Sing a Song of Sixpence facts for kids

Quick facts for kids "Sing a Song of Sixpence"
Walter Crane's illustration of the maid hanging out the clothes.
Nursery rhyme
Published	c. 1744

"Sing a Song of Sixpence" is a very famous English nursery rhyme. It likely started in the 1700s. This rhyme is listed in the Roud Folk Song Index as number 13191. It tells a fun story about a king, a queen, and some surprising blackbirds baked in a pie!

The Story Behind the Rhyme

The Queen Was in the Parlour, Eating Bread and Honey, by Valentine Cameron Prinsep.

The exact beginning of "Sing a Song of Sixpence" is not fully known. Some people think parts of it might have appeared in old plays. For example, in Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night (around 1602), a character says, "Come on; there is sixpence for you: let's have a song." Another play from 1614, Bonduca by Beaumont and Fletcher, has the line "Whoa, here's a stir now! Sing a song o' sixpence!" These lines might be early hints of the rhyme.

First Printed Versions

The very first part of the rhyme that we know was printed appeared around 1744. It was in a book called Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book. This early version was a bit different from what we know today:

Sing a Song of Sixpence,

A bag full of Rye,

Four and twenty Naughty Boys,

Baked in a Pye.

Around 1780, another printed version came out. This one had two verses. The "naughty boys" were changed to "birds." By 1784, a version with four verses, much like the one we know, was published in Gammer Gurton's Garland. This version ended with a magpie pecking the maid's nose. Later, in the mid-1800s, happier endings were added to the rhyme.

Rhyme Lyrics: A Modern Version

Cover illustration for Randolph Caldecott's Sing a Song for Sixpence (1880)

Here is a common version of the rhyme that many people know today:

Sing a song of sixpence,

A pocket full of rye.

Four and twenty blackbirds,

Baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened

The birds began to sing;

Wasn't that a dainty dish,

To set before the king.

The king was in his counting house,

Counting out his money;

The queen was in the parlour,

Eating bread and honey.

The maid was in the garden,

Hanging out the clothes,

When down came a blackbird

And pecked off her nose.

Different Endings

Sometimes, the last line of the fourth verse is changed slightly. Instead of "pecked off her nose," it might say "nipped off her nose."

Also, some versions add an extra verse to make the ending less surprising. Here are two examples of these added verses:

They sent for the king's doctor,

who sewed it on again;

He sewed it on so neatly,

the seam was never seen.

Or another common ending:

There was such a commotion,

that little Jenny wren

Flew down into the garden,

and put it back again.

The Melody of the Song

The rhyme "Sing a Song of Sixpence" has a well-known tune. Here is how the music looks: <score %vorbis="1"%%T257066%>{ \key g \major \time 4/4 g'8 fis'8 e'8 d'8 g'4 b8 c'8 | d'8 e'8 d'8 b8 d'2 | g'8 fis'8 e'8 d'8 g'4 b4 | a4 e'8 e'8 e'2 | | d'8 g'8 g'8 g'8 g'4 g'8 g'8| fis'8 a'8 a'8 a'8 a'2| b'8 a'8 g'8 fis'8 g'8 fis'8 e'8 d'8 | e'8 g'8 fis'8 a'8 g'2 \bar "|." } \addlyrics { Sing a song of six -- pence, a poc -- ket full of rye. Four and twen -- ty black -- birds baked in a pie. When the pie was o -- pened, the birds be -- gan to sing; Was -- n't that a dain -- ty dish to set be -- fore the king.}</score>