[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 (21–30)
Rainy moon
This song was unveiled in the New Year’s issue of the magazine Kodomo no Kuni published in 1925.
At the time, the lyrics did not yet have a second verse, but later, in order to lengthen the piece as a commercial product, another published song titled “Kumo no Kage” (“Shadow of the Clouds”) was repurposed.
It’s a lovely song that really evokes the bridal ceremonies of that era, isn’t it?
A tadpole is a frog’s child.
Tadpoles are the children of frogs.
Even though every adult knows this, many children may wonder if these two creatures that look so different are really parent and child.
This song, “Otamajakushi wa Kaeru no Ko” (Tadpoles Are Frog Children), helps answer that question.
It explains that tadpoles aren’t baby catfish, which look more similar at first glance, but truly baby frogs—because as they grow, they properly develop arms and legs.
The melody of the song uses “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” an American tune that has been adapted into many parody songs, including well-known themes for Japanese electronics store commercials.
[June Nursery Rhymes] Fun Finger-Play Songs and Traditional Children's Rhymes Perfect for the Rainy Season (31–40)
Come, firefly
Fireflies are a quintessential sign of early summer.
Their softly glowing figures, seen along rivers with clear, flowing water, create a dreamy scene that makes you want to show them to children.
The children’s song “Hotaru Koi,” which features fireflies, is one of the most famous nursery rhymes—something that dads and moms, as well as grandpas and grandmas, can all sing together.
Its lyrics, which evoke children calling the fireflies to come to where they are, make it a song you’ll want to sing when you go to see fireflies.
Cute cook
June is a rainy season, so I bet many people are looking for songs they can enjoy indoors.
For you, I recommend “Kawaii Kokkusan” (The Cute Little Cook).
It’s a drawing song about an adorable cook, and it makes it easy for anyone to draw, making it perfect for children to enjoy.
Let’s all sing the drawing song together and have fun even on rainy days.
rainfalldōyō
“Amefuri” (Rainfall), a song everyone has probably sung at least once, is a children’s song first published in the Taisho era.
Though rain is unpleasant, the beloved mother comes with an umbrella to pick up her child.
The bouncy rhythm of the piece conveys the child’s excited anticipation while waiting for their mother.
On the way home, the child sees another child getting wet in the rain and offers their own umbrella.
From the words spoken, it is likely a boy taking action toward a girl.
The mother must be very pleased to see her son growing up to be so kind.
Rainy Aquarium
When raindrops stick to the window, doesn’t the view beyond it look like an aquarium tank overflowing with water? “Rainy Day Aquarium” is a song that enchantingly captures that rainy scenery.
The people holding colorful umbrellas and the various kinds of cars rushing past beyond the rain-soaked window resemble the sight of many fish swimming in an aquarium, don’t they? Even if you can’t go to an aquarium, why not enjoy a one-of-a-kind, mysterious aquarium from the window of your home or kindergarten? It’s also fun to use your imagination—pretend the cars are real fish and say, “That one’s called such-and-such a fish!”
Beyond the rainbow
This song is from April 1996 and was sung by Ayumi Shigemori and Kentaro Hayami, who served as the “older sister” and “older brother” singers on NHK’s Okaasan to Issho.
It’s a very uplifting and fun song.
The rainy season brings a lot of rain, but the rainbow that appears after the rain is so beautiful it feels cleansing to the heart.