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Help me remember--children's rhyme that gives the chills


eternallytired
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My 6yo is super into me giving him the chills lately, but the only rhyme I can remember is the one that was more popular when I was older...which is rather gruesome. 

 

FYI, the one I can remember goes:

Treasure Island, Treasure Island [slowly drawing a large circle each time you say it]

X marks the spot. X marks the spot. [making a large X each time you say it]

Dot, dash, dot, dash, question mark. [self-explanatory]

Spider crawling up your back--gotcha! [fingers crawl up back and grab the back of the person's neck]

Spider crawling up your back--gotcha! [same as above]

Dagger in the back--blood rushes down! [pound your fist between shoulder blades as if stabbing, then run your fingers down from there as a river of blood]

Dagger in the back--blood rushes down! [same as above]

Cool breeze, tight squeeze, now you've got the chills!  [blow on the person's neck, squeeze both shoulders, and lightly tickle fingers all over back]

 

I've been skipping the "dagger in the back--blood rushes down" bit with him, but I'd love to remember the clean rhyme I learned when I was really little.  I know it started out "dot, dot, dash...dot, dot, dash..."  And I'm pretty sure you pretended to crack an egg and have the yolk run down.  I've searched online and found nothing like it, just odd versions of the one above.  Anyone?

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X marks the spot (draw x on back)

A circle and a dot (draw circle on back, poke in middle)

Up the river down the river (run fingers up then down back)

Cootie shot! (tickle in the middle of back)

Cold breeze (blow on person's neck)

Tight squeeze (squeeze shoulder)

Egg. . . . . (put fist on head)

Smashing down your head (smack fist, and pull hands down head)

 

 

That's the one I learned!

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Going on a treasure hunt X marks the spot (make the X)

Snakes crawling up your back (squiggle fingers up spine)

Bite you (squeeze back of neck lightly)

Snakes crawling down (squiggle down)

(Repeat the snake lines again.)

Take the cool breeze (blow on back of neck)

And a tight squeeze (squeeze back of neck)

And now you've got the chilly willies.

 

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Going on a treasure hunt (walk fingers up the spine)

X marks the spot (draw an x)

Four big boulders (thump side of fist in a square pattern - shoulder blades and right below)

and one tiny rock (poke finger in the center)

Spider crawling up the spine (tickle with fingers up the spine)

Spider crawling down the spine

Slight breeze (blow on neck)

Tight squeeze (squeeze the sides)

Now you've got the shivers!

 

 

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  • 1 year later...

This was our version:

Crisscross (draw a large X on the back)

Applesauce (knock on the back 3 times with your fist)

Spiders crawling up your back (walk lightly up the back with your fingers

Spiders crawling down your back (walk lightly down the back with your fingers)

Egg crack (knock gently on the top of the head with your fist and then open your hand and run it lightly down the head and neck)

Cool breeze (blow on the the neck)

Tight squeeze ( squeeze shoulders firmly)

Now you have the chills ( rub lightly all over the back with fingertips of both hands)

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When I was a child, my mom did it:

 

X marks the spot

A circle and a dot

Dash, dot, dash, dot

Big question mark

Blood running down

 

When my ds son was little, I changed "blood running down" to "chocolate syrup all over". I never thought the "blood" was creepy when I was little. It just struck me as weird when I had a child of my own.

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Ours (Australia) goes like this.

 

"Going on a treasure hunt, X marks the spot (draw X on back)

 

Blood goes up, blood goes down. Blood goes up, blood goes down. (run fingers up and down back)

 

Cool breeze! (Breathe on neck)

 

Tight squeeze! (squeeze shoulders)

 

Crack an egg and make you freeeeze!" (Pretend to crack egg above head and it 'drips' - run fingers lightly over scalp.

 

ETA - We didn't have this growing up. I learned it from a younger sister as an adult, she used it with her kids and I ended up using it (and still do) with mine. I'll have to ask her where she got it from. 

Edited by bookbard
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Oh this is an old thread isn't it? But it's pulling a memory out of my brain that I didn't even know was there. My sister, our friend Melanie, and I would do this one (and enjoy having it done to us--it really did give you goose bumps):

 

Big X (draw on back)

Little X (draw smaller x on back)

Question Mark (draw out top part of question mark on back)

Marks the spot (emphasize the dot of the question mark on back)

Tight squeeze (squeeze shoulders)

Cool breeze (blow on back of neck)

Now you've got the shivers!

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This is great! We had one too but with different words. I'm going write all of these down because this was my kids' favorite game. I got mine from my cousin when we were both six.

 

Going on a treasure hunt (fingers walk up the back)

X marks the spot (draw and x, touch the middle)

Snakes crawling up your back (slither fingers in serpentine motion of the spine)

Bite you in the neck (startle-squeeze the neck gently)

Cool breeze (blow down neck)

Tight squeeze (grab sides with both hands)

(Draw this part out and startle at the end)

Noooow yoooou haaaave theeee....

CHILLS (grab sides again with both hands)

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In Carson City NV it was:

 

Big x

little x

Question mark

Dot

Line line line line

Dot dot dot

Spider crawling up your back

Blood gushing down

Cool breeze

Tight squeeze

Now you have the shiveries.

Edited by nixpix5
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West Coast Canada version:

 

dot, dot, line, line

spiders climbing up your spine

tight squeeze (gentle squeeze on back of neck)

cool breeze (blow on neck)

Now you've got the shiveries!

 

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This post has me curious now about all of the others like:

 

Down by the banks of...

say say oh playmate

Mrs. Susie had a tugboat

 

And all the rest... I was always curious about how those schoolyard rhymes made it from place to place. Good times :)

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  • 2 years later...
  • 1 year later...
  • 1 month later...
16 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Might be best this thread gets closed.  A little weird.

Yes, I agree. The use of the word "pedo" made me uncomfortable. I hope it doesn't mean what I think it means.

I mean, it was interesting to talk about childhood memories and rhymes amongst ourselves. But people joining the forum just to post in this thread? It's just, as you said, a little weird.

Edited by MercyA
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6 minutes ago, MercyA said:

Yes, I agree. The use of the word "pedo" made me uncomfortable. I hope it doesn't mean what I think it means.

I mean, it was interesting to talk about childhood memories and rhymes amongst ourselves. But people joining the forum just to post in this thread? It's just, as you said, a little weird.

Unfortunately I think it does, at least it does where I live, and it’s probably a good reminder to us all to be a bit careful about what we share on a public forum.

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