We conducted a survey on the present conditions of after-school children clubs (Gakudohoiku), the method of providing snacks to younger schoolchildren during after-school care, the awareness toward feeding snacks among child care workers and guardians of admitted children, the interaction with other members in groups of different ages, and the children\u27s life activities in facilities for After School Care Program in Mieprefecture. The results were summarized as follows: (1) The female childcare workers made up roughly 90%; the childcare workers in their 40\u27s to 60\u27s made up around 80% of the total. (2) The child care mostly began "at two p.m." during weekdays, and "at eight a.m." on weekends, and mostly closed "at six p.m." through the week. (3) The most common expense budget for snack for a child per day at after-school children clubs was "between 50 yen and 100 yen", being the lowest "20yen" and the highest "200 yen and more". (4) "Children\u27s preferences" were the biggest elements taken into considerations, followed by "prices" in providing snacks at the after-school facilities. (5) The top food education programs at after-school children clubs were "Let\u27s Cook Together", "Good Manners at the Table", and "Growing Vegetables and Potatoes" (6) Among after-school care operators, parent\u27s associations accounted for about 30%, and local communities accounted for about 20%. Around 30% of after-school children clubs were operated inside school premises, while 70% were outside school premises. (7) Children in lower grades of primary school (aged 6 through 8) made up around 80% of children admitted in after-school children clubs, which corresponded to a national-level figure. (8) Child care workers encouraged significantly more interactions among multiage groups at medium or large-sized after-school children clubs than at small-sized ones. Comparing the ratio of low graders, children had significantly more opportunities for multi-age interaction at after-school children clubs with low ratio of low graders. (9) Boys and girls were almost equal in numbers at after-school children clubs. Around 90% of children joined the child care facilities in the first grade. As for visiting frequency, "five times a week" was the most common. With regard to reasons for visiting these facilities, "double income family" accounted for 80%. (10) As for frequency of snacks at home, "once" was most common during weekdays and weekends. (11) "Snack food", "chocolate confectionery" and "ice cream" are the most popular snacks given to children at home, which showed that parents were likely to provide snack of their children\u27s preferences. (12) Regarding snack time at home, "five to eight p.m." is most common on weekdays; "three to six p.m." was predominantly common on weekends. (13) As for appropriate budget for snack at home, "50 yen to 100 yen" for a child per day was most common. (14) Concerning life activities of those admitted in after school clubs, physical activities, such as "playground equipment", "soccer", "tag", and "jump rope" were most popular types of child\u27s play during weekdays
