Rock-a-Bye baby, thy cradle Is green,

Father's a nobleman, mother's a queen;

And Betty's a lady, and wears a gold ring,

And Johnny's a drummer, and drums for the king.

-Old Lullaby

Night Night

We would like to repeat what we said in our preface, here. Don't try all of these ideas. And they certainly aren't for settling any special bedtime problem. They are just for fun.

For Babies

Find a magazine. Settle the baby on your lap, turn the pages, and point out the different pictures, saying, "The airplane goes Night Night," "The Cadillac goes Night Night," "The beautiful lady with the nice smile goes Night Night," "The cigarettes go Night Night," "The tomato soup goes Night Night," until the baby is mesmerized and begins to nod-and then you say, "The baby goes Night Night," and pick him up, and put him in his crib.

Put on some dreamy music and hold the baby in your arms and dance dreamily, and, as the music ends, dance him into his bed. If the baby can walk, you might have a special Night Night tune, such as "Pomp and Circumstance," by which you march to bed with ceremony.

Older Children

If you have a time clock, set it for ten minutes and say, "When the buzzer rings, it's bedtime." A buzzer has an impersonal authority which a parent often lacks.

Old school yells, such as "Give 'Em the Axe," or "Rickety Rack," done in action, while not soothing the children, are often diverting enough to make them a quiet audience before lights out.

Sometimes it is fun to go to bed backwards, or crawling on your hands and knees or walking blindfolded, or swimming on the floor, or to be carried in on a chair.

If your child does not like his bed, maybe he would like to sleep under it, or in a corner, as long as it is in his room. However, if you feel that the place to go to bed is bed, there is nothing wrong with your attitude.

Letting a child play for a long, relaxed time in a lukewarm bath is very soporific. If he should be watched, it is a good time for you to read the evening paper. (See Bathtime)

Take the child out of doors, or hold him up to a window, and let him say good night to everything he can see.

"Good night Moon, good night Stars, good night Fence, good night Wheelbarrow, goodnight my rubber boots, good night Elm Tree."

This may be topped off by, "Good night, Johnny."

If your child has just visited his grandparents or gone to a restaurant, and is so excited he can't sleep, tell him the story of what just happened, so it will take on some order in his mind. Tell it very quietly, as if out of a book.

There are different ways to read a good book to the children. You can read it to them, or tell them the story that goes with the pictures, or let them tell it with you. It's better to pick a short story or some poems than to hurry through a long one, turning the pages before they are through looking at the pictures. And you can say, "Tonight it's Martha's turn to choose a story, and tomorrow night it will be Peter's turn."

No Fair German Lieder !

Sometimes you get tired of reading (especially when one of the children is too young to understand the words and just wants to grab the book). So you can sing songs, instead.

A version of "Good Night Ladies," substituting your children's names, is a good finale.

Singing in front of the fire is a special, cozy treat.

Children like songs with lots of repetition like, "Come, Come, Come, Come to the Church in the Wildwood," or 'The Bear Went Over the Mountain," or whatever is in your repertoire.

This is also an excellent opportunity to have an audience for your voice.

You can draw stories, too, if you can draw at all.

" Once upon a time there was a little girl, and her name was Rosalind, and one day her mother and daddy said to her, 'Rosalind, you are old enough to eat in a restaurant u you have good manners', and she said, 'I will have very good manners, oh, I promise"-and so-etc.

The Gradual Transition Method: Dress them for bed. Then they can have ten minutes more to play in the living room, ten minutes to play in their room, and five minutes in bed with the light on. Then, lights out!

Some children like to put their doll or Teddy to bed first.

An adaptation of the Reed Method is very soothing. Deep breaths, a back rub, a monotonous, calm voice, and saying, "Now the eyebrows are going to sleep, now the nose is going to sleep, now the chin is going to sleep, etc."

Counting" One, to get off the sofa,

Two, to take off your clothes, Three, to put on your pajamas, Four, to brush your teeth, Five, to pop into bed."

If you have lots of children, special Late Privileges for one child at a time gives each child a chance to be alone with his parents, which they like.

Talk about Today, and what happened that was nice. And talk about Tomorrow, and what will be fun.

Finger Plays

Here are mother's knives and forks Here is mother's table. Here is sister's looking glass Here is baby's cradle.

Most of the finger plays listed here are done to the words of time-worn ditties which have been passed down from generation to generation. They are still diverting to little children, appealing as they do to their sense of rhythm and of riddles, or make-believe and action.

1.

I'm a little teapot, short and stout

Here is my handle

(right hand on hip)

Here is my spout

(bend left elbow, with hand and fingers pointing away from body)

When I get all steamed up, then I shout

Tip me over, pour me out!

(bend body from the waist to the left)

2.

Little tiny ball

(make circle with thumb and index finger)

Middle-sized ball

(make circle with hands, fingers touching)

Great big ball

(make circle with hands and arms, fingers touching above the head)

3.

Two little blackbirds, sitting on a hill

(hands closed, thumbs up)

One named Jack, one named Jill

(wiggle one thumb, then wiggle the other thumb)

Fly away, Jack, fly away, Jill

(put hand behind back, then other hand behind back)

Come back, Jack, comeback, Jill

(return hands, one at a time, with thumb up)

4.

Jack be nimble Jack be quick

Jack jump over the candlestick.

(thumb of left hand is extended, and index and middle finger of right hand walk over to thumb and jump over it)

5.

One little, two little, three little Indians

Four little, five little, six little Indians

Seven little, eight little, nine little Indians

Ten little Indian boys.

(starting with fists clenched, extend one finger at a time)

6.

(To the tune of Frere Jacques)

Where is Thumpkin ?

(hands closed, right thumb up)

Where is Thumpkin?

Here I am!

(raise left thumb, and wiggle)

Here I am!

How are you today, sir ?

(raise right thumb, and wiggle)

Very well, I thank you.

(wiggle left thumb)

Run away, run away.

(hide thumbs in hand)

7.

These are spyglasses

(make circle out of fingers around the eyes)

This is my new red cap

(place hands on top of head)

This is the way we fold our hands

(fold)

And put them in our lap.

(place)

8.

Here is a beehive. Where are the bees ?

Hidden away where nobody sees.

Soon they come creeping out of the hive.

(one hand closed)

One, two, three, four, five.

(extend one finger at a time)

9.

It's a very rainy day

And I can't go out to play

So Mother into her basket slipped

And found some scissors,

(cup left hand for imaginary basket and dip right hand into basket and snip with index and middle fingers)

10.

Snip, snip, snip.

Open, shut them, open, shut them,

(both hands open, both hands clenched, open, clenched)

Give a little clap.

(clap)

Open, shut them, open, shut them,

(hands open, hands clenched)

Lay them in your lap.

(place in lap)

11.

Planting seeds: A ditty for planting seeds, or it can be a counting game using one hand.

One for the blackbird One for the crow, One for the cutworm And two to grow!

(extend fingers, one at a time)

Here is the church

(palms together, fingers laced)

Here is the steeple.

(point index fingers up)

Open the doors, Where are the people ?

(spread thumbs) (turn palms upward)

Here is the church

(put backs of hands together, lace fingers next to palms)

Here is the steeple

Open the doors,

Here are all the people!

(point index fingers up) (thumbs spread) (wiggle fingers)

13.

Here are Mother's knives and forks

(put backs of hands together, lace fingers next to palms, palms up)

Here is Mother's table.

(turn palms down, fingers still interlaced)

Here is Sister's looking glass

(index fingers make a point)

Here is Baby's cradle.

(little fingers up like index fingers and rock hands)

14. Knock at the door Peek in

(forehead) (eyes)

Turn the knob And walk in

Chin chopper, chin chopper, chin, chin, chin.

(nose) (mouth)

(chin)

15.

Here sits the Lord Mayor Here sit his two men Here sits the cock Here sits the hen Here sit the chickens And here they run in Chin chopper, chin chopper, chin, chin, chin.

(forehead) (eyes)

(right cheek) (Left cheek) (nose) (mouth) (chin)

16.

If you lived up here And I lived down there I wouldn't go all the way around this way to see you

(forehead) (chin)

(finger goes around side of face, from chin to forehead)

Or this way

(other side of face)

I'd just go up like that!

(straight up from chin to forehead, fast)

17.

Adam and Eve and Pinch Me Went down to the river to bathe

Adam and Eve were drowned Who do you think was saved ?

(Answer is Pinch Me, and you do)

18.

(When child's feet are bare) Shoe the old horse, shoe the old mare,

But let the little colt go bare, bare, bare

(pat the bottom of feet)

19.

(For bare toes) This little pig went to market This little pig stayed home This little pig had roast beef This little pig had none This little pig cried, "wee, wee, wee," all the way home.

or

(from big toe to little toe)

20.

This little one eats grass This little one eats hay This little one drinks water This little one runs away This little one does nothing, But lie around all day.

(from big toe to little toe)

21.

(For fathers, or mothers with strong leg muscles: place child across your foot)

Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross

To see a fine lady upon a fine horse

With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes

She shall have music where-eever she goes.

(For a ride on the knees)

Trot, trot to Boston Trot, trot to Lynn Trot, trot to Salem Then trot home again.

23.

Trot, trot to Boston To buy a fat pig Home again, home again Jiggity, jig.

(the whole verse slowly)

Trot, trot to Boston To buy a fat hog Home again, home again Jiggity, jog.

(second verse very slowly)

24.

(Another ride on the knees)

This is the way the lady rides Trot - Trot - Trot This is the way the gentleman rides

Gallop - Gallop - Gallop This is the way the farmer rides

Hobble-de-hoy - Hobble-de-hoy

(gently) (stately)

(rolling from side to side)

25.

Hand tower

(build the tower with two or more children by alternating hands. The hand on the bottom of the table goes to the top of the pile and so on)

26.

Eeensie Weensie Spider

(index finger and thumb from

opposite hands crawl up an

Went up the waterspout

imaginary wall)

Down came the rain and

(both hands extended above head

washed the spider out

come down slowly, fingers

wiggling)

Out came the sun and dried

(big circle with arms above

away the rain

head, fingers touching)

And the Eeensie Weensie

Spider

(index finger and thumb from

Went up the spout again.

opposite hand crawl up wall)