Summer 2023, we took the kids (12 and 9) to Japan for an extended stay that included four weeks in a Japanese-language school.
I have been working remotely since 2017. Since 2022, I've been at a job which doesn't require me to be located in a limited set of time zones. This opened up the possibility of working from a different country while the kids attended a program during the day.
My kids have both been in Japanese immersion from kindergarten. My daughter attended and my son still attends El Marino Elementary. This is entirely a second language, though; we do not have a native speaker at home. Because of this, I'd been thinking about ways to expose them to the language in a more extended, meaningful way.
The plan was to spend three weeks vacationing and four weeks in a program. My wife joined us for the vacation portion, then returned home, since her job cannot be done remote. I stayed on with the children, renting a furnished apartment in Tokyo for five weeks. The kids would attend school during the day, while I commuted to a branch office to take advantage of more comfortable working environment.
Being the first year since Japan opened up from Coronavirus, it was rather difficult to find programs. On top of this, most internet searches are focused on college or perhaps high-school aged attendees. I only found one program which offered Japanese language instruction for elementary and middle-school age children. (A second program existed last year at Yoyogi, but they decided not to run it this year, a decision not announced until late March.)
Best Option If you have a native Japanese speaker in the home, or if you have access to someone who can advocate for you in fluent Japanese, the best option is to attend a local, public school in Japan for the end of their first semester. Typical Japanese schools run through late July and then have a long summer break (this year the last day of classes was Thursday 2023-07-20). (Note: "international" schools often run on a different calendar.)
This option involves communicating directly with the school to get permission to attend, along with having a local address. For students at El Marino who have family in Japan (aunts, grandparents), this typically means staying with family and walking to the local school. It is also possible to rent an apartment/house near a school. With this option, you will need to buy some equipment, like gym clothes, that is required of all students. This option allows you to live wherever in Japan you like, provided you find a school willing to accept your children for June–July attendance (not all will).
The distinct advantage of this approach is full immersion. They will be attending with children who speak Japanese fluently. They will be forced to interact with children daily at their own level. If this is possible for you, don't even consider any other options.
One disadvantage to this option is that you'll be in Japan during the rainiest time of the year (梅雨).
The only program we could find in 2023 was at New International School. They ran a program from Thursday 6 July until Friday 4 August, with the options of attending only the first two, only the last two weeks, or all four weeks. (Note: The national holiday, Marine Day, is the third Monday in July.) They announced the schedule for their program in late March, so we literally found out about program options while we were out of town for Spring break.
This school was fun for the kids, but be aware that they will be in class with other foreign kids who are also learning Japanese. It's possible your children will be among the most advanced speakers in class. There are Japanese kids attending the school, but in different programs, and interaction is limited. The second session falls during summer vacation for Japanese schools, so attendance in those programs spike.
The school is located in (Minami) Ikebukuro. It's convenient to several train lines. The Metropolitan exit of Ikebukuro Station is directly west of the school. Higashi-Ikebukuro Station is close by, with subway access via the Yurakucho Line. And Toden-Zoshigaya Station is on the same street as the school and a quaint station on the Toden-Arakawa Line.
By this, I mean, what age for your kids? It's going to be more fruitful after a couple years of immersion. After the 2nd grade, many kids will know enough basic kanji that place names will start to make sense. Transit and entrance prices are cheaper up to 11 in Japan. At age 12, they start paying higher or ever adult prices for things. For example, train fare is half-price for kids 11 and under. (At 6 and under, a lot of things will be free.) Japan is an incredible opportunity for independence (ref. Old Enough! [aka, はじめてのおつかい]). Japan is one of the safest countries in the world. My kids had Suica cards and commuted to and from school on the Yamanote line (two stops) by themselves.
Weather Most of Japan experiences heavy rainfall through mid-July. Depending upon where you are in Japan, this can also mean flooding. Then starting in July, temperatures climb into the 90s (Fahrenheit) and will stay that way until the end of August. It was common for Tokyo to be in the high 90s with 60% humidity in late July. Typhoon season peaks in August and September.
Be aware that Sunrise was before 4:30 a.m. on the Solstice. Keep this in mind when apartment hunting and planning your days.
For us, we wanted something easy to commute to Ikebukuro. Because of the length of our stay, we were able to rent an apartment for five weeks, which is a different category of search from short-term rentals. There are a number of sites for furnished apartments which require a minimum one-month stay. We found our place through KaguAruoo. It was a two-bedroom in Komagome, just a five minute walk to Sugamo Station.
You absolutely need an apartment with a washer. Likewise, be sure to pack light and only pack clothes that can be washed together. Just use the machine in your unit as a hamper and wash when ready. This is no joke, I packed six pairs of socks and underwear for seven weeks; you do laundry every 3–4 days. Quick-dry clothes are ideal, and you'll develop a routine to run laundry during breakfast or after returning from school, then hang up to dry.
We really lucked out with Sugamo. There was a large grocery/department store (Seiyu) next to the station where we bought all of our breakfast and lunch supplies. There was a summer festival one weekend, just south of the station. And the following weekend an Obon festival at the nearby temple. No shortage of good restaurants around.
My observation was that train stops with fewer connections tend to be quieter neighborhoods. Look for that and the proximity to a grocery store (sometimes the store is in the station).
Trash in Tokyo was complicated… Other than obvious, just throw everything in burnable. Paper, glass, and cans are easy to track and recycle. If you are cooking, the meat trays have their own day to take out. Plastic is the most confusing, with PET bottles being the only obviously recyclable ones. (This actually maps to the reality that 95% of plastic doesn't get recycled.)
T-Mobile and oddities with time and region
Online reservations and Japanese phone number
Google and poor results, but still easiest
Suica cards
Long-term bicycle rental?
Office cafeterias