Go SOZO Tokyo 2019 (Go SOZO) was held on September 23 (Monday, national holiday) at the 42F Roppongi Grand Tower.Go SOZO is a "place where children can expand their possibilities and be themselves", where children take the lead in presenting their own programming and robots. Go SOZO is an event where children take the lead. Here is a report on the event, which was filled with children's possibilities and excitement!
Presentations and booth presentations showcasing the best of the company's work
There were two presentation formats: presentation and booth presentation (exhibition). In the presentation format, participants presented their own programming creations with video clips and demonstrations. The themes of the works varied from shooting games and fortune telling to countermeasures against suspicious persons on their way to and from school. About 40 children, ranging from preschoolers to junior high school students, who attend programming classes, presented their creative works with free ideas.
Professional judges active on the front lines, including JAXA professors and IT companies, gave on-the-spot feedback to the presentation presenters on their works. The judges took their hats off not only to the problem-solving skills of the presenters, but also to their presentation skills that rivaled those of adults, saying, "I could see how they took on the challenge of overcoming problems when faced with them.
After the presentations, feedback was given from the audience. The audience evaluated the presentations by expressing their feelings of "excitement," "surprise," "wow! and "Happy! The children were thrilled to see how the audience felt.
The youngest presenter was a 4-year-old girl. The audience looked warmly at her presentation as she did her best. Watching over children's challenges is another important theme of Go SOZO.
At the booth presentation, the creator of the game explained to visitors how to play the game.
A game producer who has worked on many popular games was also impressed. I was inspired by the children's flexible thinking. I hope we can work together in the future.
The boy, who loves to use the toilet, used the Scratch programming software to recreate the toilet's water flow. The sound of running water was incorporated into the design, and the artist paid close attention to details for realism.
Contents & workshops for children and adults
In between the presentations and booths, two children who continue to expand their potential took the stage as special content: Michiei Kato (13), a junior high school entrepreneur who started his own business with his parents when he was 12 years old, spoke about "how to live life without giving up now. Haruhiro Kosukegawa (10), a world robot competition winner, talked about his dreams and goals, including the development of a robot that will help solve the problems of a super-aging society. The adults in the audience were very interested in the messages from these highly ambitious young men and women. They listened attentively.
Jiei Kato, 13, junior high school student entrepreneur
He is currently working hard to launch the children's version of The Big Issue, a magazine that nurtures children's zest for life.
Haruta Kosukegawa, 10, aims to become the first Japanese elementary school student to win the world robot competition.
There were also a variety of workshops such as body painting using peelable body paints and VR experiences. There were many fun tricks to keep children occupied all day long.
After the event, many children took a new step forward!
The 2nd Go SOZO will be held in Ikebukuro in February 2020
Masashi Kosukegawa, president of Go Visions, which organized the event, gave us a look back at Go SOZO.
Mr. Masashi Kosukegawa, President of Go Visions, organizer of Go SOZO
We are planning to hold the second event in February next year at a venue with a capacity of 6,000 people. Stay tuned!
Editorial:What kind of feedback did you receive from the participants?
Kosukegawa:About 800 people visited Go SOZO. Many of the visitors commented, "It was so much fun to experience all of this for the first time! Many of them said, "It was so much fun, it was all new to me! Many children said they did not want to leave even after the event was over, which made us very happy as the organizer. Some children became interested in programming, which they had never been interested in before, as a result of their experience at the workshop. I was surprised to see how much curiosity can change a child's life.
Editorial:What were your impressions of the children who gave presentations and booth presentations?
Kosukegawa:It was very impressive to see the children who presented their works listening to the feedback comments from the judges with a twinkle in their eyes. It seems that they received new inspiration from the other presentations and booth presentations.
Editorial:I was surprised at how well the children presented their presentations. I wonder if they had any rehearsals beforehand.
Kosukegawa:No, we did not have a rehearsal. We were also surprised when we saw the children's presentations for the first time on the day of the event. It was very encouraging to see the children working so hard to present their creations. The challenge of communicating something to someone must have given them confidence.
Editorial:I understand that this was your first attempt at Go SOZO. Do you plan to hold more such events in the future?
Kosukegawa:The second event is scheduled for February 11 (Tue., holiday) next year at Sunshine City Hall in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. Based on this event, we will revise and scale up our plans. We will challenge "edutainment tech that visualizes children's curiosity and enthusiasm". Details are still a secret. We will take on new challenges and scale up the event to make Go SOZO a place where children are excited about the future!
<After the interview
We were impressed by the way they presented their presentations in front of so many people, and the abundance of ideas they used to solve everyday problems from their unique perspectives. One mother of a first- and third-grader said, "It was good to learn about the strengths and stances of the different programming classes, such as robotics and games. It is a field that even the parents themselves are not familiar with, so these events were fun and helped us deepen our understanding of the field. Expectations for what kind of learning and insights will be found at the second Go SOZO in February next year are only growing. It was a day of witnessing the children's imagination, creativity, and expanding possibilities.
