Elementary School Life in Japan - The School Day

Japanese children spend six years in elementary school, from age six to age twelve. This schooling is compulsory, as is the following three years of junior high school. Public schools are free, but parents can choose to pay to send their children to private schools instead. The first thing we do in school is to change from outdoor shoes to indoor ones. Most elementary school classes contain between 30 and 40 pupils, and each class is based in its own homeroom. Morning assemblies are held whenever there's something the whole school needs to hear. Lessons are 45 minutes long. In first and second grade, the school day consists of four periods in the morning. From third grade, two afternoon periods are added. Each elementary school class has its own homeroom teacher, who teaches the core subjects of Japanese language, math, science and social studies. From third and fourth grade, the range of studies becomes more comprehensive, and includes subjects such as computing. Fifth and sixth graders will learn home economics subjects, like sewing and cooking. When giving English language classes, the homeroom teacher is often helped by a native speaker specialist. For some subjects, like music and crafts, pupils leave their homeroom and go to special classrooms. Music is taught in a practical way, with pupils learning to play instruments and to sing. In the workshop, pupils paint and do craft projects. Sports that need lots of space are practised outdoors on the sports ground, while sports that need maths or special equipment are done in the gym. After fourth period, it's time for lunch. Then, in most schools, pupils will clean their own classrooms. Pupils take turns cleaning the corridors, gym and other common rooms. Joining a sports club is also a chance to make new friends, since each club will have members from all fourth to sixth grade classes. Other popular clubs include cookery and craft work. Children really enjoy these activities, since they're allowed to choose what most interests them. Some pupils choose to help with the day-to-day running of the school, for example by doing the lunch period broadcasts. Others take care of pet animals being raised on the school grounds, feeding them and cleaning their pens. Japanese elementary school education is designed to be comprehensive, developing children's bodies and personalities as well as their minds.