The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2017–2026
Japan's Unko Kanji Drill teaches 1,006 kanji with poop jokes — 10M+ copies
Bunkyosha writes every example sentence in its school kanji drill about 'unko' (poop); first month sells 630,000, series passes 10 million.
Bunkyosha Co., Ltd.
What it had to solve
Every Japanese elementary student must memorize more than 1,000 kanji, usually by rote practice that feels like homework. Bunkyosha, whose philosophy is to make studying fun, chose to build a workbook around the word children laugh at most — 'unko' — even though the word was traditionally kept out of school materials.
How it works
Japanese elementary students must memorize more than 1,000 kanji characters, and the usual method is rote repetition of the sort children dread. In March 2017 the small publisher Bunkyosha released a six-book series, Unko Kanji Drill, built on a deliberately childish premise: every example sentence in the workbooks is about 'unko' (poop).
Each grade's book covers its assigned kanji, with three absurd example sentences per character — 3,018 sentences in total — written by Yusaku Furuya and presented by Unko-sensei, a mustachioed poop mascot with glasses. The joke was the product: pages still taught stroke order one or two characters at a time, but reading the examples was the motivation to keep practicing.
The gamble paid off instantly: the first printing sold out at launch, and within a month the series reportedly sold 630,000 copies, an unheard-of figure in educational publishing. Parents' reviews described children laughing out loud and practicing willingly. The series later passed 10 million copies across elementary grades, preschool editions and 'Turbo' and 'Hyper' variants, and became a playful on-ramp for foreigners studying Japanese.
Why it lands
- It used children's own sense of humor as the motivator instead of prizes, praise or pressure.
- The idea was cheap to explain and instantly legible: one taboo word, 3,018 sentences, zero boring exercises.
- It respected the educational craft — stroke order, curriculum alignment, one or two characters per page — and only changed the emotional wrapper.
- Making every sentence funny gave parents something to share, so the books marketed themselves.
What it did
Within its first month the series reportedly sold 630,000 copies — rare in educational publishing — with parents reporting children laughing and willingly practicing. The study-guide series has since sold over 10 million copies across grade levels, preschool editions and Turbo/Hyper variants, and is also used by foreigners learning Japanese.
What you can take
Give learners a reason to read, not just to write: making every drill sentence a joke got children practicing kanji voluntarily — the funny content did the motivating discipline used to do.
Since then
The Unko Drill became a lasting franchise rather than a one-off joke: Bunkyosha extended it to younger children (age 4-6 editions) and to 'Turbo' and 'Hyper' versions for stronger learners, keeping the same poop-humor voice and curriculum alignment. The series has sold over 10 million copies in total, Unko-sensei became a familiar figure in Japanese school culture, and in 2026 the Unko Drill received the Gold award in OMOTENASHI Selection. The books also found a second audience abroad as an entertaining way for adult learners to start reading kanji.
Sources
- Learn kanji with the magical power of poop!
- Poop: an unlikely savior for kids learning kanji
- UNKO DRILL — OMOTENASHI Selection 2026 Gold
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