The out in the garden poem lyrics are below, with a free printable PDF you can save or print. This is the short, rhyming “come and play in the garden” poem kids learn in Pre-K and kindergarten, perfect to read aloud at home or in class.
OUT IN THE GARDEN
OUT IN THE GARDEN EACH FINE DAY,
WITH MY DOLL I LIKE TO PLAY.
I ROCK MY DOLL, I ROCK MY DOLL,
I ROCK MY DOLL, ON EACH FINE DAY.
OUT IN THE GARDEN EACH FINE DAY,
WITH MY BALL I LIKE TO PLAY.
I BOUNCE MY BALL, I BOUNCE MY BALL,
I BOUNCE MY BALL, ON EACH FINE DAY,
OUT IN THE GARDEN EACH FINE DAY,
WITH MY DOLL I LIKE TO PLAY.
I PLAY LIKE THIS, I PLAY LIKE THIS,
I PLAY LIKE THIS, ON EACH FINE DAY.
PRINT LYRICS💡 Takeaway: The repetition is the teaching tool. Let kids say the third line with you.
📚 About this poem
“Out In The Garden” is a short rhyme for ages 3 to 6. The repetition is the trick. The three-in-a-row line (“I rock my doll, I rock my doll, I rock my doll”) is what kids remember first, and it’s why this poem works so well as an early read aloud. By the third repeat, even a four-year-old who can’t read the line yet is saying it from memory.
I’ve watched my own kids do this with the doll stanza before they could read a single word. That’s exactly the kind of rhyme repetition that builds phonological awareness in young children, which is the foundation US kindergartens look for.
If your kids enjoy this one, The Happy Rope and Climbing The Ladder have the same short, rhyming, easy-to-memorize feel.
Check out More Poems in Kids Poems Section
Curriculum Alignment: Aligned with Common Core State Standards: RF.K.2 (Phonological Awareness, rhyming) and RL.K.5 (Recognize common types of texts, poems). Suitable for Preschool Read-Aloud, Kindergarten Morning Work, and Homeschool.
Madhu is the founder and lead author of SmallKidsHomework.com, a free learning site she started in 2009. She writes the poems, fairy tales, folktales, coloring pages, and kindergarten worksheets here, many tagged to Common Core standards. She tests printables with real children and keeps everything free, with no signup needed.
