Postcard About a School Trip: Tense, Particles, and Length
Your Japanese class is writing a 60–80 character postcard to a partner school in Kyoto. The brief: describe your school trip last week, mention two activities you did, one thing you did not do because of the weather, and ask one question about your partner's school. You must use past tense, at least one が or から, and no English words. Your draft is 92 characters and contains: 先週、京都へ行きます。お寺を見ました。雨でしたから、山にのぼりません。あなたの学校はどうですか。 You have 15 minutes and a dictionary that shows のぼる but not its past negative form. The teacher will check particles and tense before it is sent. You must also keep the postcard to 60–80 characters, not 60–80 words.
1. Identify two errors in the draft and rewrite those sentences correctly. Explain the grammar reason for each.
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Two clear errors:
- 京都へ行きます → 京都へ行きました. The trip was last week, so the verb must be past polite. 行きます is non-past and suggests a future or habitual trip.
- 山にのぼりません → 山にのぼりませんでした. The reason 雨でしたから is also past, so the result must be past negative. のぼりません is present/future negative.
- 雨でしたから is correct: から follows the polite past copula でした. Do not change it to だ because the postcard is in です/ます.
- お寺を見ました is already correct past polite.
2. The draft is 92 characters but the limit is 60–80. Which parts can you cut without losing the required content? Show a revised version and count.
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Cut greetings and repeated subjects first, not required content. A version within range: 先週、京都へ行きました。お寺を見ました。そして、おみやげも買いました。雨でしたから、山にはのぼりませんでした。そちらの学校はどうですか。
- This keeps: past trip, two activities (temple, souvenir shopping), one weather-cancelled activity (mountain), and one question.
- Changes: あなたの学校 → そちらの学校 (shorter and more natural in a postcard); 山にのぼりません → 山にはのぼりませんでした (correct tense, with は for contrast).
- The revised version is about 70 characters including punctuation, inside 60–80. Check whether your class counts punctuation, because the total shifts slightly.
3. Why is 雨でしたから correct but 雨だから would be wrong here? What does that tell you about register?
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雨でしたから is polite because the whole postcard uses です/ます. 雨だから uses the plain copula だ, which clashes with 行きました and 見ました.
- から itself is neutral; politeness comes from what precedes it.
- In a casual message to a close friend, 雨だったから、山にのぼらなかった would be consistent. Mixing だ with です/ます is the error, not から.
- Register check: choose one level and keep it through the postcard.