Divine Songs for Children

Questions and Answers

What is Divine Songs for Children?

It is a collection of little songs Isaac Watts wrote in 1715 so that the youngest children could sing the great truths of the faith in words of one or two syllables. Covering praise and creation, the love of God, the shortness of life, and virtues like kindness, honesty, and diligence, they are set to simple verse a child can learn by heart.

Who was Isaac Watts?

Isaac Watts (1674–1748) was an English minister and hymn-writer, often called the 'father of English hymnody,' who wrote many of the best-loved hymns in the language, such as 'When I Survey the Wondrous Cross' and 'Joy to the World.' Divine Songs for Children was his effort to bring that same gift for singable verse down to the level of the youngest child.

Why did Watts write songs specifically for children?

Because he wanted the youngest children to be able to learn and sing the great truths of the faith, and believed that simple verse set in a child's own words would plant those truths deep in the memory. Writing in words of one or two syllables, he aimed to give children something both easy to learn and worth carrying for life.

What do the songs teach?

The central truths and duties of the Christian life, put simply: the praise of God, his work in creation, his love, the shortness of life and the certainty of death, and everyday virtues like kindness, honesty, and diligence against the sin of idleness. Each is set to memorable verse so that a child learns doctrine and character together through song.

Why were these songs so historically important?

For over a century they were among the most widely learned poems in the English language, taught to generations of children. Famous verses like 'How doth the little busy bee' and ''Tis the voice of the sluggard' began here — so well known that Lewis Carroll later parodied them in Alice in Wonderland, a mark of how deeply they had entered the culture.

Are the songs still worth using today?

Yes — their aim is timeless: to put the truths of the faith and the shape of a good character into a child's memory through simple, singable verse. While some of the language is old, the songs remain a charming and effective way to teach children praise, gratitude, honesty, and diligence, and a window onto how earlier generations were taught.

Who are these songs for?

For children, and for the parents and teachers who read and sing with them. Watts wrote them for the very youngest, so they suit family worship, early learning, and bedtime, giving grown-ups simple verses to teach and children truths they can carry long after childhood.

Where should a reader begin?

With whichever song appeals — they are short and self-contained, meant to be learned one at a time. A family might start with a song of praise or the well-known verses on the busy bee and the sluggard, and let children memorise them gradually, one little song at a time.