It’s time to take a trip down memory lane with some silly school yard songs and sayings! How many do you remember?
I was sitting at the kitchen table working while my 6 year old daughter was doodling on some paper (her new favorite activity) when she decided to play a trick on me and tell me someone was at our front door. When I turned to look, she said “made you look!”
And for some reason, at that very moment, I was immediately transported to being a kid and singing…”made you look you dirty crook, you stole your mother’s pocketbook, you turned it in, you turned it out, you turned into sauerkraut!” What? I am not even sure how I remembered that little diddy. But then it got me thinking…what other silly song and rhymes did we sing as kids? I remember singing these on school playground and even during sleep overs with friends. Maybe you’ll remember a few of these silly school yard songs and can pass them along to your kids!
Silly School Yard Songs & Sayings
Made You Look
Made you look
You dirty crook
You stole your mother’s pocketbook
You turned it in
You turned it out
You turned it into sauerkraut!
Miss Mary Mack (with hand clapping)
Miss Mary Mack Mack Mack
All dressed in black, black, black
With silver buttons, buttons, buttons
All down her back, back, back.
She asked her mother, mother, mother
For 50 cents, cents, cents
To see the elephants, elephants, elephants
Jump over the fence, fence, fence.
They jumped so high, high, high
They reached the sky, sky, sky
And they didn’t come back, back, back
‘Til the 4th of July, ly, ly!
Lady With The Alligator Purse
Miss Lucy had a baby.
His name was Tiny Tim.
She put him in the bathtub
To see if he could swim.
He drank up all the water.
He ate up all the soap.
He tried to eat the bathtub,
But it wouldn’t go down his throat.
Miss Lucy called the doctor.
Miss Lucy called the nurse.
Miss Lucy called the lady
With the alligator purse.
“Mumps,’ said the doctor.
“Measles,’ said the nurse.
“Hiccups,’ said the lady
With the alligator purse.
Out went the doctor.
Out went the nurse.
Out went the lady
With the alligator purse.
Down, Down, Baby (with hand motions)
Down, down, baby
Down, down the roller coaster (make a horizontal wave motion with your hands)
Sweet, sweet, baby (cross over both arms your chest)
I’ll never let you go
Shimmy, Shimmy cocoa pop
Shimmy, Shimmy pow
Shimmy, Shimmy cocoa pop
Shimmy, Shimmy pow
Grandma, grandma sick in bed
She called the doctor and the doctor said
Let’s get the rhythm of the head, ding dong (tilt your head to each side once in time with “ding-dong”)
Let’s get the rhythm of the head, ding dong (tilt your head to each side once in time with “ding-dong”)
Let’s get the rhythm of the hands (followed by two hand claps)
Let’s get the rhythm of the hands (followed by two hand claps)
Let’s get the rhythm of the feet (stomp your right foot, then your left)
Let’s get the rhythm of the feet (stomp your right foot, then your left)
Let’s get the rhythm of the hot dog (with your hands on your hips, twirl)
Let’s get the rhythm of the hot dog (with your hands on your hips, twirl)
Put it all together and what do you get?
Ding dong (do side to side head tilt), (next – two claps), (next – two stomps), hot dog (next – hip twirl)
Put it all backwards and what do you get?
Hot dog (do hip twirl), (two stomps), (two claps), ding dong (side to side head tilt)
In A Cabin In The Woods / Come Little Rabbit (with hand motions)
In a cabin in the woods (draw a square in the air with your fingers)
A little old man by the window stood (hold your hands and put up to your eyes like you are holding binoculars)
Saw a rabbit hopping by (two fingers bouncing across in front of you in the air)
Knocking at his door (do a knocking motion with one hand)
“Help me! Help me! Help!” sir he said (throw your hands in the air three times)
For the hunter shoot me down (point an imaginary gun with both hands and move side to side)
Come Little rabbit come with me (hand motion inviting someone to come to you)
Happy you will always be (rock your arms like you’re rocking a baby)
Now here is the fun tricky part: You keep singing the song, but you start by just humming the tune of each line and do the hand motions. So the first round, you sing the whole song. But the second time you sing the song, you just hum the tune “In a cabin by the woods” and make the hand gesture. The third time, you hum both the 1st and 2nd lines while just doing the hand gesture and then sing the rest. You keep going until you are humming the whole song and just doing the hand gestures. And that’s how the silly song ends!
Bo-Bo Ski Watten Tatten (with hand clapping)
Bo-bo ski watten tatten,
Nay-nay-nay, boom boom boom
Itty bitty watten tatten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Boom
Bo-bo Ski Watten Tatten (Longer Version)
Bo-bo ski watten tatten,
Nay-nay-nay, boom boom boom
Itty bitty watten tatten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Freeze
Please
American Cheese
Please don’t show your eyes* to me.
*You can repeat this rhyme many times by just using a different part of your face in the last line. The tricky part is to hide that part of your face with your hands and keep it covered with you repeat the next verse. This rhyme can be repeated many times. Each time, use a different part of the face in the last line. Hide that part of your face with your hands and keep it covered while you repeat the next verse. Use your elbows to do the clapping part while you are using your hands to cover the part of your face. On the last chorus, you end the verse with “Boom”.
Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater
Peter, Peter pumpkin eater.
Had a wife and couldnÕt keep her.
Put her in a pumpkin shell
And there he kept her very well.
Bubblegum Bubblegum In A Dish (alternative to Eenie Meenie)
Bubble gum, bubble gum, in a dish,
How many pieces do you wish?
(Five)
One, two, three, four, five.
And you must go out.
**Game starts with kids putting their feet in circle. You ask the question, “How many pieces do you wish?” to one of the players. They say a number. Going around the circle, you count that number of feet. The person you land on is out. You can play with 1 foot or both feet.
I Went Downtown (jump rope song)
I went downtown
To see Ms. Brown,
She gave me a nickel
To buy a pickle,
The pickle was sour,
So I bought a flower.
The flower was dead, she gave me a tack.
The tack was sharp, she gave me a harp.
The harp was broke, she gave me a cloak.
The cloak was tight, she gave me a kite.
The kite away flew, and I did too.
(Player runs out of ropes at too)
I Went Downtown To See Charlie Brown (with hand clapping)
I went downtown
To see Charlie Brown,
He gave me a nickel
To buy a pickle,
The pickle was sour,
So I bought a flower.
The flower was dead, so this is what I said.
Down Down baby, do the roller coaster.
Sweet sweet baby. Never wash the dishes.
Naughty naughty baby, jumping out the window.
Itchy itchy soda pop, you are out.
Itchy itchy soda pop, you are out.
Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear (jump rope song)
teddy bear, teddy bear, turn around
teddy bear, teddy bear, touch the ground
teddy bear, teddy bear, do the split
teddy bear, teddy bear, give a kick
teddy bear, teddy bear, go upstairs
teddy bear, teddy bear, say your prayers
teddy bear, teddy bear, turn out the light
teddy bear, teddy bear, say goodnight
Cinderella – Dressed In Yellow (jump rope song)
Cinderella, dressed in yellow
Went upstairs to kiss her fellow
Made a mistake
And kissed a snake
How many doctors
Did it take?
1, 2, 3, 4, 5. . . .
What silly song and sayings do you remember from childhood?
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