Nursery rhymes have been kept alive by children for hundreds of years. That is certainly testimony to their appealing quality to children. Nursery rhymes are short, simple, and are part of our literary heritage. Nursery rhymes are also FREE and can be integrated throughout the day to engage children.
What skills can children develop by saying nursery rhymes?
*oral language,
*auditory memory
*phonological awareness (rhyme, rhythm, alliteration)
*concepts about print (left to right, words)
*story elements (characters, setting, problem and resolution)
*motivation to read
Hint! Although some claim nursery rhymes are stereotypic, the children only hear the surface level and the music of the language.
Piggy Back Tunes
You can sing traditional nursery rhymes to tunes such as “100 Bottles
of Pop on the Wall,” “Yankee Doodle,” and ”Gilligan’s Island.”
Story Elements
Discuss the characters, setting, problem, resolution, etc. in nursery rhymes.
Rhyme of the Week
Select a rhyme each week and write it on a poster or language experience chart. Reread the rhyme each day.
*Clap the syllables.
*Find words that rhyme.
*Listen for words that start the same.
*Look up unusual words in the dictionary.
*Dramatize the rhyme.
*Say the rhyme the wrong way and let children correct you.
*Leave out a word and let the children fill in the missing word.
*Connect with art by letting children make puppets, play dough characters, etc.
Rhyme Pops
Cut 3 1/2" circles out of heavy paper and glue them to jumbo craft sticks. As you learn new rhymes write them on the circles and save them in a can. When you have a few extra minutes children can pull out a "rhyme pop" and lead their classmates in saying the nursery rhyme.
Puzzles
Write rhymes on sentence strips. Cut between the words and let children put them in the correct order in a pocket chart.
My Nursery Rhyme Book
Every child will need a spiral notebook or composition book for this project. Each week run off a copy of a rhyme you want to focus on. (Be sure and increase the font for little eyes.) Children cut out the rhyme and glue it on the left and then illustrate the rhyme on the right. Use the rhyme for choral reading and to reinforce specific skills (letters, left to right, sight words, punctuation, etc.) throughout the week. On Friday children take home their books and read the rhyme to their parents. Encourage parents to write their "comments and compliments" in the book.
Note! I would not give them pictures to color for this book. Let them use their imaginations to create original illustrations.
Vanessa Levin (pre-kpages.com) and I have created some printable books, posters, and song downloads for nursery rhymes. Click the links below for more information.
http://drjean.org/html/songs/songStoreRhymingReaders.php
http://drjean.org/html/songs/songStoreRhymingReadersVol2.php
