This beloved children’s song was written in 1939 by Verna Hills and is believed to have been written during a time period when buses were becoming a more prominent form of transportation. The song is cyclically-structured, meaning that it is not only easy for children to follow along with but it is also designed to have hand motions and dance moves that accompany it. The cyclic-structure of the song allows for a lot of group interaction and entertainment. The repetitive nature of the song makes it fun to sing along with as the lyrics are whimsical and easy to memorize. There are approximately seven song verses which all end with the phrase “all through the town.” The different verses include the following expressions: “The wheels on the bus go ’round and ’round,” “the wipers on the bus go swish, swish, swish,” “the horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep,” “the doors on the bus go open and shut,” “the driver on the bus says move on back,” “the babies on the bus say wah, wah, wah,” and “the mothers on the bus say shush, shush, shush (DLTK, 2018).” The objects that are round in this song are the tires on the bus as they move in a circular motion whilst transporting passenger throughout the neighborhood. The wheels on the bus youtube versions can be widely found if searched for.
Mr. Sun
Mr. Sun is a captivating song that reminds children of the joys of summertime. In the song, the round, happy sun has momentarily sunk behind a bank of clouds and the children are trying to coax the sun to come back out and play with them. The children in the song request that Mr. Sun does not go away because the darkening atmosphere would preclude their ability to stay outside and have fun.
Hey Diddle Diddle
Hey Diddle Diddle is an endearing song that is believed to date back to the 16th century. The round object in this song refers to the moon that the cow is jumping over. There are a variety of theories behind the origins of this song, but one of the original beliefs is that the characters in the song are meant to be representative of the members of Queen Elizabeth I’s court. Elizabeth was oftentimes called a cat due to her demeaning treatment of her court members, who she referred to as mice. The line “the dish ran away with the spoon” is believed to reference the eloping of the Queen’s cousin Lady Catherine Grey to Edward Seymour, which the Queen was not pleased about. Astronomers theorize that “Hey Diddle Diddle” may also pertain to watching the night sky. There is a timeframe in April when certain constellations appear to be closer to the moon. These constellations represent the characters in the nursery rhyme with Leo being the cat, Taurus the cow, Canis Minor the little dog, Crater the dish, Ursa Major the spoon, and Lyra representing the fiddle. Astronomers believe this song may be a reminder to farmers to start planting their crops when they see the constellations gravitating closer to the moon (Treasury Islands, 2011).