Incorporating Body Movements into Japanese Language Learning Classroom

Abstract

It is very important for foreign language teachers to have students enjoy and engage in learning languages with strong commitment, since foreign language learning does not happen in only one day. Students have to be patient to acquire foreign languages. Considering this, foreign language teachers have to ponder how to facilitate students' foreign language learning. Classroom activities should be interesting, exciting and motivating. This study examines the effectiveness of incorporating body movements into foreign language classrooms. Body movement activities enhance long-term memory, increase comprehension, improve motivation, balance physical condition, and reduce anxiety in learning foreign languages. In addition to an experiment to investigate the effectiveness of kinesthetic activities in Japanese classrooms, suggested lesson plans are introduced to demonstrate how research about body movements can be incorporated into the beginning Japanese classroom in order to facilitate students' language learning.