Summer vacation that should be fun ... August 11, 17:08

"Summer summer vacation" "Oh afraid of summer vacation"
These are comments posted by mothers on SNS. What is happening at home when summer vacation is supposed to be fun? When I interviewed, the reason and the movement to support fathers and mothers were spreading. (Eriko Okawara, Video Center)

“#Housewife Summer Vacation War”

On the SNS, posts from parents are sent one after another from before and after the summer vacation starts.

Things related to meals and things related to children's homework were concentrated.

Even the tweets with the hashtag “#Housewife Summer Vacation War” have appeared.

Mother's sorrowful voice

When I actually listened to my parents in Tokyo, I found out that I was getting busy.

“Every day it is hard to make a plan or make a meal. Especially for lunch, it ’s hard to rest every day because there ’s no side dish or eating out and there ’s no relatives you can rely on.”

Other parents were saying that it was difficult for family members to prepare meals due to the lack of school lunches, or that it was difficult to teach homework.

“Investigation Squadron Referencer”

Is there a helping hand for parents who are tired? When I interviewed, the movement to support fathers and mothers was spreading.

First, homework support. At the Chiyoda Library in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, 11 librarians working at elementary and junior high schools started to support parents and children. Its name is "Study Sentai Referencer". During summer vacation, we are giving free advice on homework such as free research.

On the day of the interview, a 5th grade elementary school girl and her mother wanted to make a model of a waterway in Tokyo that they were interested in after coming to class. However, I didn't know how to do it, so I consulted a “referencer”.

The corresponding “referencer” looks for a book with the history of the waterway along with the girls. When I found a book, I was investigating geology that would be helpful.

The girl who participated said, “I was able to learn difficult things happily.” According to the library, there are many parents who are worried about how to deal with free research, etc., so this library can handle almost every day except closed days and children outside the city can also use it.

“I advise parents to learn how to check, so I ’d love to see you in the library.”

“Summer vacation rice”

And is there any support for daily meals and making lunch boxes? A company in Tokyo that develops home delivery services for fresh foods has begun a special campaign. Its name is “Takago rice for summer vacation”.

The contents include a set that can be cooked in a short time, such as processed ingredients and seasonings, and food that can be heated in a microwave without using a fire. I talked to Yuki Hayashi who lives in Tokyo using this service.

Hayashi is the mother of two children, the eldest son of the second grade of elementary school and the eldest daughter of a nursery school child. The eldest son is on summer vacation and uses this service because the number of lunches at home has increased. On the day we interviewed, we took out the ingredients that had just arrived after noon and made lunch.

Mr. Hayashi completed two items of fried meat and vegetables and marinated food in about 20 minutes. Lunch with the eldest son and two. Hayashi said, “Summer vacation is really hard, but I can make it without thinking about the menu.

“I think it will be easier for you to make everyday meals a little because it will reduce the burden on moms just by taking this set several times a week.”

Order online! School lunch box lunch

There was also support for working parents.

A school for childcare that allows elementary school students to be taken while parents work during the day. Because there is lunch, you need to make a lunch box during the summer vacation. For this reason, facilities in Tokyo have adopted home delivery lunch boxes that can be ordered easily over the Internet.

The “Shirazakura Schoolchild Club” in Nakano-ku, Tokyo was introduced. About 60 students from first to third graders play and do homework at this facility while their parents work during the day.

Newly introduced home delivery lunch system. Parents can do everything from ordering to cancellation on the internet. You can also check the allergy label and adjust the amount of rice. According to the facility, parents also say that they are "safe in terms of hygiene" and now use about 70%.

“I would like you to use home delivery lunch as an option if you are working together or are feeling sick.”

You don't have to aim for perfection

There are various kinds of support, but I was interviewing and many parents said that if they don't do it, it would be annoying to others and bad for their children.

How do you enjoy your summer vacation? I interviewed journalist Enka Nakano, who is familiar with working mothers and the environment surrounding full-time housewives. The emphasis was on the phrase "you don't have to aim for perfection".

Mr. Nakano said that the burden on parents will increase during summer vacation, “Summer vacation is a long period and does not change the way fathers work.”

In addition, he pointed out that there are parents who hesitate to receive support, "I think some people criticize their mothers' qualifications if they say they are mothers.

On top of that, the following message was emphasized to lead to a fun summer vacation for the family.

"I think it's very important to raise your hand to help me. I don't have to aim for perfection, so I'd like to rely on something that I can rely on. I want each mother to be relaxed and have some time to rest."

I myself have elementary school children and I find it difficult to make lunch boxes during the summer vacation. However, at last I think, “If you rely on something, you may not be sweet”. Through this interview, I was relieved that I met mothers who had similar feelings.

Summer vacation is still going on, but I wanted to face my child with a little room in mind.

Eriko Okawara Picture Center

Entered in 2005