Five Little Monkeys- And the Moral
Five Little Monkeys- And the Moral
Five little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
Four little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
Three little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped her head.
Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
Two little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
One little monkey jumping on the bed.
She fell off and bumped her head.
Mama called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!”
What about this Rhyme????? 🙂 🙂 🙂
OMG!!! I can’t laugh out loud more while writing this piece this time 🙂 And the reason is solely the expressions that I recalled of my son when I used to play this rhyme on TV. Ani, that time he looked like a monkey. Ha ha ha ! He liked the rhythm of the rhyme. Here, we get to see Monkeys in my neighborhood on a daily basis, and so Ani relates to this rhyme so easily. After I decoded the lessons using my mommy brain, I explained Ani in a storytelling format. What I could see was that Ani nodded his head. This was a clear indication that he managed to connect with the inner meaning of the rhyme. The lessons are quite simple, and if you want to share with your child, then here you go…………………. We have no data available on Google to know about the author of this Rhyme. Well, author Eileen Christelow adapted it into a picture book, and it was published in 1989.
Lesson 1: Your Safety is in your hands
Jumping on the bed may feel fun, but it can turn dangerous; even the slightest miscalculation of steps can cause injuries. Just like the monkeys, if we overlook the safety rules, we may get hurt. This applies also to adults… Rules are important to follow in every step of life.
Lesson 2: Listening to your elders
In this rhyme, the doctor repeatedly says, “No more monkeys jumping on the bed!” The monkeys, being naughty, keep doing it. But every time they disobeyed the doctor, and even after noticing the consequences of the hurt monkeys. The situation kept repeating, and one by one, all the monkeys got injured. This teaches children that following the guidance of elders (parents, teachers, doctors) helps them to stay safe.
Lesson 3: Consequences of Actions
Every time a monkey doesn’t listen, someone gets hurt. This shows kids that our choices have consequences—if we ignore rules, we may face problems.
Lesson 4: Learning is possible through Repetition
The rhyme is in a repetitive rhyming format. Such a format helps emphasize the lesson that if we make the same mistake repeatedly, the result will remain the same. Change is possible when we listen carefully, follow, and act wisely.
So, when narrating this rhyme, as a parent, you can narrate to your child like me…..
“See, the monkeys didn’t listen, and they kept getting hurt. That’s why we must listen when Mumma/Papa or the doctor says something—because they want to keep us safe. Rules are not to stop our fun, but to protect us.” Well, we cannot deny the fact that rules are a must to follow for us, too. When we follow, kids learn to follow it fast, by seeing us.
This blog post is part of ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’
hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla
in collaboration with Mads’ Cookhouse.
I feel like a Monkey myself telling my children repeatedly to not jump on the bed!
Children do not listen to advice , but they can learn from the mistakes of others.
I like how you turned a simple nursery rhyme into lessons we all need to hear — rules, listening, consequences, growth. What you wrote made me see it not just as a children’s game, but as something that mirrors life at every age.
I love the way you find lessons in simple things. This rhyme is very addictive, actually. But the life lessons you have pointed out are very true.In the last para when you say parents must follow the rules is what I liked. Kids are like monkeys and they ape their parents and people around them. If only parents behaved themselves, children would too.
read your take on Five Little Monkeysm, absolutely delightful! You’ve turned a simple nursery rhyme into a masterclass in parenting wisdom. From safety to listening to elders, you’ve unpacked each lesson with such warmth and clarity.
This rhyme is a reminder of my daughter’s toddler time, as she jumped every time the rhyme played. The lessons that you have listed out of the rhyme are precious, for diligent parenting
Loved how you turned a simple rhyme into life lessons we all need to hear. I think ‘consequences of actions’ is a lesson most adults have failed to learn in life and through this poem too of course
This was my son’s favourite rhyme! Thankfully, I always insisted that he jump on the floor or he would break his head like the monkeys and he agreed and accepted. Guess he learned all the lessons well!
This is not a lesson for kids; we adults could learn from it too! Love how you interpreted a nursery rhyme so sensibly for your child.
I love how you connected this classic rhyme to real-life lessons! It’s such a fun way to teach kids about safety, listening to elders, and understanding consequences—all while enjoying Ani’s adorable monkey-like reactions.
Good way of using nursery rhyme to drive home and important lesson.
I love your blogs where you decode childhood nostalgic poems so beautifully.
I like this series of yours. Morals out of nursery rhymes. So much to learn and implement in our lives.