{"id":106060,"date":"2023-07-31T09:28:04","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T13:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/learn-japanese-picture-books\/"},"modified":"2025-02-26T07:32:42","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T12:32:42","slug":"learn-japanese-picture-books","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/japanese\/learn-japanese-picture-books\/","title":{"rendered":"The Guide to Learning Japanese with Children’s Picture Books"},"content":{"rendered":"

What was your favorite picture book when you were a kid? Now that you’re studying Japanese<\/a> from the ground up, wouldn’t it be great to have something as simple as a picture book that could help you make leaps of progress?<\/p>\n

Japanese \u7d75\u672c<\/strong> (\u3048\u307b\u3093 \u2014 picture book[s]) might be written for kids, but they’re fantastic study tools<\/a> for beginner to lower-intermediate Japanese learners. Let’s\u00a0look at the five best Japanese children’s books, the benefits of using \u7d75\u672c and how to use them to study.<\/strong><\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc skip=3]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1. \u3050\u308a\u3068\u3050\u3089 (“Guri and Gura”)<\/a> \"Guri<\/a><\/h2>\n

\u3050\u308aand \u3050\u3089 are two mice who come across a huge egg during\u00a0their travels.<\/p>\n

Naturally, this gives them the idea to make a gigantic cake that will last a long time!<\/p>\n

First published in 1963, \u3050\u308a\u3068\u3050\u3089 is arguably the best-known Japanese children\u2019s picture book.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chances are high that any Japanese person you meet will have read it\u2014or will at least have heard of it. It’s been translated into several languages and was eventually spun off into a full-on series of \u7d75\u672c.<\/p>\n

2. \u3057\u308d\u304f\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u306e\u307b\u3063\u3068\u3051\u30fc\u304d (“Shirokuma-chan’s Pancakes”)<\/a> \"Polar<\/a><\/h2>\n

If you like pancakes and adorable bears, then \u3057\u308d\u304f\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u306e\u307b\u3063\u3068\u3051\u30fc\u304d should be right up your alley.<\/p>\n

The tale is simple: little Shirokuma asks his mother to make pancakes for him, and then she does!<\/p>\n

\u3057\u308d\u304f\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u306e\u307b\u3063\u3068\u3051\u30fc\u304d is an excellent book for learning onomatopoeia.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Part of the book is devoted to the sounds of the mother cooking the pancakes. Lots of cool vocabulary is introduced!<\/p>\n

3. \u3060\u308b\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u3068\u3066\u3093\u3050\u3061\u3083\u3093 (“Little Daruma and Little Tengu”)<\/a> \"\u3060\u308b\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u3068\u3066\u3093\u3050\u3061\u3083\u3093<\/a><\/h2>\n

Two traditional Japanese characters\u2014the Daruma and the Tengu\u2014are made cute and fun in this children\u2019s classic.<\/p>\n

Little Daruma-chan is envious of Tengu-chan\u2019s possessions, like his \u6247\u5b50<\/strong> (\u305b\u3093\u3059 \u2014 fan) and his \u4e0b\u99c4<\/strong> (\u3052\u305f \u2014 wooden clogs).<\/p>\n

Daruma-chan\u2019s father\u2014trying to make him feel better\u2014does his best to scrounge up these things for his son but is not always successful.<\/p>\n

\u3060\u308b\u307e\u3061\u3083\u3093\u3068\u3066\u3093\u3050\u3061\u3083\u3093 became such a successful book series that it has also been published in English.<\/p>\n

4. \u304b\u3044\u3051\u3064\u30be\u30ed\u30ea\u30b7\u30ea\u30fc\u30ba (The “Kaiketsu Zorori” Series)<\/a> \"\u304b\u3044\u3051\u3064\u30be\u30ed\u30ea\u306e\u30c9\u30e9\u30b4\u30f3\u305f\u3044\u3058<\/a><\/h2>\n

Zorori is a fox and a wanted criminal whose only ambition is to become the world\u2019s greatest prankster.<\/p>\n

He travels from place to place with this goal in mind, but his mischievous ways often get him and his friends into trouble.<\/p>\n

The \u304b\u3044\u3051\u3064\u30be\u30ed\u30ea series\u2014as of when I’m writing this\u2014is comprised of over 50 titles.<\/strong><\/p>\n

That being said, it\u2019s hard to recommend just one. Don’t worry, though. Any one of them is an excellent place to start.<\/p>\n

The books are full of humor since Zorori himself often speaks in crazy Japanese \u3060\u3058\u3083\u308c<\/strong> (puns).<\/p>\n

5. \u7f8e\u3057\u3044\u6570\u5b66\u30b7\u30ea\u30fc\u30ba (The “Utsukushii Suugaku” Series)<\/a>\"5<\/a><\/h2>\n

Another famous series loved by both children and adults alike is the \u7f8e\u3057\u3044\u6570\u5b66 (\u3046\u3064\u304f\u3057\u3044\u3059\u3046\u304c\u304f) series.<\/p>\n

The books in this series are famous for their simple stories, gorgeous artwork and unique ability to subtly stoke a love of numbers in those who read them\u2014even the most math-resistant!<\/p>\n

These are great books to build your vocabulary and skills with the Japanese number system.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Among the titles in this series, \u58fa\u306e\u4e2d <\/strong>(\u3064\u307c\u306e\u306a\u304b \u2014 “Anno’s Mysterious Multiplying Jar”) is particularly well-regarded for its amazing pictures.<\/p>\n

Why Use Japanese Picture Books to Practice Japanese Reading?<\/h2>\n

Reading these books can improve some key skill areas, but you’ll need to identify them to target them.<\/p>\n

They’re artistic, creative and entertaining.<\/h3>\n

It’s akin to watching Japanese anime <\/em>shows<\/a> and reading\u00a0manga\u00a0<\/em>to study Japanese<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u7d75\u672c typically features \u304b\u308f\u3044\u3044<\/strong> (cute) characters, many of which are totally bonkers!<\/p>\n

For example, a book I read with my daughter recently called \u307b\u3063\u307a\u304a\u3070\u3051<\/strong> (cheek ghosts) is about ghosts who dine on people\u2019s cheeks! Because Japanese \u7d75\u672c are so light and fun, reading them feels less like \u201cstudy\u201d and more like educational leisure time.<\/p>\n

They can improve your pronunciation and reading speed.<\/h3>\n

Because \u7d75\u672c are generally written for children who are just getting accustomed to the Japanese language, they focus heavily on natural rhythm and intonation as well as tricky sounds for kids, like \u3061\u3083 and \u3063.<\/p>\n

They feature shorter sentences and emphasize key content words.<\/h3>\n

Content words are \u540d\u8a5e<\/strong> (\u3081\u3044\u3057 \u2014 nouns) and \u52d5\u8a5e<\/strong> (\u3069\u3046\u3057 \u2014 verbs).<\/p>\n

This makes it easier for you to skim to get the main idea.<\/p>\n

Skimming is a skill that will come in handy as your Japanese develops and you tackle things like \u6f2b\u753b<\/strong> (\u307e\u3093\u304c \u2014 comics)\u00a0<\/i>and the JLPT.<\/p>\n

The only potential drawback is that \u7d75\u672c are usually written in \u3072\u3089\u304c\u306a <\/strong>(Hiragana). If you\u2019re looking to improve your reading speed while also reinforcing your basic \u6f22\u5b57<\/strong> (\u304b\u3093\u3058 \u2014 Kanji) recognition, you may want to look elsewhere.<\/p>\n

This blog post is a great place to begin your search for\u00a0kanji\u00a0<\/em>learning resources<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They’re great for boosting basic Japanese vocabulary.<\/h3>\n

\u7d75\u672c use common words and phrases essential for achieving fluency in everyday Japanese<\/a>. They\u2019re a great way to fill in any gaps in your basic vocabulary.<\/p>\n

You’ll learn more about Japanese society and culture.<\/h3>\n

Reading Japanese \u7d75\u672c will help boost your cultural knowledge<\/a> in various ways. \u7d75\u672c often center around fundamentals of Japanese culture, which their main readers\u2014kids\u2014need to know about.<\/p>\n

They might be legends, characters, places or even aspects of society, such as \u548c<\/strong> (\u308f \u2014 harmony, friendship).<\/p>\n

There are also picture book versions of classic Japanese stories called \u6614\u8a71<\/strong> (\u3080\u304b\u3057\u3070\u306a\u3057 \u2014 folk tales).<\/p>\n

These stories are still read and loved by Japanese people of all generations. Knowing them will help you better relate to your Japanese friends or language exchange partners!<\/p>\n

A Simple Method for Learning Japanese from \u7d75\u672c<\/h2>\n