Sing a Song of Sixpence

This Sing a Song of Sixpence coloring page captures the most famous scene from the classic nursery rhyme, as four and twenty blackbirds burst from an enormous pie during a royal feast.

The king, queen and their guests look on in surprise while the birds fly around a grand castle dining hall filled with food, candles, banners and chandeliers. At the center of everything is the huge pie, its crust breaking apart as the blackbirds make their unexpected appearance.

It is one of the strangest images in traditional nursery rhymes, which is also what makes it such a fun subject for a coloring page.

There is plenty to color in the drawing, from the royal clothing and medieval banners to the banquet food, castle walls and 24 blackbirds flying around the room.

The Sing a Song of Sixpence Nursery Rhyme

The best-known opening verses of the nursery rhyme read:

Sing a song of sixpence,
A pocket full of rye;
Four and twenty blackbirds
Baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing;
Wasn't that a dainty dish
To set before the king?

The rhyme continues with several characters from the royal household, including the king and queen.

The king is in his counting house counting his money, while the queen is in the parlor eating bread and honey. Another famous part of the rhyme introduces the maid, who is in the garden hanging out clothes when a blackbird comes along.

The combination of royalty, food, money and mischievous birds has helped make Sing a Song of Sixpence memorable for generations.

Four and Twenty Blackbirds Baked in a Pie

The line about four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie is easily the most famous part of Sing a Song of Sixpence.

"Four and twenty" is simply an old-fashioned way of saying twenty-four, meaning the enormous pie contains 24 blackbirds.

Our coloring page focuses on the moment when the pie is opened and the birds escape into the banquet hall.

The drawing shows blackbirds flying in every direction as the people sitting around the table react with surprise. Some birds are already high above the feast, while others are only just escaping from the broken crust.

Children can even count the birds while coloring the page, adding a simple number activity to the nursery rhyme theme.

Were Live Birds Really Put Inside Pies?

The idea of baking 24 live birds inside a pie sounds rather unpleasant, but the nursery rhyme may refer to a very different type of feast entertainment.

There are historical accounts of live birds being hidden inside pie-like containers before being presented to guests. When the covering was removed, the birds could fly out and surprise everyone sitting around the table.

The birds were therefore not necessarily cooked inside the pie.

This explanation also makes sense of the next part of the nursery rhyme. When the pie is opened, the blackbirds begin to sing, so they are clearly still alive.

A dramatic surprise involving birds flying around a grand dining hall would certainly have created a memorable moment at a royal feast.

A Royal Feast Drawing to Color

This Sing a Song of Sixpence drawing expands the short nursery rhyme into a much larger castle scene.

The giant pie sits at the center of the table, surrounded by plates, goblets, candles and other dishes. The king and queen are seated nearby, while servants and other members of the royal household watch from around the room.

The castle provides plenty of extra details for older children to color. Large stone arches rise above the dining hall, while medieval banners hang from the walls and huge candlelit chandeliers are suspended from the ceiling.

Reds, blues, purples and golds could be used for the royal clothing and banners, while browns and grays would suit the table, stone walls and wooden roof.

The blackbirds can be colored traditionally, although there is nothing stopping younger artists from creating a flock of brightly colored birds instead.

How Old Is Sing a Song of Sixpence?

Sing a Song of Sixpence has been part of children's culture for hundreds of years.

Versions of the rhyme appeared in print during the eighteenth century, although parts of it may have existed earlier. As with many traditional nursery rhymes, the wording changed as different versions were repeated and published.

There have also been many attempts to find hidden meanings within the rhyme.

Various theories have tried to connect the king, queen, blackbirds and other details with real historical people or events. However, there is no single explanation that has been proved to be the true meaning behind the song.

It may simply be a playful rhyme built around memorable characters, funny situations and words that children found easy to repeat.

Why Sing a Song of Sixpence Is Still Remembered

The rhyme contains several images that are difficult to forget, but none more so than a giant pie filled with 24 singing blackbirds.

That unusual idea has inspired children's book illustrations, cartoons, songs and nursery rhyme drawings for generations.

It also gives children several different characters and scenes to imagine. There is the king with his money, the queen eating bread and honey, the maid in the garden and, of course, the extraordinary royal pie.

This coloring page brings several of those themes together by placing the famous blackbird pie at the center of a grand royal setting.

Free Printable Sing a Song of Sixpence Coloring Page

This free printable Sing a Song of Sixpence coloring page turns the famous nursery rhyme into a detailed royal banquet filled with characters and things to color.

Print the page and add your own colors to the king, queen, castle, feast and enormous pie before finding all the blackbirds flying around the room.

Whether children are learning the Sing a Song of Sixpence nursery rhyme for the first time or already know all about the four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie, this detailed drawing provides a fun way to enjoy one of the best-known traditional nursery rhymes.