Songs to Sing to Your Baby
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When my oldest was born, I started to try to sing to her and suddenly realized that I knew no lyrics to any songs. I used to listen to a lot of music, but it was either not really the kind of music that you would sing as a vocals-only standalone song or not the kind of thing you would be likely to sing to a baby (Empire of the Sun, little one?). Or I just hadn’t memorized anything well enough. I couldn’t think of any kid songs off the top of my head and had forgotten the lyrics to anything I’d learned once upon a time in children’s chorus and middle school choir.
Except for one song: “If I Had a Hammer.” For whatever reason, this was the only song I could remember to sing well enough after my baby was born, and so I just sang it over and over again until my husband finally cracked and I had to come up with something else. (He kept singing “The Rose” by Bette Midler, which had me running from the room covering my ears, so that was not much better.) At that point, I memorized “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid and sang that on repeat.
Once my daughter got old enough to start going to mommy + me music classes and to learn songs in daycare, I realized that there were a ton of kid songs I knew or vaguely remembered and could easily re-memorize. I still have trouble pulling them off the top of my head sometimes when a young person in this house needs a quick song (e.g., when my son starts to flip onto his stomach mid-poop-diaper-change), so this blog is as much for me as it is for you.
Here are some of my favorite songs to sing to a baby or young child, along with the lyrics so you don’t need to go searching for them. I’ve added my own twist in a few cases; and if there’s a repetitive chorus, I only added the main line you need to remember. Don’t forget to add hand motions when you really need to hold a toddler’s attention or charm a baby from tears back to smiles.
The Wheels on the Bus
A crowd pleaser! This was the only one that worked for my son on the changing table for a while. I had to do all the motions (including making his legs go side to side like the windshield wipers), which made the diaper change take three times as long, but it was better than scream crying or constant flipping.
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 wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish…
The horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep…
The driver on the bus says “move on back”…
The people on the bus go up and down…
The mommies on the bus say “I love you”…
And so on. Plus make up whatever else you want. I don’t like the mommies to say “shush” so I have them say “I love you” and then the daddies also say “I love you.” And on our bus, there is also a dog that goes “woof woof woof.”
Row Row Row Your Boat
There are some lyrics of this song that I either never knew about or that were added after my time. I only knew to look them up because my daughter kept asking for the “lion roar” version and I had no idea what she was talking about. I love that these additional verses make the song longer and less repetitive, and you can make up your own too.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream,
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily
Life is but a dream.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the brook,
If you catch a little fish,
Let it off the hook.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the creek,
If you see a little mouse,
Listen to it squeak.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the river,
If the river gets you wet
Don't forget to shiver.
Row, row, row the boat
Gently to the shore,
If you see a lion there,
Don't forget to roar.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the lake,
Don't stand up and rock the boat,
That's a big mistake!
Row, row, row your boat
Gently on the ocean,
If you see an octopus,
Do the locomotion.
(That last one is an Emily Anderson original.)
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
When the blazing sun is gone,
When it nothing shines upon,
Then you shine your little light,
Twinkle twinkle through the night,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are.
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir, yes, sir,
Three bags full.
One for the master,
One for the dame,
One for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir, yes, sir,
Three bags full.
And the lesser known Baa Baa White Sheep:
Baa, baa, white sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir, yes, sir,
Three needles full.
One to mend a sweater,
One to mend a frock,
One for the little girl
With holes in her sock.
Baa, baa, white sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes, sir, yes, sir,
Three bags full.
The Itsy Bitsy Spider
This is another crowd pleaser, including on the changing table when I make the spider crawl up his belly and tickle him.
The itsy bitsy spider crawled 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 went up the spout again.
I’m a Little Teapot
For whatever reason, my 4-year-old is very into this song right now at bedtime. She makes me stand up and do all the hand motions when I sing it. And I do it, because…”Dance, Monkey!”
I’m a little teapot
Short and stout.
Here is my handle,
Here is my spout.
When I get all steamed up,
Hear me shout:
Tip me over
And pour me out!
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes
And eyes and ears
And mouth and nose,
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.
If You’re Happy and You Know 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,
And you really want to 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 (stomp stomp)
If you're happy and you know it, shout "Hurray!" (hoo-ray!)
And then you can add pretty much anything else involving other actions:
If you're happy and you know it, slap your knees
If you're happy and you know it, spin around
If you're happy and you know it, snap your fingers
If you're happy and you know it, nod your head
If you're happy and you know it, pat your belly
If you're happy and you know it, shake your butt
(That last one is courtesy of my 4-year-old.)
Old MacDonald Had a Farm
Old MacDonald had a farm,
Ee i ee i o.
And on his farm he had some cows,
Ee i ee i oh.
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,
Ee i ee i o.
Old MacDonald had a farm,
Ee i ee i o.
And on his farm he had some pigs…(with an oink-oink)
And on his farm he had some horses…(with a neigh-neigh)
And on his farm he had some chickens…(with a cluck-cluck)
Bingo
There was a farmer who had a dog,
And Bingo was his name-o.
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
B-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name-o.
There was a farmer who had a dog,
And Bingo was his name-o.
(clap)-I-N-G-O
(clap)-I-N-G-O
(clap)-I-N-G-O
And Bingo was his name-o.
(clap)-(clap)-N-G-O
(clap)-(clap)-(clap)-G-O
(clap)-(clap)-(clap)-(clap)-O
(clap)-(clap)-(clap)-(clap)-(clap)
Mary Had a Little Lamb
Mary had a little lamb,
Little lamb, little lamb,
Mary had a little lamb,
Its fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went,
Mary went, Mary went,
Everywhere that Mary went,
The lamb was sure to go.
He followed her to school one day,
School one day, school one day,
He followed her to school one day,
Which was against the rule.
It made the children laugh and play,
Laugh and play, laugh and play,
It made the children laugh and play
To see a lamb at school.
Mr. Sun
I actually don’t think I ever knew this song until I heard it in a toddler music class with my daughter.
Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun
Please shine down on me.
Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun
Hiding behind a tree…
These little children are asking you
To please come out so we can play with you,
Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun
Please shine down on me.
Baby Bumblebee
This is another one I had never heard until my sister-in-law sang it to my daughter on a visit when she was a year and a half and she LOVED it, so clearly I had to learn the lyrics. If you exaggerate the stinging, squishing and wiping parts, it’s a big hit.
I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me?
I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Ouch! It stung me!
I'm squishing up the baby bumblebee,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me?
I'm squishing up the baby bumblebee,
Ooh! It's yucky!
I'm wiping off the baby bumblebee,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me?
I'm wiping off the baby bumblebee,
Now my mommy won't be mad at me!
Down by the Bay
This is a super fun song that you can keep going and going simply by making up more rhymes. My husband & I once took turns singing verses for a full 45 minutes in the cab home from the airport to keep our daughter distracted enough that she didn’t puke. (We tipped extra.)
Down by the bay,
Where the watermelons grow,
Back to my home,
I dare not go.
For if I do,
My mother will say,
"Did you ever you ever see a goose kissing a moose?"
Down by the bay.
"Did you ever see a whale with a polka dot tail?"
"Did you ever see a fly wearing a tie?"
"Did you ever see a bear combing his hear?"
"Did you ever see a llama eating pajamas?"
And countless others:
“Did you ever see a frog sitting on a log?”
“Did you ever see a pig wearing a wig?”
“Did you ever see a cat playing with a bat?”
“Did you ever see a newt playing the flute?”
And whenever you’re ready to end the song:
"Did you ever have a time when you couldn't make a rhyme?"
Down by the bay.
Playmate
This is a super old-school song that my mom sang to me when I was little. I heard a friend humming it once and was like, “WAIT WHAT IS THAT SONG.” I think she and I may be the only two people who know it. It’s a great song and one of my daughter’s favorites – for many months, it was all she ever wanted to hear at bedtime.
Playmate, come out and play with me,
And bring your dollies three,
Climb up my apple tree.
Look down my rain barrel,
Slide down my cellar door,
And we'll be jolly friends
Forever more.
I’m sorry, Playmate, I cannot play with you.
My dolly has the flu,
Boo hoo hoo hoo hoo hoo.
Ain’t got no rain barrel,
Ain’t got no cellar door.
But we’ll be jolly friends
Forever more.
Hush Little Baby
Also a very old and outdated song, and possibly not the kind of message that you want to instill in your young impressionable child, but it’s a nice soothing song to sing to a little baby. I also don’t know why a baby needs a diamond ring – or really any of these things – but hey, it’s a song.
Hush, little Baby, don’t say a word,
Mama’s gonna buy you a Mockingbird.
And if that mockingbird don’t sing,
Mama’s gonna buy you a diamond ring.
And if that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama’s gonna buy you a looking glass.
And if that looking glass gets broke,
Mama’s gonna buy you a billy goat,
And if that billy goat won’t pull,
Mama’s gonna buy you a cart and a bull.
And if that cart and bull turn over,
Mama’s gonna buy you a dog named Rover.
And if that dog named Rover won’t bark,
Mama’s gonna buy you a horse and a cart.
And if that horse and cart fall down,
You’ll still be the sweetest little baby in town.
“The Moon Song”
This one is in quotes because I completely made up the song title and lyrics. There’s a music setting on the Hatch clock that has an image of the moon, and my daughter would always select it and ask for the moon song. The tune was very familiar but I couldn’t remember the words, and when I finally figured out what the song was, I was appalled because the lyrics were super creepy. So I made up this version that works great and both she and my son love at bedtime.
Go to sleep,
Go to sleep,
Go to sleep now little [Child’s Name].
Close your eyes,
And when you wake up,
I’ll be right here by your side.
Go to sleep,
Go to sleep,
Close your tired little eyes.
Go to sleep,
Go to sleep,
I’ll be right here by your side.