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Widening learning (wonder)

One step beyond the very first. Videos, exhibitions, and overseas materials that stretch a child's curiosity one step further.

Grade Level
Resource Type
24 resources

Government Public Relations | Kids Page

A "kid-oriented" entry that walks through the work and structure of the national government in one go.

Pick 3 unfamiliar terms → confirm definitions → trace to the related ministry/system
ElementaryMiddle School
Overview
Kids' Entry

NHK High School Lectures

Build the "skeleton" of inquiry within the framework of high school subjects.

Make a debate-points table from the unit headings → fact-check terms with primary sources/statistics
High SchoolUniversity
VideoOverview
Official Video

NHK NEWS WEB EASY

Read the news in plain Japanese → easy to turn social issues into inquiry topics.

Extract "subject / numbers / cause" from the article → fact-check "is it really true?"
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh School
Overview
Kids' Entry

Try IT (Video Lessons)

A grain close to textbooks, useful for catching the "big picture". Handy as an inquiry intro.

Restate the lesson's conclusion in one sentence → look for counter-examples (other regions/eras) and verify
Middle SchoolHigh School
VideoOverview
Official Video

Kotobank

Strengthens the "definitions" that often weaken inquiry reports.

Note the source (dictionary name) → compare definitions across sources → write your own working definition
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
GlossaryOverview

National Archives of Japan | Learning Content

A friendly entry to primary sources. Move from exhibitions straight into the originals.

Get the flow from the exhibition → note the names of sources of interest → take the evidence from the originals
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
OverviewVideoPrimary Source
Cultural Heritage

NDL Digital Exhibitions

"Exhibition-style overviews" you can read by theme. The way to look at sources naturally develops.

Drill down from the exhibition's references/citations into the primary sources → always record figures and dates
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
OverviewPrimary Source
Cultural HeritageOpen Data

Disaster-Prevention Learning Portal (MLIT)

A "kids-oriented" entry to start learning about disasters. A perfect match for local inquiry.

Pick one disaster relevant to your area → confirm causes (terrain/weather) on the map
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh School
Overview
Kids' EntryDisaster

e-Stat Statistics Dashboard

An entry to grasp overall trends intuitively with "graphs and maps" rather than statistical tables.

Find top/bottom → confirm the indicator's definition → return to the source table on e-Stat if needed
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
StatisticsOverview
Open Data

National Film Archive of Japan | Online Service (FIAD)

An entry into "how society of the time was seen" through film and video sources. Easy to use as inquiry material.

Year/place/photographer → guess "what video wants to show" → cross-check with other sources
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversityResearcher
VideoPrimary SourceOverview
Cultural Heritage

Great Kanto Earthquake Film Archive

Read damage, reconstruction, and urban change with the documentary footage of the Great Kanto Earthquake as material.

What is shown / not shown → consider the photographer's intent → locate the place on a map and cross-check
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversityResearcher
VideoPrimary Source
DisasterCultural Heritage

Itsuka Yaru (YouTube)

Catch the inside stories of historical decisions in Japan and the world in 15–30 minute videos.

Memo "options/grounds/result" of a decision → fact-check with other sources and update your conclusion
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
VideoOverview
Official Video

YUKIMURA CHANNEL (YouTube)

Grasp the dense stories of Sengoku warlords through dramatic visuals faithful to historical fact.

Note people / forces / place names → arrange on a chronology → confirm locations on a map and ask "why here?"
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh School
VideoOverview
Official Video

Iseki Masaomi's International Japanese Training Course (YouTube)

Understand Japanese and world history with people at the center.

Organize each person's "position/interests/constraints" → look for the opposing view → confirm with primary sources
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversityResearcher
VideoOverview
Official Video

Smithsonian Open Access (U.S.)

The Smithsonian — one of the world's largest museum complexes — publishes its images, 3D models, and audio under CC0 Open Access. Young readers and researchers alike can reach world-class primary materials through the same door.

Search by theme → pick one image or 3D object → extract "who / when / where it was gathered" from the caption → place it side by side with a Japanese-museum counterpart and describe the difference (images and numbers carry you even when the text is English)
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversityResearcher
OverviewPrimary SourceInternational
Kids' EntryCultural HeritageOpen DataEnglish

Encyclopedia of Life (EOL)

A free, collaboratively built encyclopedia of living things, compiled by public institutions, museums, and researchers worldwide. Photos, taxonomy, and distribution maps make it easy to trace "what is this creature?" from a name. English text, but readable even at elementary level through images and maps.

Search a familiar plant or animal → read the taxonomy and distribution map → ask "why does it live here?" and link the answer to landform and climate
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
OverviewInternational
Kids' EntryNatural ScienceOpen DataEnglish

National Museum of Ethnology (Minpaku) | Database List

Official database collection from a Japanese national museum holding ethnographic records, audio, video, and photographs from around the world. A strong entry for comparative-culture inquiry across clothing, food, housing, and festivals.

Pick a database by region or theme → choose one artefact and record "maker / place / year" → view the same theme in a database from a different region → articulate the commonalities and differences
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
Primary SourceOverviewInternational
Cultural HeritageOpen Data

Metropolitan Museum of Art | Open Access

The Met's official Open Access collection, releasing out-of-copyright works under CC0. High-resolution images can be used without permission, making it a shared entry point for children through researchers to handle real art objects.

Search by period / region → filter to Open Access → note maker / date / technique → compare with Japanese collections to put the differences into words
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversityResearcher
OverviewPrimary SourceInternational
Cultural HeritageOpen DataEnglish

Google Arts & Culture

A cross-cultural hub that brings together collections from museums and cultural sites worldwide, including Street View tours inside institutions. Accessible for children, but since it is privately operated, always trace each work back to its source institution.

Read a "Story" by region or theme → open a work of interest → follow the "Collection" link back to the source museum and confirm provenance
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
OverviewInternational
Cultural HeritageMultilingual

The Open University of Japan | OpenCourseWare

The Open University of Japan publishes selected broadcast lectures as OpenCourseWare, viewable without registration. Covers geography, history, social and natural sciences at university level — a sturdy base for self-study from high school through teachers.

Pick a lecture in your area of interest → grasp the whole via the syllabus → after viewing, jot down "main claim / evidence / lingering question" in 3 lines
High SchoolUniversity
VideoOverview
Official Video

UTokyo OCW

The University of Tokyo's OpenCourseWare publishing actual course materials and videos. University students, graduate students, and teachers can use it as a reference model for how research-grade arguments are built.

Pick a course close to your topic → check target readings via the syllabus → mimic how the argument is built and reflect it in your own inquiry report
UniversityResearcher
VideoOverviewResearch
Official VideoEnglish

Cloud Appreciation Society

A global community celebrating clouds — photographs, classifications, and the beauty of the sky.

Open pages that interest you → note 3 words you understood → discuss and decide the next term to research
Middle SchoolHigh School
OverviewInternational
Earth ScienceEnglish

Our World in Data

Oxford-based public data visualization covering poverty, climate, education, and more.

Check the definition and coverage → get the same indicator for Japan from e-Stat → compare the gap and explain it
Middle SchoolHigh SchoolUniversity
StatisticsInternational
EnglishOpen Data

UNESCO World Heritage List

The official list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites — search by country, region, and category.

Open pages that interest you → note 3 words you understood → discuss and decide the next term to research
ElementaryMiddle SchoolHigh School
OverviewInternational
Cultural HeritageMultilingual