Looby Loo Lyrics
Shake your right hand a little, shake your left hand a little, and turn around. Looby Loo is a traditional circle dance in which each verse adds one more body part, until everyone is wiggling at once.
Looby Loo
Now we dance looby, looby, looby,
Now we dance looby, looby, light;
Shake your right hand a little,
And turn you round about.
More verses
Now we dance looby, looby, looby;
Shake your right hand a little,
Shake your left hand a little,
And turn you round about.
Now we dance looby, looby, looby;
Shake your right hand a little,
Shake your left hand a little,
Shake your right foot a little,
And turn you round about.
Now we dance looby, looby, looby;
Shake your right hand a little,
Shake your left hand a little,
Shake your right foot a little,
Shake your left foot a little,
And turn you round about.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/looby-loo/
- Type
- Action Songs
- First published
- 1894 (recorded)
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 2 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Now we dance looby, looby, looby | Hold hands in a circle and skip around. |
| Shake your right hand a little | Stop, face the middle and shake your right hand. |
| Shake your left hand a little | Add your left hand. |
| Shake your right foot a little | Add your right foot, keeping your balance. |
| And turn you round about | Spin around once, then join hands again. |
What Does Looby Loo Mean?
Looby Loo is a building game: every verse repeats what came before and adds one more thing to shake. By the end, children are shaking both hands and both feet, which makes everyone laugh and wobble. "Looby" is an old word, and in the song it is just a fun sound to dance to.
History and Origin
This version was recorded by the folklorist Alice Bertha Gomme in The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1894), one of several versions she collected from English children. Circle dances like this, where players act out the words, were among the most popular playground games of the 1800s.
Learning Activities
- Keep adding: after the feet, add your head, your shoulders and "your whole self".
- Left and right: a sticker on the right hand helps little ones learn which is which.
- Freeze ending: on the last verse, everyone freezes after turning around.