Awesome Homework

In this series prominent people set homework that stirschildren’s curiosity. The show began in May 2020 duringthe first lockdown in Japan. Schools were closed forthree months, children were trapped indoors, robbed ofopportunities to learn and play. In this episode picturebookartist Yoshitake Shinsuke encourages kids to createtheir own private places and secrets. In the homeworkhe asks youngsters to draw portraits of themselvescreating these secrets. After multiple broadcasts, highlyimaginative work from kids arrived. We aired a seriesof Yoshitake’s sincere responses, creating two-waycommunication. With the future unclear, our aim was togive kids the joy of engrossing activities and unexpectedexperiences. We wanted to deliver the intentions ofthe questioners as intact as possible and asked them tofreely conceive the content of their homework. Unable tofilm on location, we had the questioners send videos ofthemselves, which we aired with almost no edits.The show was designed to stimulate children’s powers ofimagination, free them from the stress of confinement,to help them be kind to themselves, and to give themthe freedom to express their interests. TV is a onewaystreet, but the questioner solicits answers and webroadcast feedback, thereby sending the message that,even during a crisis, there are adults who care about thechildren’s thoughts and feelings.