Nippon, a small island nation in the Far East. It is home to a species that has built a rich ecosystem and developed a unique culture. This time, we have discussed the educational environment for 3-6 year olds through the culture of our home, “Japan.”
We’d love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to share your comments!
Profile
Yati Obara
Editor-in-Chief, Scientific Montessori
Based in Japan, born in 1989. CEO of Motherhand and Co-Director of the nonprofit think tank Polymath Research. Holds an M.Eng. and is an AMI-certified teacher. Focused on Montessori developmental theory and AI. Mother of two.
Hiro Obara
Publisher, Scientific Montessori
Based in Japan, born in 1990. CEO of StudyX and Co-Director of the nonprofit think tank Polymath Research. Works as a software developer and game designer. Father of two.
Who we are is down to nature or nurture?
Hiro
Today’s theme for the 3 to 6 age group is “Liberal Arts Starting at Age 3,” the general knowledge children should acquire by age 6.
Yati
There are a lot of books with titles like that these days.
Hiro
Elementary-school entrance exams often test general knowledge.
Yati
Things like Japanese seasonal items, annual events, plants, and science facts.
Hiro
It’s a problem when people try to cram it all in just because general knowledge matters.
Yati
Like flashcards. In Montessori education, the idea is to learn through hands-on experiences using all five senses.
Hiro
Even at tutoring centers, there are so many worksheets.
Yati
Worksheet-based learning is an important topic with a lot to say, so I’ll save it for the 6 to 12 article. Let’s dig into Japanese culture here.
Hiro
This might get a bit tricky. When is a Japanese identity formed?
Yati
Hmm, that’s hard. Maybe when you can use the Japanese language? If someone asks, “Would you like tea or coffee?” and you answer, “Either is fine,” people overseas might react with, “Can’t you choose for yourself?”
Hiro
That’s Japanese culture, right there.
Yati
But you clearly say “water” instead of tea or coffee. There are lots of ways you’re not very Japanese. Maybe it’s generational, like the “relaxed generation,” or because you’ve been exposed to foreign geniuses and overseas information for so long?
Hiro
Maybe it’s the internet. That’s why I’m curious: when does a Japanese person become Japanese?
Yati
By age 6, you’re already Japanese, right?
Hiro
Yoko, our daughter, says she’s a Tokyoite. [laughs]
Yati
That’s one way to think about it. Some say you’re truly Japanese only after three generations.
Hiro
A true Edokko, meaning a third-generation Tokyoite? A Kyoto native?
Yati
Genes play a role, too. Nowadays anyone can get a DNA analysis and discover unexpected countries in their heritage. But even without Japanese genes, spending a long time in Japan, or spending ages 0 to 6 there, seems important.
Hiro
There are many measures, but personally, I think it comes down to how much brain training you’ve had.
Yati
What do you mean?
Hiro
You know the Japanese comedy duo Taka and Toshi? They have a routine where one of them lists Western-sounding things and the other shouts “Western-style!” as a punchline. So if I say, “Meat pie.”
Yati
“Western-style!”
Hiro
Right. They list things that sound Western. Now, what if someone says, “I want sushi”?
Yati
“Japanese-style!”
Hiro
Exactly. “I want miso soup” or “Shall I bring you tea after your meal?” Those prompt “Japanese-style!” Similarly, you might see the shrug emoji, you know, the one with the palms up, and think, “What’s that?” But once you see foreigners actually doing that gesture in person, you get it. You learn that it means “Oh well” or “Who knows?” That’s the result of training in behavior.
Yati
I see.
Hiro
Ultimately, being Japanese, or any local identity, depends on how much you’ve been trained in local norms.
Yati
So it’s about how much culture, or general knowledge, you’ve learned. Can someone become Japanese in a single generation if they learn a huge amount of Japanese culture?
Hiro
I think it’s more of a gradient. Someone might be mostly American with a dose of Japanese, like Lou Oshiba, a Japanese TV personality famous for randomly swapping English words into Japanese proverbs. [laughs]
Yati
Right, like his parodies of Japanese sayings: “Out of the yabu, a stick!” “Three-days bouzu.” “Grasping at a straw.” “Even a mago looks good in a dress.” [laughs]
Hiro
[laughs]
Yati
By the way, there was a recent trend where Chinese and Japanese people communicate in writing by mixing kanji and English. They use Chinese characters for nouns, since the meanings often match, and English for grammar words. Apparently it makes communication surprisingly easy.
Hiro
There’s even a rock band that sings in that style. The point is, you’re only purely one nationality if you’re deeply rooted in that place. What I was thinking is: as we become more globalized, and in Montessori education we learn about all kinds of places around the world through hands-on experience...
Yati
Mm-hmm.
Hiro
...that local rootedness gradually fades. You realize, “Here’s one way of thinking; here’s another.” You start to identify with one perspective over another, or prefer certain ideas. Different elements mix in. If it’s all training, then new models keep entering, languages become relative, and values become relative.
Yati
Right. You start questioning, or even feeling embarrassed by, “Japan first” attitudes.
Hiro
Exactly. When someone has only ever grown up in Japan and doesn’t know other cultures, they can’t relativize. Saying things like that is self-absorbed in a bad way, kind of embarrassing. But once you’ve gone through that, you recognize that you grew up in Japan, carry Japanese elements, know what’s unique about Japan, and want to cherish that. That’s the good version.
Yati
Sounds like evolution. So, what is Japanese culture, really?
Hiro
There’s no objective metric for Japanese culture. It’s defined by people’s perceptions. To define it, you have to examine those perceptions. Each person thinks, “This is Japanese culture,” and that’s how Japanese culture gets defined, almost like voting.
Yati
Mm-hmm.
Hiro
People say Mount Fuji, geisha, sushi, tempura, but tempura came from the Netherlands. Yet foreigners think, “Tempura is so Japanese.” Fact and perception differ. So what we really need to define is the Japanese person who behaves in a “Japanese-like” way.
Yati
It’s not just tempura. Like “Japanese denim is the best in the world.” When something enters Japan, Japanese people make it Japanese. Think of bento culture: dexterous fingers carefully arranging every little item. That really does add a Japanese element.
Hiro
Ultimately, culture is created by habits. Here’s something more intellectual: there’s such a thing as “Japanese architecture.” It’s become quite Westernized, but traditional Japanese buildings have distinctive features. What do you think they are?
Yati
Wooden joinery? Building without nails?
Hiro
No. The essence isn’t there. The essence of Japanese architecture is “how to let humidity escape.”
Yati
That’s true. My family’s old house had raised floors, and air flowed through every room.
Hiro
Right. There’s less separation between inside and outside. In Europe, they use brick. Brick is sturdy, but it traps moisture and molds.
Yati
I see.
Hiro
On the other hand, that moisture enables fermentation. Microbes can thrive. Fermentation is harder in dry climates. Technology comes from accidental discoveries. In dry places, people mainly processed fruits that already hold moisture, like grapes into wine. Otherwise, they bake. Ferment dough to make it rise, then bake it.
Yati
Mm-hmm.
Hiro
Eating things raw is basically not done. Bread isn’t eaten raw. Yogurt and cheese exist, but they’re mainly for preservation. So differences in climate and regional environment shape habits, and those habits shape what it means to be of a certain nationality.
Yati
That might be true.
Hiro
Houses influence people. Thatched roofs also let moisture escape, but they’re different from European structures built to last centuries. The philosophy is different. Europeans build things to last a long time without rebuilding; Japanese buildings are made to last, too, but with the assumption that repairs, replacements, and renovations will happen. Shinto shrines even have the concept of sengu, relocating and rebuilding at set intervals, or renovating. So Japanese people have a kind of mobile mindset.
Yati
You mean building something less sturdy, then discarding it and moving when it breaks?
Hiro
More like a temporary dwelling you can move. It’s a 100-yen-shop culture, similar to a dollar store. But when 100-yen-shop quality levels up, it becomes craft, like kintsugi, repairing broken pottery with gold. You use good materials and make something fine, but it will break, and that impermanence is part of wabi-sabi, the aesthetic of finding beauty in transience.
Yati
That sounds kind of cheap, though.
Hiro
It’s not being poor. It’s wabi-sabi.
Yati
Geta, traditional Japanese wooden sandals, can be repaired part by part, the teeth, the thong, so they last far longer than sneakers.
Hiro
Modular footwear.
Yati
Yukata, the casual summer kimono, are amazing, too. Last year I sewed a yukata and made discovery after discovery. First, with koshi-age and kata-age, tucks at the waist and shoulders, a child can wear the same yukata for years.
Hiro
Adjustable sizing built in.
Yati
And the design uses a narrow bolt of fabric called tan-mono as efficiently as possible, with almost no waste, straight lines everywhere. When I made Western-style clothes, I had to use a big piece of fabric and ended up with lots of scraps. I kept wishing I could design something without scraps, and Japanese people invented that long ago. Even then, there’s a little bit of leftover fabric, and you tuck it into the collar area for future repairs. Isn’t that amazing?!
Hiro
Fundamentally, Japan is an island. Resources are limited. In the end, geography matters.
Yati
And here we connect to the cultural education in Montessori. It starts with a globe that has no borders, land is rough, ocean is smooth, to learn the difference between land and sea. Then you learn continents and oceans, and play with puzzles of countries on each continent.
Hiro
Hands-on geography.
Yati
Right. You do experiments with paired landforms: “island and lake,” “peninsula and gulf,” “isthmus and strait.” Then you explore maps of various places on Earth to see what kinds of landforms exist, color-coding islands and lakes, for example. At the same time, there are materials that show photos of daily life, buildings, clothing, and food from different countries. There are activities where you listen to music from various countries, hear stories about its historical background, and view photos of where that music was enjoyed. There’s also material for learning leaf shapes, which leads to understanding the world’s vegetation.
Hiro
That’s a lot to take in.
Yati
All of this feeds into the 6 to 12 “sensitive period for culture,” when children develop deep intellectual curiosity and a drive to explore the breadth and diversity of the world. Coming back to our topic: Japan is an island nation, so is it similar to another island nation like Britain? What about a small country next to a continent that also has few resources? Is that different from an island nation? Children become able to think through questions like these.
Hiro
Being connected by land makes travel, and invasion, easier. That’s where island nations differ. Alexander the Great destroyed the Persian Empire; easy access makes things volatile. Japan had its own Sengoku period, an era of warring feudal domains, but eventually unified.
Yati
Geographic distance is strongly correlated with genetic diversity, and geographic proximity correlates with similar ways of thinking. So how should 3 to 6 year olds learn about culture?
Hiro
Just enjoy daily life. To enjoy it even more, you need to learn about other cultures so you can relativize your own. Ages 3 to 6 is already the period for learning general knowledge.
Yati
Watching something like Curious George brings in a lot of foreign culture.
Hiro
The problem is there aren’t many anime that teach Japanese culture. The long-running family anime like Sazae-san and Chibi Maruko-chan are outdated now.
Yati
We need more content that reflects contemporary Japanese life without fantasy elements.
Hiro
Young creators need to step up. I wonder if any Montessori alumni will emerge.
