Up on the Housetop Lyrics
Santa's reindeer stop on the roof, and down the chimney he goes with toys for the stockings: a doll for Nell, a hammer, ball and whip for Will. Benjamin Hanby wrote it around 1864, and children have sung the chorus since.
Up on the Housetop
Up on the house-top reindeer pause,
Out jumps good old Santa Claus.
Down through the chimney with lots of toys,
All for the little ones' Christmas joys.
Ho! Ho! Ho! Who wouldn't go!
Ho! Ho! Ho! Who wouldn't go!
Up on the house-top click! click! click!
Down through the chimney with good St. Nick.
First comes the stocking of little Nell,
Oh, dear Santa, fill it well.
Give her a dolly that laughs and cries,
One that will open and shut its eyes.
Next comes the stockings of little Will,
Oh, just see what a glorious fill!
Here is a hammer and lots of tacks,
Also a ball and a whip that cracks.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/up-on-the-housetop/
- Type
- Poems for Children
- Written by
- Benjamin Hanby
- Tune
- Light and quick, like hooves tapping on a roof
- Best for ages
- 2 to 8 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| Up on the house-top click! click! click! | Tap two fingers on the palm of the other hand, three times, like hooves on a roof. |
| Down through the chimney | Slide a hand slowly down in front of you, as if going down a chimney. |
| Ho! Ho! Ho! | Hold a pretend round belly and shake it on each Ho. |
What Does Up on the Housetop Mean?
The song follows Santa from the roof to the fireplace. The first verse has the reindeer "pause" (stop) on the housetop while Santa jumps out and slides down the chimney with toys. The chorus is the sound of the visit: "click! click! click!" is the tap of hooves on the roof, and "Ho! Ho! Ho! Who wouldn't go!" is the laughing question of who would not want such a ride. St. Nick is just another name for Santa in the song.
Verses two and three are toy lists, in the form of two stockings. Little Nell asks for a doll "that laughs and cries" and has eyes that open and shut. Little Will gets a hammer with lots of tacks, a ball, and a whip that cracks. The whip is a toy, one more item in a boy's stocking, and the verse is only a list of the things in it.
It makes a good song for a crowd because the chorus is short and the verses are almost lists, so younger children can supply the toys.
History and Origin
Benjamin Russel Hanby (1833 to 1867), an American composer and teacher, wrote the song in 1864, and some sources date its first printing to 1865. The poem 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, already well known by then, has the same picture of Santa on the roof and down the chimney.
The words on this page are from a 1922 book of school Christmas dialogues and plays by Marie Irish. It prints three verses and the chorus once, with the direction to repeat the chorus after each verse.
Learning Activities
- Roof taps: tap the beat on a table with two fingers for each 'click', and let the children take turns being the reindeer.
- Stocking lists: ask each child what they would put in a stocking for Nell or Will, then sing the verse with the new toys.
- Chimney slide: slide a toy figure or a paper reindeer down a cardboard tube on the 'down through the chimney' line.
- Cut-out reindeer: trace a hand to make antlers and decorate the reindeer face with crayons.