Kindergarten Read Aloud Banquet

Nursery Songs for November

Aiken Drum



King Cole



The Old Man in Leather



Ye Fairy Ship

A Child's Garden of Verses

North-west Passage

1. Good-Night

When the bright lamp is carried in,

The sunless hours again begin;

O'er all without, in field and lane,

The haunted night returns again.


Now we behold the embers flee

About the firelit hearth; and see

Our faces painted as we pass,

Like pictures, on the window-glass.


Must we to bed indeed? Well then,

Let us arise and go like men,

And face with an undaunted tread

The long black passage up to bed.


Farewell, O brother, sister, sire!

O pleasant party round the fire!

The songs you sing, the tales you tell,

Till far to-morrow, fare ye well!

2. Shadow March

All around the house is the jet-black night;

It stares through the window-pane;

It crawls in the corners, hiding from the light,

And it moves with the moving flame.


Now my little heart goes a-beating like a drum,

With the breath of the Bogie in my hair;

And all around the candle the crooked shadows come,

And go marching along up the stair.


The shadow of the balusters, the shadow of the lamp,

The shadow of the child that goes to bed—

All the wicked shadows coming tramp, tramp, tramp,

With the black night overhead.

3. In Port

Last, to the chamber where I lie

My fearful footsteps patter nigh,

And come from out the cold and gloom

Into my warm and cheerful room.


There, safe arrived, we turn about

To keep the coming shadows out,

And close the happy door at last

On all the perils that we past.


Then, when mamma goes by to bed,

She shall come in with tip-toe tread,

And see me lying warm and fast

And in the land of Nod at last.

  Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Week 36 Johnny Chuck Proves His Love Towser
The Birthday Bouquet 		Appley Dapply's Nursery Rhymes The Frog-Hoppers Go Out into the World The Magic Flower The Moving-Men Story St. John, the Beloved Disciple
Pussy-Cat and the Dumplings Three Wise Men of Gotham Dance, Thumbkin, Dance Chit, Chat Mary's Canary Handy-Spandy The Little Bird
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Old Old Tales Retold  by Frederick Richardson
[Illustration]

dropcap image ONG, long ago an old hen and her one little chicken went into the woods. The little chicken was named Tuppens. Scratch, scratch, they were busy all day among the leaves finding seeds to eat.

"Do not eat the big seeds," said the old hen to Little Tuppens, "for they will make you cough."

But by and by little Tuppens found a big seed and ate it. Then little Tuppens began to cough. The old hen was frightened at this and ran to the spring. She said:

"Please, spring, give me some water,

Little Tuppens is coughing."

[Illustration]

The spring said:

"Get me a cup and then I will give you some water."

The old hen ran to the oak-tree and said:

"Please, oak-tree, give me a cup;

Then the spring will give me some water.

Little Tuppens is coughing."

The oak-tree said:

"Shake me. Then I will give you a cup."

The old hen ran to the little boy and said:

"Please, little boy, shake the oak-tree;

Then the oak-tree will give me a cup;

And the spring will give me some water.

Little Tuppens is coughing."

[Illustration]

The little boy said:

"Give me some shoes. Then I can shake the oak-tree for you."

The old hen ran to the shoe-maker and said:

"Please, good shoe-maker, give me some shoes for the little boy;

Then the little boy will shake the oak-tree;

And the oak-tree will give me a cup;

And the spring will give me some water.

Little Tuppens is coughing."

The shoe-maker said:

"Get me some leather and then I will make some shoes for the little boy."

The old hen ran to the cow and said:

"Please, cow, give me some leather;

Then the shoe-maker will make shoes for the little boy;

And the little boy will shake the oak-tree;

And the oak-tree will give me a cup;

And the spring will give me some water.

Little Tuppens is coughing."

[Illustration]

The cow said:

"Get me some corn and then I will give you some leather."

[Illustration]

The old hen ran to the farmer and said:

"Please, good farmer, give me corn for the cow;

Then the cow will give me some leather for the shoe-maker;

And the shoe-maker will make shoes for the little boy;

And the little boy will shake the oak-tree;

And the oak-tree will give me a cup;

And the spring will give me some water.

Little Tuppens is coughing."

[Illustration]

The farmer said:

"Get me a plow and then I can give you some corn."

The old hen ran to the blacksmith and said:

"Please, good blacksmith, give me a plow for the farmer;

Then the farmer will give me some corn for the cow;

And the cow will give me some leather for the shoe-maker;

And the shoe-maker will give me some shoes for the little boy;

And the little boy will shake the oak-tree;

And the oak-tree will give me a cup;

And the spring will give me some water;

Little Tuppens is coughing."

[Illustration]

The blacksmith said:

"Get me some iron and then I can give you a plow."

The old hen ran to the dwarfs and asked for some iron for the blacksmith.


[Illustration]

When she had told her story about Little Tuppens to the dwarfs, they wanted to help. They went into their cave and brought out some iron for the blacksmith.

Then the blacksmith made a plow for the farmer;

And the farmer gave some corn for the cow;

And the cow gave some leather for the shoe-maker;

And the shoe-maker made some shoes for the little boy;

And the little boy shook the oak-tree;

And the oak-tree gave a cup;

And the spring gave some water;

And the old hen gave the water to Little Tuppens

And Little Tuppens stopped coughing.

[Illustration]