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Membership	2026

2024 Annual Report

Our kindergarten is surrounded by a lush, green environment with 800 trees spread across a varied landscape. The playground is well-equipped with a small hill, a well, a tree deck, a woodworking area, and other physical resources for children to explore the wonder of nature. We emphasize a collaborative learning community (“Seiwa Learning Community”), where parents, local residents, and experts in the world work together, sharing educational perspectives and establishing strong relationships.
To ensure a well-structured and actionable approach, we have specialized committees such as the Multicultural and the Special Support Committee, which discuss and implement various initiatives. Our kindergarten, which has a capacity of 228 children, includes 22 children with disabilities and 20 families of foreign origin. Among our 50 staff members, there are also two foreign-born employees and one staff member with a disability.
Children are encouraged to explore their interests at their own pace, experiment, innovate, and create. They engage in deep inquiry until they are satisfied with their inquiry. Through their everyday experiences, engaging with both the local and global communities in a diverse environment, we foster a culture where each individual feels comfortable and valued in their own way.

1. Rice Paddy Biotope
Every year, five-year-old children cultivate rice in a rural rice paddy located about a 15-minute drive from the kindergarten. Although a biotope already exists within the kindergarten premises, it does not attract any living creatures. To foster children’s interest in living organisms, help them closely observe the growth and transformation of rice, and deepen their awareness of food, the environment was improved by introducing a rice paddy biotope using wooden sleepers, a practice also implemented in Taiwan.
During the improvement process, students from the nearby Tokyo Metropolitan Yamasaki High School and parents participated, sharing children’s curiosity about rice paddies with them. Local vegetable and rice farmers also visited, engaging with the children through discussions on paddy creation and rice cultivation. Through these practical activities, children learned about the rice growth cycle, including soil preparation, rice planting, harvesting, threshing, husking, and the utilization of straw.
Additionally, children in Taiwan and Japan connected online during the process, allowing them to learn about rice cultivation practices in Taiwan. During the harvest, the harvested rice was hung near the kindergarten’s rice paddy to dry before threshing. However, the children noticed that sparrows and other birds were pecking at the grains. In response, they built scarecrows as a countermeasure. The children carefully husked the rice grains by hand, treating each grain with care throughout the entire harvesting process. During winter, they tilled the soil together, preparing for the next year’s rice cultivation.

2. Experiencing and Practicing Traditional Japanese Culture
Two years ago, parents of our kindergarten took us one silkworm. Since last year, we have been cultivating silkworms, initially raising about 50 and later challenging ourselves to double the number to 100. The children also had the opportunity to visit activities conducted at nearby Wako-Tsurukawa Elementary School in Machida-city and Yarimizu Elementary School in Hachioji City. During these visits, they observed the process of spinning silk from cocoons and learned firsthand how much mulberry leaves should be given to the silkworms. The techniques learned during these visits were then put into practice at the kindergarten, where the children engaged in various spinning methods, including using a thread winder and repurposing milk cartons for spinning.
Additionally, the staff and users who have disabilities from the craft workshop LaMano regularly visit the kindergarten to set up the warp threads on the weaving loom. This allows the children to observe the process as part of their daily routine and directly ask the staff any questions they are interested in. In June, the five-year-old children visited LaMano over two separate days, where they experienced weaving on a loom and dyeing with indigo. The kindergarten also has its own loom and indigo leaves, enabling the children to apply what they learned during their visit and continue their hands-on experience within the kindergarten.

3. Food & the World
Every year, we incorporate dishes from various countries into the kindergarten lunch menu. Additionally, we connect online with countries that have ties to the children, parents, and staff. This year, we engaged with Malawi, Taiwan, and Australia. The children watched videos showcasing each country’s buildings, transportation, and other aspects of daily life, then asked questions based on their observations. Among the most frequently asked questions were those related to food. Some questions were based on prior research conducted by the children, while others arose spontaneously during the online sessions.
Malawian cuisine was incorporated into the lunch menu in advance. Our connection with Australia was established through the family of a kindergarten parent, leading to an online meetup. During the conversation, meat pies, a common dish in Australia, became a topic of interest, and the children later enjoyed them as part of their lunch.
For Taiwan, we connected with a kindergarten that had also created a rice paddy within its premises. The children asked questions about environmental considerations for growing rice and discussed challenges related to the creatures that gather around the fields.
Beyond online interactions, a parent from Romania introduced their homeland’s cuisine by cooking “Salată de Vinete (Romanian eggplant salad)” together with the children. This hands-on cooking experience provided an opportunity to explore unfamiliar cooking techniques that are not commonly used in Japan.

4. Involved in Creating Community Spaces with the Other Organizations

Seiwa Kindergarten children and staff as members of this area have been actively involved in creating community spaces. Seiwa Kindergarten has been establishing central gathering places for the community such as the Yamasaki Danchi Bouken Asobiba (Yamasaki Danchi Adventure Playground) with Tokyo Metropolitan Yamasaki High School, a UNESCO-associated school, neighborhood associations, and shops of shopping streets.
The activities were planned in collaboration with high school students and staff at Seiwa Kindergarten, allowing them to take part in the decision-making process. Staff go to the high school to join the workshop to talk. These activities were carried out using local resources.

Annual Work Plan

1. Creating Soil with sensory play using rice paddy soil
-Rice planting, Observation of rice growth and creatures in the rice paddy
-Harvesting rice
-Reflecting on last Year’s experiences with children and implementing bird deterrent measures
-Threshing, Husking by hand
-Eating harvested rice
-Preparing the soil
Involving parents and local communities in the rice paddy activities.
Continuously documenting changes in the rice paddy and sharing updates.

2. Experiencing and Practicing Traditional Japanese Culture
Next year, we will continue working with Craft Workshop LaMano, engaging in warp thread setting on the loom and visiting the workshop. We will also continue raising silkworms and utilizing cocoons, while incorporating food education activities related to okara (soy pulp) and preserved foods.

3. Food & the World
We will continue conducting surveys on cuisines from other countries which has connection with our kindergarten families and staff. We invite guest cooks twice a year to cook with the children.

4. Involved in Creating Community Spaces with Other Organizations
We will continue holding the Bouken Asobiba (Adventure Playground) once every month while increasing the time spent on activities with the children compared to this year. Additionally, we will expand activities where children take the lead in planning and carrying out their own ideas.

No related reports available in English.