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[Nursery Schools & Kindergartens] Liven Up Setsubun! Entertainment Ideas

[Nursery Schools & Kindergartens] Liven Up Setsubun! Entertainment Ideas

Last updated:2026/1/23

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked for 10 years as a kindergarten teacher and for 7 years as an after-school childcare instructor, then took a post as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I also engaged in activities that shared Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational play, working with many children. Afterwards, through freelance writing, planning, and editing work at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and conveying ideas. Leveraging the perspective cultivated in educational settings and my experience as an editor, I aim to deliver practical information—focusing on fields related to music and children—that values both input and output. Hobbies include instruments, singing, handcrafts, toys, drawing, traditional play, the outdoors, books, DIY, and crafts. Special skill: spinning-top tricks.
9 years of experience as a nursery school teacherShibata Risa
I am an active nursery school teacher with 9 years of experience. After graduating from university, I worked at a daycare center. The time I spent happily with children—playing piano, singing songs, and doing finger-play—are priceless memories to me. Currently, while raising three children of my own, I work at an after-school day service, engaging with children and providing individualized developmental support. Drawing on my diverse experiences as a childcare worker and as a mother, I hope to express and convey my thoughts through writing.

As Setsubun approaches, it’s the time when nursery schools and kindergartens start thinking about what performances to put on.

There are many ideas to liven up a Setsubun assembly, such as plays, dances, and finger plays that children can get absorbed in.

It’s also fun in ways unique to this season—cheers erupt when the ogres appear, and everyone moves their bodies to the bean-throwing song.

Here, we’ve gathered ideas for performances perfect for Setsubun events at nursery schools.

Please use them as a reference to make your Setsubun assembly full of children’s smiles!

[Nursery & Kindergarten] Setsubun Gets Exciting! Performance Ideas (1–10)

Panel Theater: “Let’s Defeat the Oni in Our Hearts”

#87 [Daycare] Setsubun (Oni) Panel Theater 🌿 ~Defeat the bad ogres in your heart~

Panel Theater: “Let’s Defeat the Oni in Our Hearts”

This is a panel theater that also explains the origins of Setsubun! Why do we throw beans? What is “holly and sardines” for? It thoroughly answers those pure questions children have.

As the story unfolds, characters like the “Lazy Ogre,” “Grumpy Ogre,” and “Crybaby Ogre,” who live in the characters’ hearts, appear.

Let’s drive these ogres away one by one by throwing beans.

And after driving out the ogres, we invite in good fortune! You could also have the children think about what kind of ogres might live inside themselves.

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Theater “Bikkuri Mamemaki”

[Theater] “Bikkuri Mamemaki” by Naomi Abe

Theater “Bikkuri Mamemaki”

This is “Surprise Bean-Throwing,” performed with paper cups decorated with illustrations.

The characters are Kitty-chan and Doggy-kun.

They were smiling happily, but a Crybaby Ogre and an Angry Ogre slipped inside their bodies! Kitty-chan starts to cry, and Doggy-kun gets angry—it’s a big problem.

Let’s scatter beans to drive out the ogres inside them! On each paper cup, attach two illustrations on the sides: one with a smiling face and one with the transformed face.

When you want to switch the expression, simply rotate the paper cup.

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Demon Parent and Child

https://www.tiktok.com/@soiflhoiku/video/7463022728614874375

Speaking of oni (ogres), they remind us of the thunder god, don’t they? In this hand play, a child oni, a father oni, and a mother oni appear.

Use both index fingers to make horns on top of your head, and use your hands and arms to represent the thunder god.

When the rumbling thunder starts, rotate both fists in front of your chest, and when it flashes, quickly open both hands in front of your face.

The basic movements are the same for all the oni, so change your tone and volume depending on the oni you’re playing.

Try making the child oni’s movements small and the father oni’s movements big.

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Attention childcare workers! How to play the role of an ogre

@nexus_official5
Setsubun is coming up soon. Nursery teachers! What kind of oni (ogre) will you play this year? Please take a look at Nonno’s carefully crafted oni!#nexus #memorytree nursery school Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Setsubun Demon 👹February 3 Bean-throwing (Setsubun)
♬ Runaway Baby – Bruno Mars

If you’re going to do a full-on bean-throwing for Setsubun, you can’t go without an oni, right? At daycares and kindergartens, teachers may even dress up as an oni and appear in front of the children.

Here are some easy ideas to turn yourself into an oni! First, wear a matching tracksuit in the same color as an oni’s skin.

Then put on an oni mask, and top it with an afro wig with horns.

Pull tiger-print shorts over your tracksuit pants, and finish the look with black gloves and long black room socks.

You’re all set!

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Hand play ideas perfect for Setsubun

@nexus_official5
I tried a hand game that could be used for Setsubun! Please give it a try 👹#memorytree nursery school #fyp Nursery teacher / Childcare worker Childcare student #nexus Hand games Tsuno tsuno tsūno Setsubun
♫ Original Song – BonBon Academy – BonBon Academy

It’s not about an oni itself, but a fingerplay song themed around oni horns.

You raise both index fingers and move your hands up and down to the lyrics that go “tsuno tsuno tsuno~.” Then you show one horn… two horns… by placing your index fingers on top of your head to represent horns, and you strike poses or change your facial expression to match the “◯◯ horns” part.

For example, for “stretching horns,” you fling both index fingers upward above your head, and for “sleeping horns,” you close your eyes.

Have fun thinking with the children about what kinds of horns you can express.

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Sketchbook Theater: “Let’s Do Bean-Throwing!”

[Sketchbook Theater Childcare] Let’s Do Bean-Throwing! ☆ How to Enjoy It and How to Make It ☆ Childcare

Sketchbook Theater: "Let's Do Bean-Throwing!"

I want to briefly explain what Setsubun is! This sketchbook theater is perfect for that.

Setsubun is performed with wishes for everyone’s health.

We drive away oni—symbols of evil spirits—by throwing roasted soybeans, and we eat our age plus one bean.

This sketchbook theater conveys these important Setsubun customs with gentle illustrations and a simple story.

In the bean-throwing scene, flipping the paper shows the beans moving.

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A gentle Setsubun for infants

A gentle Setsubun event for infants

A gentle Setsubun for infants

This is a sketchbook theater featuring Usako-chan the crybaby and Miketa-kun the hothead.

If you look closely at the two of them, you’ll notice ogres hiding there.

Usako-chan has a Crybaby Ogre, and Miketa-kun has a Hothead Ogre hiding inside.

Now, let’s all throw beans together and drive the ogres away! Once the ogres are gone, both of them are smiling, aren’t they? When you realize there are ogres, try asking the children once, “What do you think we should do?” I’m sure you’ll hear all sorts of interesting solutions.

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