[Children’s Songs for June] Fun finger-play songs and traditional nursery rhymes perfect for the rainy season
The rainy season makes you long for summer.
When it rains day after day, many children make teru-teru bozu and wish, “Please be sunny!”
Precisely because it’s a time when it’s hard to play outside as much as you’d like, why not have fun by singing children’s songs and hand-play songs together?
In this article, we’ll introduce children’s songs and hand-play songs that are perfect for June, the month of the rainy season.
We’ve selected a wide range, from famous songs like “Katatatsumuri” (Snail) to hand-play favorites popular with children in nursery schools and kindergartens.
Let’s change our perspective and turn a rainy day into a fun one!
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[June Nursery Rhymes] Fun Hand-Play Songs and Traditional Children’s Songs Perfect for the Rainy Season (1–10)
Whale ClockSakushi: Seki Kazuo / Sakkyoku: Shibuya Takeshi
A fantastical song that fills children with excitement.
Its soft, warm, and beautiful melody blends perfectly with lyrics rich in storytelling.
First broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 1983, it has remained popular, with reruns and inclusion on related albums.
The piece is also used in school music materials as a song that teaches the importance of time.
Listening to it during the rainy tsuyu season or on June 10th, Time Day, will surely put you in a gentle mood.
Singing it with choreography will further spark children’s imaginations.
Pitchanponyukichan, wanwan, u-tan, kukku-
A cute song that rhythmically expresses the sound of falling rain.
It captures the excitement of a rainy day—going for a walk in rain boots and twirling colorful umbrellas—set to a lively tempo.
It was included on the March 2018 album “NHK Inai Inai Baa! Homerarechatta,” with a DVD released around the same time.
Perfect for the rainy season, it’s a tune you can enjoy singing and moving to indoors on those restless, can’t-go-out rainy days.
Grandfather’s ClockHenry Clay Work
A timeless ballad passed down across generations to the sound of a ticking clock.
Set to a simple, familiar melody, it unfolds a moving story that portrays the bond between a grandfather and his old clock.
First broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 1962, it continues to be cherished by people of all ages to this day.
Ken Hirai’s cover also became a major hit.
It’s a song to savor during the rainy season—gathered with family around the piano as you listen to the patter of the rain, or lending an ear to your grandmother’s reminiscences.
[June Nursery Rhymes] Fun Hand-Play Songs and Traditional Children's Songs Perfect for the Rainy Season (11–20)
snail
When you think of bugs on a rainy day, “snails” come to mind, right? This is a hand-play game with snails as the stars.
They have various names, like “dendenmushi” and “maimai.” In this song, let’s pretend to be those cute snails and sing while dancing energetically! It’s a fun number featuring distinctive choreography that mimics a snail’s unique body shape and feelers.
Cavity Germ ExerciseTokyo Haiji
This is a friendly, upbeat song that makes the importance of brushing teeth fun to learn.
By combining animation and music, it clearly conveys why toothbrushing matters in a visually engaging way.
Included on the album “Tokyo Heidi: Kids’ Best Hits,” released in June 2021, this track is also sung in nurseries and kindergartens.
“I don’t want cavities, but I don’t like brushing!” Even kids who feel that way might naturally become interested in brushing as they sing and dance along.
It seems perfect for enjoying toothbrushing time both at home and at school.
A Rainy Day on the Ranch
Set on a rainy day at a farm, this friendly song portrays the animals having fun.
Cows, sheep, and chickens play in the rain and stroll under umbrellas, all depicted with a bright and charming melody.
Released in September 2024 as an original song on the YouTube channel “LiaChaCha,” this piece is perfect for June, when indoor play increases during the rainy season, and is a tune kids can sing and enjoy together.
It’s sure to blow away those rainy-day blues.
Snack Song
A hand-play song that makes snack time—something children always look forward to—an even more special moment.
Its short lyrics and rhythmic melody are full of charm that naturally invites clapping along.
Singing while doing the hand movements helps children learn the difference between the right and left hand and supports the development of their hands and fingertips.
This piece will bring a warm, cheerful mood not only to snack time at nurseries and kindergartens, but also at home.
It’s also recommended to sing it as part of a recreation activity on June 10, Time Day.