Sing a Song of Sixpence Lyrics

A traditional English nursery rhyme first printed around 1744, famous for the surprising image of "four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie" that begin to sing when the pie is opened. Best for ages 3–7. The rhyme is a tiny narrative with a clear cast (the king counting money, the queen eating bread and honey, the maid hanging out clothes) — a great early example of sequencing and character, and a natural prompt for "what happens next?" storytelling. The rich, slightly archaic vocabulary (sixpence, parlour, counting-house) stretches word knowledge beyond everyday speech, which research links to stronger reading comprehension later. Use it to introduce counting to twenty and to talk about old-fashioned words and how language changes over time. For background on where these verses come from, see [the history of nursery rhymes](/blog/history-of-nursery-rhymes) and our roundup of the [best nursery rhymes every child should know](/blog/best-nursery-rhymes-every-child-should-know).

Sing a song of sixpence,
A pocket full of rye.
Four and twenty blackbirds,
Baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing.
Oh wasn't that a dainty dish,
To set before the king?

The king was in his counting house,
Counting out his money.
The queen was in the parlour,
Eating bread and honey.

The maid was in the garden,
Hanging out the clothes.
Along came a blackbird,
And pecked off her nose!