Three Little Kittens Lyrics
Lose your mittens, no pie. Find them, pie. Get them dirty, trouble again. The Three Little Kittens is a four-part story about mittens that small children follow with complete seriousness.
Three Little Kittens
Three little kittens they lost their mittens,
And they began to cry,
"Oh! mammy dear,
We sadly fear,
Our mittens we have lost!"
"What! lost your mittens,
You naughty kittens,
Then you shall have no pie."
Miew, miew, miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.
The rest of the story
The three little kittens they found their mittens,
And they began to cry.
"Oh! mammy dear,
See here, see here,
Our mittens we have found."
"What! found your mittens,
You little kittens,
Then you shall have some pie."
Purr, purr, purr, purr,
Purr, purr, purr, purr.
The three little kittens put on their mittens,
And soon ate up the pie;
"Oh! mammy dear,
We greatly fear,
Our mittens we have soil'd."
"What! soil'd your mittens,
You naughty kittens!"
Then they began to sigh,
Miew, miew, miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.
The three little kittens they washed their mittens,
And hung them up to dry;
"Oh! mammy dear,
Look here, look here,
Our mittens we have wash'd."
"What! wash'd your mittens,
You darling kittens!
But I smell a rat close by!
Hush! hush!" Miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/three-little-kittens/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- First published
- 1843
- Tune
- Traditional
- Best for ages
- 2 to 6 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Three little kittens they lost their mittens | Hold up three fingers, then hide your hands behind your back. |
| And they began to cry | Rub your eyes and say a sad meow. |
| Then you shall have no pie | Wag a finger like the mother cat. |
| The three little kittens they found their mittens | Bring your hands out and wave them happily. |
| The three little kittens they washed their mittens | Scrub your hands together, then hang imaginary mittens on a line. |
What Does Three Little Kittens Mean?
It is a simple story of cause and effect, which is exactly why toddlers like it. The kittens lose their mittens and lose their pie. They find the mittens and get the pie. They eat the pie in their mittens and make them dirty, so they wash them and hang them to dry. The mother cat's mood follows every step.
The last verse ends with the mother smelling a rat nearby, a cat's idea of good news, and the kittens being told to hush.
History and Origin
The poem is usually credited to Eliza Lee Cabot Follen, an American writer and teacher, who included it in her 1843 collection New Nursery Songs for All Good Children. Some collectors think she wrote down an older rhyme rather than inventing it, and nobody can say for sure. Either way, it was soon a favorite on both sides of the Atlantic.
Learning Activities
- Mitten match: mix up pairs of mittens or socks and let your child find the matching pairs.
- Washing line: string a line between two chairs and peg up washed doll clothes, just like the kittens.
- Sad and happy faces: ask your child to show the mother cat's face in each verse.
- Act it out: three children play the kittens and one plays the mother, who gets to say the "no pie" line.