Nursery rhymes to sing to your baby! Recommended songs enjoyable from 0 months

The Bento Box Song

[Hand Play Song] The Bento Box Song [With Choreography]

Many of you have probably sung this at least once.

It’s a hand-play song that parents and children can enjoy together: while packing ingredients into a lunchbox and singing, kids can learn the names of vegetables, and through the hand motions they can also learn numbers.

When you’re making it for a big elephant, sing at a slow tempo; for a little ant, sing faster with rhythmic gestures.

Even very young babies will be interested and watch and listen.

It’s a play activity that lets parents and babies communicate from an early age, so give it a try and have fun.

Knock knock knock knock, Grandpa with a beardLyrics by Yaso Saijō / Music by Yoshinao Nakata

Tap tap tap tap, Grandpa with a beard

It’s a hand-play song that’s super popular with kids.

Even tiny babies will laugh out loud when they see you singing with big, exaggerated facial expressions and hand movements! It’s perfect for moms and dads trying a hand-play song for the first time.

You can have fun adding variations—like making a deliberately sad face and lowering your tone of voice, or singing faster or slower to change the tempo.

Since you can move your bodies and play together, it’s perfect for enjoying at home on rainy days!

Let's climb a big mountain.

Baby exercises: Let’s climb a big mountain!

“Let’s Climb the Big Mountain” is also a great exercise for babies.

It lets babies who can’t move on their own get their bodies moving, and parents can enjoy singing along.

Lay your baby on their back and gently move their legs as you sing.

Move their legs as if climbing a mountain or swimming in the sea, so your child can feel like they’re visiting a big mountain or a vast ocean.

Through this close, hands-on time, shower your baby with plenty of parental love.

soap bubble

[Children's Song] Soap Bubbles / Daisuke Yokoyama

This song has been beloved since the Taisho era.

You’ve probably sung it at least once.

It’s a great choice as the first nursery rhyme to play for a child.

Many babies enjoy repeated rhythms and movements, and even if Mom or Dad isn’t confident about singing, the song is short and the lyrics are easy to remember, so repeating it won’t feel out of place.

With its slow, gentle tempo, if you hold your baby and sway side to side with the rhythm while singing, they may feel so comfortable that they drift off to sleep.

Peekaboo

Peek-a-boo: Pika Pika Boo with choreography dance, NHK E-TV, Wanwan and Haru-chan – Japanese children’s song

Pikapika Boo is a song featuring an adorable dance, with lyrics written by choreographer Lucky Ikeda.

It’s also a popular hand-play song on NHK Educational TV’s “Inai Inai Baa.” The choreography includes baby movements like crawling, so babies and their parents can enjoy it together! Learning the dance might actually be tricky even for adults.

There’s a move at the end where you give your baby a tight hug, so make sure to enjoy lots of close interaction with your little one!

Toy Cha-Cha-ChaLyrics by Tatsuyuki Koshigaya / Music by Taku Izumi

“Toy Cha-Cha-Cha” (with choreography) [Japanese song / shoka]

While you sleep at night, the toys jump out of the toy box and play! “Omocha no Cha-Cha-Cha” sings about that wondrous scene, just like a famous animated film.

Its rhythmic melody alone can put your baby in a happy mood.

It’s also recommended to move the toys you actually have in front of your baby and add a little twist as you sing! There’s a hand-play version that matches the lyrics, so be sure to give that a try too.

Cute Hide and SeekLyrics by Hachirō Satō / Music by Yoshinao Nakata

Nursery Rhyme / Cute Hide-and-Seek / 36th Children’s Song Contest, Children’s Division

This is a gentle children’s song about a game of hide-and-seek played by adorable animals.

Hatchlings, sparrows, and puppies try their best to conceal themselves, warmly portrayed in the words of Hachirō Satō, with Yoshinao Nakada’s melody enhancing its charm even further.

First released in 1951, the piece has inspired children’s playfulness and curiosity toward animals.

The thrilling hide-and-seek unfolds in everyday scenes—gardens, rooftops, and meadows.

It’s perfect for singing with your child in fresh, green May, while thinking of the animals you might meet on a walk.

The rhythm of the lyrics and the friendly melody truly seem to express the joy of spring.