An Outline ofMimamoru
Childcare
1. Childcare Ideals
Catch Phrases: Coexistence and Contribution■ Coexistence
Build a society where children accept and coexist with others, realize that they live in adiverse environment, learn to deepen their understanding about othersʼ existence and enrich it.
■ Contribution
Children who are pleased to aim at (contribute to) better coexistence by using wisdom andknowledge acquired through various experiences.
2. Childcare Policies
Catch Phrase: Childcare that Nurtures Childrenʼs IndependenceChildcare that secures a life where children-driven activities are the key (nurtures such a life).
Childcare that secures play where voluntary activities by children are the key (nurtures independence).
Childcare in line with each childʼs individuality (nurtures individuality).
Childcare that values relationship with people (nurtures social skills).
3. The Objectives of Childcare
Catch Phrase: A Child Who is Natural, Enthusiastic and Considerate
A child who identiﬁes a topic, thinks and acts by itself (child who acts independently).
A child who can do whatever he wants (motivated child).
A child who likes itself (child who has self-esteem).
A child who can share the happiness of others.
4. Method of Childcare
Catch Phrase: Mimamoru Childcare
Multi-age childcare without vertical divisions.
Children-driven childcare.
Childcare with choice according to aim.
Childcare that values relationships.
Team childcare (staﬀ group).

128

Concept Diagram of aChildcare Curriculum
Ideals for Operationof a Nursery School

Propose a new pre-school education in view of the declining birth rate andchanges in the perception of future academic abilityChildcare Ideals

Coexistence and contribution

Key concepts
for Childcare

Independence

Initiative

Individuality

Relationships

Childcare Policy

Childcare that
promotes
independent
activities ofchildrenChildcare that
ensures play forchildrenʼsinitiative

Childcare in linewith theattributes ofeach childChildcarethat values
relationships
with people

Life

Play

Each individual

OthersContext
Objectives ofChildcare
Characteristics
to be Nurtured

A child who is always natural, motivated and considerate
Foster Life

Nurtureindependence

Nurtureindividuality

Nurtureinvolvement

Image of the ChildA child who
A child who
A child who canidentiﬁes a topic,
A child who likes
can do whatevershare othersʼ
thinks and acts
itself (a child who
he/she wants
happinessby itself
has self-esteem)(motivated child)(considerate child)(independent child)Words that denotea childʼs image

Independence

The Ideals of the
Method of Childcare

Methods ofChildcare

Enthusiasm

NaturalGentle with others

Mimamoru childcare
A Multi-age childcare without vertical divisions
B Child-driven childcare
C Selective childcare according to aim
D Selective childcare values relationships
E Team childcare (staﬀ group)

129

The Aims & Contents ofMimamoru Childcare

A Multi-Age Childcare Without Vertical Divisions
Important
PointsImportance ofexperiencing
childrenʼssociety

Experiencing
from various
standpoints

Uniﬁcation ofcare andeducation

130

Direction of
Practice

Aims

Contents

Experienceof urbancommunity
by children

With the declining
population, Childrenʼsgroups at school haveassumed importance as
there are traits thatcannot be nurtured athome. For children,
childrenʼs groups are vital,
as there are many things
that cannot be nurtured inlife based on age-speciﬁcchildcare. The
signiﬁcance of multi-age
childcare is enormous.

For children up to one
year, childcare based on
the stage of development
and not the age will be
carried out.
For children between
three and ﬁve years,
multi-age childcare basedon individual choices will
be carried out. Activities
according to each childʼsdevelopment are possible
as children are in a multiage group.

Ensure selfdiscovery

For self-independence inthe future, it isindispensable to experience
diverse relationships. This
happens because children
are in a group, and eachchild can learn about itself
based on theseexperiences.

Children canunderstand theirways by experiencing
ʻassisting-typechildcareʼ, such as anolder childexperiencing life in
the infantsʼ room

The actual
practice of theprinciples ofchildcare andeducation

Through the suitablegratiﬁcation of various
desires, children become
emotionally stable, andare able to indulge in play
and activities in line withissues of development.
In my opinion, thebackbone of care inchildcare is emotional
stability.

All the contents ofKindergarten
Instruction Procedureand Guidelines forCentre-Based Carewill be taken care of.

Reference
Materials

Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury TypeChildcare, Multi-age
Childrenʼs Group
Without Vertical
Divisions(Published by Sekai
Bunka Co.)

Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury-type
Childcare 3.
Children of age 2class (Published by
Sekai Bunka Co.)B Child-Driven Childcare
Important
PointsDirection of
Practice

Aims

Contents

Reference
Materials

Play
MuseumInstead of regular ʻen
masse childcare(school-type methodof teaching),
guarantee anenvironment wherechildren can dowhatever they want,whenever they want
to. Playing equipment,
environment, layout inline with development
issues are to beplanned.

Zones for creative
activities are to bearranged.
Children can selectand carry out theactivities they want to(with an inquiring mind).

Book:
From Hands-on toMimamoru Childcare(Published by Gakken
Kyoiku)From passive toparticipative
childcare

The modality of set
childcare is that the
caregiver needs toingenuously develop
Workshop typesuitable games instead ofof childcare
giving the children a freechoice and they participate
in several activities
arranged by the caregiver.

In the play zone,
mouldings, picture
books, puzzles, blocks,
etc. are to be arranged.
From free choice by thechildren, subject
matters and materials aswell as diverse plays will
be born.

Childcare where
motherhood &fatherhood arebalanced

From the normalchildcare which
tended to be ʻhandsonʼ, proactive shift toMimamoru childcarefrom the viewpoint of
ensuring
independence.

It becomes possible togive children therequired experiences
through the ideal
support and basic
stance of the
caregiver. (Not dothings for children but
watch over them doing
things independently).

Childcarethrough self
motivated play

Deepen thecontents ofsupport131

C Selective Childcare According to the Aims
Important
PointsAccommodate
diﬀerencesamongindividuals

From agebasedclassiﬁcation todevelopmentbasedclassiﬁcation

Objectivebasedchildcaregroups132

Direction of
Practice

Aims

Independent
playing,eating andsleeping

It is desirable that toguarantee the lifestylerhythm and to suitably carryout each of the activities,
places for playing, eating andsleeping are separate. By
dividing these spaces, there
can be play with a sense of
attainment, pleasant meals
with less likes and dislikes
and afternoon naps
maintaining each individualʼspace.

Based on an efﬁcientlayout and ﬂexibility inthe nursery, eachplace is eﬀective andchildrenʼs activities
are also guaranteed.

Use ofdevelopment
processrecordsoftwareʻMimamoru
Childcareʼ

In order to carry out
childcare based on eachindividualʼs development
and not based on age, ﬁrstof all it is necessary to
grasp the development
issues of each child
precisely. For that, thecheck-type ʻdevelopment
record softwareʼ based on
the Guidelines for CentreBased Care andKindergarten Instruction
Procedure is to be used andseveral caregivers will try to
grasp each childʼs multidirectional development
precisely.

By using the latest
ʻDevelopment
Process Record
Sheetʼ, not just for
infants, the annual
plan of each young
child can be prepared.
Such records areindispensable tocontinuously andobjectively watch
over the growth ofchildren.

Creatively use diﬀerent
forms of childcare
depending on theobjectives, such asʻselective childcareʼ aimed
at the proﬁciency of themind; ʻproﬁciencydependent childcareʼ
aimed at the proﬁciency ofthe body; ʻorder selection
type of childcareʼ aimed at
physical experience; ʻagespeciﬁc childcareʼ where
age-speciﬁc activities arenecessary; and ʻgeneralchildcareʼ needed when
the caregiver shows themodel, etc.

By creatively using
diverse forms ofchildcare such as
selective childcare,
proﬁciencydependent childcare,order selection typeof childcare, age
speciﬁc childcare,general childcare,etc., development
issues can be suitably
provided.

Proposal fora new formof childcare

Contents

Reference
Materials

Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury-type
Childcare, Multi-Age
Childrenʼs Group
Without Vertical
Divisions(Published by Sekai
Bunka Co.)

Development Process
Record SoftwareʻMimamoru Childcareʼ(Developed by theChildcare
Environment
Research Centre
Giving Tree/Caguya
Production)Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury TypeChildcare, Multi-Age
Childrenʼs Group
Without Vertical
Divisions(Published by Sekai
Bunka Co.)

D Childcare that Values Relationships
E Team Childcare (Staﬀ Group)
Important
PointsFour corelational axes

The child andthe caregiverThe
relationshipbetween thenursery schooland local
society

Direction of
Practice

Objectives

Contents

Reference
Materials

Developmentof a newlifestyleChild rearing is originallycarried out by four corelational axes, namely
child and child, child andadult, adult and adult,
and facility (nurseryschool) and local
society. It is the nurseryschoolʼs role to design
the correlation between
these four axes.

The concept shares acommon base withchildcare as a wholeand eventually withsupport for the childand child rearing. The
fact that it is alreadypractised at ournursery school togood eﬀect
evidences thesuperiority of thisconcept.

Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury TypeChildcare, Nurturing
the Power to Livefrom Involvement(Published by Sekai
Bunka Co.)
Support for Child
Rearing Based on
Information(Published by Tsutsui
Shobo)

Practice ofthe teamchildcaretheoryAmong the above mentioned
four relationships, if it isnarrowed down to therelationship between thechild and caregiver, several
caregivers in charge canform a team and share
responsibility with respect tonot just infants but young
children. This is vital for therealization of the type ofchildcare aimed at.

For the developmentof a child, it isdesirable that thechild has theinvolvement ofseveral teachers. The
child can growthrough diverse
interpersonal
relationships.

Book, DVD:
Advocacy of 21stCentury TypeChildcare 4. Concept
and Procedure forTeam Childcare(Published by Sekai
Bunka Co.)

Building thenode for the
relationshipIn the relationship between
the nursery school and theguardian, support isextended to the parent forchild rearing. In addition to
explaining the concepts andcontents of childcare, theshape of the desirable
parent-child relationship iscommunicated. In therelationship with local
society, support is given to
make people grow fromguests to staﬀ by getting
involved in the activities of
the nursery school. Further,with regard to support forchild rearing, support isextended to make themgrow from recipients to
support givers.

Amidst diverse value
systems, it will bepossible to promote
community building
where everyone
accepts one anotherand everyone canraise children with arelaxed mind.

Book:
Urban Community(Published by Tsutsui
Shobo)

133

Materials: The Complete
Childcare Curriculum:
Shinjuku Seiga Nursery SchoolChildcare curriculum (hereafter, the curriculum) implies thecurriculum formulated to achieve the childcare objectives speciﬁed in
Chapter 1 (General Rules) of the Guidelines for Centre-Based Careannounced in 2008 through childcare ideals, policy, objectives andmethods set up by the Shinjuku Seiga Nursery, Social Welfare
Corporation Seigakai (hereafter, this nursery) keeping the needs of thetimes and region in mind. Moreover, the curriculum also takes into
consideration the actual situation in a region, the status of children andtheir families, childcare time, etc. as well as long-term perspectives
concerning the upbringing of children, continuity of life, the developmentof children and the originality and ingenuity of this nursery.

The Times and Regional Backgroundto Prepare a Childcare Curriculum
Educational and Childcare Reforms Across the World
Educational circles across the world are undergoing turmoil on accountof countermeasures resulting from the survey of scholastic performanceof PISA carried out by the OECD. However, a move in the same
direction has already started in the 1970s. The reform process inparticular had started in the advanced nations of the West. There are
two major reasons behind this:134

1. The Declining Birth Rate in the Advanced Countries of the West
Relationships between children undergo a change as birth rates decline.
There is no spontaneous childrenʼs group. Therefore, it becomes difﬁcult
to nurture childrenʼs abilities based on childrenʼs groups.
Besides, the relationships between adults and children also undergochanges. Earlier, each child could not be attended to individually but
now it is possible and for children too, there is unnecessary interference
by adults which at times becomes excessive. Adults restraining or
instructing childrenʼs actions robs children of their initiative and resultsin loss of creative thinking and judgement powers. Moreover, themotivation for children to do things on their own, i.e. independence,
does not get nurtured. Such excessive interference by adults makes
children dependent.

2. Changes in the Abilities Required of Children in the Future
One of the major changes in recent years is that the abilities expectedof children has undergone change. To be more precise, it is the change
in the so-called ʻperception of academic achievementʼ. Earlier,remembering topics was the main priority of learning and the criteria
for measuring the capability of a student was how much that childremembered. Even examinations were about testing the childʼsmemory. In other words, high academic achievement meant memorizing
and the ability to do many things. However, with the emergence of thecomputer, merely cramming knowledge lost its meaning.
Thus, when trying to shift from memorizing to ensuring properdevelopment, the key words for the creation of a new education andchildcare scheme is to eliminate general and uniform childcare andeducation.
For the transfer of knowledge, childcare has to change to one where
the caregiver can guide children to more eﬀective, and make groups
that are easy to control. Hereafter, the objectives of childcare are tocreate an environment that promotes independent activities by children
and ensures that play too, is an independent activity, which is in linewith the characteristics of each child; to provide guidance on how tobuild relationships with people, enhance their inquiring minds andstrive for cooperative study within childrenʼs groups.

135Childcare Ideals(Coexistence and Contribution)
The aim is to nurture children who can coexist, contribute and havecivic sense, i.e. that they are members of society. Further, the image ofthe ideal child is also the image of the ideal adult as a human being.
(1) Coexistence

The Japanese are good at group formation because they are said to haveexcellent ʻreceptivenessʼ and ʻempathyʼ. On the other hand, they areoften criticized for not asserting themselves. However, in the Japanesemethod of self-assertion, the opponent is not pushed aside orconquered, the self-assertion is made only after empathizing with andaccepting the other person. This is a communication skill of apredominantly agrarian race nurtured in the transient Japaneseclimate, which Japan can be proud of.
However, groups formed by the Japanese functioned bymaintaining self-existence and cannot always be called good. Groups
meant for maintaining the self, excluded those which were diﬀerent
from it.
Today we are aiming at a society that deepens the self. We want toform groups where children accept and coexist with others, while atthe same time deepen and enrich their lives as well as that of others.
(2) Contribution

If you ask a parent ʻWhat kind of person do you want your child tobecome?ʼ He/she would often say ʻA gentle personʼ or ʻsomeone whodoes not cause trouble to othersʼ, etc. But is there a child who does notcause any trouble to others?
However independent a person may be, no one can do everythingby themselves.
There is no one who does not cause some trouble to others.
Asking others to do what one cannot do or which is beyond oneʼs
capability, is also self-reliance or independence. And in the process, the136

person who helps out, makes up for the trouble he/she caused others bycontributing what he/she can do.
The meaning of acquiring wisdom and knowledge through diverse
experiences does not lie in remembering things. It has meaning if that
wisdom and knowledge are used for coexistence and contributing toothers. We are aiming at a child who is happy to be useful to others.

Educational Policy: Childcare that
Nurtures Childrenʼs Independence
For Children to recognize one another amidst diverse values and makea shift from belonging to a group that denies the ʻindividualʼ to one
that creates ʻindividualsʼ.
In the past, the ʻcommunityʼ was a group whose aim was that allindividuals maintained an identical set of values. There is a common
notion that a group ignores or suppresses individuals. However, aperson cannot live alone. At present, it is strongly demanded thatchildren should learn self-reliance and self-discipline throughinterpersonal relationships. This is because an individual cannot beestablished unless he/she lives in a group. Interpersonal relationships
are similar for adults as well. Relationships are not born in an isolatedfamily or workplace. People have spoken about the loss of local
societies for some time and what is demanded today is not thecommunity of the past but an aggregate where everyone comes
together and recognizes each other to form a society.
(1) Childcare that Ensures Children-Driven Activities

A child who carries out independent activities is one who identiﬁes anissue, thinks about it and acts on its own accord. (This is a transition
from others carrying out activities or getting them done by someone

137

else to the child performing the activities on its own.) For that, thechild has to interact with the environment on his own accord.
Naturally, the environment here does not mean only the spaces; it
includes people ‒ the caregivers (team), multi-age groups, thecommunity, objects (from playing implements prescribed by speciﬁc
activities to those conceived by the child) and spaces (outdoor space ‒nature ‒ and indoor space such as diﬀerent zones, etc.). Amidst suchenvironments, in order to change to childcare that gives children
realistic choices, self-determination and assured mastery of thedevelopment process, childcare based on an age-based curriculum thatsacriﬁces individual and personality developments needs to bereviewed. And an environment that ensures individual and groupdevelopment (from individual and group together, to interaction
between the two) has to be created in the nursery school.
(2) Childcare that Ensures Children-Driven Play Activities

The nursery is treated as a games museum and for voluntary activities
by children and environment in which children get involved
independently is arranged. Thus children transform from being passive
to participative and the approach changes from ʻteaching-typechildcareʼ to ʻchildcare in which children act on their ownʼ. Here,caregivers are not teachers, they are facilitators. They do not teach but
perform the role of extracting or promoting. From hands-on childcare,they change to Mimamoru childcare, whereby they recognize thediﬀerences between children and respond to these while adopting ahands-oﬀ approach. Further, considering the diﬀerent types ofchildrenʼs groups, such as groups in line with the aims, groups which
are places for lively activities for children, groups which guarantee
childrenʼs development, class groups and childcare activity groups are
considered ﬂexibly.
(3) Childcare Matching the Attributes of Each Individual

When changing from hands-on education and childcare to childcare
where each child acts on its own, the task naturally alters from ʻwhat138

to giveʼ to ʻwhat they can acceptʼ. Therefore, naturally the concept ofʻequalʼ also undergoes a change from giving everyone the same thingequally to everyone accepting the same thing equally. Here, theconcept of ʻinclusionʼ is vital. It is one step ahead of ʻintegrationʼ.
Upbringing during pre-schooling is not necessarily important for
the next schooling stage. It is important to equip children with thenecessary powers needed for life in the future. For that, it must be
ensured that children live the present in the best way possible and thusbuild a desirable future. Under such prospects, one should not justthink of only one time slot or phase, one needs to realize that childrenʼs
lives are continuous, and the continuity of their development is vitalfor them to live the present in a better manner.
(4) Childcare that Values Relationships

The concept of the group has also undergone a change. For example, forreasons of eﬃciency, in a group in a large factory in an industrial
society it has changed from ʻto everyone at one goʼ, to ʻcooperative
learningʼ in the ʻurban communityʼ where everyone recognizes eachotherʼs diﬀerences and coexists. Here, we need a shift from the conceptof ʻinclusionʼ where individuals recognize one another to ʻcohesionʼ
where individuals are linked to one another.

Freedom and Self-Discipline
The concept of freedom has been discussed for a long while. It is said
that children should be left to make their own choices. However, there
is considerable misunderstanding about the term freedom. This isbecause there are similar terms such as: ʻleave a person to do what helikesʼ, ʻarbitraryʼ, ʻselﬁshʼ, etc. However, every person has freedom andthat must be guaranteed, but there are some rules. It is necessary to
reaﬃrm that rules are not meant to rob people of freedom but toensure everyoneʼs freedom. The concept of coexistence is essential inthis case. Moreover, if these rules are followed when instructed byothers, it is no longer freedom. Here, the power of self-discipline
becomes necessary. This is learnt from childrenʼs groups.

139

Objectives of Childcare: Children Who are Their
Natural Selves, Motivated and Considerate(1) Cultivate sentiment, enthusiasm and the attitude to search out
the issue; think and act on oneʼs own within an environment
equipped with the elements of childcare and education.
(An environment that encourages children-driven activities.)
Childrenʼs lives can be broadly divided into 3 elements, namely,
playing, eating and sleeping. By providing independent space for thesein a nursery school, in addition to accommodating diﬀerences in thetime taken by each child for eating and sleeping, each one can play toits heartʼs content. Thus, independent spaces for playing, eating andsleeping, while ensuring the rhythm of lifestyle of each child, would
encourage independent activities accompanied by a sense of security,
satisfaction and attainment. In turn, children would develop a feelingof consideration and responsibility for others and it would be possible
to raise children who have both freedom as well as responsibility(independence and self discipline).
(2) Cultivate sentiment, enthusiasm and the attitude to carry out
independent, creative activities, satisfy oneʼs desires fully anddevelop freedom and responsibility in an environment
equipped with the elements of childcare and education.
(An environment that encourages children-driven play.)Children thinking on their own and deciding to ʻdoʼ or ʻknowʼ
something is an important desire that is linked to independent andcreative play, and each child has an indigenous desire to do so. In orderto suitably satisfy this desire, in addition to providing the space forthese activities, in task childcare, the children are given a ʻchoiceʼ toselect their own activities. There are three types of ʻchoice systemsʼ:ʻselective childcareʼ where children select the game they are interested

140in; ʻdevelopment-based choiceʼ where the level of games is chosen basedon the childrenʼs development so that support for playing it better canbe provided; and ʻorder-based choiceʼ where the order is ﬁxed for thechildren to play the games. In each case, children think, select andplay the games themselves. By making the selection, they satisfy their
desires suﬃciently, develop the requisite judgement power and acquire
freedom and responsibility. At each stage of play, by providing the
support matching each childʼs development, caregivers can provide
guidance where children are able to respond to it.
(3) Cultivate sentiment, enthusiasm and attitude so that children
are healthy, both physically and mentally, and have selfesteem, under an environment equipped with the elements ofchildcare and education.
(An environment that matches the attributes of each child.)
Development varies from child to child. Especially in the age group of
three to ﬁve years, spontaneous individual activities and relationships withfriends develop conspicuously. In order to watch over this development(depending on each individual), in the class of children aged three to ﬁve,with multi-age classes as the base, team childcare is introduced so thatchildren can have valuable experiences in a multi-age group.
(4) Cultivate sentiment, enthusiasm and attitude to nurture thesentiment of sharing other peopleʼs happiness and enjoy arelationship with other people, under an environment equippedwith the elements of childcare and education.
(An environment that values relationships between people.)
Child-raising is not just based on the relationship between the parent
and child; it is based on diverse relationships. Naturally, relationships
between adults are also included in this and both children and adults
grow in the process. A nursery school designs such diverse relationships
and there must be a group that builds individuals. Even with regard to141

relationships with the community, people from the community develop
ʻfrom guest to staﬀʼ based on their involvement in the nurseryʼs
activities. And even with regard to support for child rearing, in myopinion development from ʻrecipient of supportʼ to ʻsupport giverʼ isimportant. Based on such interactive relationships between people andbetween people and the facility, people acquire the power to haverelationship with other people, the power to live and the group canhave the power to raise children.

Methods of Childcare:
Mimamoru Childcare(1) Multi-Age Childcare Without Vertical Divisions:
Inclusive Childcare
When a shift is made from hands-on childcare, i.e. the teachingapproach or doing things for children, to hands-oﬀ childcare, wherechildren-driven activities are guaranteed, i.e. children interact with theenvironment and act on their own accord while support is extended,
the aims of the curriculum need to be revised in part. Departing fromestablished notions about children and the preconceived notions ofadults, a plan has to be made giving topmost priority to thedevelopment and individuality of the child and its environment. Each
person has several established notions and the average preconceived
notions depend on the country, economic status, sex, disability, etc.
Today in Japan, the largest established notion is about age. Age in theChildcare Guidelines is part of the process of development and is no
more than a criterion. We need to take into account continuity of theindividualʼs development and alter the childcare that carefully
guarantees it.

142(2) Children-Driven Childcare = Mimamoru Childcare

Mimamoru is a common word one often hears or comes across. I began
using this word in childcare which is at the opposite end of ʻdo it forsomeoneʼ when I felt the need to shift from ʻinfant care which wasgetting closer to the model called motherʼ or from ʻchildcare that gavepriority to the perception to teach something to childrenʼ to ʻchildcarethat builds the environment for the natural development of childrenʼ.
This is because children develop on their own and theirdevelopment is not based on teaching. Leaving aside what is good orbad, it is possible to educate children at an early stage. If taught, evenan infant can remember tables and speak English. However, we cannot
advance or delay the process of development.
An infant cannot suddenly start walking without experiencing
crawling. It is widely known that if there is no adequate environment
for an infant to crawl, the duration for crawling becomes shorter and if
the infant starts standing and walking faster, there may be problems
with its subsequent growth. Hence, the caregiver does not need to lenda helping hand or hold the infant from behind so that it can standfaster, but build an environment where the infant can crawl
suﬃciently during the period when it must crawl. This ensures thecontinuity of development.
One of the stages of development is the progression from crawlingto holding a support and standing, to standing independently and thenwalking. Instead of just preparing a large place to let the child crawl
on its own, the caregiver should stand at a place slightly beyond thepoint up to which the child can crawl, and in case child gives out some
sign, the caregiver must notice it and respond suitably.
To do this, it is crucial that the caregiver is not very close to thechild but is ʻwatchingʼ the child from a distance. He/she should notʻdoʼ what the child wants but at the same time should not be just aspectator. ʻObservingʼ the process of development of each child closely,
the caregiver must ʻwatchʼ and provide suitable ʻassistanceʼ.
And that is Mimamoru Childcare.

143

(3) Selective Childcare in Line With the Aims

A group has many positive forces. Group education is an extremely
eﬃcient method particularly when imparting knowledge. However, atthe same time, in group education, the individualʼs will andindividuality and diﬀerence in development are ignored.
Group education or education as imparted a decade ago can becompared to tō fu. It was similar to boiling various types of beans,crushing them and baking them to give them the shape and texture of
tōfu, a completely diﬀerent item. If any extraneous material waspresent, it was eliminated.
It was likely to receive power from the group but in the process theobjective became to make a good group (clean, soft t ō fu). It was likeputting the cart before the horse.
Therefore, the trend changed to respecting each childʼs individuality
and values and while attaching importance to each childʼs will, toenhance the individuality. However, if this individuality proceeds in thewrong direction, the group will not function well. It is like classroom
chaos. Self-assertion at the cost of others or actions neglecting the rulesof coexistence should never be respected. Children can never receive any
power from a dysfunctional group with rampant individuality.
(4) Childcare that Values Involvement

The concept of a group has also undergone a change. From ʻto everyone
at one goʼ in a group in the large factory in an industrial society forreasons of eﬃciency, it has changed to ʻcooperative learningʼ in theʻurban Communityʼ where everyone recognizes each otherʼs diﬀerences
and coexists.
Cohesive Childcare: The Natt Ŀ (Fermented beans) Theory
Along with recognizing and attaching importance to the individual, it isnecessary to link individuals and build a new group. I have given it thename ʻNatt ō Theoryʼ. Even in the West, which led the way for
individualism, the concept of ʻcohesionʼ is being pursued in right earnest.
To be more precise, large and small beans are boiled together, not tomake t ō fu but nattō . The beans are not crushed and solidiﬁed but are
fermented and mixed and are linked by a sticky thread. The beans are
mixed well to produce more threads. They are held together by this144

thread and they do not separate from each other. It is not an indistinct
combination, but at the same time, they are not loose.
Similarly, while recognizing each individualʼs diﬀerences andexpanding their respective individuality and competence, we want to linkthem closely. As Japanese, who are good at extracting taste fromstickiness, I think we can create a new group which is not uniform but
like nattō , where each individual is held together closely. And this is theso called social cohesion.
Childcare for Physically Challenged Children = Pleiades
Each time mankind has faced a major crisis, it is said to have evolved
itself in order to survive. If all human beings had the same genes, in theevent of a major problem or disorder, all mankind would have been
destroyed. To perform the roles of man and woman, the structure of theirbrains diﬀer and in order to survive, the structure and capabilities of theirbodies have also developed diﬀerently. In this regard, children withphysical or developmental disabilities also have their respective roles toplay, which are diﬀerent. Children understand this not through theirbrains, but naturally.
Of course, children with disabilities have to be trained to acquiresocial skills. If a child who cannot sit on a chair is left in a group, hecannot learn to sit. To enable such a child to live a basic social life,
training as a part of the basic academic skills is needed.
Developmental disabilities (they should be called developmental
biases instead of developmental disabilities), are disorders acquired
during the formative period, and so cannot be cured, nor can it worsen.
Therefore, instead of focusing only on the part which has a low capability
and correcting it, it would be beneﬁcial for the child as well as for society
if the superior part in that child is discovered. Instead of focusing on
supplementing the weak part, we should develop the part that can beenhanced so as to convert it into a power that can contribute elsewhere.
When everyone is creating things with a pair of scissors, we
caregivers will teach the child who cannot use them properly. The
purpose is not to make the child dexterous in using the scissors but tomake that child enjoy the craftwork and be able to exhibit its strength.
If that child is made to practise using scissors till he is able to usethem properly, it will lose the creative ﬁre. Using scissors easily is simply
a tool and not the purpose. Support to challenged children is not much
diﬀerent from this.
I think of Pleiades when I think of educating challenged children.
Pleiades is a star cluster. The word Pleiades means to ʻbring togetherʼ.
Each star in the cluster emits its own light and a big beautiful light isemitted from the cluster. Each of these stars emitting light is achallenged child, a normal child, a male, a female and children of
diﬀerent ages.

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The Development Process of Children
IIn the light of eight development processes mentioned in the Guidelines for CentreBased Care, Chapter 2, ʻDevelopment of Childrenʼ, notiﬁed in 2008, we understandthe attributes for childrenʼs development and carry out childcare paying attention totheir development and continuity of life. Here, caregivers implement Mimamoru
childcare that provides support for development while grasping the physical andmental status of the children.
Childcare Time, Number of Children and Number of Employees
In principle, childcare time is for eight hours a day. (Individual childcare
timings within the working hours of the nursery school depend on theguardianʼs working hours.)
Starting time: Normal Time: 0700AM -0630PM (11 hours)
Extended Time 0630PM-0830PM (2 hours)
Number of children : Below one year: 15 children
Two-year-old children: 20
Four-year-old children: 20

One-year-old children: 20
Three-year-old children: 20
Five-year-old children: 20

Number of employees : Principal: 1
Vice-Principal: 1Administrative Head: 1
Nurses: 26 or more
Part-time helpers: Very few
Clinical nurse: 1
Dieticians: 2
Cooks: 2
Janitor: 1Long-Term Prospects of Childcare(1) Transition to Primary School

In the book entitled Starting Strong various socio-economic factors,
concepts, research, etc. which have a bearing on policies on infancy havebeen described for twenty OECD countries. At present, thinking aboutpreschool education and how to make a smooth transition from preschool
to formal education seems to be a policy issue in every country. Thistransition generally becomes a stimulus for growth and development, but
if children are suddenly put into formal education without proper
thought, the book warns that it runs the risk of resulting in regression or146

failure among children.
In Starting Strong, cases of successful transitions to schools havebeen explained. It recommends that during the transition to formal
schooling, instead of ʻpreparation at the schoolʼ, the years at the nursery
should be the preparatory stage for life in the wider sense and the basicstage for life-long learning, as it is practised in countries that have an inbuilt tradition of social education. Its main objective is that instead of
all children acquiring speciﬁc knowledge or levels of proﬁciency inadvance, their motivation, interest and self-conﬁdence in learning should
be enhanced.
Japan has been gradually falling behind in the survey of academic
performance by OECD. For this reason, Japan reviewed its education to
introduce Yutori (education without cramming) and ʻinterdisciplinary
learningʼ was curtailed. However, symptoms of decline were alreadyvisible from much before. ʻMotivation for learningʼ the main objective
was the lowest in Japan among all the countries surveyed. Moreover,Japanese children are said to lack self-conﬁdence. On the other hand,
they have plenty of speciﬁc knowledge and their level of proﬁciency isalso high. It has become the main objective in Japan.
Further, as for the form of learning, the method recommended by
ECEC is the active education method where guidance is not given by
adults but is based on mutual learning and group projects.
(2) Upbringing in Establishment-Type Childcare

If we observe the upbringing of present-day children, during earlychildhood it has become diﬃcult for children to grow in society andthe task on hand is to provide children with the opportunity to makethem members of society. Another problem is that the transition from
infancy, i.e. forming childrenʼs groups and learning from them has
become diﬃcult to carry out at home and in local society. To do this,centre-based care, to develop the power to interact with people andnurture the base for independence through proper development from
infancy has assumed greater importance. It is essential that childcare ischanged in line with the times to nurture children who can observe
the times properly and are ahead of their times.

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