As a result of declining birth rates and the increase of nuclear families, there are fewer opportunities in modern society for children of different age groups to interact in the home and in the local community. Under such circumstances, it is important for children to develop relationships and communicative competence with their friends at school. To that end, the author believes that encouraging children to participate in different age group activities will lead to increased confidence and peace of mind, resulting in positive and safe interactions.
In this study, the results of different age group activities from previous research were reexamined and reassessed. It was hypothesized that different age group activities undertaken by the whole school would foster good human relations and positively influence children’s awareness of risk management and safety.
Based on this hypothesis, the results of an education survey of, 19 major cities (the most populated cities officially designated by the government) and a health statistics (hoken-shitsu) were compared. Several small-scale elementary school surveys were also analyzed. Based on this analysis, it was found that through activities that included various different age groups, good human relations could be developed. These activities were especially effective in raising the children’s safety awareness as well as improving their risk management abilities.
