A Sailor Went to Sea

The way my kids taught this one to me, all verses following the first include a new action (even though the words themselves don’t make much sense).  The action for the first verse is simply to stand with your hand over your eyes, as if shielding them from the sun as you look out to sea.  At the end of each verse, you must repeat and perform (in reverse order) the list of actions of each verse already sung.

There are probably more verses/actions that I don’t remember, but this should be a good start…

A sailor went to sea, sea, sea,
To see what he could see, see, see.
But all that he could see, see, see
Was the bottom of the deep blue sea, sea, sea.

A sailor went to stomp, stomp, stomp,
To see what he could stomp, stomp, stomp.
But all that he could stomp, stomp, stomp
Was the bottom of the deep blue stomp, stomp, stomp.
       Sea, sea, sea.

A sailor went to clap, clap, clap,
To see what he could clap, clap, clap.
But all that he could clap, clap, clap
Was the bottom of the deep blue clap, clap, clap.
       Stomp, stomp, stomp.
       Sea, sea, sea.

A sailor went to snap, snap, snap,
To see what he could snap, snap, snap.
But all that he could snap, snap, snap
Was the bottom of the deep blue snap, snap, snap.
       Clap, clap, clap.
       Stomp, stomp, stomp.
       Sea, sea, sea.

A sailor went to jump, jump, jump,
To see what he could jump, jump, jump.
But all that he could jump, jump, jump
Was the bottom of the deep blue jump, jump, jump.
       Snap, snap, snap.
       Clap, clap, clap.
       Stomp, stomp, stomp.
       Sea, sea, sea.

Baby Bumblebee

Admittedly, this was not one of our mother’s favorite kid songs (believe it or not, she didn’t teach us this one!).  But it was one of the funnest ones we brought home from school (or the school bus, more likely).  Especially since it invariably brought out groans and funny faces if Mom was within hearing when we sang it.

I’m bringing home my baby bumblebee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m bringing home my baby bumblebee
Ouch, it stung me!

I’m squishing up my baby bumblebee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m squishing up my baby bumblebee
Ew, it’s yucky!

I’m licking up my baby bumblebee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m licking up my baby bumblebee
Ugh, I feel sick!

I’m barfing up my baby bumblebee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m barfing up my baby bumblebee
Ick, it’s messy!

I’m sweeping up my baby bumblebee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m sweeping up my baby bumblebee
But my mommy wasn’t so proud of me.

As I recall, the motions to this song were pretty simple:  just listen to the words and at the appropriate time you squish your hands, pretend to lick your hands, etc.  Guaranteed to sicken the most squeamish of moms!

The Wheels on the Bus

This is probably one of the most popular kid songs these days, especially since it’s been featured on shows like Barney and Sesame Street and on practically every children’s songs CD over the last decade.

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 door on the bus goes open and shut,
Open and shut, open and shut.
The door on the bus goes open and shut,
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 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 motor on the bus goes zoom, zoom, zoom;
Zoom, zoom, zoom; zoom, zoom, zoom.
The motor on the bus goes zoom, zoom, zoom,
All through the town.

The signals on the bus go blink, blink, blink;
Blink, blink, blink; blink, blink, blink.
The signals on the bus go blink, blink, blink,
All through the town.

The people on the bus go up and down,
Up and down, up and down.
The people on the bus go up and down,
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 children on the bus say, “Let’s play games.
Let’s play games, let’s play games!”
The children on the bus say, “Let’s play games,”
All through the town.

The daddy on the bus says, “Shh, shh, shh;
Shh, shh, shh; shh, shh, shh!”
The daddy on the bus says, “Shh, shh, shh,”
All through the town.

The baby on the bus says, “Waa, waa, waa!
Waa, waa, waa! Waa, waa, waa!”
The baby on the bus says, “Waa, waa, waa,”
All through the town.

The mommy on the bus says, “I love you.
I love you, I love you.”
The mommy on the bus says, “I love you,”
All through the town.

The money on the bus goes jing, jing, jing;
Jing, jing, jing; jing, jing, jing.
The money on the bus goes jing, jing, jing,
All through the town.

The gas on the bus goes glug, glug, glug;
Glug, glug, glug; glug, glug, glug.
The gas on the bus goes glug, glug, glug,
All through the town.

The bell on the bus goes ding, ding, ding;
Ding, ding, ding; ding, ding, ding.
The bell on the bus goes ding, ding, ding,
All through the town.

         

Here are a couple of exuberant young performers, complete with a couple of original verses I’d never heard before!

I’m in the Lord’s Army

This classic and fun old Bible School song seemed to have disappeared for a while since the time that we were kids.  Only recently have I heard it being sung again.

I may never march in the infantry
Ride in the cavalry
Shoot the artillery
I may never fly o’er the enemy
But I’m in the Lord’s army  [Yes, sir!]

I’m in the Lord’s army  [Yes, sir!]
I’m in the Lord’s army  [Yes, sir!]

I may never march in the infantry
Ride in the cavalry
Shoot the artillery
I may never fly o’er the enemy
But I’m in the Lord’s army  [Yes, sir!]

Click here for a pretty good rendition of the song, with motions and plenty of enthusiasm.

Here We Go Looby-Loo

With a theme and motions much like that of the popular Hokey Pokey, this kids’ favorite can provide a workout for toddlers or a great laugh for older kids at parties and such.

I have also heard the words sung as “Here we go loop de loop“; unfortunately, I have no idea which is the original or “correct” version.

Here we go looby-loo
Here we go looby-lie
Here we go looby-loo
All on a Saturday night

Put your right hand in
Take your right hand out
Give your hand a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

[Chorus]

Here we go looby-loo
Here we go looby-lie
Here we go looby-loo
All on a Saturday night

Put your left hand in
Take your left hand out
Give your hand a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Put your right hip in
Take your hip foot out
Give your right hip a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Put your left hip in
Take your left hip out
Give your left hip a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Put your right foot in
Take your right foot out
Give your foot a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Put your left foot in
Take your left foot out
Give your foot a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Put your whole self in
Take your whole self out
Give your whole self a shake, shake, shake
And turn yourself about

Little Cabin in the Woods

Little cabin in the woods
Little man by the window stood
Saw a rabbit hopping by
Frightened as could be

“Help me! Help me! Help!” he said
“Or the hunter shoot me dead!”
Little rabbit come inside
Safely to abide

Ring Around the Rosies

An old favorite, Ring Around the Rosies is usually sung by a group of two or more children holding hands in a circle.  As they sing, they all dance or skip around the circle until reaching the last line, when everyone falls down.  Usually amid lots and lots of laughter.  Kids never seem to tire of this game.  Parents, on the other hand…

Ring around the rosies
A pocket full of posies
Ashes, ashes
We all fall down

The third line of the nursery rhyme is often sung as “Ah-tishoo, ah-tishoo…” or sometimes, “Upstairs, downstairs…”

Some other verses exist, although they are not nearly as well known, especially in the United States:

The King has sent his daughter
To fetch a pail of water
Ah-tishoo, ah-tishoo
We all fall down

The bird upon the steeple
Sits high above the people
Ah-tishoo, ah-tishoo
We all fall down

The cows are in the meadow
Eating buttercups
Bringing up the posies
We all pop up!

There is a popular myth that this nursery rhyme describes the Great Plague of London (1665) or other outbreaks of bubonic (black) plague.  Both Wikipedia and Snopes.com have very good articles debunking this supposed origin.

The Mulberry Bush

Here we go ’round the mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
Here we go ’round the mulberry bush
On a cold and frosty morning

Itsy Bitsy Spider

Some sing this great old tune as the “Eensy Weensy Spider,” but all the rest of the words seem to stay the same.

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 climbed up the spout again

If You’re Happy and You Know It

This fun little action song is great for getting younger kids moving.  After each “If you’re happy and you know it” line, everyone singing should do the mentioned motion (see verses below).  In the final verse (“do all three”), you do all three!

Simple, isn’t it?

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands  (clap, clap)
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands  (clap, clap)
If you’re happy and you know it
Then your face with surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands  (clap, clap)

If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet
If you’re happy and you know it
Then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, stomp your feet

If you’re happy and you know it, nod your head
If you’re happy and you know it, nod your head
If you’re happy and you know it
Then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, nod your head

If you’re happy and you know it, do all three
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three
If you’re happy and you know it
Then your face will surely show it
If you’re happy and you know it, do all three

Some alternate verses:

• If you’re happy and you know it, shake a hand…
    
• If you’re happy and you know it, give a smile…
    
• If you’re happy and you know it, turn around…
    
• If you’re happy and you know it, say Amen!…