Japanese English learners are a unique group of people in that there is very little student-teacher touching within the classroom. If the students travel abroad, they are often shocked at the amount of touching and embracing that occurs in other school systems.
To ease the student into the concept of touching, it is best to start early and often. Any negative reactions must be strongly reprimanded, and positive reactions praised and rewarded with snacks.
If dealing with a female student, start by complementing her on her skin complexion before laying your hand on her forearm. As most Japanese, she will recoil at first, but persistence is key. As your level of trust increases, you may grip her forearm for several minutes at a time as a demonstration of trust between the two of you. When dealing with male students, it is best to compliment their knuckles, but not to use your fingers to touch them. Start with your own knuckles and gently tap theirs while saying the alphabet.
Students who have been taking classes for years often reach the point where the entire class is spent in a warm, non-sensual embrace with their teacher, only breaking the embrace to take notes or write on the board.