Music Games: A Tisket a Tasket

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"A Tisket A Tasket" is a nursery rhyme first recorded in America in the late nineteenth century.[1][2] It was used as the basis for a very successful and highly regarded 1938 recording by Ella Fitzgerald. The rhyme was first noted in the United States in 1938[3] as a children's rhyming game. It was sung while children danced in a circle. One of the number ran on the outside of the circle and dropped a handkerchief. The nearest child would then pick it up and chase the dropper. If caught, the dropper either was kissed, joined the circle, or had to tell the name of their sweetheart.[2] An early noted version had the lyrics:

A-tisket a-tasket

A green and yellow basket

I wrote a letter to my mom

And on the way I dropped it,

I dropped it, I dropped it,

And on the way I dropped it.

A little boy he picked it up

And put it in his pocket.”

Here are some fun games you can play with this song after introducing it.

The first one is a Duck Duck Goose style game.

  1. Have the children sit in a circle.

  2. Give each child a “letter" (a piece of paper)

  3. The child who is “it” carries a basket and walks around the circle as the song is sung.

  4. When they hear the words “Lost it” they take the letter from the person closest to them and begin running around the circle while the rest of the song is sung.

  5. The person who’s letter has been taken chases the child who is it.

  6. The child who was it sits in the open spot and the chaser receives the basket and is now it.

  7. You know everyone has had a chance to go when no one has a letter left in their hands.

Here’s a game to explore dynamics with. I like to experience singing voice, talking voice, whisper, and screaming voices before playing this game so the children understand the difference. We only use our soft and loud singing voices for this game.

  1. Give each child a letter (small piece of paper)

  2. The child who is “it” hides their eyes or leaves the room.

  3. One child hides their letter in the room and makes sure everyone in the room knows where it's hidden.

  4. The child who is “it” returns to the room, holding the basket they begin to search for the hidden letter.

  5. Everyone else sings the song quietly if the person who is it is far away and louder as they get closer to the hidden letter.