A White Hen Sitting Lyrics
A white hen sits on three white eggs. Next there are three speckled chickens, plump as can be. An owl, a hawk and a bat come to look, but the chicks sit safe under their mother's wing. Eight lines, two scenes, one safe ending.
A White Hen Sitting
A white hen sitting
On white eggs three:
Next, three speckled chickens
As plump as plump can be.
An owl, and a hawk,
And a bat come to see:
But chicks beneath their mother's wing
Squat safe as safe can be.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/a-white-hen-sitting/
- Type
- Poems for Children, Animal Rhymes
- Written by
- Christina Rossetti
- Tune
- Calm and counting, with a tucked-in feeling on the last line
- Best for ages
- 2 to 6 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| A white hen sitting | Sit on your heels with your arms folded like wings. |
| Three speckled chickens | Hold up three fingers and tap each one. |
| Chicks beneath their mother's wing | Tuck two fingers under your other arm. |
What Does A White Hen Sitting Mean?
The poem has two scenes of four lines. In the first, a white hen sits on three white eggs, and the next line jumps ahead in time: three speckled chickens, plump as plump can be. The number three comes twice, once for eggs and once for chicks, so a child can see that all the eggs hatched. The second scene is the visit. An owl, a hawk and a bat "come to see". They are all night or hunting creatures, and no reason is given for their visit. It turns straight to the answer: the chicks "squat safe as safe can be" beneath their mother's wing, where nothing can reach them.
So the poem is about safety, with a quiet moment of suspense. The repeated as plump as plump can be and safe as safe can be close the two scenes with the same rhythm, and three, see and be rhyme. To squat means to crouch low and close to the ground.
It works well at bedtime for toddlers, because the last picture is a tucked-in one and nothing happens to anyone in it.
History and Origin
Hens and chicks are a common sight in nursery verse, and Rossetti's poem keeps to the barnyard pattern while adding the visitors. It is printed in Sing-Song, the 1872 collection.
Two of the poem's visitors, the owl and the bat, come out at night, so the poem has a quiet evening mood without saying the time.
Learning Activities
- Hen and chicks: one child is the hen with arms folded, and three others tuck in underneath on the last line.
- Count eggs: put three pretend eggs in a bowl and count them as chicks hatching.
- Who came to see?: draw the three visitors and talk about which are awake at night.
- Speckles: make speckled chicks with dots of paint or a pen on yellow paper.