Theatre

Games

MOTHER GOOSE NURSERY RHYMES

These rhymes work like a gem for pantomime and warm-up exercises. Young children especially love their rhythm and rhyme. Some verses can be acted out with a single player, and others will need two or more actors. I've often used them in a group warm-up exercise, encouraging the use of musical percussion instruments to keep the time.

Baa, Baa, Black Sheep
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full;

One for the master,
And one for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.

Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full;

Hey, diddle, diddle
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.

Hickory, Dickory, Dock
Hickory, Dickory, Dock
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one.
The mouse ran down
Hickory, Dickory, Dock.

Humpty Dumpty
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.

Itsy Bitsy Spider
The itsy bitsy spider
Crawled up the water spout;
Down came the rain and
Washed the spider out.
Up came the sun and
Dried out all the rain.
Now the itsy bitsy spider
Crawled up the spout again.

Jack & Jill
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, Be Nimble
Jack, be nimble,
Jack, be quick,
Jack, jump over
The candlestick.
Jack jumped high,
Jack jumped low,
Jack jumped over,
and burned his toe.

Little Boy Blue
Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn,
The sheep's in the meadow; the cow's in the corn.
Where is 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 Jack Horner
Little Jack Horner
Sat in the corner,
Eating a Christmas pie:
He put in his thumb,
And pulled out a plum,
And said, "What a good boy am I!"

Little Miss Muffet
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.

Old King Cole
Old King Cole was a merry old soul,
And a merry old soul was he.
He called for his pipe, and he called for his bowl,
And he called for his fiddlers three.

Old Mother Hubbard
Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To get her poor doggie a bone.
When she got there,
The cupboard was bare,
And so her poor doggie got none.

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
One, Two,
Buckle My Shoe;
Three, four,
Shut the door.
Five, six,
Pick up sticks.
Seven, eight,
Lay them straight.
Nine, ten,
The big fat hen.

Mary Had a Little Lamb
Mary had a little lamb,
Its fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went,
The lamb was sure to go.
He followed her to school one day,
Which was against the rule.
It made the children laugh and play
To see a lamb at school.

Pop Goes the Weasel
All around the mulberry bush
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey thought it was all in fun.
Pop! goes the weasel.

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