Surprising way Japanese teach life skills to children

Life skills in Japanese refer to both the moral and character of a person and the necessary skills and abilities that a person needs to practice from a young age. In Japan, there are no textbooks specifically teaching life skills, but Japanese students have an Ethics subject at school that also teaches almost all of the content included in it.

Taught from birth

More importantly, the Japanese believe that teaching life skills to children should not start when they go to school, but should be taught from birth and parents are the first and most important teachers to teach children these skills.

Philosophy of preschool education

The philosophy that is unified in kindergartens is “learning through play”. The learning environment minimizes the theoretical load for kindergarten students, instead, children are free to play, learn life skills, explore nature, etc.

There are two models of kindergarten

It is a school for children of working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. The school for children of working mothers is subsidized by the government with 150 USD per month (including lunch prepared by the school chef to ensure nutritional standards).

Children walking to school

Japanese children walk to school by themselves from the age of seven. Elderly people in the area will become volunteers to guide the children to cross the street to ensure safety. The elderly people are very happy and enthusiastic to do this job.

Actively participate in community activities

In Japanese towns and neighborhoods, there are often group activities such as cleaning up the neighborhood and local temples. This helps neighbors feel closer and friendlier. Children also get along better and develop better communication skills.

Public culture

Children in the land of the rising sun always demonstrate proper behavior and strictly follow general regulations in public places such as queuing, waiting for the subway, not crying in supermarkets, etc.

Play with your child

In Japanese, there is a phrase called ikumen (from ikemen, meaning handsome) to describe a husband who is good at sharing housework and taking care of the children with his wife. Nowadays, almost all Japanese men are aware of this basic principle, so it is not uncommon to see a father carrying his child while taking him to school or out. And they are very willing to play with their children, especially in activities that require physical activity such as climbing, painting cars, and playing ball. Playing with children is a great opportunity for parents to teach them soft skills.

It can be said that while many Vietnamese parents consider training life skills for their children to be the responsibility of the school, the Japanese consider it the role of the parents and then the school.