Pom Poko Reflection Worksheet: Exploring Culture, Change, and Connection

Use the questions below to reflect on the themes from Pom Poko. You can write your answers in a journal, discuss them in a group, or use them as prompts for creative projects.

✨ Part 1: Culture and Crisis

What parts of a culture are hardest to keep during big changes like climate or social crises?
How can stories help people survive and stay strong during hard times?
Is changing or adapting always a loss, or can it be a new way for a culture to grow?
How do you deal with the sadness of losing important places or traditions? What helps you hold on to meaning?

🌳 Part 2: Belonging and Place

What places in nature feel like “home” to you, and how would you feel if they were taken away or destroyed?
How has your sense of place shaped your identity or your connection to others?

🌍 Part 3: Change and Adaptation

When have you had to change something important about yourself or your culture to fit into a new environment?
Do you see adaptation as strength, sacrifice, or both? Why?

💼 Part 4: Values and Traditions

Which traditions or cultural practices do you most want to preserve in your life, and why?
Have you ever had to let go of a tradition or belief? How did that affect you?

🐾 Part 5: Connection to Nature and Myth

What responsibilities do you feel toward non-human life (animals, forests, spirits, etc.) in your everyday actions?
Do you think folklore or myth can help rebuild a better relationship with nature? Why or why not?

Optional Creative Prompt:

Draw or write a short story, poem, or comic about a place you love, and imagine how its spirit or guardians (like tanuki or other yōkai) might try to protect it today.

Your reflections are important. Keep them safe, share them with others, or use them to inspire future projects.