I don't know whether to be disturbed by this or not.... I found this site while looking for clapping rhymes to teach Izzy.Probably won't be using any of them with her.
I know when we were in school (yes, Catholic school where everything goes!) we said some raunchy rhymes... but nothing like this.
After digging around the site - it does appear to have some value; a collection of folk lore around Australia - stories, songs, chants and the like. Certainly - playground chants are part of that - I get that!
Now it could be a cultural thing - different things may be accepted in other countries - I don't know. It could also be a decade thing -- kids are exposed to more today then 20 years ago when I was a youngin'. (But let's face it, Miss Suzy and her Steamboat will be around for a while!) But If I heard my 11 year old daughter saying "I'm Sexy, I'm cute" I think we'd have a problem. (Damn the "ever-increasing influence of American hip-hop culture")
To quote the site:
Being year six this is usually the last year girls participate in playground games, especially singing and clapping games, as they become self-conscious and also
preoccupied with boys. All three of the girls were told of the background to the video session, what was expected and that it was being done at home (rather than school) so there would be no censorship of the more ribald material.
Now, I'm not sure if Year Six is the same as our year six, or a Hogwarts year six... but in any case, I think the censorship thing is a little backward. Personally I wouldn't say "cock..... roaches" "whores" "piss" or even the F bomb in front of my parents. Now at school, that's a different story.
Yes, I know how clapping games work: they play on word sounds, puns, syllables and double-meanings. I get that.
What I don't get is how the kids can do these in front of their parents. More importantly - why the parents aren't more concerned!?!
You are warned:
Clapping Rhymes
Yet, I am amused at some of the rhymes... I wish we knew them back then! (The soldier one is amusing.)
So... what were some rhymes said on your playground?
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Two eighties children who grew up and had a child of their own. (Formerly known as Life on Delaware)
6 comments:
I FREAKIN' LOVE bring it on!! what a great show, and at the end of this little ryhme, kirsten dunst top comes off hahaha
I was always more preoccupied with playing Cops And Robbers or Cowboys And Indians than playing rhyming games lol. However I did errrrrr overhear a few rhymes ;) ...
Ring A Ring O' Rosies
Ring around the rosy
A pocketful of posies
"Ashes, Ashes"
We all fall down!
Ring-a-Ring o'Rosies
A Pocket full of Posies
"A-tishoo! A-tishoo!"
We all fall Down! ...
I was actually watching a TV programme about the background 2 nursery rhymes just about 2 or 3 months ago and apparently the origins of that particular rhyme are in the Bubonic Plague! The red blistering ring on your skin was the first sign of it. Pockets were filled with sweet smelling herbs (or posies) which were carried due to the belief that the disease was transmitted by bad smells. The term "Ashes Ashes" refers to the cremation of the dead bodies! A-tishoo, A-tishoo as violent sneezing was another symptom of the disease and then when you become very weak from the disease you fell down and died! It's kind of scary now to think about what we were saying without even realising the reasons as to why certain rhymes come into existance :/
I can't believe there are girls out there singing these things. And the age of six? Didn't we keep doing them until we were like 16??!! Ok. maybe not that long, but longer than 6 I'm sure!
As far as meanings behind them....what about eenie, meenie, minee, mo!
Gareth - I did know about the plague thing with Ring around the rosie -- but not when I was little
Bring out ye' dead!
But I'm not dead yet!
Sorry - Monty Python interruption
DG - Actually, the girls are older than age 6 -- I think year 6 is like 6th grade or something!
Over here year 6 is for 9 and 10 year olds :)
"Bring out ye dead" Ha!!!
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