Compulsory education in Japan requires all children to attend six years of elementary school and three years of junior high school.

Before a child can enroll in a school (in April), they are required to attend a mandatory medical check-up for all children in November.

Further information is available in the following Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) Guidebook:

http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shotou/clarinet/003/001/001.pdf

1. Obtain a certificate of enrollment (zaigaku shoumeisho, 在学証明書) and a certficate of a textbook grant (kyoukasho kyuuyo shoumeisho, 教科書給与証明書) from the child's current school.
2. Before applying to transfer schools, you must first complete the proceedure for transfering to a new local authority. This involves a Notice of Transferring In (tennyuu [tenkyo] todoke, 転入（転居）届). Next complete the Notice of School Enrollment (tennyuu [tenkyo] gaku todoke, 転入（転居）学届). Once you have received a copy of the Notice of School Transfer (tennyuugaku todoke tsuuchisho, 転入学届通知書), please submit it along with the documents listed in 1 to the school at which the child is enrolling.

1. Before applying to transfer schools, you must first complete the proceedure for transfering out of your old local authority. This involves a Notice of Transferring Out (tenshutsu todoke, 転出届). Next complete the Notice of Leaving a School (tenshutsugaku todoke, 転出届).
2. You must also apply for a certificate of enrollment (zaigaku shoumeisho, 在学証明書) and a certficate of a textbook grant (kyoukasho kyuuyo shoumeisho, 教科書給与証明書) from the child's current school.
3. At your new local authority, complete the proceedure for transferring in before enrolling your child at a school.  
4. Submit the certificates in 2 to the new school.

• When moving within the same school catchment area: submit a Notice of Change of Address (tenkyo todoke, 転居届) to the Civic Department. Then submit a Notice of Moving House (juumin idou todoke, 住民異動届) to the school.
• When moving to a new catchment area: after submitting a Notice of Change of Address (tenkyo todoke, 転居届) to the Civic Deparment, submit a Notice of School Transfer (tengaku todoke, 転学届) to the new school .

Children, teachers and guardians of children attending pre-school, elementary school or junior high school may arrange to meet a counsellor to discuss any manner of issues surrounding child-rearing.

For example:

• Reluctance to go to school
• Truancy
• Bullying
• Trouble between friends
• Worries about a child's mental or physical development
• Falling behind in studies
• Study methods
• Habits and attitudes
• Discipline at home
• The parent-child relationship

The private session are held once a month on Tuesday or Thursday (excluding national holidays and between December 30th and January 3rd), from 12 : 30 to 16 : 30 and can be arranged at the following state elementary schools:

• Tanabe
• Tanabe Higashi
• Kusauchi
• Osumi
• Miyamaki
• Matsuigaoka
• Takigi
• Toen

How to apply: Please arrange an appointment with a teacher at school in advance.

* The identity of the applicant and content of the consultation are strictly confidential.