English teacher, Casey Daugherty, was chosen to travel to Japan over the summer with the Toyota International Teacher Program which was sponsored by Toyota. Ms. Daugherty was one of fifty-nine teachers that attended this 17 day trip. Over 3,000 applicants prepared a vigorous essay application process. The teachers attended the trip with all expenses paid. They traveled to Tokyo, Kyoto, Mt. Aso, and Aichi.

While staying in Japan, Ms. Daugherty stayed on a farm with a Japanese family. The family's farm was only eight acres, which is the average amount of acres in Japan, where they grew asparagus on their acres and in a greenhouse.

During this trip Ms. Daugherty attended several cultural classes; such as, drama, martial arts and even Kanji, which is Japanese Calligraphy. Also while she was there, she had the opportunity to study the education, culture/history, technology/industry, and environment of Japan. Ms. Daugherty had even learned the traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony.

Through all the classes, learning, and study groups, the group of teachers even fit in time to have some fun. They attended a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. Baseball is surprisingly popular in Japan, even more than the United States. Many other exciting sites were the World Expo, which is the first one of this millennium, and the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo, where she had the chance to talk to the U.S. Ambassador. During her time at the World Expo, there were 160 countries represented. Ms. Daugherty and her group were seated at the VIP room in the U.S. pavilion, which is an immense achievement.

Ms. Daugherty was thankful for the opportunity for which she had. She is hoping to share what she learned with her students, and how it inspired her. "I want my students to know that there are differences in cultures and many similarities between the United States and Japan," stated Daugherty. She also said that, "Educating yourself and continuing to learn is beyond the far walls of my classroom."
Ms. Daugherty and her group was featured in two national magazine; one being Newsweek.

Ms. Daughtery will be presenting her power point presentation of her trip to local civic organizations. Watch for dates in The Educator.