The nursery contact book which is called the renrakucho or renrakunote in Japanese is really helpful for communicating with the nursery school teachers. How to use the renrakucho is something that every parent of a child in Japanese nursery should learn. Daycare communication in Japan often revolves around this simple but effective notebook system.
Teachers are always communicative at pick up time and tell you about how your child's day has been. However, it can be busy and you may not be able to talk for long. Any comments or concerns can be written in the contact book. In the Japanese nursery school that my children attend, the contact book stops being used in the three year old class as it is mainly used for when children are unable to communicate.
How To Communicate With Japanese Nursey Staff As A Foreigner
The nursery contact book has much more information than "they played with blocks today", it is very detailed. Renrakucho examples show how thorough this daily report is. The contact book which is preprinted and provided by the kindergarten at the start of term is split in half, on the left side the parents write about the child and on the right side the main class teacher writes about the child's day. The Japanese nursey contact book starts with the date and weather and goes right down to the consistency of bowel movements. We write wake up time and the time the child fell asleep, you can also make a note of whether they woke up during the night or slept soundly. Over time you can see the pattern of your child sleeping habits and the Japanese daycare can see if they've had a late night or early morning that this might affect their mood.
What Should I Write In The Renrakucho?
We tick a check box to say how the child's mood was at night and in the morning. We tick a check box to say if they have had a bowel movement and what the consistency was. We also write what they ate for dinner and breakfast and what time they ate it. Then there is space for a comment. We also record who is collecting the child from nursery and at what time.
At our children's Japanese preschool, the teachers really encouraged us to write in the contact book every day. Filling out the renrakucho daily is something that many parents feel unsure about at first. I admittedly don't always do this. But I do understand why they are keen, it helps the teachers understand what is going on at home and gives them an insight into your child's likes and dislikes. I think at the start of the school year with a new teacher it is more important to write daily.
What Are Some Examples Of Renrakucho Comments?
Sometimes it is difficult to think of what to say. Renrakucho comments for nursery can be as simple as describing your child's routine. I try to comment on what the nursery wrote the day before and then add a little something about my child's evening play.
"Oh he was watching the trains outside? He loves playing trains at home too"
「外で電車見ていました」家でも電車で遊ぶが大好きです。
"He cried because I cut up his toast"
トーストを切ったら泣きました。
"He got up early"
早い起きました。
"He was singing a new song today"
今日は新しい歌を歌っていました。
"I think he has a cold"
風邪をひいたと思ういます。
"He's started saying X in English this seems to mean Y"
英語でXと言い始めました。これはYの意味のようです。
Essentially, the renrakucho serves as a detailed record of your child's routine, mood and health, helping teachers understand their needs and ensuring seamless communication between home and preschool.
Do I have To Write In Japanese in The Nursery Contact Book?
I write in Japanese but my kanji is not that great, so oftentimes I will write more complicated words in hiragana. When it comes to preschool communication the daily contact record is a handy tool to have, especially if your spoken Japanese skills are weak. It is harder to quickly dash off a note in Japanese than it is in English so I try to write in the contact books when I pack the nursery bags in the evening, then I have a little more time to put some thought into it. Explaining routines to Japanese teacher in writing may feel daunting but consistency is the key. I use masu form and try to keep it polite. It's easy to get bogged down with getting the tone, indirectness and the right level of politeness. Honestly, the staff know that I'm still learning and are very understanding of my scrawl and probably overly familiar Japanese.
I tell this to my ESL students all the time, but I know it can be hard to remember it ourselves, it doesn't have to be perfect. Just write a note, don't dwell on it and move on. You're going to be doing this hundreds of times. It will get easier. Also, I find that nursery teachers by nature have a special kind of patience.
What Politeness Level Should I Use in the Japanese Daycare Contact book?
Google Translate is a great translation tool but if you aren't working outside of your own language you might not know it exists. If you can't write in Japanese yet, check with your kindergarten, show them how to use the camera function on Google Translate and ask them if it's okay to write in English. At the same time explain to them that you are using it and that it helps if they write clearly for the translate function to work.
How Do I Read The Japanese Daycare Teacher's Notes?
In the beginning, getting used to reading handwritten Japanese was the most difficult part of using the preschool contact book. Reading handwritten Japanese in the renrakucho is a challenge for many foreign parents in Japan. In all my studying, I had only read printed Japanese.
If you have urgent concerns I would speak to a teacher as well as writing them down. Also, if the children have any medications that the nursery need to administer there is a separate form for this, and it, along with the medicine has to be handed directly to a teacher.
What is Written By The Teacher In the Japanese Nursery Contact Book?
It does get easier, after the first year I was used to the cycle of events. I knew without having to be written a note that the osanpo bagu (walk bag), a pouch made of a milk carton that children take on walks and collect leaves, flowers and acorns in, gets emptied and sent back the next day. It was a steep learning curve and remember first time Japanese parents are learning it too. I also remember fellow Moms lamenting about what they should write in the contact book too.
How Does The Renrakucho Prepare Children For Elementary School?
Not only will you learn more as the children get older they will take more responsibility for remembering things too. My daughter is in her final year of Japanese kindergarten and the teachers will remind her, instead of me about important items like "blue t-shirt for the event tomorrow" this helps set the older children up for responsibility of elementary school and it also takes the pressure off of you.
The renrakucho is more than just a contact book, it is a bridge between parents and caregivers that ensures children receive the best care in their early years. Whether you are a new parent navigating Japanese daycare or someone who has just moved to Japan, mastering the renrakucho will help you feel more connect to your child's Japanese nursery experience.
Found this post helpful? Share it with other English speaking parents navigating daycare life in Japan!
You may also like
What's in My Three Year Olds Japanese Nursery Bag?
More posts about Parenting in Japan
Comments
Post a Comment