Expanding future possibilities

Cover picture: “Fun Christmas”
Children are decorating a huge Christmas tree,
while many Santa Clause and reindeer are ﬂoating down from the sky.
Are they starting the preparation of the gifts they will deliver to the childrenʼs homes?

24

What presents will you get for Christmas this year?

We look forward to
your ideas!
“Hiraku” provides useful informationand the latest news related toEnglish and childhood education.

・Your recent interests
・Topics you want us to cover
・New content etc etc…
If you have ideas to contribute,please share these with us!
“Hiraku” Editorial Department
TEL：06-6135-0150
Mail： hiraku@kinderkids.ed.jp★My Stepping Stone

Published in
November 2022 Vol.24
Next issue isplanned to comeat the end of January

Kinder Kids Inc.
TEL：06-6135-0150
Pulala Tenma 2F, 3-1 Ikeda-cho,
Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka. 530-0033★People & Culture★Inﬁnity Global Elementary Schoolʼs ★Grad Club “Interview with
“Money Education” class
graduate students”

www.kinderkids.com

日本の心と、英語の力。Kinder Kids inc.

My
Stepping
Stone〈File4〉
Kinder Kids was the start. Introduction of graduates
Currently, runs an online English
conversation school that she
started with her friend.

who through their efforts opened new doors.

Passed the EIKEN Grade 1,
and achieved 960 points on TOEIC.
Studied as an exchange student
at the University of Toronto.
Started an English school while still a student.
My Memories at Kinder Kids

I

enjoyed the monthly ﬁeld trips we had at
Kinder Kids before the school had a play-

The University of Toronto,
one of the best universities in the world.

T

S.H.
Kwansei Gakuin
University
Junior

The habit of doing homework carefully
from an early age has improved her ability
to concentrate when studying.

he University of Toronto is one of thebest universities in the world, so it was

Message from her mother【Proﬁle of S.H.】

Thanks to Kinder Kids, my daughter

some enthusiastic parents were getting together

S.H. graduated from Kinder Kids Nishinomiya School in 2008. She
passed the Eiken Grade pre-2 test in her ﬁrst year of elementary
school and the Grade 1 test in her third year of high school. In her
last year of high school, she participated in the "World Scholarʼs
Cup 2019”, a comprehensive competition in which junior high andhigh school students compete in English. Her group won the Japan
Round and the Sydney Global Round and advanced to the worldﬁnals held at Yale University. She also was awarded an individual
prize in the writing category.
From Sep. 2021 to May 2022, she studied at the University ofTronto as an exchange student. From May 2022 to Oct. 2022, sheparticipated in the fourth “Ambassadorʼs Youth Council ”, aprogram to encourage students to be leaders in a global society,organized by the Consulate-General of the United States in
Osaka-Kobe. Currently, she runs an online English conversation
school.

to form a study group for the Eiken. However, it【What is The World Scholarʼs Cup?】ground. I was fascinated by the scenery anddifﬁcult to keep up with the classes. I just spentsights that I could not see when in the classroom.

my entire time studying, even on weekends.

I also became interested in outer space throughMost of the students were overwhelmingly

gained not only an education

theme-based learning classes, and “to actuallysmart and set high standards and goals for

see Jupiter and Saturn with my own eyes!”themselves. I thought this was very different

but also gained language skills

became my ﬁrst dream. I also wrote about thisfrom Japanese university students. It was hard

dream on my elementary school application

not to fall behind, yet it was a stimulating expe-

form.

rience.

and a global perspective.
There werenʼt any Eiken preparation classes
when my daughter entered Kinder Kids, but

WSC, a worldwide English competition

My future goals

During my senior year of high school, I partici-

I am interested in education-related businesspated in WSC, World Scholar's Cup 2019, a

opportunities because I gained experience bycomprehensive English-language competition

volunteering at a Childrenʼs Cafeteria

for middle and high school students from all(Kodomo-shokudo), and currently run an online

over the world, and made it to the world ﬁnal

English conversation school. At the request of afor learning Japanese songs were started atheld at Yale University.It was an enjoyable andlearning support organization, I also teachparentsʼ request. This kind of ﬂexible andmeaningful experience for me to interact andEnglish to children with developmental disor-

speedy response is not common in most Japa-

compete with such unique and smart students.

ders. It is still a dream, but I would like tonese kindergartens.

After the WSC competition, I joined the English

create a school that supports children who ﬁnd

I wanted my daughter to go to Kinder Kids

Club at the University and participated in

it difﬁcult to adapt to existing schools.

because I was interested in English language. As

English debate activities. The experience at

was hard to prepare for Eiken on our own, so we
asked if Kinder Kids could offer Eiken classes.
Our request was granted, and thatʼs how Eiken's
preparation classes started. Also, music classes

a result of going to Kinder Kids in addi-

WSC broadened my horizons and I realized howtion, she not only can speak English but

small a world I had been living in and which

also has grown up to be a person with anconvinced me to study abroad at the University

international way of thinking.

of Toronto.
1

Nishinomiya School
Graduate

S.H. meet with Kimiko Nakayama, CEO, andthe manager of at that time at Nishinomiya School.

The World Scholar's Cup (WSC), is
an international academic programin which 3 member teams compete
against each other in quizzes,
debates, paper tests, and essays
on six subjects: science &technology, history, literature, art& music, social studies, andanother subject that changes
every year. More than 15,000
middle and high school students
from over 65 countries participate.
Teams that advance from theRegional Round to the Global Roundand achieve a high score in the
Global Round are eligible toparticipate in the ﬁnals (Tournamentof Champions) at Yale University. The
ﬁrst Regional Round in Japan washeld in 2012. This competition
provides an opportunity for middle
and high school students from aroundthe world to interact, and deepen theirinternational understanding.

She competed in WSC
as a high school student
and made it to the ﬁnals.

2People & Culture Kinder Kids staff members come from various countries, including the U.S., Canada, the U.K.,

009 Graeme Wilkinson

Australia, and China. Let's go on a Kinder Kids world travel to meet people and cultures from all over the world!

010

From Dunedin, New Zealand

K1 Class teacher, Nara Tomigaoka School

Thor Helgason
From Vancouver, Canada

Education Div., Head Ofﬁce

Dunedin, famous for its university and nature

Canada: a country with a lot of creative people

I am from the South Island of New Zealand

Something about Canada that people donʼt often realize

which is basically mountains, farmland,is that we have produced many successful creative

vineyards, and orchards with the occasional

people despite having such a small population.

small town every couple of hours in
between. My home town is Dunedin which isfamous for its university. A lot of students
throughout New Zealand come to Otago Universi-

Often when people learn that Canadian artists

ty
Universitagoof O

are in fact Canadian, they are astonished and tellme that they thought they were American!
Canadian culture has a lot in common withty to study. Dunedin has a Scottish heritage andhas numerous sandy beaches with penguins,seals, and the occasional whale sighting.

Lost in skyscrapers!
I was interested in martial arts, anime, temples andshrines, food, and culture, So, I thought, from a country
with a small population and lots of nature, why not see
the opposite? So off I went to Japan and here I am still
here. I got lost on my ﬁrst day exploring the city. I was soused to using landmarks like “there is a mountain overthere”, or “the ocean is that way”, or “I can see the entire
town if I stand on a hill”, that when surrounded by
skyscrapers in Osaka, I had no idea which way was which.
It was an amazing experience to get lost though, especial-

America so it can be difﬁcult to tell where we arefrom simply from our accent as itʼs very similar

Before joining Kinder Kids I had already worked forthese artists did you know were Canadian?

years teaching children both in Japan and New

William Shatner, Phil Hartman, Shaniah Twain,

Zealand. I did however learn a lot about reading andCeline Dion, Avril Lavigne, Michael Buble, Mike

phonics at Kinder Kids. Kinder has a strong reading

Meyers,and writing programme. I started to research moreMorissette, Justin Bieber, Drake, The Weeknd,

myself to better support children in their speaking

Pamela Anderson, Michael J Fox, Matthew

and reading. Ultimately, it led me towards develop-

Perry, Seth Rogan, Keanu Reeves, Ryan Gosling.

Through modelling, I have been able to travel theIn awe of the Japanese passed-down traditions.

people so it has been an incredibly enrichinging my own books to help support ﬁrst-time readersand make that transition to reading for the ﬁrst timeand in some cases the exact same! How many ofDeadmou5,

Jim

Carey,

Alaniscrunchy on the outside but soft in the middle. Try
to bake one in Japan during winter, not during the3

humid summer. Itʼs delicious!

began while going to University and Iʼve been able tocontinue doing it from time to time even now.
world and make connections with many creative

commercial for Japan Airlines (JAL) in Singapore

grandparent who had emigrated to Canada. And

and recently I appeared on the NHK morning drama,children with additional reading needs.

more often than not, both sets of grandparents

Come Come Everybody.

did not come from the same country.
I remember coming to Japan for the ﬁrst time
many years ago, I was in awe of the culture
immediately. It was clear that this was a place
where traditions had been passed down for
hundreds of years, continuing down family lines

strawberries!). It is a really sweet meringue that is

outside of work. Acting and modelling is something I

published in the US for emergent readers andwith people without the aid of a language. It was fun.

to the generation below them.

a
Pavlovce y country !
u
d
o
m
Intr
Scan the QR codes to check out recipes
on YouTube (as of November 2022)

P

Australia (in NZ we top ours with kiwi fruit andcontinue to pursue other passions and interests

Every friend growing up had at least one

amongst massive buildings and tried to communicate

summer and Christmas in New Zealand andKinder Kids has afforded me over the years, toand illustrate decodable reader books that are

Exploring this way I found random shrines hidden

Pavlova is a traditional cake served during theSomething I am really appreciative of is the ﬂexibility

experience. Before Covid, I did a really exciting

as easy as possible for children. Currently, I write

ly when I was not able to speak the language at the time.

Pavlova, a traditional NZ summer sweet

Acting and modelling as an exciting secondary occupation

Writing and publishing childrenʼs books

e
tin
u
o

Poutine, addictive taste
Poutine is a dish that originated in Quebec made offrench fries and cheese curds topped with browngravy. It is such an important soul food in Canada
and there are even events such as "Poutine Week"
and"Poutine

Festival"

where

chefs compete to make their own
unique poutine. It is delicious!

Scan the QR codes to check out recipes
on YouTube (as of November 2022)

4

Inﬁnity Global Elementary School s
Money Education

FOCUS！

has ﬁnally started!

Interview

class

Money education classes with professional instructors started in September.
Inﬁnity International Elementary School's money education is an original program
based on the teachings of Hideyuki Sugawara, an international business professor,
and arranged by Hiroki Sato for children to easily understand. Here is a brief
introduction about the money education class.

Interview with graduate students

Olderbrother

Meet two Super Kinder Kids, a brother and a sister
who attended Kinder Kids school and Kinder Kids programfrom age 1 until graduating from high school.

Nara Medical University
the Faculty of Medicine
2nd year
Higashi Osaka
SchoolGraduate

K.I. and C.I. are graduates of Kinder Kids Higashi Osaka
School.

During the ﬁrst class, students experienced spending and receiving money in the schoolʼs original “shopping

Both enrolled in Kinder Kids at the age of 1 and moved on

game.” Students make two groups; store clerks and buyers. The buyers have ten one-yen on hand and pay

to Grad Club until they graduated from high school, athe store clerks for shopping cards or choose work cards and earnmoney. For example, "buy a ring and pay 3 yen", "develop a new
medicine and receive 2 yen", and so on. When you draw a "Bonuscard”, you will receive extra income if the conditions are right. Somechildren buy things after making some more money, while others donʼttotal of 18 years studying at Kinder Kids.
They are now medical students, and both also work
part-time at Grad Club as members of Kinder Kids.

YoungersisterC.I.

Fukuoka University
the Faculty of Medicine
1st year
Higashi Osaka
SchoolGraduate

We interviewed these two “Super Kinder Kids”

work until their money runs short. You must work and earn money to▶ What is your most memorable memory at Kinder Kids?

go shopping. Everyone was really absorbed in the shopping game.

（K.I.）I was very active when I went to Kinder Kids, and I still remember how"How do you make money?" Mr. Sato asked, "By working!” the children

much I wanted to go to the park more often.

replied.
He asked another question that even parents might have trouble answering "Why do you get paid when you（C.I.）I remember I loved going to Kinder Kids and having fun every time. I had

work?” The answer given to the troubled children was, "You can get money when you make someone happy.”

many experiences that Japanese kindergartens can not provide, such as

Money education had just started, but the children learned that money was a sign of gratitude.

playing games and dancing during circle time, Christmas concerts,

Children were given homework to ask the following questions to a family member by the next class,①What kind of work do you do?

②Where do you work?

Halloween parties, and studying English and Math.

③Who are you making happy?

▶ Tell us the best thing about studying at Grad Club until high school?

We asked Professor Sugawara and Mr. Sato about the features of their money education classes and what

（K.I.）I think it was good that I could use what I studied by talking with athey want the students to learn through their classes.

native English speaker every week.

What do you expect your students to learn through money education?

（C.I.）I had English conversation classes until junior high school and had some●Money is a sign of gratitude, and the most important thing is to help others.
●Knowing the value of money is a good investment in yourself.

opportunities to speak English. However, in high school, English classes

What makes your money education classes different from other classes?

are only to prepare for college entrance exams, so I was glad that I could

While most common money education classes focus on ﬁnancing, we teach children that studying money isa self-investment, and that money comes by making others happy.
We are deeply concerned that the difference in money education between Japan and the U.S./ Europe will

have conversations using practical English in Grad Club once a week.
▶ Why did you decide to work part-time at Grad Club, and tell us how you feel working there.

widen more and more since Japanese public elementary schools donʼt teach about money. Just as there are（K.I.）I often speak with native English speakers at university, but I wanted

rules for sports, there are rules for money. Many people lose money because they don't know the rules. We

more opportunities to speak English, so I decided to work at Grad Club.

want many children to learn the rules of money, so they can use it wisely and realize their dreams.

I enjoy spending time with the Grad Club students, remembering how I

After the class, "It was just so much fun!” they said with a sparkle in their eyes.
Professor Sugawara, who usually teaches university students, had a great time playing shopping games with thechildren. Teachers would love to study together with the children.

5

K.I.

Hideyuki Sugawara, Ph.D

Hiroki Sato

Faculty of Business Administration,
Hokkai-Gakuen University

Financial Planner

Professor Hideyuki Sugawara received his doctoral
degree in Commerce from Waseda University.
He had conducted research at Stanford University
and the University of Washington, both are centersof innovation, and established the "Science of
Coaching".
He is also an international business administration scholar, academiccoach, and social entrepreneur who takes on the challenge oftackling global poverty.

Hiroki Sato worked for a major ﬁnancial
institution after studying under Professor
Sugawara at Hokkai-Gakuen University.
He started his own business to provide
support to help his clients realize their
dreams.
He specializes in risk management forcorporate management, and inheritanceand business succession planning.

used to be just like them.
（C.I.）I wanted to speak English more often because I study only grammar and
TOEIC in universityʼs English classes, the same as the classes at highschool. All my stress melts away while I enjoy working with the children,
and also remembering the great times I had at Grad Club.
▶ What are your plans for the future?
（K.I.）I want to become an emergency physician and be involved in emergency
medical care in Japan.
（C.I.）I want to make the hospital a place to relax for Japanese and foreign
patients and be a doctor that patients can rely on.

We look forward to the day when both of them become great doctors!

6