DESIGN. MAKING THE WAY YOU LIVE.
WE SHAPE THE VALUE
FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS
In recent years, design and art thinking have been gaining significant attention in the world of business and academia.
But is art and design only for adults? Children are geniuses when it comes to thinking from new perspectives and mixing ideas. And it is these children who will shape the future.
Here, there are no right answers—only the ones within yourself.
What we teach is the ability to carve out your own path and enjoy life, leveraging your strengths in any situation.
It’s not about achieving a particular goal, but learning how to approach challenges and learn in your own way.
This is an online creative lab for children, where they will develop “design skills” that they can use throughout their entire lives.
Are you ready to equip yourself with the lifelong power of design?
What we do
9kidslab is an online creative lab for elementary school students, designed to cultivate children who can discover their own perspectives and solutions through “design,” and shape their lives with joy and creativity.
Through art, design, creation, experiments, and group work, children engage in dialogue with instructors and peers, all while developing their unique strengths and passions. This is a new kind of online learning that emphasizes non-cognitive skills and fosters fresh perspectives.
‘problem’ * (your strengths + creativity) = DESIGN
At 9kidslab, this is how we define Designing.
01
What is “Design”?
It’s not just about beauty or decoration. We’re not looking to raise designers.
Design originally means “planning.” It involves making decisions on everything, from the big picture down to the smallest details, while building a foundation of thought.
Here, “design” can be described as the ability to enjoy life and carve your own path, overcoming any situation.
For children, the environment is everything. That’s why we focus on the real thing.
At 9kidslab, our classes are led by a team of active instructors, including entrepreneurs, researchers, art university lecturers, and award-winning creators from both Japan and abroad. Both instructors and children, and sometimes even parents, come together to expand the possibilities for the kids.
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DESIGN THINKING
- TAKERU IDE
- Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts. Has over 15 years of experience developing play spaces and programs for children.
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ARCHITECTURE
- RYOKO ANDO
- A spatial designer involved in store design and art installations. Lecturer at Tama Art University.
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FASHION
- KAI TAKIZAWA
- Creates costumes for films and music videos. Won the Tokyo New Designer Fashion Award with his own brand.
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SCIENCE
- KUMIKO HARADA
- Entrepreneur and researcher. Developed “Future Education” using drones as a research fellow at Keio University. CEO of A-Co-Labo.
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ART
- KATSUYA SUGIMOTO
- Completed graduate studies at Tokyo University of the Arts, specializing in contemporary art and art education. Recipient of the 2010 Sompo Japan Art Award.
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MUSIC
- AKIKO SHINA
- Musician. Produces music for TV commercials and film scores, as well as special classes and workshops.
02
How we do
How do you find your strengths?
The first step is “observation and collection.” As you repeat this process, you’ll start to notice what you love and what you’re good at.
“Why do I like that?” “Why do I think that way?” “Why is that person wearing those clothes?” “What is that color?”
Dialogue is essential for discovering your strengths, and repeating that dialogue is even more important.
That’s why we design our classes to allow for expression through repeated observation, reserch, generation, development, and feedback, deepening the conversation with each session.
Each term lasts three months, designed to deepen your understanding throughout the year.
Term 1: Sessions 1-6
- Part 1.
- Building the Foundations
Term 2: Sessions 7-12
- Part 2.
- Application and Development of Fundamentals
Term 3: Sessions 13-18
- Part 3.
- Discovering Your Unique Perspective
Term 4: Sessions 19-24
- Part 4.
- High-Freedom Projects and Advanced Self-Expression
03
Our goals
We aim to nurture children with these abilities:
- Who can think for themselves
- Who can enjoy overcoming challenges
- Who can find joy in their lives
- Who can solve problems with the help of others
- Who can earn money through their strengths
- Who have the potential to change society
These are the abilities represented in the diagram on the left.
Children with diverse perspectives from around the world participate here. The world is vast, and common sense and perceptions can vary greatly from place to place.
“It’s hard for my child to speak in front of others,” or “They lack cooperation”—perhaps it’s okay if they don’t quite fit into the current norms of Japan.
Noticing small details that others overlook, questioning the ordinary, and finding unique solutions can lead to exceptional designs.
This embodies the ability to “discover solutions while leveraging one’s strengths and enjoy life, no matter the circumstances.”
The design skills gained here will be invaluable in any profession after entering society.
Would you like to learn alongside students from around the world at 9kidslab?
- responsibility and collaboration
- critical thinking
- creativity, and social and emotional skills
- the ability to communicate
- the ability to “learn to learn”
- complex problem solving
- meta-cognitive skills
