Jason Bernard works with Jim Peacock, owner of Amherst Karate Studio, during a karate class as part of an Artist in Residence program at Henniker Community School in Henniker on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017. Students have also learned about Japanese Raku pottery, Taiko drumming and will taste Japanese cuisine over the course of the program. (ELIZABETH FRANTZ / Monitor staff)
Jason Bernard works with Jim Peacock, owner of Amherst Karate Studio, during a karate class as part of an Artist in Residence program at Henniker Community School in Henniker on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017. Students have also learned about Japanese Raku pottery, Taiko drumming and will taste Japanese cuisine over the course of the program. (ELIZABETH FRANTZ / Monitor staff)

Japanese culture is the theme of an Artist in Residence program at Henniker Community School this year. In December, sixth-graders learned about the traditional tea ceremony and made pottery fired in the Raku method. A schoolwide lunch featuring Japanese cuisine is planned for next week. This week, the students were introduced to karate and taiko drumming. They will showcase what they have learned at 6:30 tonight at the Henniker Community School gymnasium. The free, public event will also include a performance by the Burlington Taiko Group.