Association for Corporate Support of the Arts. - Kigyo Mécénat Kyogikai

Children learn communication skills by creating advertising commercials. That is the theme of the Advertising Elementary School, one of Dentsu’s contributions to the community.
Aiming to develop communication skills in children, Dentsu collaborated with Tokyo Gakugei University to create a lesson program for elementary schools. The program is designed to enable elementary school teachers to guide their children through the process of producing a 15-second commercial, from sharing ideas about a common theme and groupwork to bring those ideas together, to finally presenting their 15-second commercial as a skit. This whole process of creative thinking, decision-making, and expressing ideas is focused on giving the students experience in communicating and communication.
The program materials are produced as a package that is provided free of charge. The package is well thought-out, including hints for teachers, a Q&A, DVDs and worksheets, together with the props needed to produce a CM skit. Dentsu’s communication skills inform the method behind this program, and have also been used to the full in producing the program materials. The package format has allowed the program to be adopted by a large number of classes. In FY 2013, 7,400 children at 90 schools benefited from the program, and a total of over 20,000 children and 176 schools have been involved since the initiative commenced in 2006.
Although the program was originally designed for elementary school children, growing interest in career education and education in communication skills has led to its use by junior high and high school students. Many educators have commented on the potential for the program to be used as a lesson tool for discovering and communicating local culture and the attractiveness of their locality. Dentsu has provided comprehensive support for the program including customization of the teaching materials and advice on use of the program given by its creative staff. The program seems likely to continue growing to encompass a broader scope and a wider range of ages.