Little White Duck

Burl Ives sang the poem Little White Duck in the late 1900s. The poem teaches children about water animals and the sound they make. In this poem, we will learn about ducks, frogs, bugs and snakes. You can also list other sea animals and the sound they make by the end of the poem. 

Little White Duck Nursery Rhyme

The Little White Duck lyrics are given below. Read them aloud, and then we will discuss the meaning and summary of the poem.

The Little White Duck 

There is a little white duck, sitting in water

The little white duck, doing what he oughter

He took some bite of a lily pad

He flapped his wings and he said, "I am glad

I am a little white duck sitting in the water

Quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack, quack"

Little Green Frog Swimming 

There is a little green frog swimming in water

The little green frog, doing what he oughter

He jumped right off from lily pad

That a little duck bit and he said, "I am glad

I am a little green frog swimming in water

Glump glug, glump glug, glump glug glug"

Little Black Bug Floating 

There is the little black bug floating on water

The little black bug doing what he oughter

He tickled frog on the lily pad

That little duck bit and he said, "I am glad

I am little black bug floating on water

Chirp bzz, chirp bzz, chirp bzz bzz"

Little Red Snake Playing 

There is little red snake playing in water

The little red snake doing what he oughter

He frightened duck and frog so bad

He ate the little bug and said, "I am glad

I am a little red snake lying in water

Wriggle hiss, wriggle hiss, wriggle hiss hiss"

Lily Pad In Water

Now there is nobody left sitting in water

Nobody left doing what he oughter

There is nothing left but a lily pad

The duck and the frog ran away, I am sad

Because there is nobody left sitting in water

Boo, boo, boo

Little White Duck Summary 

The poem is about a child observing nature and sitting near the water. The child saw that a little white-coloured duck started playing in the water like it usually does after eating a bit of lily pad. Then comes the frog. He also jumped off the lily pad and started swimming along with the duck. The little bug joins the duck and the frog and starts floating in the water. As the snakes join them, they run away from the water, leaving the snake alone. 

Word Galaxy

Let us now study the sounds made by the animals in the poem. 

• Duck - Quack 

• Frog - Glump gug 

• Bug - Chirp 

• Snake - Hiss

There are also other animals that we see around us. Let us make a list of those animals and the sound they make. 

• Dog - Woof 

• Cat - Meow 

• Pig - Oink 

• Horse - Neigh 

• Tiger - Roar 

• Cow - Moo 

• Goat  - Baa 

Animals and The Sound They Make 

Conclusion 

The poem is about the animals that visited the pond having a lily pad and playing together. But as the snake joined them, they all fled because they got scared. The snake was then lonely and played by himself.