What is a nursery school?

２．What is a nursery school?

Nursery school is a place that takes care of children between the ages of 0-5. Nursery schools take care of children in place of their families, usually for most of the day. There are public nursery schools and private nursery schools, both of which are roughly the same. The main differences are…

Public Nursery schools are created by the prefectural or city governments
Private Nursery schools are created by private individuals or organizations

Nursery schools take care of babies that are at least 2 months of age. However, they accept only children whose parents are either working all day or working for most of the daytime and who have no one to take care of them in their household. Nursery schools also accept children whose caretakers are burdened by physical sickness or mental illness or whose mothers have just given birth to another child. Nursery schools will admit children in these situations, even if it is only for a short period of time.Nursery schools are open from Monday through Saturday. Schools generally accept children starting from 8:30 AM to 5 PM. On Saturday they accept children until 12 PM. If a family needs to leave their children for extended periods of time due to their work situation, schools will allow the family to leave their children starting from 7 AM to 7:30 PM on weekdays and until about 2PM on Saturdays. This is called Extended Nursery Time. Because the period of extended nursery time varies from school to school, please ask the nursery school staff or principal about the specific time.

Transportation to and from school will be provided by children’s own families. Some schools do have a bus service available, but you will be required to pay extra if this service is provided. Children usually spend their entire day at nursery school, where they will also eat lunch and snacks. Meals are prepared at the nursery school (e.g. soup, various side dishes, etc.). If the nursery school that your child attends provides rice, then you will need to pay a fee for this rice. Some schools will allow you to bring your own rice from home. In terms of its function, a nursery school is a place that takes care of children instead of their families, working to give support to families to help raise their children. The schools will teach kids how to change their clothes, use the toilet, eat, brush their teeth, put away their belongings, wake up and go to bed early and learn how to greet people in social situations, all with the support of the members of the children’s families.

【Table 1】Nursery school and kindergarten daily schedule- Illustrates how children spend their time at nursery school and kindergarten over the course of a whole day.

【Table 2】Nursery school events over the course of a year- Illustrates a schedule of events that occur over the course of a whole year, detailing the activities that are held on each month.

【Table 3】、【Table 4】、and【Table 5】Show examples of the different items children will be required to have in nursery school depending on their age. These items are almost the same as kindergarten, but the necessary items may vary depending on the school, so please check with the school that you will be enrolling your child into. Also, make sure to write your child’s name on his or her belongings.

【Table 1】　Nursery school and kindergarten daily schedule

Nursery School		Kindergarten
	Students start to arrive at school and have free time to play		Students start to arrive at school and have free time to play
	nacks are provided for children under 3 years of age Students go for a walk, sing songs, participate in performances and do arts and crafts		Schools hold a morning meeting. Afterwards, students will sing songs, have exercise and playtime, do arts and crafts, participate in English conversation lessons, as well as other activities
	Lunch time for children under 3 years of age Lunch time for children 3 and up		Lunch time (either bento-box brought from home, or school provided lunch)
	Afternoon nap		Afternoon recess
	Afternoon nap		Students will start to return home
	Snack time and free time to play
	Students will start to return home

【Table 2】Nursery school events over the course of a year

Apr	Entrance ceremony	Oct	Potato Harvest Sports Festival
May	Physical check-up Koi-Nobori (a day to celebrate children)	Nov	Hoikusankan ( a day that parents can come to the school to observe their children’s behavior, school conditions, various events, etc.)
Jun	Potato planting	Dec	Christmas celebration Rice cake-making
Jul	Pool playtime Tanabata (Star Festival)	Jan	New Year’s playday Student Performances
Aug	Pool playtime Summer Festival	Feb	Setsubun Snow playtime (a holiday to celebrate the coming of spring)
Sep	Field trip for children and parents	Mar	Hinamatsuri Graduation ceremony (doll festival)
Monthly activities	Birthday parties Height/Weight measurements Traffic safety classes Disaster training drills

The supplies that children are required to bring to school will vary depending on their ages as well as the schools they attend. Please refer to [table 3] for children aged less than 1 year old, [table 4] for children between the ages of 1-2 years old and [table 5] for children aged 3 years and above

【Table 3】　Supplies required for children less than a year old

Supply Bag	Extra set of clothes	Socks	Cap
Diaper & Wipes	Hand Towel	Baby Bib	Baby Bottle
Futon for taking naps	Face Towel	Tissue Box	Plastic Bags
Zoukin (special type of cleaning cloth)

【Table 4】Supplies required for children who are 1-2 years of age

Small Supply Bag	Supply Bag	Extra sets of clothing	Bib
Set of eating utensils with training chopsticks, spoon and fork	Table Mat or Napkins	Hand Towel	Cup
Futon for taking naps	Tissue Box	Plastic Bags	Zoukin (Special type of cleaning cloth)

【Table 5】Supplies required for children 3 years and above

School uniform	School hat	P.E. Uniform	Colored hats for P.E. uniform
Small supply bag	Supply bag	Bag for carrying a pair of indoor shoes	Indoor Shoes
Case for Eating Utensils	Table Mat or Napkins	Hand Towel	Cup
Extra sets of clothing	Futon for taking naps	Plastic Bags	Zoukin (special type of cleaning cloth)