Popular Childrens Songs - That Will Entertain Your Toddler!

Rub-A-Dub-Dub" is an English language nursery rhyme.

Lyrics
This rhyme exists in many variations. Among those current today is:
Rub-a-dub-dub,
Three men in a tub,
And how do you think they got there?
The butcher, the baker,
The candlestick-maker,
They all jumped out of a rotten potato,
'Twas enough to make a man stare.

Origins and meaning

The earliest versions of this rhyme published differ significantly in their wording. The first recorded version is in Christmas Box published in London in 1798 has similar wording to that in Mother Goose's Quarto or Melodies Complete, published in Boston, Massachusetts around 1825, which had the following version:

Hey! rub-a-dub, ho! rub-a-dub, three maids in a tub,
And who do you think were there?
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-maker,
And all of them gone to the fair.

This led Iona and Peter Opie to conclude that they were three respectable townsfolk "watching a dubious sideshow at a local fair".
By around 1830 the reference to maids was being removed from the versions printed in nursery books. In 1842 James Orchard Halliwell collected the following version:

Rub a dub dub,
Three men in a tub,
And who do you think they be?
The butcher, the baker,
The candlestick maker.
Turn them out, knaves all three.

References in popular culture

"Rub-a-dub" is rhyming slang for pub.

In Rob Thomas' (the creator of Veronica Mars) novel Rats Saw God (1996), the character Wanda Varner introduces herself to be called "Dub". Upon being misunderstood, she clarifies: "No, 'Dub.' As in rub-a-dub-dub."

Rub-A-Dub was adopted in Jamaican music as the name for the early D.J. "chatting" or "toasting" which later became known as Dancehall. It primarily refers to roots music mixed in a dub style, over which the D.J. talks or sings.

Jazz artist and composer Arianna Fanning most recently made the song popular by superimposing the chord changes to John Coltrane's "Countdown" under the melody. The hit achieved instant success and is now ranked among the highest jazz singles released in the 21st century.

In the fourth episode of The Simpsons, Bart says grace at the dining table: "Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub." In the Family Guy episode "E. Peterbus Unum," Latoya Jackson uses this version and adds "Yay, God." to which Mayor Ada West responds by saying "How very inappropriate, thank you".

In the Terry Pratchett Discworld novel Feet of Clay (1996) a butcher, a baker and a candlestick maker (heads of their respective guilds) play important supporting roles. The rhyme is partly quoted by the protagonist.

In the Three's Company episode Chrissy's Hospitality, Mr. Furley describes what he thinks is a sexual encounter between Jack and Chrissy in the bathtub by saying "Rub-a-dub-dub, come hop in my tub". Later he finds out they're only hanging a shower curtain.

In the 1981 Filipino movie "Temptation Island", while witnessing a bitch fight, a gay character says "Rub-a-dub-dub, two bitches in the tub!"
In the 8th episode of the first season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, titled "Anonymous" (Originally aired on November 24, 2000), Jim Brass describes the crime scene of an alleged suicide as "Rub-a-dub-dub, dead man in a tub."

London Bridge Is Falling Down" is a well-known traditional nursery rhyme and singing game.

Lyrics

There is considerable variation in the lyrics of the rhyme. The most frequently used first verse is:

London Bridge is falling down,
Falling down, falling down.
London Bridge is falling down,
My fair lady.

In the version quoted by Iona and Peter Opie in 1951 the full lyrics were:

London Bridge is broken 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.

LLittle Bo Peep or 'Little Bo Peep has lost her sheep' is a popular English language nursery rhyme.

As with most products of oral tradition, there are many variations to the rhyme. The most common modern version is:

Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep,
And can't tell where to find them;
Leave them alone, And they'll come home,
Wagging their tails behind them.
Common variations on second line include "And doesn't know where to find them". The fourth line is frequently give as "And bring their tails behind them". This alternative version is useful in the extended version, usually of four further stanzas.

Additional verses
The following additional verses are often added to the rhyme:

Little Bo-peep fell fast asleep,
And dreamt she heard them bleating;
But when she awoke, she found it a joke,
For they were still a-fleeting.
Then up she took her little crook,
Determined for to find them;
She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed,
For they'd left their tails behind them.
It happened one day, as Bo-peep did stray
Into a meadow hard by,
There she espied their tails side by side,
All hung on a tree to dry.
She heaved a sigh and wiped her eye,
And over the hillocks went rambling,
And tried what she could, as a shepherdess should,
To tack each again to its lambkin.

The Teapot Song (commonly known as "I'm a Little Teapot") is a song describing the heating and pouring of a teapot.

The song was originally written by George Harry Sanders and Clarence Kelley and published in 1939.

Lyrics
Though many variations have arisen over the years, the original lyrics are as follows (dance motions in parentheses):

First verse:
I'm a little tea pot,
Short and stout
Here is my handle (one hand on hip),
Here is my spout (other arm out straight)
When I get all steamed up,
Hear me shout
Just tip me over and pour me out! (lean over toward spout)

Second verse:
I'm a clever teapot,
Yes it's true
Here let me show you
What I can do
I can change my handle
And my spout (switch arm positions)
Just tip me over and pour me out! (lean over toward spout)

I'm a Little Airplane

(Sung to the tune of "I'm a Little Teapot")

I'm a little airplane (children raise arms from sides to shoulder height)

Watch me fly! (Spin one arm in front as if a propeller)

Here are my instruments

From down low to up high (With their other arm, they reach from the ground to above their heads)

First I get all revved up (Make engine-like noises while still spinning their arms)

Then I can fly (Raise arms to shoulder height)

Lifting off the runway (start walking forward)

Up into the sky! (Go up on their tiptoes and continue to move forward. Let them circle awhile before returning to their original positions.)


Ants

Ants, ants,

Everywhere,

Rushing here,

Rushing there.

Carrying treasures

To their nest,

Never stopping

For a rest.

Ants, ants

Here and there,

Hurrying and scurrying

Everywhere.


Alligators and the Monkeys

5 little monkeys

Sitting in a tree

Teasing the alligator

"Can't catch me!"

Along came the alligator

Quiet as can be (whisper this part loudly)

SNAP!!! No more monkeys sitting in the tree! (snap your hands together and tickle the kids)

Sing Hurray for A!

(To the tune of "Farmer in the Dell")

Let's sing hurray for A,

Let's sing hurray for A,

Let's sing hurray for A today

Let's sing hurray for A.

Apple starts with A,

Asparagus starts the same way,

Let's sing hurray for A today,

Let's sing hurray for A.

When the Ants Go Marching In

Oh when the ants

Go marching in

Oh when the ants go marching in

How I want

To be in that number

When the ants go marching in

(Good song for the children to march around the room to)


Lullabies

Teach the children to sing "Rock-a-Bye Baby" and invite them to share other lullabies they know.

Bounce the Balloons

(Sing to: "The Mulberry Bush") This is the way we bounce the balloons

Bounce the balloons, bounce the balloons

This is the way we bounce the balloons,

Gently in the air.

Sing London Bridges

Have children stand in 2 rows, facing each other, link hands and raise to form a long bridge.
One child at a time goes under the bridge, and the bridge "collapses" on the words "We all fall down", catching whichever child is under the bridge.

Sing Little Bunny Foo Foo

Add features to the letter B to make a bunny

Bubbles

(Tune: Twinkle, Twinkle)

Bubbles floating all around (pretend to catch bubbles)

Bubbles fat and bubbles round (make a big circle w/arms)

Bubbles on my toes and nose (point to toes; point to nose)

Blow a bubble. ..up it goes! (pretend to blow bubble; point up)

Bubbles floating all around. (pretend to catch bubbles)

Bub. . .bles fall. ..ing to...the...ground. (sing slowly & sink to ground)


For a full directory of Toddlers Songs visit our Games Directory Page for a full selection of Songs and activities A to Z here.

Toddlers Activity & Free Kids Games

The song is also associated with jack-in-the-box toys (when the song gets to "pop" the "jack" pops up).

The tune or melody is as follows, or a variation:

Lyrics

There are many different versions of the lyrics to the song. Most share the basic verse:

Half a pound of tuppenny rice,
Half a pound of treacle.

That's the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.

Or the alternative verses:

All around the Mulberry Bush,
The monkey chased the weasel.

The monkey stopped to pull up his sock, (or The monkey stopped to scratch his nose)
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.

Up and down the city road, (also seen as Up and down the King's Highway)
In and out the Eagle,
That's the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.

For you may try to sew and sew,
But you'll never make anything regal,
That's the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.

The monkey and the weasel fought,
The weasel's really feeble,
The monkey punched him in the face,
Pop! goes the weasel.

Every time when I come home
The monkey's on the table,
Cracking nuts and eating spice
Pop! goes the weasel.

Every time when I come home
The monkey's on the table,
Take a stick and knock it off
Pop! goes the weasel.

Contemporary verses in the United States consist of mainly these two:

All around the mulberry bush (or cobbler's bench)
The monkey chased the weasel;

The monkey thought 'twas all in fun, (or 'twas all in good sport)
Pop! goes the weasel.

A penny for a spool of thread,
A penny for a needle-
That's the way the money goes,
Pop! goes the weasel.

Skip to My Lou (Skip to The Lou) is a popular children's song.

History

Skip to My (The) Lou was a popular partner stealing dance from America's frontier period. Since instruments were frowned upon, particularly the fiddle, the dancers had to create their own music by clapping and singing.

Couples would dance around a lone male who sang "lost my partner, what'll I do." At the appropriate point in the lyrics, he would "steal" the partner of a dancing man as he sang "I'll find another one prettier than you." The displaced man would take his place in the circle.

"Lou" is apparently a corruption of "loo," the Scottish word for love.

An unconventional arrangement of this tune is featured in the 1944 Motion Picture "Meet Me in St. Louis"

Lyrics (Common Version)
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Cows in the cornfield,
What'll I do?
Cows in the cornfield,
What'll I do?
Cows in the cornfield,
What'll I do?
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

There's a little red wagon,
Paint it blue
There's a little red wagon,
Paint it blue
There's a little red wagon,
Paint it blue
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to my Lou,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'

Lyrics (Version 2)

Lost my partner,
What'll I do?
Lost my partner,
What'll I do?
Lost my partner,
What'll I do?
Skip to the lou, my darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

I'll get another one
Prettier than you,
I'll get another one
Prettier than you,
I'll get another one
Prettier than you,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

Can't get a red bird,
Jay bird'll do,
Can't get a red bird,
Jay bird'll do,
Can't get a red bird,
Jay bird'll do,
Skip to my Lou, my darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Fly's in the buttermilk,
Shoo, fly, shoo,
Skip to my Lou, the darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

Cat's in the cream jar,
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
Cat's in the cream jar,
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
Cat's in the cream jar,
Ooh, ooh, ooh,
Skip to my Lou, the darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

Off to Texas,
Two by two,
Off to Texas,
Two by two,
Off to Texas,
Two by two,
Skip to my Lou, the darlin'.

Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip, skip, skip to the Lou,
Skip to the Lou, my darlin'.

The Farmer in the Dale is a children's song, or nursery rhyme. It tells the story of a farmer in a dale who takes a wife, who takes a child, who takes a nurse, etc, until finally a rat takes a cheese, and the cheese "stands alone".

Lyrics
The farmer in the dale
The farmer in the dale
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The farmer in the dale
The farmer takes a wife
The farmer takes a wife
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The farmer takes a wife
The wife takes a child
The wife takes a child
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The wife takes a child
The child takes a nurse
The child takes a nurse
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The child takes a nurse
The nurse takes a cow
The nurse takes a cow
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The nurse takes a cow
The cow takes a dog
The cow takes a dog
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The cow takes a dog
The dog takes a cat
The dog takes a cat
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The dog takes a cat
The cat takes a rat
The cat takes a rat
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The cat takes a rat
The rat takes the cheese
The rat takes the cheese
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The rat takes the cheese
The cheese stands alone
The cheese stands alone
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The cheese stands alone

Variations

Like most children's songs, there are geographic variations, and in the United Kingdom this is known as The Farmer's In His Den. The 'Hi-Ho, the derry-o' is variously replaced with 'Ee-i, tiddly-i' in London, 'Ee-i, andio' (for instance in Northern England), and 'Ee-i, ee-i' (for instance in the West Country). In the UK, the rat is replaced with a dog and in the final verse, all other players pat the dog or alternatively its bone. Additionally, "Hi-ho the merry-o" is another variation of the lyrics sung.

The melody is also used for "A-Hunting We Will Go".

In French it's "Le fermier dans son pré"

Circle game

Ten children (or more) join hands and dance around the FARMER, who stands in the center of the circle as they sing. At the end of the first verse, the FARMER chooses his WIFE, who joins him inside the circle. At the end of the next verse, the WIFE takes a CHILD, and so on, until the last verse when everyone is in the circle except the CHEESE, who stands alone. Whoever ends up being the CHEESE becomes the FARMER for the next round.

There are several variants of Jack and Jill (many of them parodies), all sharing the same first rhyme:


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.


The second verse of the rhyme is less commonly performed:


Up Jack got and home did trot

As fast as he could caper;

And went to bed to mend his head

With vinegar and brown paper.


There is also an alternative to the third line of this second verse:


Then up Jack got and home did trot

As fast as he could caper;

To Old Dame Dob who patched his nob

With vinegar and brown paper.


The third verse:


Jill came in and she did grin

To see his paper plaster;

Mother vexed did whip her next

For laughing at Jack's disaster.


There is also an alternative to the second line of the third verse:


Jill came in and she did grin

To see Jack's paper plaster;

Mother vexed did whip her next

For causing Jack's disaster.


And a fourth:


Now Jack did laugh and Jill did cry

But her tears did soon abate;

Then Jill did say that they should play

At see-saw across the gate.

Baa Baa Black Sheep is a nursery rhyme, sung to a variant of the 1761 French melody Ah! vous dirai-je, Maman.

The original form of the tune is used for Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and the Alphabet song. The words have changed little in two and a half centuries. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 18267.

Original version

William Wallace Denslow's illustrations for Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, from a 1901 edition of Mother Goose

This rhyme was first printed in Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book, published c. 1744 with the following lyrics:

Bah, Bah a black Sheep,
Have you any Wool?
Yes merry have I,
Three Bags full,
One for my master,
One for my Dame,
One for the little Boy
That lives down the lane.

"Old McDonald Had a Farm"
Is a children's song about a farmer named McDonald (or MacDonald) and the various animals he keeps on his farm. Each verse of the song changes the name of the animal and its respective noise. In many versions, the song is cumulative, with the noises from all the earlier verses added to each subsequent verse.

Lyrics

In the version commonly sung today, the lyrics allow for a substitutable animal and its respective sound.

Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O.
And on that farm he had a [animal name], E-I-E-I-O,
With a [animal noise twice] here and a [animal noise twice] there
Here a [animal noise], there a [animal noise], everywhere a [animal noise twice]
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O.

For example, a verse using a cow as an animal, and moo as the cow's sound would be:

Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O.
And on that farm he had a cow, E-I-E-I-O.
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, E-I-E-I-O.

Early versions

In the 1917 book, Tommy's Tunes, a collection of World War I era songs by F. T. Nettleingham, the song "Ohio (Old Macdougal Had a Farm)" has quite similar lyrics--though with a slightly different farmer's name and refrain:

Old Macdougal had a farm in Ohio-i-o,
And on that farm he had some dogs in Ohio-i-o,
With a bow-wow here, and a bow-wow there,
Here a bow, there a wow, everywhere a bow-wow.

The Traditional Ballad Index consider the "Tommy's Tunes" version to be the earliest known version of "Old Macdonald Had a Farm", though it cites numerous variants, some of them much older.

Two of these variants were published in Vance Randolph's Ozark Folksongs in 1980. One was "Old Missouri", sung by a Mr. H. F. Walker of Missouri in 1922, a version that names different parts of the mule rather than different animals:

Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho,
And on this mule there were two ears, he-hi-he-hi-ho.
With a flip-flop here and a flip-flop there,
And here a flop and there a flop and everywhere a flip-flop
Old Missouri had a mule, he-hi-he-hi-ho.

The other variant from Ozark Folksongs was sung by Mr. Doney Hammondtree of Arkansas in 1942. He said he had learned the song around 1900 and that he "thinks it is the ancestor of another build-up song known as 'Old MacDonald Had a Farm'."

Old Massa had a very fine hog,
In the merry green fields of the lowland,
He turned him in to be seen
In the merry green fields of the lowland,
And it's oink here, and an oink there,
Naff-naff-naff and ev'rybody laugh as they go past
In the merry green fields of the lowland.

A British version of the song, called "The Farmyard, or The Merry Green Fields," was collected in 1908 from a 74-year-old Mrs. Goodey at Marylebone Workhouse, London, and published in Cecil Sharp's Collection of English Folk Songs.

Up was I on my fa-ther's farm
On a May day morn-ing ear-ly;
Feed-ing of my fa-ther's cows
On a May day morn-ing ear-ly,
With a moo moo here and a moo moo there,
Here a moo, there a moo, Here a pret-ty moo.
Six pret-ty maids come and gang a-long o' me
To the mer-ry green fields of the farm-yard.

Perhaps the earliest recorded member of this family of songs is a number from an opera called The Kingdom of the Birds, published in 1719-1720 in Thomas D'Urfey's Wit and Mirth, or Pills to Purge Melancholy:

In the Fields in Frost and Snows,
Watching late and early;
There I keep my Father's Cows,
There I Milk 'em Yearly:
Booing here, Booing there,
Here a Boo, there a Boo, every where a Boo,
We defy all Care and Strife,
In a Charming Country-Life.

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'Little Boy Blue' is a popular English language nursery rhyme, often used in popular culture.

Lyrics

The most common version of the rhyme is:

Little Boy Blue,
Come blow your horn,
The sheep's in the meadow,
The cow's in the corn;
Where is that boy
Who looks after the sheep?
Under the haystack
Fast asleep.
Will you wake him?
Oh no, not I,
For if I do
He will surely cry.

Some versions do not include the last two lines.

Older versions include:

Little Boy Blue,
Come blow your horn,
The sheep's in the meadow,
The cow's in the corn;
But where is the boy
Who looks after the sheep?
He's under a haycock,
Fast asleep.
Will you wake him?
No, not I,
For if I do,
He's sure to cry.

Rock-a-bye Baby' is a nursery rhyme and lullaby.

The melody is a variant of the English satirical ballad Lilliburlero.

Lyrics

The first printed version from Mother Goose's Melody, has the following lyrics:

Hush-a-by baby
On the tree top,
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock.
When the bough breaks,
The cradle will fall,
Down tumbles baby,
Cradle and all.

The version from Songs for Nursery (1805), contains the wording:

Rock-a-bye, baby, thy cradle is green,
Father's a nobleman, mother's a queen...
The most common version used today is:
Rock-a-bye baby, on the treetop,
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall,
And down will come baby, cradle and all.

Origins

Originally titled 'Hushabye Baby', this nursery rhyme was said to be the first poem written on American soil. Although there is no evidence as to when the lyrics were written, it may date from the seventeenth century and have been written by an English immigrant who observed the way native-American women rocked their babies in birch-bark cradles, which were suspended from the branches of trees, allowing the wind to rock the baby to sleep.

In Derbyshire, England, local legend has it that the song relates to a local character in the late 1700s, Betty Kenny (Kate Kenyon), who lived with her charcoal-burner husband, Luke, and their eight children in a huge yew tree in Shining Cliff Woods in the Derwent Valley, where a hollowed-out bough served as a cradle. However this date is incompatible with the poem's appearance in print in 1765.

Yet another theory has it that the song, like "Lilliburlero", refers to events immediately preceding the Glorious Revolution. The baby is supposed to be the son of James VII and II, who was widely believed to be someone else's child smuggled into the birthing room in order to provide a Catholic heir for James.

The "wind" may be that political "wind" or force "blowing" or coming from the Netherlands bringing James' nephew and son-in-law, William III of England, a.k.a. William of Orange, who would eventually depose King James II in the revolution.

The "cradle" is the royal House of Stuart.

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary is a popular English nursery rhyme.

The rhyme has been seen as having religious and historical significance, but its origins and meaning are disputed. It has a Round Folk Song.

The most common modern version is:

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells, and cockle shells,
And pretty maids all in a row.

The oldest known version was first published in Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book (c. 1744) with the following lyrics:

Mistress Mary, Quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With Silver Bells, And Cockle Shells,
And so my garden grows.

Several printed versions of the eighteenth century have lyric:

Mistress Mary, Quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With Silver Bells, And Cockle Shells,
Sing cuckolds all in a row.

The last line has the most variation including:

:Cowslips all in arow [sic].
and
:With lady bells all in a row.

The Wheels on the Bus is a popular children's song in the US, Canada and the UK.

It is popular on journeys to keep children amused and has a very repetitive rhythm. In particular it is sung by pre-teens on bus journeys.

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. (Alternative: all day long)
The wipers on the bus (or glass) 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 money on the bus (or in the box) goes, Clink, clink, clink; Clink, clink, clink; Clink, clink, clink. The money on the bus goes, Clink, clink, clink, 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 baby on the bus says "Wah, wah, wah; Wah, wah, wah; Wah, wah, wah". The baby on the bus says "Wah, wah, wah", all through the town.
The windows on the bus go up and down; up and down; up and down". The windows on the bus go up and down, all through the town.

The mommy on the bus says "Shush, shush, shush; Shush, shush, shush; Shush, shush, shush." The mommy on the bus says "Shush, shush, shush" all through the town.

These words are from the 2007 DVD series: The kids on the bus play Peek-A-Boo; Peek-A-Boo; Peek-A-Boo. The kids on the bus play Peek-A-Boo, all through the town.

The cats on the bus go "Meow, Meow, Meow; Meow, Meow, Meow; Meow, Meow, Meow". The cats on the bus go "Meow, Meow, Meow", all through the town.

Substitute these also: The doors on the bus go open and shut. The bell on the bus goes ding-ding-ding. The lady on the bus says, "Get off my feet"... The people on the bus say, "We had a nice ride"... "Your name" on the bus says Let Me Off!