Lyrics
Way up high in the apple tree, Two little apples smiled at me. I shook that tree as hard as I could. Down came the apples Mm-mmm were they good!
#Apple Tree at a glance
- Country of origin
- 🌐 Unknown
- Sung in
- English
- Words by
- Traditional
- First known
- not documented; no author recorded
- Best for ages
- 2–7
- Mood
- playful, traditional
- Last updated
- 27 August 2026
How to sing it
- Put both hands up over your head for "way up high", then make two fists for the two apples.
- Pretend to grab the trunk and shake it as hard as you can.
- Bring your hands down as the apples fall, then rub your tummy on "Mm-mmm were they good!"
Meaning and origin
This is one of those tiny action rhymes that is really a set of movements with a few words attached. Two apples smile down from high in the tree; the child reaches up, grabs the trunk, and shakes it as hard as they can; down tumble the apples; and the whole thing ends with a contented tummy-rub. In five lines it packs a reach, a shake, a fall and a taste.
Where it comes from is not documented. It has no recorded author, and the sites that carry it — Mama Lisa’s World files it under the United States, the Scottish Book Trust uses it in its Bookbug sessions, Princeton Public Library sings it at storytime — give no origin and do not quite agree on the words: the apples are “little” in one, “shiny” in another, “red” in a third. That is how a rhyme behaves when it travels by mouth rather than by book, and it is why this collection leaves its country open. Its appeal is entirely practical: it gives a very young child a clear little sequence to act out, a burst of vigorous shaking in the middle, and a happy ending.
Common questions
- What is "Apple Tree" about?
- Picking apples. Two apples smile down from high in the tree; the child shakes the tree as hard as they can, the apples come tumbling down, and they taste delicious. It is a tiny action rhyme, acted out with reaching, shaking and a happy tummy-rub.
- Where is "Apple Tree" from?
- Its origin is not documented. It appears on early-years and library sites in both Scotland and the United States, with small differences — "two little apples", "two shiny apples" or "two red apples" — and none of them records where or when it began, so this collection does not assign it a country.
- Who wrote "Apple Tree"?
- No author is recorded. It is passed on in playgroups, libraries and nurseries as an anonymous action rhyme, with the wording varying a little from place to place.
