Puberty and "life safety education" (生命の安全教育): what schools teach at each stage

Japanese schools teach children about their bodies in two places. The first is 保健 (hoken, health), a part of PE set by the national curriculum, which covers puberty in 小4 and again in 中1. The second is 生命（いのち）の安全教育 (inochi no anzen kyōiku, "life safety education"), a programme the education ministry and the Cabinet Office built to prevent sexual violence. It runs from kindergarten to the end of high school, and its materials were revised in March 2026.

What 生命の安全教育 is for

The ministry's page puts the aim in one line:

子供たちが性暴力の加害者、被害者、傍観者にならないよう、全国の学校等において「生命（いのち）の安全教育」を推進しています。

(so that children become neither the one who harms, the one harmed, nor the bystander). The teacher's guide adds that sexual violence happens regardless of age or sex, including from people close to the child such as family, relatives, school staff and friends, and asks schools to teach with that in mind.

The March 2026 revision added "consent" (性的同意, seiteki dōi) after the 2023 change to the Penal Code, and expanded the parts on the internet and smartphones.

What it covers at each stage

From the teacher's guide, by stage:

Stage	What children are taught
幼児期 (kindergarten, nursery)	My body is mine and precious, and so is everyone else's. If being looked at or touched makes me feel bad: say "no", get away, tell an adult I feel safe with
小1–小4	The whole body is precious, especially the parts a swimsuit covers, which only I may see or touch; the same is true for others. The basics of asking first (同意, dōi). Several ways to respond
小5–小6	Personal space and boundaries (距離感・境界線, kyorikan, kyōkaisen). What sexual violence is, including through the internet and phones, and how to respond
中1–中3	Boundaries and consent. How to respond if it happens to me or a friend, and where to go for help
高1–高3	The same, plus the relevant laws, so a student can act when something happens
Before leaving high school	What to do at university or work, with the law explained as needed

The guide's term for the swimsuit area is 「水着で隠れる部分」 (mizugi de kakureru bubun), also called the private zone. It also tells teachers that real cases often involve stroking the body or kissing the face, so the swimsuit area must not be taught as the only part that matters. For the youngest children it warns against lessons that frighten.

Puberty in the health lessons

The national curriculum fixes the grades:

Grade	What the 保健 lesson covers
小4	The body changes with age, and each child differs. In puberty the body gradually becomes adult, the body shape changes, first periods and first ejaculation happen, and interest in the other sex begins
小5	The mind develops with experience. Mind and body are linked. Ways to deal with worry, such as talking to an adult or a friend
中1	Organs and functions develop at different times and to different degrees in each child. In puberty, hormones mature the reproductive functions; fertilisation and pregnancy are covered, but not the course of a pregnancy

The 小4 lesson's own wording:

体は，思春期になると次第に大人の体に近づき，体つきが変わったり，初経，精通などが起こったりすること。

The curriculum also asks teachers to help children notice that growth differs between people and to accept that positively.

What the school should tell you first

The guide suggests schools explain the lesson to parents beforehand, for example with its template letter (保護者への案内ひな形, hogosha e no annai hinagata) or a class newsletter, and report back afterwards. It notes that some schools were criticised by parents for not explaining enough. Schools may also let parents observe. During the lesson, children are told they may leave the room at any time if they feel unwell, and the guide suggests a school may ask parents in advance whether their child will take part, where a child may have been harmed or is anxious.

Each school decides when and how to teach it, and may adapt the material. For the 2023 school year the ministry gives a national rate of 45.3% for education to prevent sexual violence, and 32.8% for use of this material (うち、「生命（いのち）の安全教育」の教材を活用しているのは32.8％). So your child's school may teach it, teach something else, or not yet teach it.

What to do now

• Watch for the school's letter about 生命の安全教育 or the 保健 puberty lesson. If none comes, ask the 担任 (tannin, homeroom teacher) which grade and term it is in this year.
• Ask to see the slides. The ministry publishes one set per stage, so you can use the same words at home.
• Before 小4, talk at home about the body changes the class will cover. Use the curriculum's point: every child's timing is different.
• Teach the three steps the material uses from kindergarten: say "no", get away, tell an adult you feel safe with. Tell your child that you are one.
• If your child tells you something has happened, listen, write down what they said, and contact the school or a helpline; see how to send an SOS, and where a child can call.