Popular Ranking of Ministry of Education Shoka Songs [2025]

We Look Up to You with RespectMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)29rank/position

[Graduation Ceremony] [Elementary School] [Chorus] Aogeba Totoshi (Song: 'With Deep Reverence')

It is one of the songs first popularized in Japan in the Shogaku Shoka Collection, Volume 3, published in 1884.

Under the guidance of the American music educator Lowell Mason, melodies from existing Western music that would be familiar to Japanese people were selected, Japanese lyrics were added to them, and they were created as teaching materials for Japan’s music education known as “shoka.”

MoonMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)30rank/position

Moon

The descriptive passages praising the beauty of the perfectly round full moon leave a lasting impression.

First published in May 1911 in the Ministry of Education’s songbook “Jinjō Shōgaku Shōka: For First Grade,” it has been sung by many generations ever since.

Created through a committee-based process by editors from the Tokyo Music School, it is characterized by its simple, easy-to-sing melody.

Long beloved as a school song in music education, recordings by children’s choirs still exist today.

It’s a tune that makes you want to hum while gazing at the moon from your window on an autumn night.

Why not enjoy this nostalgic melody together with everyone at your facility?

Moon (The moon has come out, the moon has come out)Monbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)31rank/position

Tsuki (♪ Deta deta tsuki ga~) by Himawari 🌻 With Lyrics | Full Moon

The nursery rhyme “Tsuki” (The Moon), with its familiar opening that everyone recognizes, is well known.

It was included in the “Elementary School Songs” compiled by the Ministry of Education in 1911.

The moon carries a mysterious air and has long been said to influence the human mind, but this song is a pleasant piece that simply describes the round moon rising and then being hidden by clouds.

Beloved by children and adults alike, why not try singing it while gazing at the moon?

moon; monthMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)32rank/position

Children’s Song: The Moon

The famous children’s song “Tsuki” (Moon), still sung today in childcare settings and at moon-viewing events, is a Ministry of Education school song that appeared in the 1911 publication “Elementary School Songs.” It describes gazing at the moon and the way it slips behind clouds and reappears, making it a perfect piece for tsukimi (moon viewing).

If you’re planning a moon-viewing gathering in September, why not sing this song together? It’s a very short, slow tune, so even children can easily learn and sing it.

village festivalMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)33rank/position

Village Festival (♪ The village guardian deity of the shrine ~) by Himawari 🌻 [100 Best Japanese Songs] with Lyrics Before and After Changes | Ministry of Education Shoka | Mura Matsuri

This piece, which portrays the joy of a village festival celebrating a bountiful autumn harvest, is loved by people of all ages, from children to adults.

The lyrics that depict the sounds of flutes and drums as “don-don hyarara” leave a strong impression.

Since it was included in an elementary school textbook in 1912, the lyrics have gradually changed over time, but it continues to be sung today as an important song that conveys Japanese traditions and culture.

When singing with older adults, it’s also recommended to clap along or move your body in time with the lyrics.

It seems like a fun way to exercise while reminiscing about the past.

scarecrowMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)34rank/position

scarecrow

It seems that this song is actually a Ministry of Education school song published in 1911 (Meiji 44) in the Elementary School Songbook for the second grade.

The theme of the song is the scarecrow used to drive away pests like crows from rice fields and vegetable patches.

Thanks to this song, there are probably quite a few people named Yamada who ended up with the nickname “Scarecrow.” These days, there may even be children who don’t know what a scarecrow is.

Plum blossoms and nightingalesMonbushō Shōka (Ministry of Education Songs)35rank/position

plum blossoms and nightingales

Here is a Ministry of Education song that was published in 1911 for the second grade of elementary school.

It’s a cute and simple piece depicting a bush warbler coming to the plum tree in the garden.

Speaking of plums and bush warblers, you might recall the motif from hanafuda playing cards.

By the way, while plum blossoms and bush warblers often appear together as a metaphor for things that go well together, the “bush warbler” in this context is actually a Japanese white-eye.

It isn’t green, but rather a brownish or grayish color.

Knowing this little bit of trivia can make listening to the song even more enjoyable.