Some children do fine one-to-one and struggle in the group: the noise, the transitions, the rules, the other children. Japan has two supports aimed at exactly that setting. Both are available to international families.
With visiting support, our specialists go to your child's daycare, kindergarten or school. They watch the child in the real group situation, read behaviours such as crying, running off, freezing or pushing as signals rather than problems, and propose concrete changes to the staff there: when and how to speak to the child, where the child sits, how activities are broken into steps, how to give advance notice and visual cues. Then they explain to you what they saw, what was suggested, and what helps at home.
It is available with or without a diagnosis, and it uses the same certificate as child development support (the ward adds it to the certificate). The family share follows the same rules and is free in the nursery years. Our classroom provides this service now; the flow is contact → a preliminary conversation with you → scheduling with the daycare → the visit → feedback and next steps.
Kahai (加配) means the nursery assigns additional childcare staff for a child who needs more support. It is arranged through the nursery and the ward rather than through us. In Shinjuku, "childcare for children with disabilities and similar needs" (障害児等保育) is offered at every licensed nursery and certified centre, in principle up to two children per nursery, for children who can manage group care. You apply through the ward's Childcare Division, Admissions Section (保育課 入園・認定係, 03-5273-4527), usually with a doctor's opinion letter; the steps are application → an observation session at the prospective nursery → a review meeting with a doctor and the principal → interview and health check → admission decision.
Other wards run similar schemes under slightly different names; ask your ward's childcare division.
These are not either/or. A common pattern: the child attends daycare most days with extra staff, comes to our classroom one or two days a week for child development support, and our specialists visit the daycare a few times to align what happens there with what happens here. The certificate can cover both of our services; the nursery's extra staff is separate.
Ask the ward's childcare division which nurseries currently have capacity under the scheme, and say at the application stage that your child may need support — it is much easier to arrange at admission than later. If you would like us to visit the nursery once your child is settled, tell us and we will explain the steps.
Sources: Shinjuku City — childcare for children with disabilities and similar needs (Japanese) · Children and Families Agency — free preschool development support (Japanese)
FAQ
READ NEXT
You do not need a diagnosis, a certificate, or fluent Japanese to take the first step. Send us a message in English, tell us your child's age and what you are noticing about their speech and language, and we will take it from there.
