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Nursery rhymes for babies act as the initial foundation for their mental and physical development in their formative years. Most of us grew up listening to the tales of Humpty Dumpty having a great fall, stars twinkling at night, and jack and jill going up a hill to fetch water. It was fun, entertaining, and an absolute delight to be listening to such soothing and thoughtful rhymes. In the same way, introducing your child to nursery rhymes to your child and singing them to them will help you keep them engaged and improves their listening skills as well. Read on for a list of the famous nursery rhymes that you can sing to your little one.
Benefits Of Rhymes For Babies
Nursery rhymes are said to have an all-round effect on a baby’s physical and cognitive development. Here are a few benefits of rhymes for babies (1).
- According to the early development instrument (EDI), babies learn quicker and better in environments rich in language, joy, and playfulness. Nursery rhymes are said to provide such an environment.
- Rhymes with simple actions can be used to promote and practice sitting, rolling, and crawling. These movements help strengthen the baby’s muscles.
- Rhymes might help stimulate eye-tracking and assist in the development of other areas of the brain.
- Hand-clapping rhymes might help babies learn to bring their hands together, also known as crossing the midline, and learn to isolate and move their fingers independently. It might eventually help them communicate their needs and wants.
- Some rhymes might also help in eye-to-eye engagement to promote an emotional bond between the baby and the caretaker.
- Toddlers benefit by getting introduced to the world around them. They learn about various animals and shapes through nursery rhymes.
- Soothing rhymes may help calm a crying or fussy baby.
25 Nursery Rhymes For Babies With Lyrics
1. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
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Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
When the blazing sun is gone,
When he nothing shines upon,
Then you show your little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night.
Then the traveler in the dark
Thanks you for your tiny spark,
How could he see where to go,
If you did not twinkle so?
In the dark blue sky you keep,
Often through my curtains peep
For you never shut your eye,
Till the sun is in the sky.
As your bright and tiny spark
Lights the traveler in the dark,
Though I know not what you are,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star.
2. Row, Row, Row Your Boat
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Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily
Life is but a dream
3. Humpty Dumpty
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Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king’s horses and all the king’s men
couldn’t put Humpty together again.
4. Wheels On The Bus
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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 wipers on the bus go Swish, swish, swish
Swish, swish, swish
Swish, swish, swish
The wipers on the bus go Swish, swish, swish
All through the town
The horn on the bus goes Beep, beep, beep
Beep, beep, beep
Beep, beep, beep
The horn on the bus goes Beep, beep, beep
All through the town
The doors on the bus go open and shut
Open and shut
Open and shut
The doors on the bus go open and shut
All through the town
The Driver on the bus says, “Move on back
Move on back, move on back”
The Driver on the bus says, “Move on back”
All through the town
The babies on the bus says, “Wah, wah, wah
Wah, wah, wah
Wah, wah, wah”
The babies on the bus says, “Wah, wah, wah”
All through the town
The mommies on the bus says, “Shush, shush, shush
Shush, shush, shush
Shush, shush, shush”
The mommies on the bus says, “Shush, shush, shush”
All through the town.
5. Old Mac Donald Had A Farm
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Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
And on his farm he had some cows
Ee i ee i oh
With a moo-moo here
And a moo-moo there
Here a moo, there a moo
Everywhere a moo-moo
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
And on his farm he had some chicks
Ee i ee i o
With a cluck-cluck here
And a cluck-cluck there
Here a cluck, there a cluck
Everywhere a cluck-cluck
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o
And on his farm he had some pigs
Ee i ee i o
With an oink-oink here
And an oink-oink there
Here an oink, there an oink
Everywhere an oink-oink
Old MacDonald had a farm
Ee i ee i o.
6. One, Two, Three, Four, Five
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Modern version
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 it bit my finger so.
Which finger did it bite?
This little finger on my right.
Original version
One, two, three,
Four and five,
I caught a hare alive;
Six, seven, eight,
Nine and ten,
I let him go again.
7. Incy Wincy Spider
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Incy Wincy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed poor Incy out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
So Incy Wincy spider
Climbed up the spout again
(Ah ee ah ee ahh…)
(Ah ee ah ee ahh…)
Alternative Version
Itsy Bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain
And washed poor Itsy out
Out came the sun
And dried up all the rain
So Itsy Bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again.
8. Hey, Diddle Diddle
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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.
9. Grand Old Duke Of York
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Oh, the grand old Duke of York
He had ten thousand men
He marched them up to the top of the hill
And he marched them down again
And when they were up, they were up
And when they were down, they were down
And when they were only half-way up
They were neither up nor down
10. Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
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We’re going to the moon.
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
We’re going to the moon.
If you want to take a trip,
Climb aboard my rocket ship.
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
We’re going to the moon.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1,
Blast off!
11. I’m A Little Teapot
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I’m a little teapot
Short and stout
Here is my handle
Here is my spout
When I get all steamed up
Hear me shout
Tip me over and pour me out!
I’m a very special teapot
Yes, it’s true
Here’s an example of what I can do
I can turn my handle into a spout
Tip me over and pour me out!
12. London Bridge Is Falling Down
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London Bridge is falling down,
Falling down, falling down,
London Bridge is falling down,
My fair Lady.
Build it up with wood and clay,
Wood and clay, wood and clay,
Build it up with wood and clay,
My fair Lady.
Wood and clay will wash away,
Wash away, wash away,
Wood and clay will wash away,
My fair Lady.
Build it up with bricks and mortar,
Bricks and mortar, bricks and mortar,
Build it up with bricks and mortar,
My fair Lady.
Bricks and mortar will not stay,
Will not stay, will not stay,
Bricks and mortar will not stay,
My fair Lady.
Build it up with iron and steel,
Iron and steel, iron and steel,
Build it up with iron and steel,
My fair Lady.
Iron and steel will bend and bow,
Bend and bow, bend and bow,
Iron and steel will bend and bow,
My fair Lady.
Build it up with silver and gold,
Silver and gold, silver and gold,
Build it up with silver and gold,
My fair Lady.
Silver and gold will be stolen away,
Stolen away, stolen away,
Silver and gold will be stolen away,
My fair Lady.
Set a man to watch all night,
Watch all night, watch all night,
Set a man to watch all night,
My fair Lady.
Suppose the man should fall asleep,
Fall asleep, fall asleep,
Suppose the man should fall asleep?
My fair Lady.
Give him a pipe to smoke all night,
Smoke all night, smoke all night,
Give him a pipe to smoke all night,
My fair Lady.
13. Mary Had A Little Lamb
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Mary had a little lamb,
whose fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went,
the lamb was sure to go.
It followed her to school one day
which was against the rules.
It made the children laugh and play,
to see a lamb at school.
And so the teacher turned it out,
but still it lingered near,
And waited patiently about,
till Mary did appear.
“Why does the lamb love Mary so?”
the eager children cry.
“Why, Mary loves the lamb, you know.”
the teacher did reply
14. Baa Baa Black Sheep
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Baa, baa, black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir, yes, sir
Three bags full
One for the master
And one for the Dame
One for the little boy
Who lives down the lane
15. Hickory Dickory Dock
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Hickory dickory dock. The mouse went up the clock
The clock struck one. The mouse went down
Hickory dickory dock
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock
A snake
Hickory dickory dock. The snake went up the clock
The clock struck two. The snake went down
Hickory dickory dock
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock
A squirrel
Hickory dickory dock. The squirrel went up the clock
The clock struck three. The squirrel went down
Hickory dickory dock
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock
A cat
Hickory dickory dock. The cat went up the clock
The clock struck four. The cat went down
Hickory dickory dock
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock
A monkey
Hickory dickory dock. The monkey went up the clock
The clock struck five. The monkey went down
Hickory dickory dock
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock
An elephant, oh no
Hickory dickory dock. The elephant went up the clock
Oh no
Hickory dickory dock
16. Polly Put The Kettle On
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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.
17. Pop! Goes The Weasel
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British version
Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.
Up and down the City road,
In and out the Eagle,
That’s the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.
American version
All around the Mulberry Bush,
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey stopped to pull up his sock,
Pop! goes the weasel.
Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.
Mix it up and make it nice,
Pop! goes the weasel.
18. Ring-A-Ring O’roses
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Ring a ring o’ roses
A pocketful of posies
a-tishoo, a-tishoo
We all fall down.
The King has sent his daughter
To fetch a pail of water
a-tishoo, a-tishoo
We all fall down.
The bird upon the steeple
Sits high above the people
a-tishoo, a-tishoo
We all fall down.
The cows are in the meadow
Lying fast asleep
a-tishoo, a-tishoo
We all get up again.
19. Jack And Jill
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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 got up, and home did trot
As fast as he could caper
To old Dame Dob, who patched his nob
With vinegar and brown paper
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.
20. This Old Man
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This old man, he played one,
He played knick-knack on my thumb;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played two,
He played knick-knack on my shoe;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played three,
He played knick-knack on my knee;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played four,
He played knick-knack on my door;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played five,
He played knick-knack on my hive;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played six,
He played knick-knack on my sticks;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played seven,
He played knick-knack up in heaven;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played eight,
He played knick-knack on my gate;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played nine,
He played knick-knack on my spine;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
This old man, he played ten,
He played knick-knack once again;
With a knick-knack paddywhack,
Give the dog a bone,
This old man came rolling home.
21. Round And Round The Garden
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Round and round the garden
Like a teddy bear.
One step, two step,
Tickle you under there.
22. Sing A Song Of Sixpence
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Sing a song of sixpence,
A pocketful of rye.
Four and twenty blackbirds,
Baked in a pie.
When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing;
Wasn’t that a dainty dish,
To set before the king?
The king was in his counting house,
Counting out his money;
The queen was in the parlour,
Eating bread and honey.
The maid was in the garden,
Hanging out the clothes;
When down came a blackbird
And pecked off her nose.
23. The Little Piggy
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This little piggy went to the market,
This little piggy stayed home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none,
And this little piggy cried wee wee wee all the way home.
24. Little Miss Muffet
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Little Miss Muffet
Sat on a tuffet,
Eating her curds and whey;
Along came a spider,
Who sat down beside her,
And frightened Miss Muffet away
Little Miss Muffet,
Sat on a Tuffet,
Eating her Bread and Jam,
Along came a Spider,
While she was Drinking her Cider,
And she ran away and her shoes fell off!
25. Chubby Cheeks
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Chubby cheeks, dimple chin
Rosy lips, teeth within
Curly hair, very fair
Eyes are blue – lovely too.
Teachers pet, is that you?
Yes, Yes, Yes!
Most of us still remember and love to listen to the classic nursery rhymes for babies, such as twinkle twinkle little star, ring-a-ring o’roses, and chubby cheeks. You may sing or enact these rhymes with your little ones in your free time or as a part of their bedtime routine. This activity will encourage them to engage with you, replicate your actions, and learn the rhyme. Singing the rhymes together can also be a fun bonding exercise that promotes their interactive and language skills.
References
1. Ginger Mullen, More Than Words: Using Nursery Rhymes and Songs to Support Domains of Child Development; Journal Of Childhood Studies; University of Victoria
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