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34 Best Nursery Rhymes for Kids (Lyrics and Activities)

Nursery Rhymes for kids lay the foundation to early language and reading skills. Children who are frequently read and sang to early on, are much more likely to develop strong reading skills.

After using poems to teach kids how to read over the past 17 years, I have found nursery rhymes to be the most effective tool. I’m so excited to share this list of the nursery rhymes for kids with you. They will build vocabulary, fluency, expressive and receptive language, rhyming skills, and expand the kids’ imagination.

Free Nursery Rhymes for Kids

In this blog post, you will find the some of the best nursery rhymes lyrics and suggested activities.  Before you start scrolling, grab your FREE poetry guide with checklists, activities, and printables.

A Tisket, A Tasket Lyrics

A Tisket, a tasket, a green and yellow basket.

I wrote a letter to my friend, and on the way I dropped it. 

I dropped it, I dropped it, 

and on the way I dropped it.

The little boy, he picked it up,

and put it in his pocket. 

A Tisket, A Tasket Suggested Activities:  

• A Tisket, A Tasket Build a Poem activity for in the classroom or at home.
• Have the kiddos write or draw a letter to a friend, then act out the poem.

 

Baa, Baa, Black Sheep Lyrics

Baa, baa, black sheep

Have you any wool?

Yes sir, yes sir

Three bags full.

One for my master

And one for the dame

One for the little boy

Who lives down the lane. 

Baa, Baa, Black Sheep Suggested Activities

• Color a sheep template black, then use cotton balls to incorporate a sensory craft
• Estimate how many cotton balls it will take to fill three lunch bags
• Baa, Baa Black Sheep Build a Poem

 

Hey Diddle Diddle Lyrics

Hey diddle, diddle,

the cat and the fiddle.

The cow jumped over the moon.

The little dog laughed to see such sport,

and the dish ran away with the spoon. 

 

Hey Diddle, Diddle Suggested Activities

• Introduce a fiddle, and let the kids have turns acting out the cat’s role
• Paint a picture of a cow jumping over the moon.
• Have a jumping contest
• Do a sight word hunt using the printable Hey Diddle Diddle Poem.
• Hey Diddle Diddle Build a Poem

Hickory Dickory Dock Lyrics

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock.

The clock struck one, the mouse ran down.

Hickory dickory dock.

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock.

The clock struck two, the mouse said “BOO!”

Hickory dickory dock.

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock.

The clock struck three, the mouse said “WHEE!”

Hickory dickory dock.

Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock.

The clock struck four, the mouse said “No more!”

Hickory dickory dock.

Hickory Dickory Dock Suggested Activities:

• Use with a Teaching Time kit to integrate lessons about clocks and time.
• Talk about and act out position words: up, down, etc.
• Come up with a list of rhyming words for mouse.
• Hickory Dickory Dock Build a Poem

 

Humpty Dumpty Lyrics

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

All the Kings horses, and all the king’s men,

couldn’t put Humpty together again. 

 

Humpty Dumpty Suggested Activities

• Grab your FREE Humpty Dumpty Printable and Build a Poem when you sign up to my Little Learning Corner Newsletter, HERE.

 

 

I’m a Little Teapot Lyrics

I’m a little teapot short and stout.

Here is my handle, here is my spout.

When I get all steamed up, hear my shout.

Just tip me over, and pour me out!

 

I’m a Little Teapot Suggested Activities:

• Have a tea party using a kids Tea set
• Integrate lessons on measurement. Compare compacity and weight of a teapot verves a teacup

 

 

It’s Raining, It’s Pouring Lyrics

It’s raining, it’s pouring.

The old man is snoring.

Went to bed, and bumped his head

and couldn’t get up in the morning.

It’s Raining, It’s Pouring Suggested Activities:

• Act out the poem (the kids love being the old man who snores
• Integrate a lesson on weather 
• It’s Raining, It’s Pouring Build a Poem

 

Itsy Bitsy Spider Lyrics

The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout.

Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.

Out came the sun, and dried up all the rain.

And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again.

Itsy Bitsy Spider Suggested Activities:

• Integrate Spider Facts for Kids sentence building activities.
• Use hand movements to reinforce the poem or song.
• Focus on positional words
• Make a paper plate spider craft
• Add the Itsy Bitsy Spider printable poem to the kids’ poetry notebook
• Itsy Bitsy Spider Build a Poem

 

Jack and Jill Lyrics

Jack and Jill went up the hill

to fetch a pail of water.

Jack fell down, and broke his crown,

and Jill came tumbling after.

 

Jack and Jill Suggested Activities:

• Get a class set of plastic pails, and let the kids act out this popular nursery rhyme for kids.
• Jack and Jill poetry packet
• Jack and Jill Build a Poem

 

 Jack Be Nimble Lyrics

Jack be nimble, Jack be quick.

Jack jump over the candlestick.

Jack jumped high. Jack jumped low. 

Jack jumped over, and burned his toe! 

Jack Be Nimble (Nursery Rhyme for Kids) Suggested Activities:

• Get a cheap candlestick mold and candle making kit to make candles with your kids. (This is great to do with a parent volunteer)
• Let the kids practice jumping over a candlestick while reciting the nursery rhymes for kids.
• Jack Be Nimble Build a Poem – replace the Jack card with the students names to personalize this fun nursery rhyme for kids (see video above)

 

Little Bo Peep Lyrics

This traditional nursery rhyme is one I like to include in my farm themed lesson plans. For example, the introduction of sheep allows for the talk of other farm animals. It’s great a bridge into more mother goose nursery rhymes naturally occurs. For example, you can then teach more English nursery rhymes such as “This Little Piggy”, “Five Little Ducks”, “Three Little Pigs”, “Five Little Speckled Frogs”, “Old MacDonald”, and more popular rhymes.

Little Bo Peep lost her sheep,

and doesn’t know where to find them.

Leave them alone, and they’ll come home,

bringing their tails behind them.

Little Bo Peep Suggested Activities:

• Grab this set of 3 Sheep stuffed animals to let the kids act out the nursery rhyme for preschool, kindergarten, or first grade.
• Little Bo Peep Build a Poem

 

Little Boy Blue Lyrics

Little Boy Blue come blow your horn.

The sheep’s in the meadow, the cow’s in the corn.

But where’s the boy who looks after the sheep?

He’s under a haystack fast asleep.

Will you wake him? No – not I.

For if I do, he’s sure to cry.

Little Boy Blue Suggested Activities:

• This a great nursery rhyme for kids to incorporate your favorite farm animal lessons.
• Set up a farm pretend area 
• Little Boy Blue Build a Poem

 

Little Miss Muffet Lyrics

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet,

eating her curdy and whey.

Along came a spider who sat down beside her,

and frightened Miss Muffet away.

Little Miss Muffet Suggested Activities:

• Do a nursery rhyme for kids comparison with Little Miss Muffet and Itsy Bitsy Spider
• Introduce vocabulary, such as tuffet, curds and whey, and frightened.
• Swap out frightened for another word to describe emotions and act them all out.
• Little Miss Muffet Build a Poem

 

Mary Had a Little Lamb Lyrics

Mary had a little lamb,

it’s fleece was white as snow.

And everywhere that Mary went,

the lamb was sure to go.

It followed her to school one day

and broke the teacher’s rule

And what a time did they have

that day at school.

Mary Had a Little Lamb Suggested Activities:

• Swap out the name “Mary” for the kids’ names. It’s a great way to personalize nursery rhymes for preschoolers.
• Send home a little lamb stuffed animal with the kids and have them recite the poem to their family. Rotate through all of the kids.
• Mary Had a Little Lamb Build a Poem

 

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe Lyrics

One, two, buckle my shoe.

Three, four, shut the door.

Five, six, pick up sticks.

Seven, eight, lay them straight.

Nine, ten, a big fat hen. 

One Two Buckle My Shoe Suggested Activities:

• Work on number word recognition – highlighting the number words in the printable poem.
• Identify the rhyming patterns throughout the nursery rhyme for kids.
• Act out the poem
• Try to come up with new lyrics
• One Two Buckle My Shoe Build a Poem 

 

Polly Put the Kettle On Lyrics

Polly put the kettle on.

Polly put the kettle on.

Polly put the kettle on.

We’ll all have tea.

Sukey, take it off again.

Sukey, take it off again.

Sukey, take it off again.

They’ve all gone away.

Polly Put the Kettle On Suggested Activities:

• Do a compare and contrast with “I’m a Little Teapot”
• Set up a kitchen area with a toy kettle
• Let the kids role play as Polly and Sukey
• Polly Put the Kettle On Build a Poem

 

Rain, Rain Go Away Lyrics

Rain, rain, go away.

Come again another day.

Little Johnny wants to play.

Rain Rain Go Away Suggested Activities:

• Integrate with your lessons about weather.
• Replace “Johnny” with your kid’s name.
• Rain Rain Go Away Build a Poem

 

Row, Row, Row your Boat Lyrics

Row, row, row your boat

gently down the stream. 

Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily,

life if but a dream.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat Suggested Activities:

• Sink or float activities
• Water table
• Row Row Row Your Boat Build a Poem

 

Star Light, Star Bright Lyrics

Star light, star bright,

First star I see tonight;

I wish I may, I wish I might,

Have the wish I wish tonight.

Star Light, Star Bright Suggested Activities:

• Get a telescope for kids and let them look at the stars
• Integrate this nursery rhyme for kids with your lessons about shapes. Making Words Shapes and Write the Room Shapes are two popular activities.
• Star Light Star Bright Build a Poem

 

The Wheels on the Bus Lyrics

The wheels on the bus go round and round,

round and round, round and round.

The wheels on the bus go round and round

all through the town.  

The Wheels on the Bus Suggested Activities:

• Sing with hand motions
• Each kid and be a part of, or people on, the bus (wheels, wipers, babies, mommy, etc) and act out their part.
• The Wheels on the Bus poetry packet

 

Some may debate that The Wheels on the Bus is an American Folk song, while others claim it to be a classic Mother Goose song for kids. Either way, it was published in 1939, and remains a popular song for kids of all ages.

This nursery rhyme for kids has variations, changing “wheels” to wipers, kids, babies, bus driver, mommies, daddies, and horn – to name a few.  Each variation has a different hand motion or sound effect, making this a very engaging and interactive song for kids.

 

There Was An Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe Lyrics

This fun, classic nursery rhyme, inspires young children to use their imagination. The kids say this is a funny nursery rhyme because how can an old lady actually live in a shoe. They ask questions such as “how many little boys live in the shoe?”, and “Is there a little girl?” While you may want to work on more thorough reading comprehension questions, and focus on learning new words, this is a fun poem for kids of all ages.

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe.

She had so many children, she didn’t know what to do. 

She gave them some broth without any bread.

Then, whipped them all soundly, and put them to bed. 

There Was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe Suggested Activities:

• Free coloring page of There Was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe
• Practice tying shoes with kids
• There Was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe Build a Poem

 

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Lyrics

Twinkle twinkle little star,

how I wonder what you are.

Up above the world so high,

like a diamond in the sky. 

Twinkle twinkle little star,

how I wonder what you are.  

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Suggested Activities:

• Put up glow in the dark stars throughout the room
• Work on shape identification: Making Words Shapes and Write the Room shapes are two great resources to learn shapes.
• Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Build a Poem

Wee Willie Winkle

 Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town,

Upstairs and downstairs, in his nightgown;

Rapping at the window, crying through the lock,

“Are the children in their beds?

Now it’s eight o’clock.

Wee Willie Winkie Suggested Activities

• Have a pajama day with the kids.
• Integrate learning to tell time.
• Have the kids graph when their nap time is.
• Wee Willie Winkie Build a Poem

 

A Wise Old Owl Lyrics

A wise old owl sat in an oak.

The more he heard,

the less he spoke.

The less he spoke,

the more he heard. 

Why aren’t we all like

that wise old bird? 

A Wise Old Owl Suggested Activities

• A Wise Old Owl Build A Poem
• Make a cute set of Owl Eyes as a STEM project
• Foam Owl Art Crafts

 

Hot Cross Buns Lyrics

Hot cross buns,

Hot cross buns,

One a penny, two a penny,

Hot cross buns

If your daughters

Don’t like them,

Give them to your sons.

Hot cross buns.

Hot Cross Buns Suggested Activities

• Hot cross bun taste testing and graph
• Make fresh buns with the kids.
• Play a money game from Learning Resources
• Hot Cross Buns Build a Poem

 

One, Two, Three, Four, Five (Once I caught a fish alive) Lyrics

One, two, three, four, five.

Once I caught a fish alive.

Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,

then I let it go again.

Why did you let it go?

Because he bit my finger so.

Which finger did he bite?

This little finger on the right. 

One, Two, Three, Four, Five Suggested Activities | Nursery Rhymes for Kids

• Go fishing for sight words! Put a small magnetic dot on the back of sight word cards, attach a paper clip to a string on the end of dow rod, and fish for sight words.
• One, Two, Three, Four, Five Build a Poem

 

 

Little Jack Horner Lyrics

Little Jack Horner

sat in a corner

eating a Christmas pie.

He put in his thumb

and pulled out a plumb

and said, “What a good boy and I?”

Little Jack Horner Suggested Activities

• Pie tasting and graphing your favorite pie
• Plumb tasting
• Little Jack Horner Build a Poem

 

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Lyrics

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells

and cockle shells,

and pretty maids all in a row. 

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Suggested Activities

• Kids Plant and Flower Growing Kit
• Make paper flower patterns
• Intro to flower facts for kids
• Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Build a Poem

 

Old Mother Hubbard Lyrics

Old Mother Hubbard

went to the cupboard

to get her poor dog a bone.

But when she got there,

the cupboards were bare,

so the poor dog had none.

Old Mother Hubbard Suggested Activities

• Fun printable and digital pet activities
• Sew your own pet craft for kids
• Old Mother Hubbard Build a Poem

 

 

Pat a Cake Lyrics

Pat a cake, pat a cake bakers man.

Bake me a cake as fast as you can.

Roll it and pat it and mark it with a B.

But it in the oven for baby and me.

Pat a Cake Suggested Activities

• Integrate your lesson about community helpers
• Set up a bakery dress-up area with a cake pretend playset.
• This is the perfect song to integrate hand movements and support kinesthetic learners.
• Pat a Cake Build a Poem

 

Pease Porridge Hot Lyrics

Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold.

Pease porridge in the pot

nine days old.

Some like it hot, some like it cold,

Some like it in the pot

nine days old.

Pease Porridge Hot Suggested Activities

• Do a nursery rhyme for kids comparison with Little Miss Muffet, and with the fable, Goldilocks and the Three Bears
• Pease Porridge Hot Build a Poem

 

Roses are Red Lyrics

Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

Sugar is sweet 

and so are you. 

It’s the simplest nursery rhymes for kids that often stick out the most!

Roses are Red Suggested Activities

• Do a nature walk and collect wild flowers, then sort them by color or type
• Plant roses
• Roses are Red Build a Poem

 

Three Blind Mice Lyrics

Three blind mice,

three blind mice,

See how they run,

see how they run.

They all ran after the farmer’s wife

who cut off their tails with a carving knife.

Did you ever see such

a sight in your life,

as three blind mice?

Three Blind Mice Suggested Activities

• Blindfold three students, and have them run a short distance (if there is an open, safe, area)
• Integrate 5 Senses activities
• Three Blind Mice Build a Poem

 

 

 

Three Little Kittens Lyrics

Three little kittens,

they lost their mittens,

and they began to cry.

“Oh, mother dear,”

we sadly fear, 

that we have lost our mittens.

Three Little Kittens Suggested Activities

• Incorporate a pretend pet area in the classroom to support these traditional rhymes.
• Read “The Mitten” by Jan Brett
• Do a poem comparison with Three Blind Mice
• Three Little Kittens Build a Poem

 

 

Thanks for stopping by Little Learning Corner to check out these favorite nursery rhymes for kids. Leave your favorite ideas for Mother Goose rhymes in the comments below.

If you’re interested in getting 35 Printable Nursery Rhyme poems, check out the bundle below.

 

Before you go, here are some blog posts you may enjoy:

30 Best Nursery Rhyme Books for Kids

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90 Quick Report Card Comments

All About Build a Poems

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