Three Blind Mice Lyrics
Three Blind Mice started life as a round in a songbook from 1609, which makes it one of the oldest tunes children still sing today.
Three Blind Mice
Three blind mice! See how they run!
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife.
Did you ever see such a thing in your life
As three blind mice?
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/three-blind-mice/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- First published
- 1609 (tune), 1842 (modern words)
- Tune
- Traditional English round
- Best for ages
- 3 to 7 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Three blind mice | Hold up three fingers, then cover your eyes with your hands. |
| See how they run | Run your fingers quickly along your arm or make running feet on the spot. |
| They all ran after the farmer's wife | Point ahead and pretend to chase someone. |
| Who cut off their tails | Wiggle a finger behind you like a tail, then hide it quickly. |
| Did you ever see such a thing in your life | Put your hands on your cheeks with a big surprised face. |
| As three blind mice | Hold up three fingers again and take a bow. |
What Does Three Blind Mice Mean?
On the surface it is a silly chase: three mice who cannot see run after a farmer's wife, who chases them off. The funny, slightly shocking ending is typical of old rhymes, which were meant to make children laugh rather than teach a lesson.
You may read that the rhyme is secretly about Queen Mary I and three Protestant bishops. The story is repeated all over the internet, yet the words about the farmer's wife only appear in print in the 1800s, long after her reign.
History and Origin
The oldest known version comes from Deuteromelia, a songbook compiled by Thomas Ravenscroft and published in London in 1609. There it is a round, a song in which singers start one after another, with different words from the ones we know.
The modern words, with the farmer's wife and the carving knife, appear in the 1800s. Collector James Orchard Halliwell included the rhyme in his collections of English nursery rhymes in the 1840s, and it has been a playground favorite ever since.
Learning Activities
- Sing it as a round: one group starts, a second group begins from the top when the first reaches "See how they run". It is a gentle first taste of harmony for school-age children.
- Counting mice: draw three mice on paper and count them together. Add or take away mice for simple sums.
- Sneaky mice game: children tiptoe like mice while you sing, then freeze when the song stops.