London Bridge

London Bridge (*see games at bottom of page after alternate version.*)
	London Bridge is falling down, Falling down, falling down, London Bridge is falling down, My fair lady.
	Build it up with iron bars, Iron bars, iron bars, Build it up with iron bars, My fair lady.
	Iron bars will bend and bow, Bend and bow, bend and bow, Iron bars will bend and bow, My fair lady.
London Bridge relocated in Arizona.	Build it up with gold and silver, Gold and silver, gold and silver. Build it up with gold and silver, My fair lady.
	Silver and gold will be stolen away, Stolen away, stolen away, Silver and gold will be stolen away, My fair Lady.
	Take the key and lock her up, Lock her up, lock her up. Take the key and lock her up, My fair lady.
The rhyme is often used in a children's singing game, which exists in a wide variety of forms, with additional verses. The most common is that two players make an arch while the others pass through in single file. The arch is then lowered at the "lock up" point to "catch" a player. This nursery rhyme dates back to at least the 17th century and may be as old as the burning of London Bridge in 1013. The London Bridge built in 1831 was dismantled and reassembled in Lake Havasu City, Az, in 1971. *Here is another version:* London Bridge is falling down, Falling down, Falling down. London Bridge is falling down, My fair lady. Take a key and lock her up, Lock her up, Lock her up. Take a key and lock her up, 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 needles and pins, Needles and pins, Needles and pins. Build it up with needles and pins, My fair lady. Pins and needles bend and break, Bend and break, Bend and break. Pins and needles bend and break, 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. Game 1: Formation: Two children join hands and form an arch. They secretly decide who is silver and who is gold. The other children form a single line to pass under the bridge. Action: Children in line pass under the bridge. On "My fair lady", the bridge falls and captures a prisoner. Chorus...The bridge gently sways the prisoner back and forth. At the end of the chorus, the prisoner is secretly asked, "Do you want to pay with silver or gold?" The prisoner then stands behind the child representing his choice. The game continues with verses and chorus until all children have been captured. A tug-of-war between "gold" and "silver" ends the game. Suggestion: You may choose other forms of payment such as cake or ice cream, marbles or jacks..etc. Game 2: Formation and Action: Same as Game 1.The prisoner takes the place in the bridge of the child representing his choice of silver or gold. The child who was part of the bridge joins the line and the game continues.

London Bridge relocated in Arizona.