儿童新唱计划: 我们的儿歌画故事 The Nursery Rhymes Project 1, 2, 3 & 4: Paint Our Songs (Set of 4)

The Nursery Rhymes Project is a beloved series of Chinese nursery rhyme books produced by 实践剧场 The Theatre Practice, brought to life through 阿果 Ah Guo's (@kowfong) gorgeous watercolour illustrations with a uniquely Singaporean flavour.

Each book pairs well-loved childhood classics, folk songs, and original Theatre Practice hits with professional recordings by artists including 董姿彦 Joanna Dong, so the music is as beautiful as the pages.

Can you guess the missing lyrics?

蓝蓝的天空银河里，有只 ___ ___ ___
走走走走走，我们小手拉小手，走走走走走，一同 ___ ___ ___
一二三四五六七, 我的朋友 ___ ___ ___
三轮车跑得快， ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
世上只有 ___ ___ ___

If you can complete at least one or two songs from memory, you'd have witnessed the power of music in learning of a language!

Why we love this series

• Gorgeous watercolour illustrations with a uniquely Singaporean flavour - @kowfong's artwork makes this bookset a snapshot of local life in this day and age, one that can be enjoyed for many years to come.
• Song lyrics printed clearly on a high-contrast background — easy to read along as you sing, even for little eyes.
• English translation of every song - really helpful when explaining the meaning of a song to kids (or reminding ourselves!).
• Related activity for each song (Books 2, 3 and 4 only) — in both English and Chinese. A genuine value-add for busy parents: pre-prepared conversation starters and activity ideas so you can extend learning from the song without having to think too hard. Examples include connecting lyrics to real-life experiences, changing the lyrics together, or drawing something inspired by the song.
• Professional-quality audio recordings - if you've ever been put off by screechy high-pitched or oddly robotic Chinese songs, these are a completely different experience. Recorded by a professional team including 董姿彦 Joanna Dong, Ric Liu, Juni Goh, Ethel Yap, and other bilingual theatre practitioners. Book 3 features children singing, and even an acapella group, Micapella, doing a rendition of 拔萝卜 that we absolutely love.
• A song list that spans generations - childhood favourites, traditional folk songs, and beloved hits from The Theatre Practice's own children's musicals. Something familiar for the adults, something new for the kids.

歌单 Song List

Book 1 (Blue cover)

1. 小白船 The Little White Boat
2. 捕鱼歌 The Fisherman's Song
3. 看你数清数不清 You Can't Count Them
4. 郊游 Outing
5. 我的朋友在哪里 Where's My Friend
6. 当我们同在一起 The More We Get Together
7. 小老鼠上灯台 Little Mouse on Lampstand
8. 送别 Parting
9. 紫竹调 The Purple Bamboo Flute
10. 青春舞曲 The Song of Youth
11. 坐火车 On the Train
12. 没答案的问题 Questions without Answers

Book 2 (Purple cover)

1. 稻草里的火鸡 The Turkey in the Straw Field
2. 小毛驴 My Little Donkey
3. 捉泥鳅 Catching Loaches
4. 两只老虎 Two Tigers
5. 我家门前有小河 The Stream By My Home
6. 白杨树 Poplar Tree
7. 三轮车（念）The Trishaw (Recitation)
8. 三轮车（唱）The Trishaw (Song)
9. 西风的话 The Whisper of the West Wind
10. 打电话 Make A Phone Call
11. 世上只有妈妈好 In This World, Mothers Are Best
12. 乡间的小路 The Country Road
13. 我要上天的那一晚 Day I Met the Stars

Book 3 (Pink cover)

1. 小兔子乖乖 Be Good, Little Bunny
2. 外婆的澎湖湾 Grandma's Penghu Bay
3. 踢毽子 Kicking Featherballs
4. 自己跌倒自己爬 Pick Yourself Up After You Fall
5. 外婆桥 + 排排坐 Grandma's Bridge + Sitting in a Row
6. 纸飞机 Paper Plane
7. 骆驼 Camel
8. 我家在哪里 Where Is My Home?
9. 泼水歌 The Water Splash Song
10. 拔萝卜 Pull the Radish
11. 鲁冰花 Lupin Flower

Book 4 (Blue cover with rainbow)

1. 健康歌 Let's Be Healthy
2. 造飞机 Build a Plane
3. 找朋友 Find a Friend
4. 数青蛙 Counting Frogs
5. 摇篮曲 Sleepy Baby
6. 小蜜蜂 Little Bees
7. 东东的故事 Dongdong's Story
8. 棉衣 The Cotton Coat
9. 天下的爸妈都是一样的 Mums and Dads All Love the Same
10. 我们这一班 Our Lovely Class
11. 童年 Childhood
12. 杨帆出发 Off We Sail!

Our family's Nursery Rhymes Project Journey over the years

Looking back over the years, so much of our Chinese learning has happened through song.

I still remember sitting at West Coast Park when my youngest was a toddler, facing the sea, with her on my lap and us singing 小白船 (from Book 1) together, as we watched the boats bob up and down on the water. No flashcards or lesson plan, just a song, and a memory I keep coming back to. 

We recalled the song 踢毽子 (from Book 3) when watching people play Capteh at Bukit Batok Nature Park near the playgrounds!

Another time, when I was with my youngest at Gallop Extension, Botanic Gardens, next to a pond, and we learnt the song 捉泥鳅 (from Book 2). I sang 池塘的水满了，雨也停了，田边的稀泥里，到处是泥鳅 - and she immediately asked, 什么是泥鳅? Cue me frantically searching the internet to find out how to say 泥鳅 in English. 

As I'm updating this product listing at my dining table in 2026, I'm chatting with my 6, 11 and 13-year olds about the same 捉泥鳅 song and telling them how I just found that loaches are considered nutritious health-giving food in China, Japan and Korea! In Singapore, they can be found in some aquatic shops, but are not commonly eaten. 大哥 and 妹妹 then told me that they recently learnt (after reading the same book) that loaches are known to be extremely slippery. Love that the learning goes both ways, that we're discovering new things, strengthening old connections and making new memories together!

These very books also came with us to our group nature walks and storytelling events over the years. 小兔子乖乖, 拔萝卜 (both from Book 1), 两只老虎, 三轮车 (both from Book 2) are always a hit with little ones, who would sing their hearts out and follow our song actions!

The moment I love most from those event days, was when a few of us families sang 走走走走走，我们大手拉小手 as we walked hand in hand with our kids through Sentosa Coastal Trail on our very own 郊游.

When little ones inevitably tumbled, we'd sing 自己跌倒自己爬 together, and they'd get up smiling. 🥲

We even sang 我家门前有小河 at Ang Mo Kio Nature Park, because 阿果老师 illustrated that spot with the iconic stepping stones across Kallang River winding through the park, HDB blocks in the background and the sculpture on a little hill, referencing 家门前，小河，山坡 💛

After receiving book 4, we brought it on a few outings! On a particular long bus ride with my kids, we were having fun figuring out the numbers in 数青蛙 via simple addition / multiplication - 1 frog 1 mouth 2 eyes 4 legs, splash! It jumped into the water. 2 frogs 2 mouths 4 eyes 8 legs, splash! splash! They jumped into the water etc - in Mandarin! It's a bit of a mouthful but can be pretty entertaining.

I knew some songs in this set from my childhood days. Others I learnt alongside my kids, listening, repeating, getting the words wrong, and then trying again. 

Music has always felt like home to me. Growing up, I'd copy out Chinese pop lyrics from songs I heard on the radio and jio my choirmates / classmates to sing karaoke after exams 💛

That love carried into motherhood. Singing nursery rhymes kept me sane in the early years of parenting, in the lonely moments and when the kiddo just refuses to sleep. There's nothing quite like watching a little one's face light up when we sing a familiar tune or hearing them finish a phrase before we do.

As the kids grew, so did the songs. They were able to sing entire verses from memory, notice the rhyming 押韵 and even change the lyrics to make our own funny versions. These are the good old days!

Over the years, we've heard many stories of how music has helped many families come to enjoy Chinese again, just like us, and we hope that you will experience it for yourselves too (:

FAQ: How can I listen to the songs?

As requested by the creators of The Nursery Rhymes Project, My Story Treasury is able to provide MP3 files only to MST customers who purchased this series:

• on or after 24 June 2026 - link will be provided via email when we ship out your order! You will receive the mp3 downloads before the physical books arrive.
• between 6 February and 24 June 2026, during the period when neither USB drives nor MP3 downloads were available *
• before 6 February 2026, and the USB drive(s) provided previously no longer works *

Otherwise, the music is also available on Spotify and Apple Music.

* Do email us at info@mystorytreasury.com with your order number if you need assistance!