Barneblad: Soon it is summer, & that means FISHING!
Photo: Heidi Håvan Grosch
A fish made of newspaper. These kind are easy to catch!
Heidi Håvan Grosch
Sparbu, Norway
Have you heard the song that starts “down in the meadow in an itty bitty pool…”? They have the same song in Norwegian! So now is your chance to learn both versions. The Norwegian version isn’t exactly the same as the English, but that is how they sing it in Norway so that is the way we will sing it here!
The Norwegian song is a story about three little fish that ended up as dinner. One fish was called Pål, one was called Hans, and no one knows the name of the third one because he came from another country. One got fried in a pan, one got cooked, and no one knows exactly what happened to the third fish. It’s a mystery. One fish was from Oslo, one from Moss, and one got lost in a waterfall somewhere.
Har du hørt historien om de tre små fisk
Som endte sine dager
i en fiskehandlers disk
Refreng:
Og de svømte og de svømte
og de svømte rundt
For deres mor hadde sagt at
svømming var sunt
Båb-båb – dædi-dædi – båb-båb – suuh!
Båb-båb – dædi-dædi – båb-båb – suuh!
Båb-båb – dædi-dædi – båb-båb – suuh!
For deres mor hadde sagt
at svømming var sunt.
Den ene het Pål
og den andre het Hans,
den tredje vet jeg ikke,
for han var utenlandsk
Refreng
Den ene ble stekt
og den andre ble kokt,
den tredje vet jeg ikke,
for han var uten lukt
Refreng
Den ene var fra Oslo
og den andre var fra Moss,
den tredje vet jeg ikke
for den havna i en foss.
Down in a meadow in an itty bitty pool
Swam three little fishies
and the mama fishie, too
Swim said the mama fishie,
swim if you can
And they swam and they swam
all over the dam
Chorus:
Boop, boop diddum daddum waddum chew!
Boop, boop diddum daddum waddum chew!
Boop, boop diddum daddum waddum chew!
And they swam and they swam
all over the dam
Stop! Said the mama
or you will get lost
But the three little fishies
didn’t want to get bossed
So the three little fishies
went off on a spree
And they swam and they swam
right out to the sea
Chorus
Help! Cried the little fishies
look at the whales
Quick as they could,
they turned on their tails
Back to the pool
in the meadow they swam
And they swam and they swam
all over the dam.
The song “Three Little Fishies” was written in 1939 and traveled to Norway in 1940. Over the years, many different singers in Norway, the U.S., and other countries have recorded this song. That has helped it stay famous. Today it is very popular with day care and barnehage children.
Here is a short animated film by kids just like you on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBDaBiQ0w_A.
Norwegian words for different types of fish—can you match them correctly?
Makrell
Ørret
Sild
Sei
Salmon
Herring
Trout
Mackerel
Make your own fish!
There are many fun ways to make a fish, and you can find ideas if you Google “Fish crafts.” Here is an idea using newspaper and construction paper.
- Cut out two fish the same size out of newspaper.
- Staple the sides together, but leave the top of the head open.
- Stuff more newspaper between the two fish shapes stapled together. When the fish is stuffed and fluffy, staple the head together.
- Cut out shapes from different pieces of construction paper. Glue them to the fish like scales.
This article is a part of Barneblad, a monthly feature by Heidi Håvan Grosch to share with kids and grandkids.
This article originally appeared in the June 3, 2016, issue of The Norwegian American. To subscribe, visit SUBSCRIBE or call us at (206) 784-4617.
