Popular Ranking of Ministry of Education Shoka Songs [2025]

Winter nightMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)8rank/position

Ministry of Education Song: Winter Night

A Ministry of Education school song depicting warm moments spent with family on a cold winter night with falling snow.

Released in 1912, this piece richly expresses family togetherness around the irori hearth.

Though a blizzard rages outside, the house is cozy and warm.

You can picture the mother sewing clothes and the father telling old stories.

Featured on NHK’s “Minna no Uta,” it has become a classic that lingers in many hearts.

Listening to it in the cold season is sure to warm your spirit.

A song that evokes a Japanese winter scene, beloved across generations.

Octopus SongMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)9rank/position

Octopus Song Sung by: NEUTRINO (with lyrics)

“The Kite Song” sings about a kite soaring freely through the sky.

New Year’s gatherings tend to revolve around eating and drinking, but it can be fun to step outside, relive your childhood, and fly a kite while singing.

The lyrics depict many scenes of kite flying: the desire to make your kite fly higher than any other, and the moment you pull the string tight when it looks like it might fall.

As a little feature for your New Year’s party, consider adding a song and some kite flying.

Mount FujiMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)10rank/position

Mount Fuji (Fuji no Yama) 🗻 (♪ With its head above the clouds~) by Himawari 🌻×3 with lyrics | Ministry of Education Song [100 Selected Japanese Songs] | Fuji Mountain

Let us introduce a long-beloved piece themed on Mount Fuji, the symbol of Japan.

It vividly depicts the majestic figure towering under the blue sky and the beautiful sight of its snowy mantle, so just listening to it conjures up the mountain’s grandeur.

In some regions, it is also used as a disaster-prevention chime on public address systems or as a train departure melody.

As a classic that has been sung for over a century since 1910, many people may find it nostalgic.

It would be wonderful to sing it together with older adults or to share fond memories related to Mount Fuji.

Spring has come.Monbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)11rank/position

Spring Has Come | With Lyrics | One Hundred Selected Japanese Songs | Spring has come, spring has come, where has it come?

Set to the gentle melody of a Ministry of Education song, this piece depicts the calm arrival of spring.

The scene of spring returning to the mountains, villages, and fields spreads through a warm, tender vocal line.

Its tranquil tune vividly conveys the imagery of spring among Japan’s four seasons, imbued with a love for nature and the changing times of year.

Included in 1910 for the third grade of the “Elementary School Songs,” it was created by the renowned duo Tatsuyuki Takano and Teiichi Okano.

Featured in many music textbooks and song collections, it has often been performed at entrance ceremonies and spring events.

This work soothes the heart, making it a piece to enjoy slowly by a window in the warm sunlight.

It is a wonderful song for sharing the joy of spring’s arrival together with older adults.

koinobori (carp streamers)Monbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)12rank/position

Koinobori | With Lyrics | Waves of roof tiles and waves of clouds

Beloved as a Ministry of Education shoka (school song), this piece gracefully expresses both the grandeur of the carp streamers displayed for the Boys’ Festival (Tango no Sekku) and the wish for children’s happy growth.

Included in the 1913 publication “Jinjō Shōgaku Shōka, Grade Five,” the song, set in F major, harmonizes a powerful melody with a refined sense of the season.

It continues to be cherished and sung by contemporary musicians, including arrangements by Kiyoe Yoshioka.

Its cheerful atmosphere and warm, seasonable tone make it perfect for older adults who want to enjoy a pleasant springtime moment.

It can also be a cue to hum along with grandchildren or to fondly recall days gone by.

Morning on the RanchLyrics: Ministry of Education Shoka / Composition: Eikichi Funabashi13rank/position

Morning on the Ranch — Masako Saito

The song “Bokujō no Asa” (“Morning on the Ranch”) evokes a refreshing summer morning.

It was modeled on a ranch in Fukushima Prefecture and has even become the town song of Kagamiishi, where the ranch is located.

First released in 1932, it was later broadcast on NHK’s “Minna no Uta” in 1968.

True to its title, the lyrics depict the morning ranch scenery so vividly that you feel as if you’re standing there yourself.

Even though summer mornings can often be hot, it might be nice to feel a refreshing summer morning through this song.

For children, it can also be a chance to imagine what a ranch is like.

pigeonMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)14rank/position

Pigeons (Hatopoppo) ♪ Coo, coo, coo, pigeons, coo, coo—do you want some beans? Ministry of Education school song – Pigeons

With lyrics so memorable that seeing pigeons in the city makes you want to burst into the “coo-coo-coo” song, this “Hato” is a traditional children’s song first published in 1911 and is still loved across generations today.

Its melody is easy for even small children to sing.