This is How the Community of Akitsu Was Created

In 1980, Akitsu Municipal Elementary School was opened in the city of Narashino in Chiba Prefecture, in the center of a new residential neighborhood established on a landfill in Tokyo Bay lined with condominiums.

Nearly all residents are office workers who commute to work outside the city, and many of the parents and guardians are relatively young, but residents and guardians are extremely interested in education. Therefore, the community is characterized by high expectations for the school and a large number of people who spare no effort to assist the school.

Given this community's characteristics, events fostering interaction with the community, such as festivals and athletic meets involving the entire community, have been held at Akitsu Elementary School since its opening.

Based on the fundamental idea that a school cannot exist without its children or its community, exchange between the local community and the school has grown more active each year. Thanks to the accumulation of these activities, a community centered on Akitsu Elementary School has been created.

Numerous Activities are Carried Out Through the Community of Akitsu

(Operation and maintenance of the Community Room)

Local residents are free to enter Akitsu Elementary School as they please. A spare classroom on the first floor of the school building serves as a Community Room that is open to residents free of charge from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. every day of the year, except for some days such as the New Year's holiday.

The distinguishing feature of this room is self-operation and self-maintenance. There is no permanently stationed manager, and therefore, people take care to use the facility independently and on their own initiative rather than with the mindset of passively receiving a service.

At present, 38 groups and clubs have registered at the facility and a total number of nearly 13,000 people per year are using it. Many scenes of local residents interacting with children can be observed at the Community Room. Children can also see adults having fun learning in a natural way. In these ways, the facility produces mutual benefits for school and community, as well as for adults and children.

(Participating in club activities)

Furthermore, in addition to students' parents and guardians and graduated students' parents and guardians, a great number of local seniors and youth also participate in club activities (Third and Fourth Periods on Saturdays) at Akitsu Elementary School. They enjoy these activities alongside the children as "club activity members."

The motto of these club activities is "Enjoy at your own pace whenever you can."

These activities seem to be very enjoyable to children too, as they can come into contact with adults other than their parents and teachers and learn from people who have had a wide variety of experiences.

(Other activities)

The school and the community also join forces through a host of other school events, including a large athletic meet, in-school music concerts, the Akitsukko Matsuri festival and Biotope (making a natural garden for observation).

Practicing the Taisho goto

Having a cross-generational match

Wrestling with a PC

Creating lovely bags

The community of Akitsu is not a traditional local community. It was created by newly arrived residents who joined forces to build it. There are people who say, "The community has broken down," but we believe a community is something you create. We hope that from now on, we will see the birth of communities in various forms.