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homework

Japanese elementary school student teaches us how to solve a difficult maths problem

A lesson in multiplication opens our eyes to a new way of thinking. 

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Japanese grade students make working game consoles entirely out of cardboard for their summer homework

Coolest. Homework. Ever.

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New summer ice cream-flavored mini KitKats come with a serving of summer homework topics

Japanese kids can exercise their mouths and minds by participating in a contest to brainstorm ideas about the future.

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High school teacher’s summer vacation homework about appreciating life brings tears to our eyes

Now that is one of the coolest physics teachers around.

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Uncle and netizens confused about child’s low grade on math assignment

Have you ever had a teacher this strict?

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Japanese pre-teen’s summer homework assignment either lazy or genius… possibly both

This simple poster pushes the less-is-more concept to the limits.

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Junior high student in China trapped in elevator for five hours, grateful for time to do homework

Trapped and with his life hanging in the balance, this calm-and-collected Chinese student took the opportunity to get his math drills done.

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Are you smarter than a (Japanese) 5th grader? Take this mind-bending test and find out!

Pretty much everyone enjoys being able to help their younger siblings or kids with their elementary school homework. It’s a little piece of joy to pass on what you’ve learned and prove how cool of a mom/dad or big brother/sister you are. You impart some simple knowledge and see the little light bulb turn on in their head as they begin to understand. Then you can sit back and watch with confidence as they interact with the world around them.

But what do you do when the homework is a question that even you can’t answer? This brainteaser had everyone in one Japanese family stumped for over an hour, so they turned to Twitter for help. And then much of the Internet was stumped too. Take a look at these riddles and see how many you can get playing: What Prefecture is This?

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“Hate summer homework, kids? We’ll do it for you!” A disturbingly booming business in Japan

The following is a typical scene that many families in Japan will have recently experienced, and probably not for the first time: It’s August 31, the last day of summer vacation and the fall semester is starting in less than 24 hours. The kids who played all month suddenly realize that they have to do 40 pages of kanji and math drills, write a book report for a book they haven’t read, and fill in 30 days’ worth of journal entries–an assignment that they dutifully kept up with for all of the first week of summer break. They clamor for help, and despite the scoldings and I-told-you-so’s, “nice” parents and the more responsible siblings reluctantly pitch in.

Sure, the above isn’t an exemplary approach to avoiding bad grades, but recently an even more dubious method has been getting a lot of attention: online businesses have been offering to do your child’s homework and school projects for a fee! While the homework-by-proxy racket is nothing new, recent media coverage of the growing enterprise has brought to light this questionable practice and its appalling popularity among elementary and junior high school students.

What does this teach, and not teach, future adults? Why are parents taking advantage of these services for their young children? One twisted reason will probably surprise you.

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Final homework assignment from dearly departed teacher will bring you to tears

Death is indeed the final departure, but that does not mean that the echoes of our lives can’t have some lasting effects on the lives of those who survive us. One Japanese school teacher understood that he was nearing the end of his time on earth and did what he could to dispel the certain grief of his beloved students the only way he knew how. He gave them one last homework assignment.

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