Examples Of "Bo Bo Ski Otten Totten" Hand Clap Rhyme (with a 1845 Source of that rhyme)

Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest Update: 11/11/2023

This pancocojams post presents information about the hand clap rhyme "Bo Bo Ski Otten Totten" (and similar titles). This post also includes the words and play instructions for a small number of examples of this rhyme. 

The words to "Bo Bo Ski Otten Totten" rhymes may vary slightly or more than slightly. However, the tune to all of these rhymes that I have heard on YouTube is very consistent. One feature of some examples of these rhymes is to speed up the tempo of the rhyme each time it is chanted. 

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/11/seven-youtube-examples-of-hand-clap.html for a pancocojams post that presents eight videos of "Bo Bo Ski Otten Totten" [Iadded another video of a hand slapping game version of this rhyme, making this video's title wrong :o).
 
The content of this post is presented for folkloric and recreational purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/11/a-19th-century-source-for-20th-century.html for a closely related pancocojams post entitled "A 19th Century Source For The 20th Century United States Hand Clap Rhyme "Bobo Ski Otten Totten."

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THE PROBABLE 19TH CENTURY SOURCE FOR THE WORDS TO "BO BO SKI OTTEN TOTTEN" RHYMES
The 19th century song "Who Dare" was published in the "Negro Songs" section of John B. Perry's 1845 book The Popular National Songster And Lucy Neal And Dan Tucker's Delight: Containing A Choice Collection Of The Most Admired, Patriotic, Comic, Irish, Negro & Sentimental Songs.  

That song was composed by a Black man (name unknown) who could have been enslaved. "Who Dare" provides social commentary about the mistreatment that Black people experienced from White people prior to the United States Civil War. That song serves as an example to other Black people during that time (and afterwards) to voice what they feel about their mistreatment by White people. 

"Who Dare" provides social commentary from the perspective of an enslaved Black American man who dares to "tell it like it is" i.e. to speak "truth to power" about the hardship and injustice that Black men were experiencing at the hands of White men. The singer states that he is going to tell the truth and then gives examples about how badly a Black man was mistreated who had done nothing to deserve such mistreatment. Perhaps to hide its serious message or perhaps to share one way that Black people had of coping with the difficult situations that they experienced, the Black man who is told to stay inside sneaks out of the back of the house and goes to Mama Dinah's to play the banjo and dance

The song "Who Dare" also implores Black people to circumvent and challenge those unjust conditions even if it's only in small ways such as sneaking out at night to play music and dance.

Here's the chorus of the song "Who Dare" *
"Dingee, I otten totten 
Ballio otten dotten
Dingee I otten dotten
WHO DARE?"
-end of quote-

My position is that the Black man who composed this 19th century "protest song' purposely used vernacular "Pig Latin-like" words to hide their meaning from White people. "Pig Latin is not a true language. It's a coded way of speaking based on English".https://lighthouseonline.com/blog-en/what-is-pig-latin/

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/11/a-19th-century-source-for-20th-century.html for my guesses about what those words mean in that 19th century song. 

* The 20th & 21st century hand clap rhyme & hand slapping rhyme "Bo Bo Ski ten Totten" (and similar titles) is a folk processed form of the chorus of the song "Who Dare". However, in those hand clap/hand slap rhymes, those words have no meaning.. 

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EARLY VERSIONS OF "BO BO SKI OTTEN TOTTEN (and similar titles) RHYMES

These examples are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.

1.

From https://alt.usage.english.narkive.com/SPfvaYzU/what-is-this-thing "What is this ...thing?"
PR, 2005
"When I was in 10th grade, a friend of mine taught me this:

"It 'n it 'n little it,
oat 'n oat 'n little oat,
ishka bibbly oat 'n dote 'n
lobo skedeet 'n dat 'n
badat 'n chu."

Has anyone heard this? You're supposed to say it as fast as you can... no
"line breaks" in its spoken form. I don't know why. :)"

[...]

But anyway, what the heck would you call it? It's not a rhyme, it's not a
joke, it's not really a tongue twister. It's not a poem, it's not...
anything! Just silly.

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2. 
https://alt.usage.english.narkive.com/SPfvaYzU/what-is-this-thing 
"This from a Scout Camp in Illinois (I went
to Camp Fire Girls camp myself):

http://www.sodabob.com/photos/oe/

OUTDOOR ED CAMP CHEER

VA-DOTTEN CHEW

BO-BO SKADEETEN DOTTEN
VA-DOTTEN CHEW

ISH KABIDDILY OTEN DOTEN
BO-BO SKADEETEN DOTTEN
VA-DOTTEN CHEW

ITTEN BITTEN LITTLE DITTEN
ISH KABIDDILY OTEN DOTEN
BO-BO SKADEETEN DOTTEN
VA-DOTTEN CHEW

OTEN DOTEN LITTLE DOTEN
ITTEN BITTEN LITTLE DITTEN
ISH KABIDDILY OTEN DOTEN
BO-BO SKADEETEN DOTTEN
VA-DOTTEN CHEW"

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3.

From https://schoolyardplay.net/bo-bo-ski-watten-totten/ 
My mom told me this was done as a crowd cheer when she was in school in the 1940’s:

Bo bo ski watten tottle, ala sssssssss,
Bo bo ski watten tottle, ala sssssssssss,
Eaten beaten watten tottle
eaten beaten watten tottle,
Bo bo ski watten tottle ala sssssssss.

submitted by D

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ADDITIONAL VERSIONS OF "BO BO SKI OTTEN TOTTEN (and similar titles) RHYMES
These examples are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.

1.
https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/part-ii-of-some-down-by-banks-of-hanky.html [comment]
I’m from the Lacey/Toms River area of Central Jersey/Jersey Shore and this was the variety we sang [of "Down By The Banks Of The Hanky Panky" at the Toms River YMCA summer camp between 2003-2007 (when I was 7-11)....

There were tons of nursery rhymes & folklore we had at the YMCA. One that originates in the NY/NJ area as long as 30+ years ago is the clapping game “Bo Bo Ski Watten Tatten”:

“Bo Bo Ski Watten Tatten
Eh eh, eh eh boom boom boom
Bo Bo Ski Watten Tatten
Eh eh, eh eh boom boom boom

Itty bitty Watten Tatten,
Bo Bo Ski Watten Tatten
Bo Bo Ski Watten Tatten
Freeze!” and sometimes there’d be stuff after this."

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2
Bo-bo ski watten totten/, Ah-ah-ah, boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten-BOOM.

(A longer version) Bo-bo ski watten totten,
Ah-ah, ah-ah boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten
Freeze please American cheese (stop clapping)
Please don't show your teeth to me

(Resume clapping and repeat verse with additions of different things to hide; lips, eyes (eyes shut)
-iluvmate; http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080418164413AAb904S [This link is no longer viable.] ; reposted on https://cocojams2.blogspot.com/2014/10/hand-clap-rhymes-examples.html

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3.

Lyrics:

Bobo ski waten taten
Eh, eh, eh eh boom boom boom

Bobo ski waten taten
Eh, eh, eh eh boom boom boom

Itty bitty waten taten
Bobo ski waten taten
Bobo ski waten taten
Freeze, freeze, American cheese
Please don't show your______ to me

Recommended Grades:

4-6

About the Song

This handclap is popular on the east coast, particularly in the New York City and Long Island areas.  It's been played there for at least 30 years!  Depending on your area, as soon as you start teaching it, the kids might burst into song, leap up, and begin the handclap!  You may hear some versions that don’t repeat the “bobo ski waten taten” at the beginning.  Do whichever version you like.  Even though it's best to introduce the song in grades 4-6, because of the complexity of the hand clap, you may still find your younger students coming in to class and performing it perfectly, having learned it from their older siblings!  Clapping directions are written on the score, but you may find the pattern easier to learn from the animation.

Kids will come up with all sorts of ways to fill in "please don't show your ___" to me.   Here are some suggestions to get them going:

• teeth: curl lips under
• elbows: stick elbows to sides
• knees: go to kneeling position
• face: turn head to the side
• ear: raise arms in the air so that the top of the arm covers the ear
• eyes: close eyes
• front: turn around and try the handclap behind your back.  Usually impossible but quite funny!"...

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4.
From https://www.mamalisa.com/?t=es&p=2199

…."Brittany Cleveland wrote:

"I grew up in Texas and played this as a kid. I had been trying to find it for awhile, but it has been really difficult to find information on. We sang a slightly different version and it was a group clapping song, where several kids would sit in a circle with hands overlapping and slap the hand next to on top of theirs until the song ended and the person whose hand was slapped last was 'out' and the circle got smaller. The version we sang went like this:

Bo bo ski watten totten,
Eh-eh-eh-eh ah boom ah,
If you want a watten totten,
1-2-3-4-5!

I just thought I would share it with you!"

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5. . 
From https://www.mamalisa.com/?t=es&p=2199
"Prescott Anderson wrote: "I have another version of the 'Bobo Ski Waten Taten' song that I learned in elementary. I attended elementary school in Austin, Texas.

It was a hand clap game where we sat in a circle. We had our hands palms up on our knees, legs crossed, and hands would overlap so that on every beat someone would take their hand to slap the next person's.

Bobo Ski Waten Taten, ey ey, say boys are rotten
Bobo Ski Waten Taten, ey ey, say boys are rotten
(Gets faster) Bobo Ski Waten Taten, Bobo Ski Waten Taten,
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

(Pause for a beat)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

8!

(On eight the next person had to move their hand before they got slapped or they would be out. The rounds would continue until one person won the game.)"

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6.
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=351152 "What hand-clapping and jumprope rhymes do you remember?"

12-25-2005, posted by Angel of the Lord  

Bo-bo-skee-otten-totten
Nay-nay, I am bo-bo-bo
Itty bitty otten totten
bo-bo-skee-otten-totten
bo-bo-skee-otten-totten boom.

Then counting up to a pre-determined number. On the last one, you had to try to move your hand out of the way before the other person hit it.

I'm amazed that I still remember that."

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7
.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0KMFSj-FrQ&t=13s "Fun Hand Games", published by camille c, Dec 24, 2011 views • Dec 24, 2011

old school hand games from way back.. can u remember any more??? i got like 10 of them -snip- Here's my transcription of the first hand clap rhyme in this video that camille c entitled "bo bo seantin tatin" "bo bo seantin tatin 
nay nay I am boom boom boom 
eeny meanie attin tatin
bo bo seantin tatin

bo bo seantin tatin

boom ah boom

 ah boom boom boom

 bang bang

 ah bang bang

 shish

 creeps peace

 peace"

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8.& 9
From https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070601173503AA1l6eJ [This link no longer leads to this content.]

"Bo bo Ski Watten Totten is an old hand clapping game and jump rope rhyme. It's also been used by some high schools as a high school football cheer song for the crowd to get "pepped up" and during pep rallies.

There are a couple different versions out there, but the basic version is:

Bo-bo ski watten totten,
Ah-ah-ah, boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten-BOOM

The longer version is:

Bo-bo ski watten totten,
Ah-ah, ah-ah boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten
Freeze please American cheese
Please don't show your teeth to me

As for it's original origin, no idea, it's been around for years, and every time I've ever seen it printed online and offline it's been by an anonymous author. Sometimes channels like KPBS show clips with children in them playing jump rope or hand clapping games, sometimes Nick JR and Playhouse Disney do as well, maybe that's where your daughter picked it up?

Anonymous · 2008"

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10 & 11
From http://kaytmay.blogspot.com/2008/08/childhood-rhymes.html
"Recently I was thinking of that rhyme that I learned as Bobo- Shi Otten Totten. But the site that I found listing it had the words all wrong. They had it as Bobo Ski Wotten Totten.

Bobo Shi Otten Totten
Uh-uh, I ain't no fool!
Itty bitty Otten Totten
Bobo Shi Otten Totten
Bobo Shi Otten Totten
Boom!

 
But they had

Bo-bo ski watten totten,
Ah-ah-ah, boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten-BOOM.


(Thanks to Azlyn)"

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12
From https://schoolyardplay.net/bo-bo-ski-watten-totten/  
Bo-bo ski watten totten, 
Eh-eh, eh-eh, boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten 
Bo-bo ski watten totten 
Bo-bo ski wotten totte – BOOM! 
Go Chiefs!

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13. 
https://schoolyardplay.net/bo-bo-ski-watten-totten/
Bo-bo ski watten totten
Ah-ah, ah-ah boom boom boom
itty bitty wotten totten 
bo bo ski wotten totten 
bo bo ski wotten totten 
Freeze please American cheese (stop clapping) 
Please don’t show your teeth to me

(start over and repeat song hiding different body parts at the end, ie: lips, eyes, etc.)

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