Nursery Rhyme Benefits

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As you and your child sing another rousing rendition of the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” you may wonder what benefits that singing nursery rhymes give your child - besides the fun. Nursery rhymes prepare your child for future learning and teach them beginning skills.

1 Rhyme
2 Rhythm
3 Phonemic awareness
4 Imagery
5 Fun
6 Humor
7 Vocabulary
8 Coordination
9 Confidence
10 Links to Nursery Rhymes

[edit] Rhyme

Nursery rhymes present stories in rhyming format, in a way that is not normally heard in everyday speech. This makes it easier for the child to pick out the rhyming words. Studies have shown that children who have trouble with rhyming words also have trouble learning to read. Introducing rhymes early gives your child practice with them.

[edit] Rhythm

The rhythms present in nursery rhymes help children to remember the words, exercising their auditory memory skills. Children who are not yet able to read have a greater capacity for remembering things they hear, as they cannot yet refer back to a book if they are asked a question.

[edit] Phonemic awareness

Rhymes sensitize a child to the individual units of sound that make up a word. These units are known as phonemes. Knowing what units of sound are in a word help children to know how to read and spell a word when the time comes.

[edit] Imagery

Nursery rhymes paint colorful images of characters and situations that expand a child’s imagination. Imagination is the basis of make believe play and storytelling, skills that become important as your child grows.

[edit] Fun

Singing and acting out nursery rhymes and finger plays with your child lets them know that you enjoy spending time with them and that you are interested in their lives. Nursery rhymes introduce literature as recreation and can translate into a love of reading as the child grows.

[edit] Humor

The situations presented in the rhymes allow children to appreciate and begin to understand humor.

[edit] Vocabulary

Many rhymes use words that are not used in everyday speech or concepts that are used in math – counting, time, measurements, relative positions and such. The rhymes can act as a springboard for further exploration of these topics.