Learning Record: 5th Week of November 2025

Hello ☺️

Since the cram school is closed this week, I will keep this record short.

1. Nankan Challenge Test

First, I will write about the Nichinoken "Nankan Challenge Test" (Difficult School Challenge Test) that we took over the three-day weekend.
Unlike the "SAPIX entrance exam" we will take later, this test is free 🆓. However, I was surprised by how comprehensive it was 😳
・The original answer sheets were returned on the same day. The school uses scanned copies for grading. They say, "Since both children and parents tend to focus on the score when they see graded answer sheets, we want them to first face their own answers from the day of the test." The system for making the most of the test is amazing!
・Both math and Japanese come with explanatory videos. For math, I was able to complete the corrections for the problems I got wrong on my own just by watching the explanatory video 👍 For Japanese, there was Kanji in 1️⃣, an expository text in 2️⃣, and a narrative text in 3️⃣. For 2️⃣ and 3️⃣, there was also an explanation on how to read long passages, which made my child realize that this is why they are being made to do it at their current cram school without understanding why.
・Disclosure of grading criteria: It's not just circles and crosses; there are also things like a "✨ mark next to a cross" for "the answer is wrong, but the thinking process is wonderful." Incorrect answers and unanswered questions are marked differently, and you can sort them on the N-Portal screen. You can jump to the explanations from that screen. This allows for self-directed test review.
・The background for being able to perform these various types of grading is that, not just in Japanese, but also in math, there are problems that require writing out descriptions or the process of thinking. There is a system where multiple graders look at these, and even if it differs from the model answer, you can sometimes get full marks for the description.
・Finally, answers from friends who took the same test (a collection of answers that impressed the graders) are also posted. For children, these are easier to understand than the model answers created by adults, and my child was able to proceed with the review smoothly.
(The content up to this point could be viewed on the N-Portal from the evening of the fourth day after the test.)
・And finally, as the name "Nankan Challenge Test" suggests, materials showing the distance to the Gosanke (top three schools) and other top-tier schools will be sent by mail later. (We haven't received them at our house yet, so I apologize for not being able to show you the actual items or attach images 🙇‍♀️)

I thought it was amazing that such a thorough test could be taken for free!

But you know, this test was really something 😂
That's what the title photo is about. Both math and Japanese are 150-point tests, and the average score for Japanese was 84 points, which equals a correct answer rate of a little under 60%, which I can still understand. But the average score for math was 38 points, which equals a correct answer rate of about 25%...‼️ It was shocking. In my own grading, I only got a double-digit score, and I reflected a little on myself for getting angry on the day, asking, "Were you concentrating properly? Did you give it your all?" 😅 Well, there were mistakes, and my child also said they didn't give it their all, so my reflection is only a little bit, haha.

With that said, it was a weekend where I was moved by the thoroughness of Nichinoken, but when I thought about it calmly, the teachers who gave the easy-to-understand explanations were probably TM teachers, and there is no TM class at the Nichinoken near our house... so,as a parent, I want them to take next year's "Nankan Challenge Test" as wellis the only thing I've decided. (I will consult with my child again about whether they will actually take it.)
Nichinoken's test doesn't provide deviation scores, so I don't know the score distribution of the examinees for this test, but compared to the 2,500 examinees for the SAPIX Open taken in October, there were 2,000 examinees for this test. I wonder what kind of group took it... Are the hardcore students aiming for TM or scholarship certification just a few, and is that why the average score is below 40 points...? It's a mystery.

2. Current Learning Status

【Math】
・For advance learning, I am using the Yosyu Series. Currently, I am doing Volume 4-Lower, Chapter 17: Water Volume and Graphs. At this pace, I wonder if it will be difficult to finish the 5th-grade material by the end of the 4th-grade summer 😭
I have written about this here, so please take a look if you'd like.

・Math Lab Geometry Level 6 has just entered Stage 3.
・The T-Method, which I do one sheet of every morning, is currently on Block 2 Supplement B, "Indian-style Multiplication."

【Japanese】
・I will be transferring schools from the new school year, and I have decided to attend the winter course at the new school, so there are only 6 more Japanese classes at this school. I want to do my best until the end.
・By the way, the Japanese teaching materials at this school are wonderful. I also really resonate with the school's philosophy. However, it was difficult in various ways, such as the compatibility with the instructor who taught using those materials, and because it is not a very large school. (Now, when should I tell them I'm leaving...)

【Science/Social Studies】
The review of the textbooks is all finished, up to the final "Challenge the Entrance Exam Problems!" section. At the current school, there are only math and Japanese tests for 3rd graders, so I was able to learn freely this year.
My child has experienced three schools since the first year of elementary school: Yotsuya Otsuka, SAPIX, and the current school, and they said that among all the teachers they have had so far, the social studies teacher at the current school is by far the best! I am grateful that they taught classes that made me feel that social studies was fun this year.

【English】
This week was the second time for occupations. It was content explaining what each profession (for example, baker or salesperson) does and what kind of tools they use.
Regarding English lessons, we have decided to continue for the next school year, but it seems that almost all the friends who have been learning together for several years will quit English at the timing of the new school year, so my child has started to worry about whether to continue.

【Other】
・Kotoba no Gakkou (Language School)
It seems that the return of the results of the "Reading Ability Diagnosis" taken at the end of October, which I haven't been able to tell you about yet, will be after a little while in December, so I probably won't be able to write about it for a while. I plan to withdraw from "Kotoba no Gakkou" at the end of January.

・Piano
I am using 5-line cards to train to quickly read notes in the treble clef and bass clef. Since notes with ledger lines were added both above and below in the treble clef, confusing notes that look very similar have appeared, but I am learning them like a game while being skillfully encouraged by the teacher.
The school is one where it's okay to play songs the child wants to play, not just the textbook 🙆‍♀️, so from the beginning of learning, I was only playing train departure melodies using this book (↓), but now I am practicing "Dream Come True Doraemon" because my elementary school friends might think it's amazing if I can play it. The motivation is... 🤣

・Sports
Swimming has already moved up to the advanced level of the swimming school, and whether or not I advance depends on the time attack of the four swimming styles. The last week of the month is the advancement test, and I'm looking forward to the inter-member relay race after that, so I plan to continue.
Gymnastics, which I am learning at the same place, has not been able to advance, and it has become a half-hearted state where I am not motivated, so for now, I think I will quit in January next year.

If the above assumption is correct, my lessons will be relatively organized, and it looks like it will be,2 days of SAPIX on weekdays, plus swimming and piano (piano is only twice a month), and English conversation on Saturdays and Sundaysas a result.

Thank you for reading this week as well 😊