Donkey, Donkey, Old and Gray Lyrics
Forget the rooster. In this rhyme, an old gray donkey is asked to wake the whole sleepy world with his bray.
Donkey, Donkey, Old and Gray
Donkey, donkey, old and gray,
Ope your mouth, and gently bray;
Lift your ears and blow your horn,
To wake the world this sleepy morn.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/donkey-donkey-old-and-gray/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- Tune
- Spoken or sung
- Best for ages
- 1 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Donkey, donkey, old and gray | Nod your head slowly like an old donkey. |
| Ope your mouth, and gently bray | Open your mouth wide and say hee-haw softly. |
| Lift your ears and blow your horn | Put your hands up like donkey ears. |
| To wake the world this sleepy morn | Stretch and yawn as if waking up. |
What Does Donkey, Donkey, Old and Gray Mean?
Ope is an old way of saying open, and to bray is to make a donkey's loud "hee-haw". "Blow your horn" means make your call, as if it were a trumpet waking everyone. A donkey's bray can be heard from a long way off, so it makes a good alarm clock.
History and Origin
The rhyme comes from The Little Mother Goose (1912). Donkeys were common working animals on farms and in towns, carrying loads and pulling carts, and their loud morning bray was a familiar sound.
Learning Activities
- Hee-haw: practice a soft bray, then a loud one.
- Morning chorus: list the animals that might wake a farm in the morning.
- Donkey ears: make paper donkey ears and wear them for the rhyme.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does bray mean?
The loud hee-haw sound a donkey makes.
What does ope mean?
Open, in old English.