Cobbler Cobbler Mend My Shoe

Cobbler, cobbler, mend my shoe,
Get it done by half past two.
Half past two is much too late,
Get it done by half past eight.

Stitch it up and stitch it down,
Then I'll give you half a crown.

"Cobbler Cobbler Mend My Shoe" is a traditional English nursery rhyme dating to the 1800s, built around the everyday image of a shoemaker repairing a child's shoe. It suits toddlers ages 2-6, whose familiarity with shoes and getting dressed makes the rhyme's subject easy to connect to their own daily routine. Its short, rhythmic lines give early-childhood educators a simple tool for building phonological awareness, since children can hear and repeat the rhyme's tight rhyme scheme well before they can read. The cobbler trade itself also offers a small window into historical daily life in England, a gentle way to introduce the idea that people used to fix and make things by hand rather than buy them ready-made. Because the rhyme is so brief, it's easy for very young children to memorize quickly and repeat with growing confidence, building an early sense of mastery over language. Pairing the rhyme with a real shoe-buckling or getting-dressed routine can also turn it into a small daily ritual. For more classic short rhymes like this one, see nursery rhymes for 2-year-olds.

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