![[For Elementary School Students] Spring Kigo for Haiku Writing! A Collection of Fun, Easy-to-Memorize Ideas](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/c8XDURiLHb0/maxresdefault.webp)
[For Elementary School Students] Spring Kigo for Haiku Writing! A Collection of Fun, Easy-to-Memorize Ideas
Have you ever been told to “use seasonal words” in a spring haiku or writing class and then felt stuck about what to write? In fact, spring kigo (seasonal words) aren’t just flowers like cherry blossoms and plum blossoms—there are plenty that are familiar to elementary school students, such as the Doll Festival.
In this article, we’ve gathered a wide range of easy-to-understand spring kigo for children.
We also explain their meanings and how to use them, so you can immediately put them to use when making haiku or doing Japanese language homework.
Be sure to find your favorite seasonal words!
[For Elementary School Students] Spring Kigo You Can Use for Haiku! A Collection of Fun, Memorable Ideas (1–10)
March
March, generally regarded as a spring month, is itself used as a kigo for spring.
It’s the season when warmth gradually grows, flowers sprout, and creatures awaken from hibernation.
Still, in some regions, winter’s chill and snow linger.
In this March where two seasons seem to coexist, the verses you compose may differ greatly depending on the place.
Why not try composing a haiku using “March” as a seasonal word at this precious turning point between seasons?
Japanese kerria
This is a plant that blooms with vivid yellow flowers in spring and is often used as a “season word for spring.” Its sun-like bright color makes it perfect for expressing feelings like “energy,” “warmth,” and “joy”! Imagining the way it sways in the wind or the sight of it blooming in abundance along rivers and roadsides will help expand your haiku imagery.
For example, Yosa Buson’s haiku “Yamabuki ya Ide no yamabuki saki ni keri” conveys the beauty of spring with yamabuki (Japanese kerria) blooming all over.
Try combining “yamabuki + color,” “yamabuki + wind,” and “yamabuki + feelings” to have fun creating your own spring haiku!
plum
Because plum blossoms begin blooming earlier than other flowers in the earliest spring, they are also called “harutsugegusa,” the harbinger of spring.
In the world of haiku, ume (plum blossoms) are known as a spring season word, but note that “hayau-me” (early plum) and “kanbai” (cold-weather plum) are late-winter, winter season words, so care is needed not to mix them up.
And when one simply writes “ume,” it is said to refer specifically to the plum blossom.
The plum, a symbol of spring in Japan, is one of the flowers closest to our hearts.
Using ume, why not compose a verse that lets you feel the arrival of spring? How about capturing a beautiful scene in a haiku—your impressions from visiting a famous plum-viewing spot, the plum tree blooming in your garden, or a richly evocative image combining it with a bush warbler?
wisteria
Wisteria flowers reach their peak from mid-April to early May.
Some elementary schools may even have wisteria trellises installed.
Seasonally, wisteria is treated as a late-spring kigo in haiku, symbolizing the end of spring.
Thanks to the hugely popular anime Demon Slayer among elementary schoolers, where wisteria plays an important role, many children may already know about it.
It sounds fun to write essays or haiku that weave together familiar themes like these with wisteria.
Works that draw on the elegance conveyed by the clusters of small, pale purple blossoms are also lovely.
Because wisteria has a refined feel, including it can give essays or haiku a touch of taste and sophistication.
Urara
One word that can express the atmosphere of spring is urara.
It is a kigo usable throughout the three spring months in the old lunar calendar—First, Second, and Third Month, collectively called sanharu.
From urara, one pictures a gentle spring sun softly illuminating under a clear, cloudless sky.
It also appears in the lyrics of the song “Hana,” evoking scenes like the tranquil Sumida River on a spring day and the beauty of cherry blossoms.
Adding it to an essay or haiku lends a warm mood wrapped in spring cheer.
It’s a perfect seasonal word for the festive feeling of new beginnings, such as a new school term or a new stage of life.
dandelion
When we look at dandelions, their yellow color gives us a sense of warmth and the cheerful spirit of spring.
As a seasonal word for spring, they seem to carry that meaning as well.
Dandelions often bloom in familiar places like schoolyards and parks.
Children may spot them blooming here and there while they play.
With dandelions, it seems possible to compose haiku woven into everyday life.
Dandelions, which make us feel the arrival of spring and, though small, have a certain brilliance, could inspire haiku that also give us energy.
horsetail
You can’t help but feel a bit of cuteness from a horsetail poking its head out of the ground.
This uniquely shaped plant is written in kanji as 土筆, literally “earth” and “brush.” It really does look like a brush emerging from the soil, doesn’t it? That quirky shape might even make for a good haiku.
Horsetails have been celebrated in many famous haiku over the years, often appearing as part of springtime outings in the fields or as a seasonal delicacy.
Interestingly, its flower language is “aspiration” and “unexpected surprise.” “Aspiration” comes from its way of stretching straight upward as if charging toward the sky, while “unexpected surprise” likely refers to the way it suddenly appears from beneath the earth.