I Know a Baby, Such a Baby Lyrics
The speaker knows a baby, and describes the baby from head to wrist: round blue eyes, pink cheeks, an elbow full of dimples and a wrist with creases. The baby crows for a cuddle, and the speaker adores the bald head, the sweet lips and the sleepy winking eyes.
I Know a Baby, Such a Baby
I know a baby, such a baby,
Round blue eyes and cheeks of pink,
Such an elbow furrowed with dimples,
Such a wrist where creases sink.
"Cuddle and love me, cuddle and love me,"
Crows the mouth of coral pink:
Oh, the bald head, and, oh, the sweet lips,
And, oh, the sleepy eyes that wink!
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/i-know-a-baby-such-a-baby/
- Type
- Poems for Children, Rhymes for Babies
- Written by
- Christina Rossetti
- Tune
- Fond and quick, with a smile in the voice on each 'oh'
- Best for ages
- 0 to 3 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Round blue eyes and cheeks of pink | Make circles with your fingers round your eyes and touch your cheeks. |
| Cuddle and love me, cuddle and love me | Wrap your arms around yourself in a hug and rock. |
What Does I Know a Baby, Such a Baby Mean?
The poem is a portrait made of small details a parent would notice. The first verse goes part by part: round blue eyes, cheeks of pink, an elbow furrowed with dimples and a wrist where creases sink. A furrow is a groove, so the dimples are small folds of baby skin.
The second verse gives the baby a voice. The mouth, as pink as coral, crows, which means it makes a happy, cooing sound, and what it says is cuddle and love me. The speaker answers with three ohs: the bald head, the sweet lips and the sleepy eyes that wink. Nothing happens in the poem; it is a picture of a baby being adored.
History and Origin
Christina Rossetti's Sing-Song, first published in 1872, is full of babies, lambs and cradles, since the book was made for the nursery. This portrait is one of its most direct: it describes no event, only features.
Learning Activities
- Name the parts: touch your own elbow, wrist, cheeks and eyes as the poem names them, and let a baby watch.
- Describe a baby: ask the child to say four things they notice about a baby, a doll or a baby photo.
- Baby photos: look at a baby picture of the child and find the dimples and creases.
- Crow back: with a baby, make cooing sounds, wait, and listen to the answer.