The first tongue twisters that most kids of my generation learned was “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?”
The two others that I remember well (and which to this day I can recite perfectly) are: “Rubber buggy bumpers” and “Sally sells sea shells by the sea shore.” I was told to repeat them three times quickly and of course I remember them coming out “Rubber bubby mumpers – Rugger buddy buppers – Buggy bubber bumpers.” The “Sally” one came out equally bad.
I haven’t given much thought to tongue twisters until a few weeks ago when someone challenged me to say “I slit a sheet, a sheet I slit, and on the slitted sheet I sit.” Now that is not one for the faint of heart. Especially if you have to say it while holding your tongue. Fortunately this is one I learned from Donna early on (must be an East Coast thing) so I took a breath and spat it out. Flawlessly. Raised a few eyebrows that did. . . .
If anyone gets bored, here are 549 tongue twisters you can practice (see http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/en.htm ). And there are tongue twisters for children (which is probably a good educational tool) – see http://www.funenglishgames.com/funstuff/tonguetwisters.html. Excuse me now as I wish to wash my Irish wristwatch. . . .