Choosing rhymes and jump rope songs
I just finished reading Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street. In one chapter, the little girls jumped rope and chanted rhymes, and I remembered the various choosing rhymes (where you count off people in order to choose "it" but of course the counter could engineer "it" by adding words at the end of the rhyme) and jump rope songs we used to sing back in Rockford. Where did we learn these things? Who knows, but except for a few alterations, these are pretty universal...

My mother, your mother, lived across the way
And every night they'd have a fight and this is what they'd say:
Icka backa soda cracka, icka backa boo
Icka backa soda cracka, out goes you

Bubblegum bubblegum in a dish
How many pieces do you wish?

Cinderella, dressed in yella
Went upstairs to kiss her fella
Made a mistake, kissed a snake
How many doctors did it take?

Teddy bear, teddy bear, turn around
Teddy bear, teddy bear, touch the ground
Teddy bear, teddy bear, go upstairs
Teddy bear, teddy bear, say your prayers
Teddy bear, teddy bear, turn out the light
Teddy bear, teddy bear, say goodnight

Engine engine number 9
Coming down Chicago line
If the train should jump the track
Do you want your money back?
Yes no or maybe so
Y-E-S and out you go with a dirty dirty dishrag on your BIG FAT TOE!
- posted by Diane @ 2:00 AM