C-A-T Spells Cat Lyrics
Each pair of lines spells one word out loud and says something about it: cat, dog, cow, ox, boy, girl, bird, gold, book, cook, seed, sing, baby, lady, Mary and Eddy.
C-A-T Spells Cat
C-A-T spells CAT,
That brought the kittens here;
D-O-G spells DOG,
That does, the puppies, rear.
C-O-W, Cow,
The mother of the calf;
O-X spells the Ox,
That's bigger, yes, by half.
B-O-Y spells BOY,
That's little brother Lou;
G-I-R-L, GIRL,
And that is sister Sue.
B-I-R-D, BIRD,
Just hear canary sing;
G-O-L-D, GOLD,
That makes a handsome ring
B-O-O-K, BOOK,
In which we learn to read;
C-O-O-K, COOK,
Supplies the food we need.
S-E-E-D, SEED,
From which we raise the plant;
S-I-N-G, SING,
Just hear the children chant.
B-A, BA, B-Y, BY,
And that spells BABY, love;
L-A, LA, D-Y, DY,
And that spells LADY, dove.
M-A, MA, R-Y, RY,
And that spells MARY, child,
E-D, ED, D-Y, DY,
That's EDDY, sweet and mild.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/c-a-t-spells-cat/
- Type
- Poems for Children
- Tune
- Chanted letter by letter, then the whole word said clearly
- Best for ages
- 4 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| C-A-T spells CAT | Tap your knee once for each letter and clap on the word. |
What Does C-A-T Spells Cat Mean?
This is a spelling chant. The first line of each pair spells a word letter by letter, and the second line says something about it. The animals come first. The cat "brought the kittens here", the dog "does the puppies rear" (rear means bring up), the cow is "the mother of the calf", and the ox is "bigger, yes, by half". Then come people: little brother Lou and sister Sue. Then things: a bird that sings, gold that makes a ring, a book to learn to read from and a cook who supplies food.
The last four pairs spell longer words in syllables: B-A, BA, B-Y, BY makes baby, and M-A, MA, R-Y, RY makes Mary. That helps a child hear how words are built from parts.
History and Origin
The verse is from Mother Truth's Melodies by Mrs. E. P. Miller, in an edition dated 1896 that carries earlier copyright dates between 1887 and 1895. The book was made for kindergarten teaching, and the chant suits early lessons in letters.
Learning Activities
- Spell and clap: say each letter, clap once per letter and then say the word loudly.
- Letter cards: lay out letters for C, A and T and let the child push them together to spell cat.
- Your own word: make a new pair of lines for another word, such as P-I-G spells PIG, and say something true about it.
- Name spelling: spell the child's own name in syllables, as the poem does with Mary.