Little Miss Muffet Lyrics
Curds and whey were Miss Muffet's lunch until a spider sat down beside her. The rhyme was first printed in 1805.
Little Miss Muffet
Little Miss Muffet
Sat on a tuffet,
Eating of curds and whey;
There came a big spider,
And sat down beside her,
And frightened Miss Muffet away.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/little-miss-muffet/
- Type
- Mother Goose, Animal Rhymes
- First published
- 1805
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 2 to 6 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet | Sit down on a cushion with a straight back. |
| Eating of curds and whey | Pretend to eat from a bowl with a spoon. |
| There came a big spider | Walk your fingers slowly up your arm like a spider. |
| And sat down beside her | Let the spider hand sit on your shoulder. |
| And frightened Miss Muffet away | Jump up with a gasp and run on the spot. |
What Does Little Miss Muffet Mean?
A tuffet is a low seat or a small grassy mound, and curds and whey are the lumps and liquid you get when milk turns sour, a bit like cottage cheese. So Miss Muffet is simply having her lunch when a spider arrives.
A popular story says she was the daughter of Thomas Muffet, a 16th-century doctor who studied insects and spiders. It makes a good story, though no record connects the two.
History and Origin
Little Miss Muffet first appeared in print in 1805, in Songs for the Nursery, a London collection of rhymes. It has been a favorite in picture books ever since, partly because the spider gives it a little moment of drama that children enjoy.
Learning Activities
- Brave Miss Muffet: sing a new ending where she says hello to the spider instead of running away. A gentle way to talk about fears.
- Taste test: try cottage cheese and talk about how it is like curds and whey.
- Spider count: count a spider's eight legs on a picture.
- Muffet twister: try saying The Myth of Miss Muffet five times fast, a short tongue twister from our sister site AllTongueTwisters.com.