Teacher Aims to Improve Japan's Smile
2023-06-07
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1In one of Keiko Kawano's recent classes, more than 10 Tokyo art school students held mirrors to their faces.
2The students moved the sides of their mouths upward with their fingers.
3They were practicing how to smile.
4Kawano's services as a smile teacher are seeing increased demand in Japan, where almost everyone wore face coverings such as masks during the pandemic.
5Himawari Yoshida is taking the class as part of a school program that prepares students for the job market.
6The 20-year-old Yoshida said she needed to work on her smile.
7"I hadn't used my facial muscles much during COVID, so it's good exercise," she said.
8Kawano's company, Egaoiku, which means "smile education," has customers that include private companies and local governments.
9An hour-long one-on-one lesson costs $55.
10Mask-wearing was normal in Japan even before the pandemic.
11People wear masks when it is allergy season and around school test times.
12While the government may have lifted its recommendation to wear masks in March, many people have not stopped wearing them.
13An opinion study by public broadcaster NHK in May showed 55 percent of Japanese say they were wearing masks just as often as two months earlier.
14Only eight percent said they had stopped wearing masks.
15Around 25 percent of the art school students who took the class kept their masks on during the class.
16Young people might have become used to life with masks, Kawano said.
17She noted that women might find it easier to go out without makeup and men can hide that they have not cut their facial hair.
18Kawano is a former radio host. She started giving lessons in 2017.
19She has also trained 23 others as smiling coaches to spread the method of creating a good smile.
20Her "Hollywood Style Smiling Technique" method includes "crescent eyes," "round cheeks" and shaping the edges of the mouth to show eight teeth in the upper row.
21Students can try out their technique on a tablet to get scored on their smile.
22Kawano believes that, culturally, Japanese people may be less likely to smile than Westerners.
23The difference could be a result of Japan's sense of security as an island nation and as a state.
24Reuters news service said Kawano wondered if the threat of guns might cause people to smile more.
25"Culturally, a smile signifies that I'm not holding a gun and I'm not a threat to you," she said.
26An increasing number of foreign visitors have been coming to Japan.
27Kawano said that Japanese people need to communicate with foreigners with more than just their eyes:
28She said, "I think there's a growing need for people to smile."
29I'm John Russell.
1In one of Keiko Kawano's recent classes, more than 10 Tokyo art school students held mirrors to their faces. The students moved the sides of their mouths upward with their fingers. They were practicing how to smile. 2Kawano's services as a smile teacher are seeing increased demand in Japan, where almost everyone wore face coverings such as masks during the pandemic. 3Himawari Yoshida is taking the class as part of a school program that prepares students for the job market. The 20-year-old Yoshida said she needed to work on her smile. 4"I hadn't used my facial muscles much during COVID, so it's good exercise," she said. 5Kawano's company, Egaoiku, which means "smile education," has customers that include private companies and local governments. An hour-long one-on-one lesson costs $55. 6Mask-wearing was normal in Japan even before the pandemic. People wear masks when it is allergy season and around school test times. 7While the government may have lifted its recommendation to wear masks in March, many people have not stopped wearing them. An opinion study by public broadcaster NHK in May showed 55 percent of Japanese say they were wearing masks just as often as two months earlier. Only eight percent said they had stopped wearing masks. 8Around 25 percent of the art school students who took the class kept their masks on during the class. Young people might have become used to life with masks, Kawano said. She noted that women might find it easier to go out without makeup and men can hide that they have not cut their facial hair. 9Kawano is a former radio host. She started giving lessons in 2017. 10She has also trained 23 others as smiling coaches to spread the method of creating a good smile. 11Her "Hollywood Style Smiling Technique" method includes "crescent eyes," "round cheeks" and shaping the edges of the mouth to show eight teeth in the upper row. Students can try out their technique on a tablet to get scored on their smile. 12Kawano believes that, culturally, Japanese people may be less likely to smile than Westerners. The difference could be a result of Japan's sense of security as an island nation and as a state. Reuters news service said Kawano wondered if the threat of guns might cause people to smile more. 13"Culturally, a smile signifies that I'm not holding a gun and I'm not a threat to you," she said. 14An increasing number of foreign visitors have been coming to Japan. Kawano said that Japanese people need to communicate with foreigners with more than just their eyes: 15She said, "I think there's a growing need for people to smile." 16I'm John Russell. 17Anton Bridge and Tom Bateman reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 18_______________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20mirror - n. a piece of glass that reflects images 21practice -v. to do something again and again in order to become better at it 22muscles -n. the parts of the body that create movement 23customer -n. a person, company or group that pays for goods or services 24allergy season -n. periods during the year when there are high levels of plant pollen or mold spores in the air which cause a bad reaction for people who are sensitive to such things 25crescent - n. a shape that is curved and pointed at its two ends like a crescent moon 26tablet - n. a flat, rectangular computing device 27signify - v. to mean (something)