Chris Kelly & Dan Jones In The Playground
Hopscotch at Columbia School, Bethnal Green, 1997
When photographer Chris Kelly sent me these exuberant pictures taken in East End primary schools, I realised it was the ideal opportunity to invite Dan Jones to select children’s rhymes to complement her playful images, drawing from the thousands he has collected in playgrounds here and elsewhere since 1948.
Asked to produce photographs for an education brochure, Chris Kelly turned up at six schools between 2000 and 2002 with camera, lights and optimism. There was never any shortage of ideas or young art directors, and the pictures you see here are the result of a collaboration between photographer, teachers and pupils, with the children aways having the biggest say.
Meanwhile, the heartening news from the playground that Dan Jones has to report is that the culture of rhymes is alive and kicking, in spite of the multimedia distractions of the modern age. The endless process of repetition and reinvention goes on with ceaseless vigour.
Susan Lawrence Junior School
School dinners, school dinners,
Squashed baked beans, squashed baked beans,
Squiggly semolina, squiggly semolina.
I feel sick! Get a bowl quick!
It’s too late, I done it on the plate!
(Manya Eversley, Bow)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Everywhere we go
Everywhere we go
People always ask us
People always ask us
Who we are
Who we are
And where we come from
Where we come from
So we tell them
So we tell them
We’re from Stepney
WE’RE FROM STEPNEY
Mighty, mighty Stepney!
MIGHTY, MIGHTY STEPNEY!
And if they can’t hear us,
IF THEY CAN’T HEAR US
We sing a little louder
WE SING A LITTLE LOUDER!
(Call and response chat from Rushmore Junior School)
Bonner Primary School
Inky Pinky Ponky,
Daddy had a donkey.
Donkey died,
Daddy cried,
Inky pinky ponky!
(Dip from St Paul’s Church of England School, Wellclose Sq)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Zum gali gali gali,
Clap clap clap
Zum gali gali
Clap clap clap
Zum gali gali
Clap clap clap
Zum
clap clap clap
We can work with joy as we sing
Clap clap clap
We can sing with joy as we work
Clap clap clap
(Israeli round from the children of Kobi Nazrul School)
Olga Primary School
Pepsi Pepsi came to town,
Coca Cola shot him down,
Dr Pepper picked him up,
Now they order Seven Up!
(Clapping game from Honor, Sadia, April and Jahira of Bangabundu Junior School)
Bangabandhu Primary School
Im Pim Safety pin
Im pim
Out!
Change your nappies inside out
Not because they’re dirty
Not because they’re clean
Not because your mother says
You’re the Fairy Queen!
(Counting out rhyme from the children of Bangabandhu Primary School)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down.
London Bridge is falling down, My Fair Lady.
Build it up with sticks and stones, sticks and stones, sticks and stones.
Build it up with sticks and stones, My Fair Lady.
Sticks and stones will wear away…
Build it up with iron and steel…Iron and Steel will rust away…
Build it up with bricks and clay…Bricks and Clay will wash away…
(Arch game from children of Bluegate Fields School, Stepney)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Down in the valley where nobody goes,
There’s an ooky spooky woman who washes her clothes.
With a rub-a-dub here and a rub-a-dub there,
That’s the way she washes her clothes.
(Clapping game from children of St Paul’s Church of England School, Wellclose Sq)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Please Mr Porter, may we cross your water
To see your lovely daughter, swimming in the water?
(Chasing game for running across the playground at St Paul’s Church of England School, Wellclose Sq)
Marion Richardson School
Once I had a snail
And I 1 it
I 2 it
I 3 it
I 4 it
I 5 it
I 6 it
I 7 it
I ATE (8) it
(Riddle from Colin and his mother at Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
Racing car number 9
Losing petrol all the time
How many gallons did you lose?
(6!)
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
You’re OUT!
(Counting out rhyme from Shamima, Natalie Abida and Shazna of Hermitage School, Wapping)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Twinkle, twinkle, chocolate bar, Daddy (or Mummy) drives a rusty car
Push the button, pull the choke,
Off we go in a puff of smoke,
Twinkle, twinkle, chocolate bar, Daddy drives a rusty car.
(Miming game from infants at Christchurch School, Brick Lane)
Olga Primary School
I like coffee
I like tea
I like climbing up the tree
1, 2, 3, 4, 5
(Dip from the children of Year 4 Christchurch Primary School, Brick Lane)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay!
My knickers flew away
They came back yesterday
From a little holiday
I said “Where have you been?”
They said ‘To see the Queen
At Windsor Castle!”
You little rascal
(Comic song from Katie, Lizzy Alison (Ashford) at Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Olicker Bolicker
Suzie Solicker
Ollicker boliker
Knob!
(Dip from Sonny and Marina of Wapping)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
Ecker decker,
Johnny Cracker,
Ecker decker do,
Ease, cheese,
Butter, bread,
Out goes you
(Counting out rhyme from Columbia School, Bethnal Green)
Bonner Primary School
Jee Jai Jao (Brother-in-law)
Kabhi upor Kabhi nicheh (You’re going up, you’re going down)
Kabhi ageh Kabhi pitcheh (You’re going in front, you’re going behind)
Kabhi eke Kabhi ekh dui teen (Going 1. Going 2. Going 1, 2, 3)
Pushu! (Punch!)
(Hindi dip from Christchurch Primary School, Brick Lane)
Susan Lawrence Junior School
Boom Boom
Shakalaka
Out goes you
Out goes another one
And that is YOU
(Dip from children of Bangabundhu School)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
In a golden treasure, with an East and a West,
I took my boyfriend to the Chinese shop.
He bought me ice-cream, he bought me a cake,
He sent me home with a bellyache.
I said: “Mama, Mama, I feel sick.
Call me a doctor quick, quick, quick!
Doctor, Doctor, am I gonna die?”
“Count to five if you’re alive
With a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
You’re dead again!”
(Skipping song from children of year 5 at Arnhem Wharf School)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
Miss Polly had a dolly that was sick sick sick
(Rock baby in arms)
She called for the Doctor to come quick quick quick
(Hold telephone to ear)
The doctor came with his bag and his hat
(Touch imaginary bag and hat)
And he knocked on the door with a Rat Tat Tat Tat!
(Knock on door)
He looked at the dolly and he shook his head
(Shake head)
He said “Miss Polly, put her straight to bed”
(Wag finger to indicate telling her off)
He wrote out a paper for a pill pill pill
(Write on imaginary paper)
“I’ll be back in the morning with my bill bill bill”
(Clapping and miming game from Rukhaya and Siobhan at Christchurch Primary School, Brick Lane)
Holy Family Roman Catholic Primary School
Sally go round the sun,
Sally go round the moon,
Sally go round the chimney pots
on a Sunday afternoon.
WHOOPS !
(Dancing game from Redriff Primary School, Rotherhithe)
Photographs copyright © Chris Kelly
You may also like to take a look at
Chris Kelly’s Columbia School Portraits 1996
Chris Kelly’s Cable St Gardeners
and read about
Here are some earlier collections of photography of children in the East End
Whoops! indeed. What a wonderful smiling start to the day – thank you.
“When I was One,
I had just begun.
When I was Two,
I was nearly new.
When I was Three
I was hardly me.
When I was Four,
I was not much more.
When I was Five,
I was just alive.
But now I am Six,
I’m as clever as clever,
So I think I’ll be six now for ever and ever.”
Alan Alexander Milne (1882-1956)
Love & Peace
ACHIM
Girls and Boys
Full of joys
Cheering up our Monday
Best of times
Making rhymes
Happy clappy Funday!
Wonderful photo’s and rhymes! At the age of 66 I recognised several of the rhymes and dibs – from my school days in different parts of the country, including London. Some of the words are different, some not as ‘rude’ as I remembered, but lovely to know the traditions are carried forward. Thanks for a bright start to today.
Greetings from Boston,
GA, what a delightful combination of children’s photos by Chris Kelly with accompanying rhymes by Dan Jones from a few decades ago.
And not a sign of Plexiglas separators, hand sanitizers, masks, plastic gloves, or social distancing. When will we ever go back???
Pure joy! Goodness, I can’t imagine of the last time I thought of “Ta-ra-ra-BOOM-de-yay!”.
That gave me a chuckle, recalling the Western-Pennsylvania school yard version of a Parisian can-can! Too funny.
What a delightful group of kiddos you’ve shown us, and adding the rhymes was genius.
In high school we had an insufferably-long-and-complicated “call and response” song, that
started out with “Flea!”……then “flea! fly!”……then “flea! fly! flow!”; back and forth. But
then it got horrifically complicated with long passages that sounded like “faux” Latin. All
sung with gusto at top volume, on buses going to football games. Lord, how I pitied the teachers who were forced to accompany us. They must have wanted to “flee” for sure.
Thanks for this happy carefree post!
This is wonderful. To think that these rhymes have survived in today’s electronic world makes me feel full of hope for this generation of children.
Who was/is Susan Lawrence of the Susan Lawrence School?
If she, like many that schools have been named after should be remembered well.
Pam from Canada
Miss Polly had a dolly took me right back.
Enjoyed the dips too. I liked the rude one, where ‘it’ is the one who ends up with knob.
Two dips I remember. A longer one that lengthen the process:
‘Ip dip
sky blue.
It is not you!’
And:
‘One potato
two potato
three potato
four
five potato
six potato
seven potato
more.’
She was a local politician Pam. The actress Angela Lansbury’s father was also another local MP with an estate named after him.
Such Gorgeous Pictures of these Darling Children!! Thank You So Much!!?????????
What Woolf called it:
“That great Cathedral space which was childhood.”
Can you remember?