Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
"Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" is a children's song. The song was documented as early as 1961. It is often sung to the tune of "There Is a Tavern in the Town", although it is sometimes sung to the tune of "London Bridge Is Falling Down". Description. There is generally only one verse with lyrics similar to those below. The second line repeats the first line both in words and in melody, the third line has a rising tone, and the fourth line repeats the first two. Children might dance while they sing the  song and touch their head, shoulders, knees, and toes in sequence to the words. Lyrics. The lyrics can also be sung in reverse, like this: Each verse is repeated, with one word being omitted each time, just touching their body parts, without actually saying the word. For example: This pattern continues until all the words are omitted. The last verse consists of no actual singing or singing all lyrics, but sometimes at a much faster tempo. There is a song that was adapted from the traditional; it uses another tune and says, "Eyes and ears", "Chin/Mouth and nose" and  suggests touching the body parts as in the traditional song. Another alternative from the traditional starts the line with "Eyes" and includes "chin;" however, it has the words in an order that causes the motions to zig zag. Today there are many derivative songs that teach the vocabulary of body parts. One example, using the same tune, as featured on the "Kidsongs" video entitled, "Boppin' with the Biggles" is as follows: