Garden Gate Lyrics
A child inside a ring asks each neighbor for the key to the garden gate, and when nobody has it, tries to break out through the clasped hands.
Garden Gate
Have you the key of the garden gate?
Open and let me go through.
My next-door neighbour's got the key;
Ask him and he'll give it to you.
None of the neighbours have got the key,
So you must let me go through.
I've lost the key of the garden gate,
And cannot let you through.
You must stop all night within the gate,
Unless you have strength to break through.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/garden-gate/
- Type
- Action Songs
- Tune
- Spoken in turns
- Best for ages
- 4 to 9 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Have you the key of the garden gate? | Hold out an open hand, asking for the key. |
| Ask him and he'll give it to you | Point to the next child in the ring. |
| Unless you have strength to break through | Push gently against the clasped hands. |
What Does Garden Gate Mean?
This is a ring game with a spoken question and answer. The children join hands in a circle and one child stands inside. That child walks round asking one of the circle, called the Keeper, for the key of the garden gate. The Keeper says a neighbor has it and the question is passed on, and so it goes all the way around.
When nobody has the key, the Keeper says it is lost and the whole ring tells the child inside to stay until he is strong enough to break through. Whoever lets the clasped hands break first takes the place in the middle.
History and Origin
The game is described in Alice Bertha Gomme's The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1894), where this version was sent in from Roxton, near St. Neots, by Miss Lumley. Gomme sorted hundreds of games by name and noted where each was played.
The book also points readers to another ring game called "Bull in the Park" that works in much the same way.
Learning Activities
- Ring game: play it with six or more players and take turns being inside the ring.
- Hold tight: talk about how to hold hands firmly without hurting.
- Key craft: make a paper key from card and use it as a prop.
- Question and answer: practice passing a question around the circle to build listening.