[Childcare] Summer songs: Full of fun! Summer nursery rhymes & finger-play songs
When the rainy season ends, summer finally arrives! Here, we’ll introduce a variety of children’s songs to help you enjoy the season.
We’ve gathered songs that kids love, as well as hand-play songs often sung in nurseries and kindergartens.
Listening to these songs will make you look forward to the long-awaited summer even more.
Hand-play songs are also fun for little ones, so be sure to incorporate them into your childcare activities.
While the days will be getting hotter, some children’s songs can make you feel cooler just by listening.
Enjoy a fun-filled summer together with the children!
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[Childcare] Summer Songs. Full of Fun! Summer Nursery Rhymes & Fingerplay Songs (111–120)
coconutSakushi: Shimazaki Tōson / Sakkyoku: Ōnaka Toraji
Yashi no Mi (Coconut), a song set to a Meiji-era poem by the great writer Shimazaki Tōson—famed for masterpieces like The Broken Commandment and Spring—was born from an episode in which folklorist Yanagita Kunio found a washed-up coconut on Koijigahama Beach in Tahara, Aichi Prefecture.
Even if you don’t grasp every word’s meaning, the poem somehow stirs a sense of homesickness.
It’s a classic that perfectly suits the summer season, though it may be difficult for young children to sing; if you sing it to them like a lullaby, it seems likely to bring on a peaceful sleep.
World of StarsSakushi: Kawaji Ryūko / Sakkyoku: Konvāsu
It’s a children’s song with Japanese lyrics set to a hymn composed by Converse—many of you have probably heard it.
Listening to the words, it feels as if a beautiful starry sky spreads out before your eyes.
The lovely melody perfectly matches the night sky and seems to heighten the Tanabata atmosphere even more.
If you sing it while thinking of the Milky Way, it’s a wonderful piece that lets you fully savor the feeling of summer.
Song of the SeashoreSakushi: Hayashi Kokei / Sakkyoku: Narita Tamezō
Woven in a gentle waltz rhythm, “Hamabe no Uta” (Song of the Seashore) is one of Japan’s quintessential lyrical songs, first published in 1913 and later selected in 2007 for the “100 Best Japanese Songs.” If you’ve seen the classic film Twenty-Four Eyes, you may recall the scene in which a schoolgirl sings this piece a cappella.
While the lyrics, which use archaic language, may be somewhat challenging to fully grasp even for adults, the beauty of the melody will surely resonate with young children as well.
soap bubbleSakushi: Noguchi Ujō / Sakkyoku: Nakayama Shinpei
Among the traditional songs and children’s tunes Japan is proud of, the beloved classic “Shabondama” (Soap Bubbles) is known by everyone, young and old alike, and its somewhat wistful melody resonates with the Japanese heart.
Singing this song while playing with soap bubbles on a hot summer day might even make you feel a little cooler.
As an aside, there are various interpretations of the lyrics’ melancholy meaning.
The most famous theory is that lyricist Ujō Noguchi imbued the song with feelings for his eldest daughter, who died shortly after birth, but it’s not certain whether that story is actually true.
A Little Bear in the RainSakushi: Tsurumi Masao / Sakkyoku: Yuyama Akira
This song is a children’s tune that aired on NHK in 1962.
Adult bears are imposing, but baby bears are round and cute, aren’t they? The song depicts such a little bear coming to a brook on a rainy day, scooping up water to drink, and gazing at the stream, waiting to see if any fish will come by.
Since the fish don’t show up for a while, the bear tries using a leaf as an umbrella—the way it keeps trying is just adorable!