You can learn Japanese for kids here without any sign-up or app: every game speaks each word aloud in Japanese and English, shows a big picture, and gives grown-ups the romaji (Japanese written in Latin letters) so you can join in. Japanese is a friendly first foreign language for young children because its sounds are simple and regular: five vowels, clear syllables, and no tones to worry about.
What your child can learn here
The Japanese hub has seven games, each on its own page.
- Hiragana for kids: the 46 basic hiragana of the あいうえお chart, each with a picture word such as いぬ (inu, dog) or りんご (ringo, apple).
- Numbers in Japanese 1 to 100: いち、に、さん up to ひゃく, with a "Count with me" button.
- Animals in Japanese: 60 animals from ねこ (neko, cat) to たつのおとしご (seahorse).
- Fruits in Japanese and vegetables in Japanese: 30 of each.
- Colours in Japanese: 12 colours from あか (aka, red) to みずいろ (mizuiro, light blue).
- Body parts in Japanese: 30 words from あたま (head) to あしのゆび (toes).
Each game ends with a marble for Golu's Goli Jar, and the language button in the header lets you pick Japanese first, English first or one language only. It works in any browser on a phone, tablet or computer.
Hiragana, katakana and kanji: what young children need
Japanese uses three scripts together. Hiragana (ひらがな) is the rounded script for Japanese words and grammar; it is what Japanese children learn first, usually starting around age four or five. Katakana (カタカナ) is the angular script for words borrowed from other languages, such as バナナ (banana) and ライオン (raion, lion). Kanji (漢字) are characters from Chinese; children start them in first grade, 80 in the first year. For a preschooler, spoken words and a few hiragana are the right goal. This is why the word games here show words mostly in hiragana, with katakana only for borrowed words, just as a Japanese picture book would.
How to learn Japanese for kids at home
- Listen first (2-3 years). Tap pictures, repeat the word once, point to the real thing. Japanese baby words are fun: a dog is わんわん and a car ブーブー.
- Play Find it (3-4 years). Golu asks 「いぬは どこかな？」 (Where is the dog?) and your child taps the picture.
- Say it in daily life (4-5 years). Use Japanese at set moments: いただきます before eating, ごちそうさま after, おやすみ at bedtime.
- First hiragana (5-6 years). Find the letters of your child's name in the あいうえお chart, then play with the hiragana chart for kids.
Five to ten minutes a day, sitting together, is plenty. Under-twos learn far more from you, songs and real objects than from a screen.
Japanese culture for kids: a year of festivals
Japanese preschools organise the whole year around seasonal events, and these give you natural reasons to use new words.
| When | Festival | Words to try |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year おしょうがつ | おとしだま (otoshidama, New Year money for children), たこあげ (kite flying) |
| Early February | Setsubun せつぶん | throwing beans: おにはそと、ふくはうち (demons out, luck in) |
| 3 March | Hinamatsuri, Girls' Day | おひなさま dolls, ももいろ peach pink |
| 5 May | Children's Day こどもの ひ | こいのぼり carp streamers, counting the carp |
| 7 July | Tanabata たなばた | wish strips, ほし (stars) |
| 15 November | Shichi-Go-San | a celebration for children aged three, five and seven |
Children's Day is a lovely one to try at home: draw a family of carp streamers (koinobori), one for each person, colour them and name each colour in Japanese.
Japanese sounds and onomatopoeia children love
Japanese is rich in sound words. Rain falls ざあざあ, a star twinkles きらきら, a tummy rumbles ぐうぐう, and a cat says にゃー. Toddlers pick these up quickly and enjoy repeating them. Use them in play: stomp どしどし like an elephant or hop ぴょんぴょん like a rabbit.
Tips for heritage and mixed Japanese families
Many children who visit this page live outside Japan with one Japanese-speaking parent. Common patterns:
- One parent, one language. The Japanese-speaking parent uses Japanese consistently; the game's "Japanese only" setting fits this style.
- Saturday school. Many cities have a Japanese supplementary school (ほしゅうこう, hoshuko) or a weekend playgroup. Play the matching topic here during the week.
- Grandparents in Japan. Play Find it on a video call: grandma asks, your child taps.
- Politeness through routine. おはよう, ありがとう and いただきます said every day build more Japanese than any lesson.
It is normal for bilingual kids to answer in English when spoken to in Japanese. Keep replying warmly in Japanese; understanding comes first and speaking follows.
Japanese flash cards and worksheets you can print
There is no PDF download, but each vocabulary page has a word list with pictures, the Japanese word, romaji and a sound button. Print it from your browser for flash cards, a matching game or a wall chart. The hiragana chart on the Japanese alphabet page prints cleanly too.
おうちの かたへ
こどもが ことばを おぼえる いちばんの ちかみちは、たのしく なんども きくことです。いちにち 5ふんから 10ぷん、いっしょに えを タッチして、こえを きいてみましょう。さいしょは いえなくても だいじょうぶ。きいて わかることが さきです。
ごはんの まえには「いただきます」、ねる まえには「おやすみ」。まいにちの せいかつの なかで にほんごを つかうと、しぜんに ことばが ふえていきます。こどもの ひや たなばたなど、きせつの ぎょうじも たのしみながら、いろや かずを いっしょに いってみてください。できたら たくさん ほめてあげてね。
How to use this page at home
Say it, then find it
Play for a few minutes, then look for the same thing away from the screen: japanese words on the shelf, in the kitchen, on the way to school. A child learns a word properly when they meet it twice, once on the screen and once in their hand.
Ten minutes is enough
Short and happy beats long and tired. Stop while your child still wants more, and come back tomorrow: the same page on five short days teaches far more than one long sitting. Nothing here is scored, so there is no reason to push.
Use both languages
Tap the language button at the top to hear the words in your home language first and the second language after. Hearing the same picture named in two languages is one of the few things research agrees builds attention as well as vocabulary.