Popular hand games and hand game songs for toddlers and children! Full of ideas for childcare/early childhood education.
Having a rich repertoire of fingerplay songs keeps children from getting bored and gives adults a sense of ease.
You can use them in many ways—while preparing for the next activity, or as a calm introduction to help children listen attentively.
Above all, children love fingerplay songs with their variety of themes and rhythms.
Adults will surely feel soothed watching little ones smile and mimic the motions with their tiny hands.
Be sure to use this article to learn some new fingerplay songs!
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Popular Hand Games & Hand-Play Songs for Toddlers and Children! Packed with Ideas for Childcare (11–20)
greengrocer’s shop
A fun hand-play song where you quickly name the vegetables lined up at the greengrocer, called “The Greengrocer’s Shop.” In the main part of the song, you clap your hands and make a searching pose or a thinking pose to match the lyrics.
After that, when you start answering the names of vegetables one after another, you clap twice each time you correctly say a vegetable that the greengrocer would have.
You keep repeating this, and if you say something that isn’t there, you make an X sign with your arms.
It’s also fun to adapt it into different versions—not just a greengrocer, but a bakery, a sweets shop, and more!
What shall we make with rock, scissors, paper?
Gu-Choki-Pa, What Shall We Make? is a hand-play game that uses rock-paper-scissors shapes: gu (rock), choki (scissors), and pa (paper) to create all sorts of things.
You form gu, choki, or pa with each hand and combine them to make different objects.
For example, if you make one hand a gu and the other a choki, then place the gu on top of the choki, it becomes a snail.
Snails and helicopters are well-known examples, but it’s also fun to get creative and make your own originals! We also recommend teaming up with friends to make something bigger.
It’s a hand-play song that not only exercises the fingers but also enriches the imagination.
Mickey Mouse March
Let’s try a hand-play activity to the tune of the Mickey Mouse March, a theme song beloved by children all over the world! It’s not just a hand game—it also helps with learning numbers.
Using numbers you can show with your hands, we’ll bring out various Disney characters like Mickey Mouse, Pinocchio, and Dumbo! The numbers you form with both hands can represent each character’s distinctive features.
Let’s express cute Disney characters and have fun with hand play!
I wonder if the rice crackers are done.
Crispy, delicious rice crackers take center stage in “Has the Rice Cracker Finished Baking?” Gather a group, and everyone starts with their palms face down on the table.
One person repeatedly sings the title phrase while pointing in turn to each player’s palm.
The person who is pointed at on the final syllable, “na,” flips their hand over as if turning a rice cracker.
Repeat this process until everyone has managed to flip their palms up; then the last person who flipped their hand begins singing again and repeats the same actions.
If someone’s palm ends up facing down again, that’s the signal that their rice cracker is done baking—they pull their hand back.
You can add win conditions, such as whoever gets both rice crackers (both hands) baked first wins!
Ochara-ka-hoi
Ocharaka Hoi is a fun hand game song with a mysterious, spell-like title that you play in pairs.
Hold out your left hand with the palm facing up, and tap your partner’s left palm with your right hand to the rhythm.
At the cue “Ocharaka Hoi,” both players do rock-paper-scissors.
If you win, strike a triumphant pose; if you lose, a sad pose; and if it’s a tie, a slightly cocky pose.
It’s fun to imagine what your friend will throw next, and deciding on poses makes the rock-paper-scissors flow rhythmically.
Once you get used to the moves, try speeding it up!
Catch
A finger-play game called “Catch,” where friends, teachers, and guardians try to catch each other’s fingers.
It’s even more fun with more people.
Make a tube with one hand, and with the other hand stick up your index finger and put it into the tube made by the person next to you.
When the leader calls out “Catch,” the hand making the tube squeezes to catch the finger inside, while the index finger tries to pull out so it doesn’t get caught in the other person’s tube.
You succeed if you catch the other person’s finger or if you manage to pull your own finger out of the tube in time! The caller can make it more game-like and exciting by faking people out with several words that start with “kya/kyu/kyo” sounds like “cabbage” (kyabetsu) or “cat” (kyatto) before finally saying “Catch.”
Mitsuya Cider
This hand-play song features Mitsuya Cider, a drink loved by everyone from children to adults.
Using your hands, you act out the fizzy bubbles going pop-pop and the lively shuwa-shuwa sensation of carbonation.
It also includes a number-play element that uses the numbers 1 to 3 to match the “three” in Mitsuya Cider’s name.
The lyrics cue different movements to show whether the cider is better chilled or not too cold.
It’s a hand-play song with a bouncy rhythm that’s delightfully addictive!
The Bento Box Song
“Obentōbako no Uta” is a song where you keep packing various dishes into a lunchbox.
It’s not just a hand-play song; it also includes elements of number play.
The fact that it offers various kinds of learning is another highlight.
You show the hidden numbers in the dish names and the number of items to put in the lunchbox using your fingers.
For lotus root (renkon), you make circles with your fingers to represent the holes, and for butterbur (fuki), you trace your own arm with your hand to show the ridged lines.
There are also arranged versions where the menu has been updated to a modern selection, so be sure to check those out too!
tea kettle lid stand (chatsubo)
The hand-clapping song “Chatsubo” has you use both hands alternately to make the lid and the bottom of a tea jar.
Surprisingly, the tea jar that appears in the song doesn’t have a lid.
Without a lid, the contents could spill if it tips over, and dust could get in.
So the idea in this song is to use the bottom part of the tea jar to make a lid.
While moving both hands alternately, you create the jar, its lid, and its bottom as separate parts.
It looks simple, but it’s actually quite easy to get your hands tangled up—this is a hallmark of the game.
You might get mixed up after trying it over and over, but once you get the hang of it, it’s a lot of fun!
Knock knock knock knock, Grandpa with a beard
The hand-play song “Ton ton ton ton Hige Jiisan” features various characters, such as a bearded old man and a person wearing glasses.
You use your hands to show each character’s traits.
Until the old men appear, you tap your two fists alternately up and down to the rhythm.
Then, depending on the character, you place both fists under your chin to make the bearded old man, or make circles over your eyes to show the person with glasses.
At the end, you place your hands on your knees to finish.
You can also change the final hand placement to places other than the knees if you like!