What is "I Wiggle" for?

Getting the wiggles out. The child wiggles fingers, toes, shoulders and nose, and then — the whole point — announces that "the wiggles are out of me" and sits perfectly still. It is a calming-down rhyme that uses movement to arrive at stillness.

When is "I Wiggle" used?

Usually to settle a restless group. By letting children wiggle hard first and then freeze, it channels fidgety energy into a game and ends with everyone quiet and ready to listen.

Who wrote "I Wiggle"?

No author is recorded. It is a traditional preschool action rhyme, handed down in nurseries and classrooms with small variations.

United States · sung in English

I Wiggle

"I Wiggle" is a short settling-down action rhyme: the child wiggles fingers, toes, shoulders and nose — getting all the wiggles out — and then sits "as still as still can be".

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Lyrics

I wiggle my fingers, I wiggle my toes, I wiggle my shoulders, I wiggle my nose.

Now the wiggles are out of me, And I am as still as still can be.

Country of origin: 🇺🇸 United States
Sung in: English
Words by: Traditional
First known: traditional action rhyme; author unknown
Best for ages: 2–7
Mood: playful, traditional
Last updated: 25 July 2026

How to sing it

Wiggle each part as it's named — fingers, toes, shoulders, nose.
Make the wiggling big and giggly on the first verse.
On "still as still can be", freeze completely — the quieter, the better.

Meaning and origin

This tiny rhyme is a clever piece of crowd-control disguised as a game. It invites children to wiggle everything — fingers, toes, shoulders, nose — as much as they like, and then, having got all that fidgety energy out, to declare now the wiggles are out of me and sit as still as still can be. It uses movement to reach stillness, which is far easier for a small child than simply being told to sit quietly.

That is exactly why teachers reach for it before story time or any calm activity: a good hard wiggle followed by a sudden freeze settles a restless group better than any instruction. It has no known author — it is a traditional preschool rhyme passed on in nurseries — but its little trick of ending in silence has made it one of the most useful few lines in any circle-time repertoire.

Common questions

What is "I Wiggle" for?: Getting the wiggles out. The child wiggles fingers, toes, shoulders and nose, and then — the whole point — announces that "the wiggles are out of me" and sits perfectly still. It is a calming-down rhyme that uses movement to arrive at stillness.
When is "I Wiggle" used?: Usually to settle a restless group. By letting children wiggle hard first and then freeze, it channels fidgety energy into a game and ends with everyone quiet and ready to listen.
Who wrote "I Wiggle"?: No author is recorded. It is a traditional preschool action rhyme, handed down in nurseries and classrooms with small variations.