Front cover: craft "Baby sea turtles run toward the ocean
When the tiny turtles tottered down the rock they jumped into the ocean one after another!
It seems like they are enjoying the beautiful sea for the ﬁrst time while being surrounded by the waves.
They look adorable with their faces ﬁlled with wonder.
If you look closeｌ
ｙ you ll see every turtle is diﬀerent.

E x p a n ding fut ure pos s ibilit ies

4

L e tʼ s e n jo yc o lo ri n g !

Speaking of turtles...
One of our phonics characters is "Tired Turtle".
He doesn't like to stay in one place so he always tries to explore.
There are so many diﬀerent places to meet new people.
He can get along with anyone, anywhere!

Please share your ideas!
Hiraku provides useful information and the latest news related to English and childhood education.

・Your recent interests

・Topics you want us to cover

・New content etc…

If you have ideas to contribute, please share these with us!
Hiraku Editorial Department TEL：06-6135-0150 Mail： hiraku@kinderkids.ed.jp

Published inJuly 2019 Vol.4
Next issue isplanned to comeat the end of September

Kinder Kids Inc.
TEL：06-6135-0150
Pulala Tenma 2F, 3-1 Ikeda-cho,Kita-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka. 530-0033

www.kinderkids.com

What is the best educationｓ
ｙｓtem for developing dynamic children?
EIKEN test admission starts soon！
" What you need to know about the EIKEN test"
Japanese Spirit with an International Future. Kinder Kids inc.

An education system to cope with"ﬁrst-grade challenges at elementary school"

FeatureStoryDiﬃculties children face whenentering elementary school.
Adjusting to unfamiliar surroundings, new routines, newteachers and peers is a challenge for any child.
Time schedules in preschools or nursery schools are generally
not so rigid but in elementary school there is a daily schedule
to follow and children are required to be independent for basic
life skills.
Depending on the child, this can be a cause ofsome stress and can take some time to get used to.

How can we ensure a smoothtransition for children
from preschool to elementary school.
There are a number of challenges facing children as they make the transition
from preschool to elementary school. In partnership with parents, we strive toeducate children in an enjoyable and constructive way to help them feel prepared and conﬁdent when making the transition.

ElegantElephantExited Fox

How to prepare for elementary school.
Preparation for elementary school can start from nursery level when a child ﬁrst experiences
parent-child separation. At Kinder Kids we encourage students to enjoy being able to do
things by themselves. Children gradually learn how to look after their belongings, dress andfeed themselves, be considerate of their friends, share and work in teams. In every grade skills
are built through our curriculum, children develop life and social skills and become more
independent.

AprilSports Festivala t ho m

Experiencing
a sense ofachievement

DecemberMoving up toelementary
school with
conﬁdence andexcitement

elementaryschools

March
Graduation!

Christmas
ConcertThe first step towardelementary school life.
Encourage independence and step
into new elementary school
life with confidence!

e!

Preparation forelementar yschool enrolment

1

SeptemberCampingMoving up toK3 level!

itTry

Fostering
independence,andcooperation

Feeling
proud to bethe biggest
kids at school

K3

As students progress into K3, there is more emphasis on respecting friends,
communicating and interacting with each other. Learning to take turns andcooperate with classmates, as well as developing their motor skills andliteracy helps children feel more conﬁdent and more prepared to graduate
and move up to elementary school.

It is expected children will need to be in school around 8 am andto be able to sit and focus on their lessons for 45 minutes periods. Our schedule at Kinder Kids prepares children well for thisas they experience longer periods of concentration throughworkbook and journal activities. There is also a good range ofskills practiced each day, from numeracy to making craf t ,through to theme discussions and outdoor play.
Our reading programs help to develop their vocabulary and theprocess of discovering new words is a skill that transfers acrosslanguages. We recommend that children read as many books as
possible and encourage you to talk about the stories as a family.

Jyuken and Gakusyu
Department
Kumiko Shinoda
2Four things youshould know
when your child istaking the EIKEN test

Get to know

EIKEN!
Test admission
starts soon!

For more details, visit ourKinder or Grad portal site

2019

1

EIKEN test ﬁrst timers
What grade isrecommended for ﬁrst
time EIKEN test takers?

We recommend starting with Grade 4!
Firstly, it is important to be familiar
with the format of the EIKEN test,
ﬁlling in the mark sheets correctly
and to build a sense of achievement
when passing the test. Then tr y ahigher grade.
Take it step by step to reduce tension
and build conﬁdence when taking theEIKEN test.

3 Which are better?

Public test sites orGroup test sites?

It depends on your child's age andpersonality.
Beneﬁts of taking the test at agroup test site are that participants
are comprised of similar ages andthe test super visor is familiar withthe kids. We aim to create test sites
where children feel more relaxed.
Public test sites will include older
participants and it will be held in aclassroom at a university. Depending on your child's preference,
diﬀerent and less familiar surroundings may bring better results.

3Applications start:
At the end of July～
Mock test: September 15thFirst Stage: October 6th
Second Stage: November 10th

On the website for the EIKEN Foundation ofJapan, You can ﬁnd a page called "for kids!"
You can see the details of the test. Past examquestions are available for your preparation.
There is also a description of how to ﬁll
in the mark sheet, and what to expect
on the test day etc..
Please take a look with your child!

英検 Kids

2 Which is better?

Public test sites are established byth e EI K E N Fo un d a tio n of J ap an .
Usually your test site will be locatedin the region you request when you
apply.
Group test sites are operated at 4Kinder Kids schools in Shinagawa,Nagoya, Osaka and Nishinomiya.

in4 FillingMark sheetsChildren are required to ﬁll inpersonal information such as theirname and address on the marksheet.
A parent can remain in the test
room until 5 minutes before the test
begins so a parent can ﬁll in thename and address on behalf of thechild if needed.

Fi l e0 0 1

SuccessfulExamineesT.KEntr ant

受験年月Gradeat the examSchoolOsaka

Test date2019 January （the third exam in 2018）

GradePre-2

K3

How I studied vocabulary
I used a book that contains Pre-2 grade past
exams and solved the problems as best as I could.
Two weeks before the test
I really focused on studying.
Studying

Word

I studied withmy mother and when I came acrossdifficult English vocabulary she explained how
I could use it in a sentence.

Studying

Whenever I had journal homework,
I tried to write as much as possible each week.
When my mother checked and corrected
it for me, I would read it again and try toremember it.

How I understood the questions

Family support

I asked my mother then she explained
to me in a way that I could understand.
I completed the past exam book thengot used to the questions and became
able to understand more and more.

I (Mum) worked with my son worked on his
Kinder Kids homework, preparation for show andtell and also past exam questions. When he didn't
know the answer, we thought through it
together and I tried to make him feel
confident to take the EIKEN test.

What do you like about Kinder Kids
Because I learned English at Kinder Kids,
I enjoy talking with my native teacher inEnglish lessons at my elementary school.

Next goal
I want to pass EIKEN Grade 1
one day. I hope I can pass Grade 2
and pre-1 by elementary school Grade 4.

Ki nde r Ki ds

Our overall results
Test date

January 27th 2019 （The third test in 2018）

Passing rate ofGrade 3

76％Writing

Passing rate ofGrade pre-2

Test takers

K3

5 out of 14

test takers

86% of test takers from Kinder Kids K3 who are taking the EIKEN course pass the EIKEN test!
Questionnaire conducted by: General Research Ltd. Survey period: February 22-25, 2019
Survey method: Internet Survey summary: Comparison of services oﬀered by 10 English focused pre-schools
Survey participants:1048 Japanese adults M/F aged 20-50

4TopicKobe Seaside
ClubGrad Club Department Kumiko Yamashita

feedback into our service

I have been working at Kinder Kids for 14 years.
I started working as a member of the Grad Club from this spring toassist with expanding our services.
Now Kinder Kids graduates number more than 3000 students withmore and more joing each year after graduating. We aim to continue
providing a fun curriculum for children and to expand our Kinder
Kids family connection around the world.
For the ﬁrst step, we will provide more opportunities for graduate
students to come back to Kinder Kids more casually. Currently weprovide opportunities for graduate students to come back to Kinder
Kids such as a work experience program for junior high school
students, summer school volunteering for high school students,
part-time jobs at our Kobe Seaside Club and internship programs forcollege students. We will make sure that information is available toas many graduate students as possible in order to provide more
opportunities for them to participate in these events.
Also we will introduce updates about graduate students and encourage them to reconnect and network.
We value graduate parents' opinions, suggestions and concerns. I'm
raising three kids in elementary school and junior high school andall of them are Kinder Kids graduates. Like you, I struggle every day
with bringing them up so I truly understand your point of view.
Please feel free to tell me what you think about Grad Club, what you
expect of us, any feedback, or anything else you want to talk to me
about regarding your child's English improvement.

Implementing parental

Providing an English
learning environmentfor Kinder Kids
graduates

Only for summer weekends！
"Kobe Seaside Club" is open thisyear again！
Kobe Seaside Club is a facility thatis attached to Kobe Seaside
School in Suma. It is exclusive toKinder Kids' students and theirfamilies. There is an outdoor pool
overlooking Suma beach, we serve
meals and drinks plus provide
entertaining activities for children.
You will feel like you are in an
overseas resort but with the comfort of knowing the environment issafe and exclusive. Come down
and enjoy your time with us at
Kobe Seaside Club！
HPysAlwalar!
uppoTritanCoralFacebook

Charity Night Carnival
2-1-31 Sumauradori, Suma-ku
HyogokenFor our ﬁnal event of the season at
Kobe Seaside Club, on August 24th,
we will hold the charity night carnival
this year again! This year, we will havea spectacular Ninja performance!
Captain Kip

The proceeds from the charity
event will be used to support ourCambodian school project.
5Delphina

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