Chapter 1 · the goals of childcare
Habits are the foundation
Washing hands. Putting on shoes. Goal (b) says these small, repeated acts are building something that lasts a lifetime.
Goal (b)
Everyday habits, and the attitude behind them
The second goal: help children build the basic habits and attitudes daily life needs — health, safety, and the rest — and in doing so, lay the foundation for a healthy body and mind.
But here’s the key
Habits, and attitudes — read both words
A habit is the action: hands washed, shoes on, teeth brushed. An attitude is what sits underneath it — wanting to be clean, noticing you’re tired, sensing that something isn’t safe.
A child who only has the habit stops the moment no adult is watching. A child who has the attitude carries it into adulthood.
In real life
The slow way is the fast way
A three-year-old takes four minutes to put on her own shoes. I could do it in ten seconds, and some mornings I want to. But when I wait — and say “you found the left one yourself” — I’m not just getting shoes on a child. I’m building the part of her that will keep going when something is hard.
A common misunderstanding
“Everyone should be at the same stage by now.”
“They’re all four, so they should all manage this on their own. I’ll push the ones who can’t.”
“Each child meets this in their own time. I offer the chance, give the help that child needs, and let the habit settle.”
Why this matters to you
Your least glamorous hours are the goal
Handwashing, toilets, changing clothes, tidying up. These stretches can feel like the boring parts of the day — the bits between the “real” activities.
They are goal (b), written into the national guidelines. If you’ve spent your morning on them, you haven’t fallen behind on the curriculum. You were the curriculum.
Your turn
Pick one routine you guide every single day — handwashing, shoes, tidying up.
Am I teaching the action, or the reason behind it?
Tomorrow, add the reason out loud. That one sentence is the whole goal.
About Bond Japan
NPO Bond Japan
Bond Japan connects international schools so they can learn from one another and deepen a shared understanding of early childhood education and care.