Ticky Touchwood (My Black Hen) Lyrics
A four-line hen rhyme from Norfolk: the black hen lays eggs for gentlemen, nine or ten at a time.
Ticky Touchwood (My Black Hen)
Ticky, ticky Touchwood, my black hen,
She lays eggs for gentlemen;
Sometimes nine and sometimes ten,
Ticky, ticky Touchwood, my black hen.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/ticky-touchwood/
- Type
- Animal Rhymes
- Tune
- Chanted briskly, the first line repeated at the end
- Best for ages
- 2 to 5 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Ticky, ticky Touchwood, my black hen | Tap a wooden table or chair twice. |
| Sometimes nine and sometimes ten | Hold up nine fingers, then all ten. |
What Does Ticky Touchwood (My Black Hen) Mean?
The rhyme is about a black hen that lays eggs for gentlemen, sometimes nine and sometimes ten. The first line comes back as the last, which rounds the rhyme off neatly. Touchwood is part of the hen's name and also the name of the game that went with the rhyme.
Because the number shifts between nine and ten, it is also an easy rhyme for practising those two numbers.
History and Origin
Alice Bertha Gomme prints it in the second volume of The Traditional Games of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1898) from Sporle, Norfolk, as the words of a game. In that game, one child is chosen to be Ticky and tries to touch anyone who is not touching wood.
She quotes Addy's Sheffield Glossary, where the game is called Tiggy Touchwood. The same pattern appears in the game of tag.
Learning Activities
- Find the wood: point out things made of wood in the room, such as a table, a door or a pencil.
- Nine or ten: lay out nine or ten toy eggs and count them aloud.
- Black hen drawing: draw a black hen on a nest with her eggs.