This article describes how American and Japanese kindergartners see play and what teachers can learn from them. The authors share their findings from analyzing photos and interviews from 44 American children in the southeastern United States and 55 Japanese children in the main island of Japan, all aged five to six years. In the study, children…

The impact of social class backgrounds on young children's educational experiences has attracted increasing attention in early childhood research. However, few longitudinal studies related to social class and parental involvement in young children's education are available, especially in East Asian contexts. In this longitudinal qualitative study,…

Every summer and fall, Japanese children (mostly boys) spend hours catching and playing with insects, or mushi. Different species are associated with the seasons, times of the day, or specific games. Mushi customs are centuries old, were traditionally passed from grandfather to grandchild, and are reflected in electronic and "virtual"…

This report describes an intervention to improve American kindergarten children's understanding of Japanese culture. The intervention consisted of a curriculum unit presented in a kindergarten class of 14 American and 7 Japanese children in Brookline, Massachusetts. Before and after the intervention, the American children's knowledge of Japanese…

"Bunko" are local mini-libraries for children in Japan, operated voluntarily by individuals or groups of parents, intended to nurture children's reading interest by offering them an inviting reading environment. In 1993, there were an estimated 4,000 bunko in Japan, with approximately 32,000 adult bunko members (90% female). Bunko…