Le petit jardinier (the little gardener in English) is a sweet French nursery rhyme that your child will love watching you perform. Not only is the topic interesting to toddlers and preschoolers, and even kindergarteners, but the fun fingerplay makes the comptine even more captivating to our little ones.
Below are the words to Le petit jardinier, along with the English translation. I’ve also included information about the gestures you can use to accompany the reading of this poem to your children.
It’s an excellent way to introduce and practice new French words related to the spring or gardening season: garden, seeds, earth, sun, rain, and flowers. As an added bonus, it is also great for counting to five!
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Related: Spring activity for kids: planting seeds and learning French
| Le petit jardinier | English translation of Le petit jardinier | Fingerplay and gestures |
| Voici mon petit jardin! | Here is my little garden! | Show the palm of your hand |
| J’y ai semé des graines. | I sowed seeds there. | Tap the palm of your hand with the fingertips of the other hand |
| Je les recouvre de terre noire. | I cover them with black earth. | Close the hand |
| Voici la bonne et douce pluie! | Here comes the good and gentle rain! | Tap the closed hand with the fingers of your other hand |
| Le soleil brille dans le ciel! | The sun is shining in the sky! | Make the sign for sun with the free hand |
| Et voici une, deux, trois, quatre, cinq petites fleurs. | And here comes one, two, three, four, five little flowers. | Unfold the five fingers one by one |
Minus some minor differences, here is a video of the nursery rhyme in action.
She uses the verb planter (plant) instead of semer (sow) and the adjective jolies (beautiful) instead of petites (small) to describe the flowers.
