Kyuushoku - Japanese School Lunch

Kyushoku （給食－きゅうしょく）means a school lunch. Most of Japanese elementary and junior high schools provide school lunches to students.

 

These school lunch pictures are from a friend of mine, Daniel. Currently, he works for public junior high and high schools as an English assistant teacher in Kagawa prefecture which is located in Shikoku Island. Please visit the following websites if you would like to see more school lunch pictures.


http://www.oharaconsulting.ca/photogalleryJapaneseSchoolLunch.html
http://www.oharaconsulting.ca/photogalleryJapaneseSchoolLunchBread.html


I found the news program which introduce about the Japanese Kyushoku.

 
In a Japanese classroom, the children are divided into groups (called han). Each han takes the role/duty to pick up classmates’ lunches in a school kitchen, carry lunches to the classroom, and serve them. That duty is called Kyushoku-touban (給食当番－きゅうしょくとうばん). I remember that I wore the white Kyushoku-apron and cap when I took this duty. I brought this apron and cap home on the weekend and washed and ironed them to pass it to the next classmate on Monday who took this duty next week.


Students greet “いただきますItadakimasu” together and start eating. Itadakimasu means “Thank you for the food.” When I was a student (xx years ago), we had to eat everything which we were served. Most students did not have any problems to finish all of them. However, a few students were in tears as they tried to eat them all. I do not think that it is strict anymore. (I believe that students are encouraged to eat the whole meal.) I remember that we enjoyed chatting or playing games (such as a card game) while waiting for Kyushoku.

Through the school lunch system, students learn a lot of things such as nutrition, eating manners, responsibility, and so on. School lunch time is also considered as a part of school education which is called 食育（しょくいく）

Educations is 教育（きょういく）.

What do you think about Kyushoku? Would you like to eat it?