There Was an Old Man Who Lived in Middle Row Lyrics
An old man with five hens calls each of them by name and tells them to go to the nest and lay.
There Was an Old Man Who Lived in Middle Row
There was an old man who liv'd in Middle Row,
He had five hens and a name for them, oh!
Bill and Ned and Battock,
Cut-her-foot and Pattock,
Chuck, my lady Prattock,
Go to thy nest and lay.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/there-was-an-old-man-who-lived-in-middle-row/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- Tune
- Chanted in a coaxing voice
- Best for ages
- 2 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Bill and Ned and Battock | Hold up one finger for each name you say. |
| Chuck, my lady Prattock | Make a clucking sound and beckon with a finger. |
| Go to thy nest and lay | Tuck both hands under you as if sitting on a nest. |
What Does There Was an Old Man Who Lived in Middle Row Mean?
The old man knows his hens so well that each has her own name: Bill, Ned, Battock, Cut-her-foot and Pattock. The odd names are part of the fun, and they chime with each other, as in Battock and Pattock. Chuck is the call used to bring hens to the keeper.
The last line, Go to thy nest and lay, is what he tells them. Thy is the old word for your.
History and Origin
Halliwell puts the rhyme in his ninth class, Gaffers and Gammers, which gathers rhymes about old men and old women.
Learning Activities
- Name the hens: invent a name for every toy hen or chicken and call each one in turn.
- Egg count: count out real or toy eggs into a nest as each hen goes to lay.