Creating Opportunities for Children as Members of the Community!

This coming Saturday, a summer festival will be held in our school district.
It is a community-wide festival, and preparations have been underway by groups such as the School District Community Development Council.

Last fiscal year, this festival was finally able to be held again after the COVID-19 pandemic.
With fireworks at the end, it felt like bustle and vitality had returned to this town.

This fiscal year, we are taking it one step further!
We are taking on a challenge.

That challenge is to set up a juice stand through our after-school care club.

There used to be another large festival in our school district, but after the COVID-19 pandemic, it became difficult to revive, so it feels like everything has been consolidated into this weekend's festival.
At that other festival, the after-school care club's parent association had traditionally been in charge of selling juice.

In other words, it feels like a revival, just at a different location!

For booth applications, it is a first-come, first-served system, and a small fee is collected.
It was considered normal not to take any action, but after consulting with everyone, we decided to apply to sell juice.

I have outlined four points in the "Activity Objectives."

Beyond creating summer memories for the children and fostering friendship among parents through the parent association,
I believe it is important for children to gain experience by participating in such events and to help liven up the school district festival as members of the community.

I have been coordinating preparations with the volunteers from the second-grade parents who are taking the lead.
They have been steadily preparing by dividing up tasks such as purchasing materials.

By combining everyone's opinions and ideas, I feel that the preparations are going even more thoroughly than I had anticipated.

Participation for parents and children is voluntary, but when I checked attendance via email, about 30 to 40 families expressed their intention to participate.

Last night, we held a "parent association" meeting for all participants, using a hybrid format that combined in-person and online attendance.

Since parents couldn't leave their young children at home to attend the meeting, several children came along,
and we had the children actually practice how to make the juice.

Colorful, carbonated juice was completed with their clumsy hands.
I don't know if it was too strong or too weak (laughs), but the children said it was "delicious" anyway (laughs).

The explanation of the preparation procedure was completed in a friendly atmosphere, and I am looking forward to the actual event.

By the way, for the ice, we will pick it up at the supermarket where we pre-ordered it right before the event and transport it to the festival venue in coolers!
We want to keep the soda (cider) chilled, but it's a significant amount.
We decided on a method where we ask everyone: "Hmm... please take two bottles home each, chill them, and bring them back!!" (laughs)
It is truly a strategy that involves the families (laughs).

We are planning to have the children handle the juice sales at the festival venue.
I told the parents, 'Please hold back and just support the children' (laughs).

Welcome!
Thank you very much!

Handing over change and handing over the products.

The children will hand them over one by one, handmade, to the local people who have come to enjoy the festival.

As members of the community, they will help liven up this town.
Not just coming to the festival and enjoying it as customers, but as proactive members, they will help create the festival.

I want them to have that kind of experience.
I hope they will cultivate the sensibility that they are members who help build this town from somewhere within themselves.

I believe it is our role to provide these kinds of experiential activity opportunities.

Community development with children at the center.
Raising children within the community.

To put it nicely, I think that is the kind of challenge it is.

Whoa! That's too much!
Don't spill it!
Don't touch it with your bare hands!
Don't run around!
Provide proper customer service!

The scene will probably be like this (laughs).
It's not exactly... cool, is it...? (laughs)

Thank you for watching again today.

<Article from 'today' one year ago★>

Around this time last year, we were talking about the autumn rain front.
Indeed, it seems like that kind of situation might arise.
It feels like after the typhoon passes, low-pressure systems will keep popping up.

Looking at the weather conditions over the past few years, the autumn rain front season now requires the same level of caution as the rainy season.