Japan Promotes Open-Style Kindergarten Kitchens

May 8, 2018

Izumi, Osaka Pref.- The Japanese Education Ministry has suggested that kindergartens install open-style kitchens that allow children to watch cooking in order to excite their interest in food and teach them health-conscious eating habits.

The suggestion is part of guidelines on kindergarten designs that the ministry recently updated to appeal more to children and increase interaction between staff and parents.

The new guidelines seek to build open-style kitchens next to the dining area where children eat lunch as a way to create a home-like atmosphere.

Kids Mayumi, a kindergarten in Izumi, Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, which attaches importance to nutrition education, has a kitchen with big windows and a door connecting the eating space and cooking area to allow children to see cooking activities.

This kitchen structure helps the children have chats with the cooks, giving cooking staff a chance to learn each of their names.

"This may help children to feel a sense of gratitude to those who cook meals for them," a Kids Mayumi staff member said. It is one of the institutions that the ministry used for reference when updating the guidelines.

The guidelines also call for the introduction of entrance areas where parents and kindergarten staff can interact to build stronger cooperation between them.

Other suggestions by the guidelines include offering kindergarten staff a refreshing space to exchange information about the children. Jiji Press