The “Simple Simon” rhyme is a classic English nursery rhyme about a very naive boy who keeps doing silly, unrealistic things, often to gently teach kids about common sense and consequences.

What the rhyme is about

  • Simple Simon is a foolish but harmless character who doesn’t understand everyday situations.
  • He meets different people (most famously a pieman at the fair) and asks for things without understanding you must pay, plan, or think first.
  • The humor comes from his unrealistic ideas, like:
    • Trying to taste pies with no money
    • Going fishing “to catch a whale” with just water in his mother’s pail
    • Checking if plums grow on a thistle and pricking his fingers

These absurd little scenes make kids laugh while also showing what not to do.

A short, kid‑friendly summary (no full lyrics)

Here’s the story in simple words (not the original wording):

  • Simon meets a man selling pies on the way to a fair and asks to taste one.
  • The pieman says he must show a penny first, but Simon has no money.
  • Simon then goes “fishing” to catch a huge whale using only water from his mum’s bucket.
  • Later, he goes to see if plums grow on a prickly thistle, hurts his fingers, and ends up whistling in pain.

It’s all about silly mistakes that children can easily recognize as unrealistic.

Meaning and lesson

Common interpretations include:

  • Think before you act; don’t chase impossible ideas without any plan.
  • You need to pay or give something in return (like money for goods).
  • Not everything is what you imagine: whales need oceans, plums don’t grow on thistles.

People sometimes also see it as gentle social satire of “simple” people being out of place in the busy world, but for modern kids, it’s mainly just a funny nonsense rhyme.

How it’s used today

  • Still taught in nurseries and early-years classrooms as part of traditional rhyme collections.
  • Often appears with bright 2D or 3D animated videos on kids’ channels, sometimes with extra verses or small story expansions.
  • Used for:
    • Early reading and language rhythm
    • Memory and recitation practice
    • Simple discussion about “What did Simon do wrong?” in class activities

These modern versions keep the core scenes (pieman, whale, thistle) but wrap them in colourful, friendly animations. TL;DR: “Simple Simon” is an old English nursery rhyme about a very naive boy who keeps doing obviously silly things, mainly to amuse children and lightly teach them about common sense and consequences.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.