and bring the wonders of Tokyo to life! 🚀
Video length: 11:35 minutes.
Learning Resources with this Video*
Quiz
Set in Tokyo Writing Prompt
Tokyo and Your Town Writing Sheet
Tokyo Exploration Virtual Classroom
Tokyo Tower Compare and Contrast Graphic Organizer
Visit a City of Contrasts
The History of the Tokyo Olympics
Draw a Scene
Universal Resources
National Standards
*Links are active on Full Video page.
Classroom Ideas
Tokyo: City of Contrasts
Mapping
Have students print out a map of Tokyo and identify where the sites in the video are located.
Cloze Practice
A cloze piece has full sentences used in the virtual field trip with blanks where students can write in the information that is missing. This task requires close listening to the trip in order to complete it.
Country Report
Have students write a report about Japan including: landmarks, population, how it is similar to the United States, history (how it came to be), type of government, economy, famous sites, architecture, interesting facts, religions, food, etc.
Transportation Around the World
Compare/contrast various modes of transportation in different countries (Japanese subways vs. classic cars in Cuba)
Music
Listen to music from Japan.
Food of Japan
Have students research traditional Japanese food.
Tokyo Descriptive Words
Ask students to write a description of Tokyo. You could consider having them include a list of adjectives that describe the city.
Tokyo and Home: A Comparison
Students will write lists of the things they like and dislike about Tokyo. Make sure they explain each opinion. Ask students to write about and discuss whether they would like their own home city or town to be more like Tokyo in any way, and why.
Landforms and Bodies of Water
Identify landforms and bodies of water around Tokyo and Japan.
Create Quizzes
Students create a quiz based on the information presented for their peers. This can be used as a review for a test, or jigsaw class activity where students are responsible for teaching other students assigned topics.
Greetings Around the World
Explore different ways to greet people across various cultures (Bonjour in France, bowing in Japan, Hola in Cuba, etc.).
Art
Draw a scene from the video you just watched.
Diorama
Create a diorama of Tokyo’s landmarks.
Local Festivals
Have students research Japanese festivals at the local, state, and national levels.
Creative Writing
Write a story with Tokyo as the setting. The main character could be from another country (compare and contrast characters).
Tokyo Station Adventure
Find out places you can get to from Tokyo Station, and plan an itinerary for a trip.
Tokyo Tower
Students can complete a worksheet in which they compare Tokyo Tower to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. They should talk about the history of the towers, visiting rules, views, etc.
Classroom Ideas for ALL Videos
Here are dozens and dozens of ideas that you can use in your classroom along with our videos!
Topics Covered In This Video
Tokyo’s location
Fun facts
Imperial Palace
Tokyo Station
Bullet trains
Ginza shopping district
Kabuki theater
Tokyo Tower
Tsukiji Fish Market
Shinjuku Gardens
Asakusa Kannon Temple
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