Little Poll Parrot Lyrics
A parrot sits upstairs with her toast and tea, and a cheeky brown mouse runs off with the lot. Six short lines, one tiny crime.
Little Poll Parrot
Little Poll Parrot
Sat in her garret,
Eating toast and tea;
A little brown mouse
Jumped into the house,
And stole it all away.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/little-poll-parrot/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes, Mother Goose
- Tune
- Spoken rhyme
- Best for ages
- 1 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Little Poll Parrot sat in her garret | Sit up tall and flap your elbows like wings. |
| Eating toast and tea | Pretend to nibble toast and sip from a cup. |
| A little brown mouse jumped into the house | Make a mouse with two fingers and hop it across your lap. |
| And stole it all away | Whisk your hands behind your back. |
What Does Little Poll Parrot Mean?
A garret is a small room at the top of a house, under the roof. Poll is an old pet name for a parrot, and it is where the name Polly comes from in "Polly want a cracker?". The mouse sneaks in while the parrot is busy eating and takes her whole breakfast.
History and Origin
This version comes from The Little Mother Goose (1912), a picture book of nursery rhymes illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith. In some older books the parrot is a boy and eats "his" toast, but the story is the same. Parrots were fashionable pets in Britain from the 1600s onward, and Poll was the usual name people gave them.
Learning Activities
- Tea party: set out toy toast and cups for a parrot toy, then have a mouse toy steal them on the last line.
- Where did it go? hide the "stolen" toast somewhere in the room and let your child find it.