Let's sing together! A collection of nursery rhymes everyone knows
Nursery songs that many people have sung in day-care centers, kindergartens, and schools.
These children’s songs, passed down through generations, are still sung today in childcare settings, schools, and even senior facilities.
That said, fewer people are singing them nowadays, and some children can be found who don’t know nursery songs at all.
In this article, we’ll introduce nursery songs that everyone—young and old—will recognize.
If you’re not very familiar with nursery songs, start by listening to the ones we introduce here.
Try singing nursery songs together with your child, your friends, or your grandparents, and have fun!
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[Sing along together!] A collection of nursery rhymes everyone knows (11–20)
The Bear of the ForestSakushi: Baba Yoshihiro / Sakkyoku: Amerika min’yō
Do you know scout songs? They’re songs everyone sings during Boy Scout and Girl Scout activities.
The original song “The Other Day, I Met a Bear” was one such scout song.
When it was translated into Japanese and started being sung in Japan, its title was “Kind Mr.
Bear.” In 1972, when it was featured on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” it seems to have become the current “Mori no Kuma-san.” It’s surprisingly recent, isn’t it? Up to the chorus, the lyrics are sung in a round, so I’d love for everyone to sing it together when a lot of people are gathered!
TulipSakushi: Kondo Miyako / Sakkyoku: Inoue Takeshi
Announcing the arrival of spring, this song overflows with warmth that gently embraces children’s hearts.
It tenderly depicts tulips in full bloom—red, white, yellow, and more—conveying a beautiful message that celebrates the diversity of flowers.
Written in 1931 by Miyako Kondo with music by Takeshi Inoue, this children’s song was crafted in clear, friendly language for kindergarteners.
How about singing it with your child while pointing to the tulips you find on a spring walk? The moment their eyes light up at the flowers’ beauty will surely become a cherished memory.
Adorable foalSakushi: Satō Hachirō / Sakkyoku: Niki Takio
This song warmly portrays the life of a foal and a child, while carrying a curious, poignant sense of the times quietly creeping in.
You dry the foal’s wet mane, run together, and eventually part ways.
Such scenes unfold alongside rhythmic calls and responses.
The lyricist, Hachirō Satō, was active across a wide range from children’s songs to popular music, and the composer, Takio Niki, was a seasoned talent also known for film scores.
The work was released in December 1940 and broadcast nationwide the following January 1941 on NHK’s “National Songs.” It is closely connected to the film “Uma” (Horse), and has long been loved, later even featured in animated films.
Singing it as a family invites reflections on life in earlier times, and in early childhood settings it can be enjoyed as a play activity by imitating a foal’s movements.
Song of the Resounding GrasslandsSakushi: Kubota Yuzuru Sakkyoku: Maruyama Aki
This piece opens a series based on Mongolian folk tales.
Poet Yuzuru Kubota and composer Aki Maruyama joined forces, and it was first unveiled at a premiere concert held at the Nagoya Civic Hall in May 2000.
It was later formally published in September 2002 as the opening number in the score collection Aki Maruyama Song Collection [Supplement]: Suho’s White Horse.
The lyrics weave in images of a steppe where wind and light resonate, and its bright, easy-to-sing melody makes it accessible for children.
It works beautifully in many settings—sung alongside a story reading in schools or preschools, or used as an introductory piece for recitals and concerts.
KintaroSakushi: Ishihara Wasaburō / Sakkyoku: Tamura Torazō
This is a children’s song that depicts a sturdy boy wrestling a bear on Mount Ashigara.
Written by Wasaburō Ishihara and composed by Torazō Tamura, it was published in June 1900 in “Shōnen Shōka, First Edition, Upper Volume.” As a representative children’s song that sings about a folktale hero in words familiar to children, it remains beloved today.
The bold figure carrying a hatchet and practicing horse-riding is vividly expressed through a lively two-beat rhythm and spirited calls that make it easy to sing while moving the body.
Because it conveys strength and energy, it’s perfect for singing with children in childcare settings or at home who are starting to take an interest in animals and folktales.
Add handclaps and gestures while singing, and it’s sure to be even more exciting.
Horse’s tail, pig’s tail.Sakushi: Abe Hitomi / Sakkyoku: Yamamoto Naozumi
Broadcast on NHK’s Minna no Uta in August 1983, this song is a humorous children’s tune themed around the tails of a horse and a pig.
Written by Hitomi Abe and composed by Naosumi Yamamoto, it was selected as an outstanding piece in NHK’s Children’s Song Lyrics and Composition Contest.
The story charmingly likens a boy’s puppy-love—teasing the girl he likes—to animal tails, sweetly capturing that childish urge to tug on her pigtails.
Sung by Kyu Sakamoto and the NHK Tokyo Children’s Choir, it became well-loved and was rebroadcast in 2010 and 2015.
There are also covers by various artists, including Seiji Tanaka, and it is widely sung in kindergarten and nursery school choirs.
Its lively melody and catchy refrain make it perfect for parents and children to sing together.
[Let’s Sing Together!] A Collection of Well-Known Children’s Songs (21–30)
Foal’s Rhythm PlayMonbushō shōka
This children’s song, which depicts a lively foal moving forward to the chant “Hai-shii, hai-shii,” was included in the Ministry of Education’s Shoka for the Elementary School Reader, edited in July 1910 (Meiji 43).
Its hallmark is the way it expresses the foal’s hoofbeats—pressing on along mountain paths and up steep slopes—through an even beat and rhythm.
Today it is used in early childhood education and eurhythmics as a “rhythm play” activity, ideal for children to walk, run, and stop in time with the piano.
Because changes in pitch and tempo can be expressed through body movement, it’s perfect for group movement play and parent–child bonding time.
By imitating a horse’s gait, it offers a fun way to foster a sense of rhythm.