One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
One, two, buckle my shoe, / Three, four, knock at the door…
One, two, buckle my shoe,
Three, four, knock at the door,
Five, six, breaking up sticks,
Seven, eight, Mary at the gate....
(I forget the rest)
How to play
Count the skips through the rhyme. Our "Over the Sea" rhyme is a newer take on this one.
Where this rhyme comes from
- Printed
- 1916
- Where
- London
We have copied these words exactly as they were printed in 1916, spelling and all. The book marks it as a skipping rhyme.
Source: Norman Douglas, London Street Games (London: The St. Catherine Press, 1916) (public domain).
Older and newer versions
The same rhyme, changed by children over the years.
More rhymes like this
CountingPrinted 1916Old Mother MasonOld mother Mason--broke a basin:
What did it cost her? One penny, tuppence, etc…CountingFortune tellingPrinted 1916Appletree, Peartree, Plumtree PieAppletree, peartree, plumtree pie,
How many children before I die…CountingActionsby 1916Postman KnockingEarly in the morning at half past eight,
I heard the postman knocking at the gate…Countingafter 1908I Know a ScoutI know a scout
Who took me out…CountingI Had a Little SisterI had a little sister,
Dressed in pink…
What did it cost her? One penny, tuppence, etc…CountingFortune tellingPrinted 1916Appletree, Peartree, Plumtree PieAppletree, peartree, plumtree pie,
How many children before I die…CountingActionsby 1916Postman KnockingEarly in the morning at half past eight,
I heard the postman knocking at the gate…Countingafter 1908I Know a ScoutI know a scout
Who took me out…CountingI Had a Little SisterI had a little sister,
Dressed in pink…
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