Children’s Songs You Can Sing in August: Summer-Friendly Kids’ Songs and Fingerplay Rhymes

The Banana That Flew AwayLyrics by Akira Kataoka / Music by Jun Sakurai

Nursery Rhyme: The Banana That Flew Away ♪

This song is a memorable piece with a Latin rhythm despite being a children’s song, and it was featured on NHK’s music program “Uta no Ehon” in 1962.

The percussion gives it a tropical feel, doesn’t it? There are many scenes where someone slips on a banana peel, and since bananas are a slippery fruit, the lyrics playfully use that trait to have the banana appear in various settings.

The way the scenes unfold feels like reading a picture book.

The shout at the end of the song is fun and easy to remember.

tomatoLyrics: Takeshi Shoji / Music: Megumi Ohnaka

Tomato 🍅 (♪ “Tomato” is such a cute name~) by Sunflower 🌻 With Lyrics | Children’s Song | TOMATO

Plenty of delicious vegetables come in the hot summer! Many children tend vegetable gardens at their kindergarten or nursery, or grow them in pots at home, don’t they? Speaking of classic summer vegetables, tomatoes come to mind.

The song “Tomato” focuses on the word that reads the same from top to bottom and bottom to top.

A string that reads the same forward and backward is called a palindrome, and this song might be a great way for children to discover how fun palindromes can be!

Elephant’s hatLyrics by Kozo Endo / Music by Hiroaki Nakamura

Elephant’s Hat (♪ The elephant forgot and left it behind ~) by Himawari 🌻 With Lyrics | Cute Nursery Rhyme to Soothe Crying Babies – From “With Mother” | Zo-san no Bōshi | Elephant’s Hat

In the sunny summer, a hat is essential—but did you know that August 10 is designated as “Hat Day” in Japan because the numbers 8-10 can be read as ha-tto (hat)? Speaking of hats, a classic children’s song on NHK’s “Okaasan to Issho” is “Zō-san no Bōshi” (Elephant’s Hat).

Its playful lyrics, where various animals climb into the elephant’s big hat, always delight little children.

Beyond the rainbowLyrics and Music: Osamu Sakata

Shoko Haida “Beyond the Rainbow” - from “With Mother” (Full) [Official]

It’s one of the most famous songs performed on “Okaasan to Issho,” isn’t it? The song “Niji no Mukou ni” was released in 1996 and was written and composed by Osamu Sakata, the seventh “Uta no Onii-san.” Evoking a fresh rainbow after an early-summer rain and featuring uplifting lyrics, it’s a beloved track that even adults say “gives them energy.” When the rain clears and the sky opens up, both adults and children feel happy and excited, don’t they? This song is packed with that sense of excitement.

Yokai ShiritoriLyrics by: Okuhara Yume / Music by: Tane Tomoko

[Full ver.] Yokai Shiritori – Includes up to verse 4 featuring Amabie and Yakushi Nyorai | Songs from “Okaasan to Issho” (NHK E-Tele) Daisuke Yokoyama, Takumi Mitani

Speaking of summer, it’s the perfect season for ghosts and yokai.

Haunted houses and ghost stories are also a quintessential part of summer.

Chilling ghost tales are nice for the hot season, but this song, “Yokai Shiritori,” is a cute tune that even kids who don’t like scary things can enjoy.

It’s performed on NHK’s children’s program “Okaasan to Issho.” In the lyrics, various yokai like the Rokurokubi and Zashiki-warashi visit a yokai professor and challenge him to play “yokai shiritori,” but he ends up losing.

Be sure to pay attention to the names of the yokai that appear in the shiritori!

Penguin-chanLyrics by Michio Mado / Music by Yoshinao Nakata

Penguin-chan

This is a song featuring a penguin with a distinctly cool, refreshing image as the main character.

The tones evoke a sense of chill, and the vocalist’s voice also feels pleasantly cool.

It can be performed with instruments familiar to children, such as the glockenspiel and the guiro, allowing listeners to appreciate the interesting timbres.

It’s the perfect Antarctic “chilly-chill” song for cooling down on hot summer days.

Seagull SailorLyrics by Toshiko Takeuchi / Music by Mitsuaki Kōyō

Nursery Rhyme Medley, Shoka (School Song) “Seagull Sailor” – Hibari Children’s Choir 70th Anniversary Concert, Track 03 / #Children’sChoir #NurseryRhymeMedley #NurseryRhyme #Shoka #Children’sChorus

Speaking of summer, it’s the season for the sea, and when it comes to songs about seagulls flying over the ocean, “Kamome no Suiheisan” (The Seagull Sailor) comes to mind.

It’s a classic children’s song that likens seagulls covered in pure white feathers to sailors dressed in white hats, white shirts, and white uniforms.

Didn’t everyone sing it when they were little? It’s said that the sailor-style school uniform familiar for girls originated from sailors’ uniforms.