Cinderella

Cinderella, dressed in yellow, / Went upstairs to kiss a fellow…

Cinderella, dressed in yellow,
Went upstairs to kiss a fellow.
Made a mistake and kissed a snake,
Came downstairs with bellyache,
How many doctors did it take?
One, Two, Three...

How to play

Keep counting until the skipper misses.

Cinderella (yellaa)

Cinderella dressed in yellaa, (yellow)
Went up stairs to kiss her fella, (fellow)
By a mistake she kissed a snake how many doctors did it take,
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10.……… keep going until the person stops the rope !

'I am still playing this at school and I like it.'

Sent in by Ciara H., St Joseph's NS, Ireland

Cinderella (curtsey and bow)

Cinderella, dressed in yella, (yellow)
Went upstairs to kiss her fella, (fellow)
Kisssed a snake by mistake,
and now she has a belly ache,
Girls go curtsey, boys go bow,
Girls go woopsey, boys go row

At curtsey, the jumper curtseys, at bow, the jumper bows. At woopsey, the jumper pretends to lift up their skirt {or actually lift it up if they have one} and at row, the jumper points their fingers with their thumbs in the air and winks.

Sent in by Chelsea, Donvale Christian College, Australia (12 August 2012)

Where this rhyme comes from

Sung in: UK, US, Ireland, Australia

Very widespread from at least the mid-20th century. Douglas lists a London girls' song called 'Cindarella-Umberella' in 1916 (title only, no words), so Cinderella was already a playground name by then.

Sources: Norman Douglas, London Street Games (1916), p.95 (title only).

Do you know an older version, or where this rhyme comes from? Teachers can tell us with the feedback button below.

Older and newer versions

The same rhyme, changed by children over the years.

CountingRudeCinderella's BogiesCinderella, dressed in bows,
Went upstairs to blow her nose…

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