Happy Childhood Lyrics
A child wanders over fields and meadows, singing as they go. People who see the walker might think they are alone, but the birds are there, and the water along the sunny banks is murmuring too. Who could be lonely?
Happy Childhood
Over field and meadow,
Where the daisies grow,
Up and down I wander,
Singing as I go.
They who see me roving
Think me all alone,
But the birds are with me;
Hark! their joyful tone.
How can I be lonely
On the sunny banks,
While the murmuring waters
Raise a song of thanks?
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/happy-childhood/
- Type
- Poems for Children
- Tune
- Light and walking-pace, a step for every beat
- Best for ages
- 3 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Up and down I wander | March in a loose circle, swinging your arms. |
| Hark! their joyful tone | Cup a hand behind your ear and listen. |
What Does Happy Childhood Mean?
The poem is a walk that ends on a question. The first verse sets the scene: fields, a meadow and daisies, and a child who sings as they go. The second says other people might see a child on their own, yet the birds are there, calling out in joyful tones. The third asks the question the whole poem has been building to: how could anyone feel lonely among sunny banks and murmuring water?
To wander is to walk without hurrying and without a set path, and to hark is to listen. Raise a song of thanks means the water is making a sound that seems grateful. Nothing marks the speaker as a boy or a girl, so any child can say it.
History and Origin
Happy Childhood comes from a children's anthology revised in 1911. It belongs to the walking-song family of children's verse, in which a field walk is a pleasure in itself.
Learning Activities
- Wander walk: take a no-destination walk and let the child lead, stopping to listen when they say hark.
- Company count: name everything that keeps you company outdoors, such as birds, bees, water and wind.
- Water sound: find a stream or a tap and listen to what it murmurs.
- Walking tune: make up a tune for the verses that fits your walking pace.