Notes:
spin 回す；
competition  競争相手, 競争;
clips  短いビデオ

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I am very impressed by how good Japanese students are at pen spinning. Before I came to Japan, I had never seen anything like it. It seems like pen spinning started in Japan, but now it looks like the Japanese have competition. Korea has been pen spinning for years, and Thai students now have a pen spinning club with 10,000 members online. If you go to YouTube and search for pen spinners, you will get clips from other Asian countries such as China and Malaysia. These days there is even an international pen spinning competition. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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Notes:
field day 運動会；
compete 競争する；
grade 学年
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I went to a field day (sports day) at an elementary school last Saturday. I like the idea of making two teams in one school because everyone is competing. The children are either taking part in an activity or cheering for their team. Each grade takes part in three or four activities, and there are some big games for everyone in the school. Some of them are unique to Japan like the giant ball roll. The music helps to keep up the excitement throughout the day. In the end, everyone has a good time whether their team wins or loses.  (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)