![[Children’s Day Hand-Play Songs] A Collection of Nursery Rhymes & Traditional Children’s Songs for Parents and Kids to Enjoy Together](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/GkVKdTvKrZA/maxresdefault.webp)
[Children’s Day Hand-Play Songs] A Collection of Nursery Rhymes & Traditional Children’s Songs for Parents and Kids to Enjoy Together
May 5th is Tango no Sekku—Children’s Day, a holiday celebrating children’s healthy growth! Many families decorate with carp streamers and samurai dolls and enjoy a festive meal.
In this article, we’ve gathered some recommended hand-play songs perfect for Children’s Day.
How about trying them with your family after the celebration? These are all ideal for kids in nursery school and kindergarten, so have fun adding Children’s Day–themed twists as you play!
[Children’s Day Hand-Play Songs] A Collection of Nursery Rhymes & Traditional Children’s Songs for Parents and Kids to Enjoy (1–10)
five melon breadsNEW!
When it comes to classic make-believe shop games, it’s got to be the bakery! This piece is a hand-play song that lets you enjoy shopping at a bakery.
Based on an English children’s game song, Hirotaka Nakagawa wrote the Japanese lyrics.
You can play it as a countdown using your fingers to reduce the number.
It was included on albums such as “CD Twin: Nakayoshi Asobi Uta — Songs Sung in Nursery School and Kindergarten,” released in February 2006.
The fun point is watching the delicious breads sell out one after another until there are none left! Try becoming a parent-and-child bakery duo and play it during snack time on Children’s Day!
Upward eyes, downward eyesNEW!
It’s a simple play song where you move facial features with your fingers.
You can change the shape of the eyes using your fingers and, at the end, twirl your fingers to imitate a cat, enjoying the shifting expressions.
Since being included in a song collection published in April 1926, it has been loved for many years.
Thanks to its familiarity, it has also been commercialized as a picture book, such as in Gakken’s “Shikake Uta Ehon” series.
With a beginning, development, turn, and conclusion packed into short phrases, it’s perfect for capturing children’s attention or providing a quick change of pace.
Ochara-ka-hoiNEW!
This is a hand-clapping song that incorporates rock-paper-scissors.
It starts with a rhythmic chant, you clap your hands to a lively beat, and finish with a showdown—that’s the basic rule.
Changing facial expressions and poses depending on whether you win or lose helps develop children’s judgment and quick reflexes.
Hand-clapping songs have a long history; records appear in the 1832 text “Owari Children’s Songs Collection,” showing how long they’ve been loved in Japan.
Once you get used to it, gradually speed up the tempo and enjoy a thrilling match together as parent and child.
Elephant and SpiderwebNEW!
This is a hand-play song depicting a truly unique scene: an elephant playing on a thin thread.
The way it keeps calling in friends one after another, increasing the number of participants, heightens the children’s sense of anticipation.
Plus, with the twist ending where the thread finally snaps, kids can enjoy a story-like thrill all the way through.
The original is a playground song from the English-speaking world, and in Japan it was included in a collection of children’s songs released in March 2000, remaining beloved for many years.
Be sure to join voices with a big group and get everyone excited together!
Horn, horn, hoooorn!NEW!
This is a hand play song full of unique ideas where you make horns on your head and play.
It was created in collaboration by Icchi & Naru from BonBon Academy and children’s song writers Tsubasa Suzuki and Sho Fukuda.
It’s included on the album “Hajimaru! Hajimaru!” released in July 2024.
While using your fingers to represent horns, you have fun imitating movements like stretching and sleeping.
The key point is to strike a pose together at the end and deliver a playful comeback.
On Children’s Day, pretend to be a strong animal and move your body with lots of energy!
The Clock SongNEW!
This is a beloved children’s song that charmingly expresses the movement of a clock’s hands with a cute rhythm.
It spread nationwide after being broadcast on NHK Radio’s “Uta no Obasan,” and has been included in numerous works, such as the album “Minna de Eranda Kodomo no Uta Best 100,” released in September 2018.
The song features sounds that mimic the ticking of the advancing hands, and depicts the short hand and the long hand meeting and exchanging greetings.
You can also turn it into a physical play activity—sway your fingers left and right to the rhythm, or have a parent and child pretend to be the small and large hands and greet each other.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, Grandpa with the beardNEW!
This is a hand-play song where you make fists with both hands and clap them alternately, using facial features to portray characters.
The lyrics and movements are linked—for example, placing your hand on your chin to make a beard or showing a bump on the cheek.
Since August 1978, it has become widely established through childcare settings and publications, and it is now a staple included in many nursery rhyme collections and educational DVDs.
It is also frequently featured at parent–child events and in childcare videos.
Please enjoy this piece, which is easy for children who are just beginning to learn words to join in!