For elementary school students! A recommended collection of famous haiku using spring kigo

Spring Mud

Haiku and the season word “shundei” (spring mud) [spring season word]

It refers to mud that has become waterlogged and soggy as the ground absorbs meltwater and spring rain.

Soil that was frozen hard through winter softens, and with melted snow and rainwater mixed in, roads and fields turn pliant.

When you walk, mud may stick to your shoes, and it can feel a bit harder to get around, yet that very scene conveys that winter has ended and the season is shifting into spring.

In haiku, it is often used to depict the landscapes around the time of snowmelt and the beginnings of spring in people’s everyday lives.

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Spring Snow

Today's Haiku <Broadcast in Reiwa 5 (2023) February> Set Topic: "Spring Snow" (First Half)

The soft snow that falls after spring has begun is called “spring snow.” Unlike the harsh snows of winter, it falls quietly, like a lingering trace of the season.

It often melts right away, evoking a sense of transience and the changing of the seasons.

In haiku, it’s also used to depict the gentle scenes on the way from winter to spring, or to express a slightly wistful feeling.

Just saying, “It’s spring snow today,” in conversation brings a tender sense of the season.

As you watch the snow dance, why not try putting that fleeting beauty into words and using the phrase casually?

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Beginning of Spring

Haiku and the seasonal word “Risshun” [spring seasonal word]

It is a term that denotes the day when spring begins on the calendar.

Although the chill still lingers, this day is seen as the turning point toward spring.

Its charm lies in sensing the signs of the season in the subtlest changes—gentler winds, brighter sunlight.

In haiku, it is often used to express the start of a new season or the anticipation of the spring to come.

If you use it while imagining the faint presence of spring still nestled within winter’s crisp air, a natural sense of the season will unfold.

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Butterfly

Today's Haiku <Broadcast in Reiwa 5 (2023) March> Set Topic: "Butterfly" (First Half)

It depicts butterflies fluttering lightly in the warmth of spring.

Nature, which spent the winter in quiet, awakens and lets us feel that spring has truly arrived.

Their buoyant flight conveys a sense of calm and brightness, and they are often used in haiku to portray gentle, springlike scenes.

Even just adding a line like “The butterflies are flying” into a conversation can evoke the gentle air of spring.

It’s easy to use if you simply put that springlike scene into words while picturing them dancing around flowers.

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spring midday

Recitation: Kyoka Izumi, “Spring Daytime”

“Shunchū” (spring noon) refers to a gentle time in early spring days when winter’s chill softens and tender, warm sunlight pours down.

The air carries spring’s uniquely mild brightness; grasses and flowers along the roadside begin to sprout here and there, and stepping outside lets you feel the breath of nature in this seasonal moment.

In haiku, it is often used to depict the gentle spring light, the midday quiet, and the shifts in people’s lives and in nature.

If you use it while envisioning sunlit plants and flowers and a faintly warm breeze, a calm, tender scene of a spring day naturally unfolds.

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Spring Dawn

Chinese Poem (1) Spring Dawn [Spring slumber knows not the dawn] Scenery and World of Chinese Poetry ← Japanese Language Textbook Commentary [Classical Rendering / Modern Translation / Modern Kana Usage]

A word that evokes the dawn of spring—especially the gentle light and air of a morning when winter’s chill has softened.

In still towns and open fields, the faint sounds of birdsong and the wind echo softly, conveying the calm of the moment when a new day begins slowly.

In haiku, it is often used to depict the arrival of spring, the awakening of nature, and the fresh yet quiet scenes of morning.

Even in everyday conversation, adding it can convey the season’s tenderness and tranquil presence.

Use it while imagining the morning light streaming through a window and the sounds of nature waking, and feel the gentle time of a spring morning.

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Flower rain

Hana no Ame Kimi no Nagori, song by Yamanbagiri Kunihiro

It is a word that describes the gentle rain that falls as if scattering spring blossoms like cherry and plum.

The characteristically light spring drizzle washes away winter’s dry air and brings life-giving moisture to flowers and greenery.

The sight of petals struck by that rain fluttering down feels both fleeting and beautiful, evoking a momentary scene of spring.

In haiku, it is often used to express the shifting spring landscape, as well as ephemerality and tenderness.

When you use it while imagining the sound of rain on petals and the softly moistened scenery, a quiet, gentle spring scene naturally unfolds.

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