Eerie, Orie, Ickery, Am Lyrics
Five short lines of rhythmic nonsense for deciding who is out, starting with the odd words Eerie, orie, ickery, am and ending with the firm "You are out!"
Eerie, Orie, Ickery, Am
Eerie, orie, ickery, am,
Pick ma nick, and slick ma slam.
Oram, scoram, pick ma noram,
Shee, show, sham, shutter,
You are out!
More verses from the original
Eerie, orie, ickery, am,
Pick ma nick, and slick ma slam.
Oram, scoram, pick ma noram,
Shee, show, sham, shutter,
You are out!
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/eerie-orie-ickery-am/
- Type
- Counting Rhymes
- Tune
- Spoken counting-out rhyme
- Best for ages
- 4 to 8 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Eerie, orie, ickery, am | Tap a fist on each word, going round the circle. |
| You are out! | Point at the child who got the last beat. |
What Does Eerie, Orie, Ickery, Am Mean?
Most of the words in this rhyme do not mean anything. They are sounds that give a good beat when you point at one child per syllable, which is exactly what a counting-out rhyme is for. "Eerie, orie, ickery, am" sounds a lot like the counting words "one-ery, two-ery, ickery" found in many places, and some people think the odd words are worn-down number names from long ago.
The rhyme ends with the traditional "You are out!" Whoever it lands on leaves the circle, and the game goes on until one child is left. It is a quick way to settle who goes first without anyone feeling picked on, since the rhyme decides.
History and Origin
Robert Ford prints it in Children's Rhymes, Children's Games, Children's Songs, Children's Stories (1904), among Scottish counting-out rhymes. He says versions of it, with slight changes, had been used in both England and Scotland for at least a hundred years by his time.
That would place it in the early 1800s at the latest. Like other counting rhymes it was passed on by children, so no author is known. Because the lines are nonsense, they were easy to change, and many local variations were recorded.
Learning Activities
- Circle pick: sit in a circle and use the rhyme to choose who is out.
- Fast and slow: say it very fast, then very slow, and see if the result changes.
- Word detective: compare it with other counting rhymes on this site and spot shared sounds.