Popular Song Rankings of Monbusho Shoka [2026]

Winter nightMonbushō shōka8rank/position

Winter Night (♫ Near the Lamplight ~) by Sunflower ×4 [Chorus] with Lyrics

A Ministry of Education school song depicting warm moments spent with family on a cold winter night with falling snow.

Released in 1912, this piece richly expresses family togetherness around the irori hearth.

Though a blizzard rages outside, the house is cozy and warm.

You can picture the mother sewing clothes and the father telling old stories.

Featured on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” it has become a classic that lingers in many hearts.

Listening to it in the cold season is sure to warm your spirit.

A song that evokes a Japanese winter scene, beloved across generations.

MoonMonbushō shōka9rank/position

Moon

The descriptive passages praising the beauty of the perfectly round full moon leave a lasting impression.

First published in May 1911 in the Ministry of Education’s songbook “Jinjō Shōgaku Shōka: For First Grade,” it has been sung by many generations ever since.

Created through a committee-based process by editors from the Tokyo Music School, it is characterized by its simple, easy-to-sing melody.

Long beloved as a school song in music education, recordings by children’s choirs still exist today.

It’s a tune that makes you want to hum while gazing at the moon from your window on an autumn night.

Why not enjoy this nostalgic melody together with everyone at your facility?

Voices of InsectsMonbushō shōka10rank/position

Cries of Insects — Ministry of Education Shoka (School Song)

First published in 1910 in the Elementary School Reader Songs, this Ministry of Education song is still included in the second-grade curriculum guidelines more than 100 years later.

Do you know the insects that appear—the pine cricket (matsumushi), the bell cricket (suzumushi), and the ones that come after? In fact, the next insect was originally the kirigirisu, but in 1932 it was changed to the kōrogi (cricket)! It’s said the change was made because kirigirisu was an old term that referred to kōrogi.

Even among older generations, you might find people divided into the “kirigirisu camp” and the “kōrogi camp.”

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yuri

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Winter nightSakushi sakkyoku: Monbushō shōka11rank/position

Winter Night (♫ Near the Lamplight ~) by Sunflower ×4 [Chorus] with Lyrics

Let me introduce a beautiful traditional song that conveys the warmth of family on a cold winter night.

You can picture the scene of the family gathered around the hearth, with the mother talking about springtime play and the father telling old stories.

Even if there’s a blizzard outside, it’s warm inside.

Expressing such family togetherness with a gentle melody, this piece was released in 1912.

It was also featured on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” and has been beloved by many.

Listening to it in the cold season may bring back fond memories.

How about humming along with older family members?

Octopus SongMonbushō shōka12rank/position

Octopus Song Sung by: NEUTRINO (with lyrics)

“The Kite Song” sings about a kite soaring freely through the sky.

New Year’s gatherings tend to revolve around eating and drinking, but it can be fun to step outside, relive your childhood, and fly a kite while singing.

The lyrics depict many scenes of kite flying: the desire to make your kite fly higher than any other, and the moment you pull the string tight when it looks like it might fall.

As a little feature for your New Year’s party, consider adding a song and some kite flying.

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SAKI

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Mount FujiMonbushō shōka13rank/position

Mount Fuji (Fuji no Yama) 🗻 (♪ With its head above the clouds~) by Himawari 🌻×3 with lyrics | Ministry of Education Song [100 Selected Japanese Songs] | Fuji Mountain

Let us introduce a long-beloved piece themed on Mount Fuji, the symbol of Japan.

It vividly depicts the majestic figure towering under the blue sky and the beautiful sight of its snowy mantle, so just listening to it conjures up the mountain’s grandeur.

In some regions, it is also used as a disaster-prevention chime on public address systems or as a train departure melody.

As a classic that has been sung for over a century since 1910, many people may find it nostalgic.

It would be wonderful to sing it together with older adults or to share fond memories related to Mount Fuji.

Foal’s Rhythm PlayMonbushō shōka14rank/position

A nursery teacher plays the piano for the rhythm activity “Little Foal”! Sheet music included

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.