Nursery number favourites to 10 O-Z

Old Davy Jones

On my right hand what do I see?

Once I caught a fish alive!

One and one, it’s a mountain

One bubble, two bubbles

One duck, two ducks

One little brown bird

One man went to mow

One, two, kittens that mew

Over in the meadow

Seven little pigs went to market

Six ghosts lurking

Six little acorns

Six little ducks

Six little pigs

Ten fat sausages

Ten fat turkeys

Ten fluffy chickens

Ten galloping horses

Ten in the bed

Ten little bubbles

Ten little fairies

Ten little goblins

Ten little pumpkins

Ten little tadpoles

Ten yellow chicks

The ants go marching

These two rabbits

Two little chickens

Under a web

Who gives a hoot?

Last updated: 3/28/2022 10:58 AM

The songs below are compiled, illustrated and sometimes adapted

by Dany Rosevear

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To watch the author sing a song click on the title at:

© Dany Rosevear 2008 All rights reserved

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Old Davy Jones O

Learn to count to ten and back again.

Old Davy Jones had one little sailor,

Old Davy Jones had one little sailor,

Old Davy Jones had one little sailor,

One little sailor boy.

He had one, he had two, he had three little sailors,

Four little, five little, six little sailors,

Seven little, eight little, nine little sailors,

Ten little sailor boys.

Old Davy Jones had ten little sailors,

Old Davy Jones had ten little sailors,

Old Davy Jones had ten little sailors,

Ten little sailor boys.

He had ten, he had nine, he had eight little sailors,

Seven little, six little, five little sailors,

Four little, three little, two little sailors,

One little sailor boy.

On my right hand what do I see? 🔊

How many fingers? Learn which is the left and right hand. This works well as a hand play

On my right hand what do I see?

Five little fingers all looking at me.

On my left hand what do I see?

Five more fingers all looking at me.

I put them together, then I see,

Ten little fingers looking at me!

Once I caught a fish alive!O

A nursery favourite that encourages counting to ten and will help to distinguish left from right.

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 ir go? Because he bit my finger so. Which finger did he bite? This little finger on the right.

Put one finger up in sequence for each number. Throw fish away. Throw out hands. Shake finger.

One and one, it’s a mountain

A hand play, double numbers as you go.

From https://www.nsnh.bc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Mother-Goose-Sunshine-Song-Time-Songs-Rhymes-Booklet-1.pdf

1. Raise one finger on each hand, place tips together.

2.Show two fingers on each hand, place hands together and stretch out four fingers to make them walk.

3. Show three fingers on each hand, sweep face with them like cat cleaning whiskers.

4. Show four fingers on each hand, place hands together and wiggle fingers.

5. Show five fingers on each hand, cross wrist and flap hands moving upwards and away.

One and one,

It's a mountain.

Two and two,

It's a crab.

Three and three,

It’s a cat: ‘Meow!’

Four and four,

It’s an octopus.

Five and five,

It’s a butterfly,

Fly up through the sky -

And away!

One bubble, two bubbles 🔊

A simple action rhyme and number play to ten.

Music by Dany Rosevear.

1. Tap top of head. 2. Hop once. 3. Clap hands. 4. Slowly sit or crouch down .

One bubble, two bubbles, three bubbles, TOP!

Four bubbles, five bubbles, six bubbles, HOP!

Seven bubbles, eight bubbles, nine bubbles, POP!

Ten bubbles floating down, time to STOP!

One duck, two ducks 🔊

Or ‘Ten ducks’. A number action rhyme.

1. Raise one then a second finger, ‘splash’ hands. 2.Show two more fingers toch cheeks. 3. Raise two more fingers, hands on hips. 4. Raise two more fingers, move wiggling fingers downwards. 5. Raise last two fingers, flap elbows up and down, shake body then hands to cheek.

One duck, two ducks splashing in a pool,

Three ducks, four ducks find the water cool,

Five ducks, six ducks want to stay and play,

Seven ducks, eight ducks love a rainy day,

Nine ducks, ten ducks, all with wings outspread,

Shake their glossy feathers and waddle off to bed.

One little brown bird O

Become familiar with the concept of ‘one more’.

One little brown bird, up and up he flew,

Along came another one and that made two.

Two little brown birds sitting on a tree,

Along came another one and that made three.

Three little brown birds hopping on the floor,

Along came another one and that made four.

Four little brown birds flying round a hive,

Along came another one and that made five.

Five little brown birds pecking at some sticks,

Along came another one and that made six.

Six little brown birds flying up to heaven,

Along came another one and that made seven.

Seven little brown birds sitting on a gate,

Along came another one and that made eight.

Eight little brown birds perched upon a line,

Along came another one and that made nine.

Nine little brown birds saw old mother hen,

Home they flew together and that made ten.

One man went to mow O

Learn to count back from ten.

This song is great fun to sing especially on coach journeys when you have plenty of time.

It can be made simpler for young children by just having the word ‘Woof!’ after ‘dog’ or add more words to get everyone in a tizz such as. ‘an old tin can, a frying pan’

There are plenty of more ideas at the Mudcat website.

Put one finger up in sequence for each number.

Count back from the number beginning each subsequent verse.

One man went to mow,

Went to mow a meadow.

One man and his dog, Spot,

a bottle of pop,

a sausage roll,

Old Mother Riley and her cow,

Went to mow a meadow.

Two men went to mow,

Went to mow a meadow.

Two men, one man and his dog, Spot,

a bottle of pop,

a sausage roll,

Old Mother Riley and her cow,

Went to mow a meadow.

Continue up to ten.

One, two, kittens that mew

A traditional counting rhyme to ten.

From the Ladybird book of ‘Number rhymes’ 1976.

Raise corresponding finger for each number and make appropriate noises!

One, two, kittens that mew,

Two, three, birds on a tree,

Three, four, shells on the shore,

Four, five, bees from the hive,

Five, six, the cow that licks,

Six, seven, rooks in the heaven,

Seven, eight, sheep at the gate,

Eight, nine, clothes on a line,

Nine, ten, little black hen.

Over in the meadow O

Learn to count to ten or to count back from ten by singing the same song in reverse order.

There are many different versions of this great traditional song; most of the verses here I remember singing to young children in the 1970s.

Children can use fingers to count and mime the actions. Encourage children to make up their own rhymes with versions that correspond with the topic of the day.

Over in the meadow in the sand in the sun,

Lived an old mother turtle and her little turtle one.

“Dig” said the mother,

“I dig” said the one.

So he dug all day long in the sand in the sun.

Over in the meadow where the stream runs blue,

Lived an old mother fishy and her little fish two.

“Swim” said the mother,

“We swim” said the two.

So they swam all day long where the stream runs blue.

Over in the meadow in a hole in a tree,

Lived an old mother owl and her little owls three.

“Wink” said the mother,

“We wink” said the three.

So they winked all day long in the hole in the tree.

Over in the meadow by the old barn door,

Lived an old mother rat and her little ratties four.

"Gnaw," said the mother,

"We gnaw," said the four,

So they gnawed all day long by the old barn door.

Over in the meadow in a snug beehive,

Lived an old mother bee and her little bees five.

“Buzz” said the mother,

“We buzz” said the five.

So they buzzed all day long in the snug beehive.

Over in the meadow in a nest built of sticks,

Lived a black mother crow and her little crows six.

"Caw!" said the mother;

"We caw!" said the six

So they cawed all day long in their nest built of sticks.

Over in the meadow where the grass grows even,

Lived an old mother frog and her little frogs seven.

"Jump," said the mother,

"We jump," said the seven,

So they jumped all day long where the grass grows even.

Over in the meadow by an old mossy gate,

Lived an old mother lizard and her little lizards eight.

"Bask," said the mother,

"We bask," said the eight,

So they basked all day long by the old mossy gate.

Over in the meadow by an old scotch pine,

Lived an old mother duck and her little ducklings nine.

"Quack," said the mother,

"We quack," said the nine,

So they quacked all day long by the old scotch pine.

Over in the meadow in a warm cosy den,

Lived an old mother fox and her little foxes ten.

“Sleep” said the mother,

“We sleep” said the ten.

So they slept all day long in their warm cosy den.

Seven little pigs 🔊

A subtraction song. You can also change the number of pigs and how many fall down / run away each time and sing ‘So how many went to town.

Use fingers to represent each pig. Fold fingers down and make runaway pig wiggle away.

Seven little pigs went to market,

One of them fell down,

One of them, he ran away,

And five pigs got to town.

Five little pigs went to market,

One of them fell down,

One of them, he ran away,

And three pigs got to town.

Three little pigs went to market,

One of them fell down,

One of them, he ran away,

And one pig got to town.

Six little acorns O

A song for autumn. Learn to subtract from six.

1. Hold up fingers to show the number of acorns. Make hands move like the wind.

2. As above

3. Show empty hands. Wiggle finger upwards and point to self.

Six little acorns in an old oak tree,

The autumn winds began to blow and down came three.

Three little acorns in an old oak tree,

The autumn winds began to blow and down came three.

No little acorns in an old oak tree,

But underneath I saw one sprout, just for me!

Six little ducksO

Where are they going?

Start with a count to six using fingers.

Six little ducks that I once knew, Fat ones, skinny ones they were too, But the one little duck with the feathers on his back, He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!” “Quack, quack, quack! Quack, quack, quack!” He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!” Down to the river they would go, Wibble wobble, wibble, wobble to and fro, But the one little duck with the feathers on his back, He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!” “Quack, quack, quack! Quack, quack, quack!” He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!” Home from the river they would come, Wibble wobble, wibble wobble, ho hum hum, But the one little duck with the feathers on his back, He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!” “Quack, quack, quack! Quack, quack, quack!” He led the others with a “Quack, quack, quack!”

Put up six fingers. Indicate fat and thin. Put out one finger. Show feathers behind. Bend elbows to flap wings. Repeat for each “Quack, quack, quack!” With arms stretched down side and feet at ten to two, move with a waddle from side to side. Move arms as before. Move as before in the opposite direction.

Six little pigs 🔊

A hand play. Learn about the importance of saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’.

Written by Helen Call and published around 1923 in Songs of Childhood. Tune and adapted wordsby Dany Rosevear.

1. Hold up six fingers. 2. Put hand to eyes, wiggle little finger. 3. Roll fists round each other. 4. Make arm and hand into a tree. 5. Put hand to ear. 6. Put hand to mouth.

Six little pigs in the straw with their mother

Bright eyes, curly tails, tumbling on each other.

Bring them apples from the orchard trees,

And hear those piggies say, "Please! Please! Please! "

But instead of “Thank you!” they’ll go, "Wee! Wee! Wee!"

Ten fat turkeys 🔊

A hand play for Thanksgiving.

Learn about to differentiate ‘left’ and ‘right’.

1. Hold up ten fingers. 2. Spread fingers . 3. Move fingers to the left and right . 4. Open and close beak. 5. Form sun.

Ten fat turkeys standing in a row,

They spread their feathers and tails like so.

They strut to the left,

They strut to the right.

They say “Gobble, gobble, gobble!”

In the bright sunlight.

Ten fat sausages O

Can you count in twos to ten? This song helps you subtract two each time and understand the concept of two less.

Ten fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

Ten fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

One went ‘POP!’

And the other one went ‘BANG!’

So there were eight fat sausages sizzling

in the pan.

Eight fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

Eight fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

One went ‘POP!’

And the other one went ‘BANG!’

So there were six fat sausages sizzling

in the pan.

Six fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

Six fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

One went ‘POP!’

And the other one went ‘BANG!’

So there were four fat sausages sizzling

in the pan.

Four fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

Four fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

One went ‘POP!’

And the other one went ‘BANG!’

So there were two fat sausages sizzling in the pan.

Two fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

Two fat sausages sizzling in the pan,

One went ‘POP!’

And the other one went ‘BANG!’

So there were no fat sausages sizzling in the pan.

Ten fluffy chickens O

A number song for Easter. Tune by Dany Rosevear.

Five eggs and five eggs,

Hold up both hands

That makes ten.

Sitting on top is the Mother Hen.

Close one hand; fold other hand over it

Crackle, crackle, crackle, crackle,

Wiggle fingers

What do I see?

Put hands to eyes

Ten fluffy chickens

Put up fingers

As yellow as can be!

Throw out hands

Ten galloping horses O

Learn how ten is made of two fives in this lap bouncing baby song. Bounce baby in the direction indicated by the words of the song. The game below is for older toddlers.

1. Make a galloping motion with hands on the knees 2. With fingers still indicate one hand then the other. 3. Move one hand up and the other down. 4. Make hands gallop to the left and then the right and then behind your back.

Ten galloping horses galloped through town,

Five were white and five were brown.

Five galloped up and five galloped down.

And then they galloped away from the town.

Galloped away, galloped away, galloped away, galloped... away!

Ten in the bed O

Learn to count back from ten in this bedtime song

This is another great favourite for coach journeys when there is plenty of time to sing.

Put one finger down in sequence for each number.

There were ten in the bed, and the little one said:

“Roll over, roll over!”

So they all rolled over and one fell out,

He gave a little scream and he gave a little shout!

So there were…

Nine in the bed and the little one said…

Eight in the bed and the little one said... etc.

Keep it going until you reach ‘One in the bed’.

So there was one in the bed and the little one said:

“Hooray! I've got the whole mattress to myself,

Goodnight!”

Ten little bubbles 🔊

A number song for Spring cleaning or outdoor play.

Put a finger up for each number, clap for each ‘pop!’ Catch bubbles.

One little, two little, three little bubbles,

Four little, five little, six little bubbles,

Seven little, eight little, nine little bubbles,

Ten little bubbles go pop, pop, pop!

Pop, pop, pop! Can you catch those bubbles?

Pop, pop, pop! Can you catch those bubbles?

Pop, pop, pop! Can you catch those bubbles?

Ten little bubbles go pop, pop, pop!

Ten little fairies 🔊

A whimsical number rhyme and hand play set to music by Dany Rosevear.

Ten little fairies stand up straight,

Ten little fairies make a gate,

Ten little fairies bow to the King,

Ten little fairies make a ring,

Ten little fairies dance and play,and

Ten little fairies fly away,

Ten little fairies hide away.

Ten little goblins 🔊

A number rhyme, subtraction song and hand play set to music by Dany Rosevear. Choose a different number out of 10 to be touched each time.

1. Raise ten fingers, make them dance. 2. Look scary, shake finger. 3. Wave wand. 4. Touch number of fingers. 5. As before. 6. Show how many are left.

Ten little goblins dancing in the glen,

Frightening the fairies - naughty little men.

Here comes the Fairy Queen, a magic wand has she,

Ev'ry one she touches will turn into a tree.

Ten little goblins dancing in the glen,

But two are turned to oak trees leaving eight little men.

Ten little pumpkins O

Learn to count to ten and back again.

One little, two little, three little pumpkins,

Four little, five little, six little pumpkins,

Seven little, eight little, nine little pumpkins,

Ten little pumpkins on a Halloween night.

Ten little, nine little, eight little pumpkins,

Seven little, six little, five little pumpkins.

Four little, three little, two little pumpkins,

One little pumpkin on a Halloween night.

One little, two little, three little witches,

Four little, five little, six little witches,

Seven little, eight little, nine little witches,

Ten little witches on their broomsticks ride.

One little, two little, three little skeletons…

Ten little skeletons rattle their bones.

One little, two little, three little ghosties…

Ten little ghosties go BOO!

Ten little tadpoles O

Be careful who you go off with however enticing it might be!

A poem by Rose Fyleman set to music.

Ten little tadpoles playing in a pool,

"Come," said the water-rat, "Come along to school.

Come and say your tables, sitting in a row,"

And all the little tadpoles said, “No, no, no!”

Ten little tadpoles swimming in and out,

Racing and diving and turning round about,

"Come," said their mother: “Dinner time I guess”

And all the little tadpoles cried “Yes, yes, yes!”

Ten yellow chicks 🔊

Easter finger play number for the very young, How many eggs, how many chicks? Addition and doubling of numbers and conservation of number.

From ‘Singing fun’ published in 1962. Written by Lucille F. Wood and Louise B. Scott.

Before finding the original version I wrote a new tune some time ago for the words and recorded it, (see above): Ten fluffy chickens - a number song for Easter - YouTube

It is always important to recognise the original authors.

1. Show five fingers on one hand then five on the other. 2. Place fist on cupped hand. 3. Clap hands for each crackle. 4. Ring eyes with thumbs and foref ingers. Hold up ten fingers.

Five eggs and five eggs, that makes ten.

Sitting on top is a mother hen.

Crackle, crackle, crackle,

What do I see?

Ten yellow chickens, as fluffy as can be!

The ants go marching O

A traditional number song to the tune of ‘When Johnny comes marching home’.

Children can march together in lines of the number mentioned in each verse. Organising selves into these groups will take some thought even with help and become increasingly difficult as the numbers increase!

The ants go marching one by one.

Hurrah! Hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one.

Hurrah! Hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one;

The little one stopped to suck his thumb,

And they all went marching down in the ground,

For to get out of the rain.

Boom, boom, boom!

The ants go marching two by two.

The little one stopped to tie his shoe...

The ants go marching three by three.

The little one stopped to climb a tree...

The ants go marching four by four.

The little one stopped to shut the door...

The ants go marching five by five.

The little one stopped to take a dive...

The ants go marching six by six.

The little one stopped to pick up sticks...

The ants go marching seven by seven.

The little one stopped as the clock struck eleven...

The ants go marching eight by eight.

The little one stopped to roller skate...

The ants go marching nine by nine.

The little one stopped to check the time...

The ants go marching ten by ten.

The little one stopped to shout "THE END!”

These two rabbits 🔊

How many rabbits? Count in twos.

Set to music by Dany Rosevear.

Raise thumbs, forefingers to little fingers each time.

1. Hold up forefinger and second finger on each hand to make rabbit head, thumb and other fingers make face. 2. Circle eyes with thumbs and forefingers. 3. Brush cheeks with back of hands. 4. Wriggle nose and point. 5. Curl fingers on hands up.

These two rabbits

Have ears so tall;

These two rabbits

Have eyes so small;

These two rabbits

Have whiskers that wiggle;

These two rabbits

Have noses that that wriggle

These two rabbits are the smallest of all

They curl up tightly in a round furry ball.

Two little chickens O

Count in twos to ten.

I found this song in a pre-school playgroup pamphlet from the 1970s.

Music by Dany Rosevear.

Two little chickens looking for some more,

Along came another two and they make four.

Run to the haystack,

Run to the pen,

Run little chickens,

Back to Mother Hen.

Four little chickens getting in a fix,

Along came another two and they make six…

Six little chickens perching on a gate,

Along came another two and they make eight…

Eight little chickens run to Mother Hen,

Along came another two and they make ten…

Under a web O

A traditional rhyme with music by Hugo Shortcombe.

Sort pictures of creatures (Venn or other diagrams) or toys animals (sand or water play) according to their number of legs.

Under a web beside our gate

A spider hangs his legs are eight.

Above him flies the busy bee,

Six black and furry legs has she.

A tabby cat goes leaping past,

Her four legs carry her so fast.

I’ve only two, that isn’t many,

But Mr. Worm, he hasn’t any.

Who gives a hoot?

A number number hand play. Count up, count down.

A number rhyme by Dany Rosevear.

1. Put up one finger at a time. 2. Place thumb and forefinger round eyes, use forefingers to make beak. 3. As before. 4. Throw out hands, cross hands at wrists and flap. 5. Starting with eight fingers up fold one finger down at a time. 6. Flap hands, fingers run. 7. As before. 8. Shake head and form sun with hands. 9. Put hand to mouth, make fingers scoot.

One hoot, two hoots three hoots, four,

Round eyes, sharp beak and mice grabbing claws.

Five hoots, six hoots, seven hoots, eight,

Who gives a hoot? It’s owl out late.

Too-whit too-whoo!

Eight hoots, seven hoots, six hoots, five,

Owl’s out hunting, run for your lives!

Four hoots, three hoots, two hoots, one,

We don’t give a hoot for day has come!

Too-whit too-whoo!

Oh dear!! RUN!

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