The two tallest children, one named "Orange," the other "Lemon," join hands and form an arch for the other children to pass under. The children, holding on to each other's dresses, march in single file and sing:

"'Oranges and lemons,' say the bells of St. Clement's,
'Brickbats and tiles,' say the bells of St. Giles,
'You owe me five farthing,' say the bells of St. Martin's,
'When will you pay me?' say the bells of old Bailey,
'When I grow rich,' say the bells of Shoreditch,
'When will that be?' say the bells of Stepney,
'I do not know,' says the great bell of Bow.
Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head."

When the last line is sung the child who is under their arms is caught and asked in a whisper if he will be an orange or lemon. He answers, and joins whichever side he chose, holding the other around the waist. The game continues until all are caught, and then there is a tug-of-war between the oranges and lemons.