# Preschool/Daycare in Japan



## ESL Prof

Hello. My family and I are moving to Nagoya in September - I have a one-year teaching assignment and am taking my family. Does anyone here have experience with putting small childrend in preschool? I have a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old. We checked into international schools, but they are too expensive. I've heard that some expats simply put their kids in Japanese schools and they're fine. Any thoughts?


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## larabell

ESL Prof said:


> Does anyone here have experience with putting small childrend in preschool? I have a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old... I've heard that some expats simply put their kids in Japanese schools and they're fine. Any thoughts?


Both our kids went through Japanese preschool and are now in a public elementary school. Of course, they both started when they were 3 months old, so they grew up speaking Japanese. Young kids usually don't have much trouble picking up a new language (my oldest picked up passable Cantonese on a 2 week stay with his grandmother in Hong Kong) and the other kids, at that age, will probably think nothing of a temporary language barrier.

The biggest hurdle, as far as I can tell, is that there are fewer public day care choices here than, for example, in California (where I lived before moving to Japan). Between that and the growing trend toward two-income families, day care supply seems to be lagging behind demand. You should be prepared to encounter a waiting list if you apply for public day care (at least in Tokyo -- I have no experience with outlying areas). You're also coming in at the middle of the school year -- school (including day care) starts in April here so even if you do get a slot for next year, you may have to wait until the new school year starts in April.

That's not your only choice, though. Around here there are several private day care facilities that have sprung up to meet the demand. A few of them advertise 24 hour service, although I've never checked into that myself. My guess is that they are probably more expensive than the public option but less than a full-blown International School.

Japan, like many other countries, has mandatory education so if you decide to stay long-term, you can apply in the area where you live as soon as your oldest hits Elementary School age and be assured of a seat (they adjust the number of 1st grade classes each year depending on the number of incoming students). Of course, at that point your child would have to be reasonably fluent in Japanese to keep up.

If the plan is to return after your year is up, you may want to pony up the extra money for the International School, anyway. At Japanese public day care facilities, the kids will be exposed to pretty much NO English. And unless you speak reasonably good Japanese yourself, it's going to be frustrating trying to keep up with what the kids are doing during the day and what they need from day-to-day. There are (or have been) quite a few non-Japanese kids in the same day care and then in the same Elementary School as my kids over the years but in all cases they've been children of parents who spoke reasonably good Japanese and who were in Japan for the long haul. You might want to keep that in mind as you make your decision.

Also, you'll be expected to be *much* more active here than, for example, in California. In the States, its common that day care is a "dump 'em and pick 'em up later" hands-off affair. In Japan, parents are expected to participate in events, attend meetings, prepare lunches when the class goes on a picnic, etc. It's a lot more hands-on here than in many cultures. Then again, if you don't mind spending the time it can be fun (the "sports meet" for 2-yr-olds is usually a lot of fun for both the kids and the parents).

Other than that, if you have questions in general I might be able to help. But I don't live in Nagoya so I can't say whether my experience here will translate directly to how they do things down (over) there.

Congratulations on the move and good luck.


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## ESL Prof

*Thanks!*

Thanks, larabell - you post was very helpful. We are originally from California as well and understand all about the daycare culture there. Good to know parents are expected to do more, which would be fine, unless my workload gets to crazy.


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