Text types: Texts for fun & leisure

Songs

London Bridge is falling down 

London Bridge is falling down, 
Falling down, falling down,
London Bridge is falling down,
My fair lady. 

How will we build it up,
Build it up, build it up?
How will we build it up,
My fair lady? 

Build it up with silver and gold,
Silver and gold, silver and gold, 
Build it up with silver and gold,
My fair lady. 

Gold and silver I have none,
I have none, I have none,
Gold and silver I have none,
My fair lady. 

Build it up with wood and clay,
Wood and clay, wood and clay,
Build it up with wood and clay,
My fair lady. 

Wood and clay will wash away,
Wash away, wash away,
Wood and clay will wash away,
My fair lady. 

Build it up with stone so strong,
Stone so strong, stone so strong,
Build it up with stone so strong,
My fair lady. 
 
Stone so strong will last so long,
Last so long, last so long,
Stone so strong will last so long, 
My fair lady. 

Click here if you would like to hear an excerpt from this song.

Teaching suggestions

Note that there are many different versions of this song; however, there is little agreement as to which bridge the song is actually about. 

After you have sung this song with your students, you might like to read the story of the three little pigs and lead the class to a discussion of different building materials (bamboo, wood, clay, straw, bricks, stone, concrete, glass, steel, etc). Follow this up with a writing activity. Tell the students to imagine that they have been left on an island. Ask them what they would build a house from. Get them to write a simple description of their house, and illustrate it with a picture.

For a PrimeTeach web activity related to building materials for homes, see:

Reading an animated story about homes