Starting a new language is a big step. For young children, begin with sounds and letters through play; for older kids and teens, a structured textbook gives a clear path. Starting with a young child? Jump to workbooks ↓
Don’t speak Japanese yourself? Read Teaching Your Child Japanese When You Don’t Speak It Yourself.
新しいことばを始めるのは大きな一歩です。小さい子は音と文字を遊びながら、大きい子や中高生は教科書で順番に進めると迷いません。小さい子と始めるなら、練習帳へ ↓
Textbooks / 教科書
Ohisama [Hajime no Ippo]: Japanese for Children
Made for multilingual children learning Japanese at Saturday schools, at home, or abroad. Lots of pictures and photos, with activities that grow vocabulary and curiosity together. A workbook is also available.
補習校や家庭、海外など、いろいろな言語環境で日本語を学ぶ子どものための教科書。イラストや写真が多く、ことばと一緒に好奇心も育つ活動が入っています。ワークブックもあります。くろしお出版。
Hiroko-san no Tanoshii Nihongo 1 & 2
One of the few full textbooks written for elementary-age children learning Japanese as a new language. You follow the everyday life of Hiroko, a 9-year-old girl, and free audio is available online.
日本語を新しく学ぶ小学生向けに作られた、数少ない本格的な教科書。9歳の女の子ひろこさんの毎日を通して、日本の暮らしと日本語を学べます。無料の音声あり。凡人社。
Japanese for Young People I–III
A three-level series written for students in English-speaking countries. Level I comes with a Kana Workbook full of games and activities for hiragana and katakana.
英語圏の中高生向けに作られた3レベルのシリーズ。I巻には、ひらがな・カタカナをゲームや活動で覚える Kana Workbook があります。
Japanese From Zero! 1–5
A friendly, step-by-step series with a built-in workbook in each book. A good pick when a parent who doesn't speak Japanese wants to learn alongside an older child.
各巻にワークブックが入った、やさしく一歩ずつ進むシリーズ。日本語を話さない親が、大きめの子と一緒に学びたいときに向いています。
Drills & workbooks / ドリル・練習帳
Most Japanese textbooks for beginners are written for teens and adults, so younger children have far fewer options. Our QR-video workbooks show how each letter is written and how it sounds, so you can learn alongside your child even if you don't speak Japanese.
初心者向けの日本語教材の多くは中高生や大人向けで、小さい子が使えるものはとても少ないのが現状です。J-Family のQR動画つき練習帳は、書き方と発音を動画で確認できるので、親が日本語を話せなくても一緒に進められます。
A conversation-first textbook for children abroad, starting from zero. Greetings, numbers 0–10, names, colors, animals and more, in short conversations to say out loud, plus the first hiragana with writing practice. Every line has romaji and English tips, so grown-ups can learn alongside.
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Continues from Book 1. Body parts, family, food, months, birthdays, places and everyday actions, all through conversation. Children learn the rest of the hiragana, plus dakuten, small tsu, long sounds and ya/yu/yo.
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Hiragana grouped by similar shapes, with memorable phrases and 8–10 picture words per letter. Scan the QR codes to watch how each letter is written and hear how it sounds — helpful even if you don't speak Japanese yourself.
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Practice katakana words and simple sentences that mix katakana and hiragana. The next step after hiragana, in the same J-Family Nihongo Kazoku series.
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From Japanese counters (hitotsu, ikko, hitori, ichimai…) to hundreds, thousands, time and months. QR-code videos explain each page, so you can learn alongside your child.
View on Amazon →Let's Learn Hiragana / Let's Learn Katakana
A long-time classic for learning kana with English explanations: stroke order, tips for each letter, and practice words.
英語の説明でかなを学ぶロングセラー。書き順、文字ごとのコツ、練習用の単語が入っています。
Japanese Hiragana & Katakana Language Workbook
All 92 kana with gridded pages for handwriting practice and free online audio for pronunciation.
かな92文字を、マス目つきのページで書いて練習。発音の無料音声つき。
Free resources / 無料で使えるもの
Erin's Challenge! I Can Speak Japanese
About 200 short drama-style videos from the Japan Foundation, following a British girl at a Japanese high school. Scripts and audio are free to download, no sign-up needed.
国際交流基金の、ミニドラマ形式の動画約200本。日本の高校に通うイギリス人の女の子の毎日が舞台です。スクリプトや音声も無料・登録なしで使えます。
Easy Japanese (NHK WORLD-JAPAN)
Free conversation lessons for complete beginners, in many languages. A handy way for parents to pick up everyday phrases too.
まったくの初心者向けの無料の会話レッスン。多言語に対応していて、親が日常のフレーズを覚えるのにも便利です。
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Information checked October 2026. Prices and availability may change. 2026年10月時点の情報です。