Lifelong Benefits from Learning Nursery Rhymes and Poetry at a Young Age

Nursery Rhymes are disappearing from the language of our young children.  What a tragic loss this is.  More and more children are arriving in Kindergarten without any knowledge of Nursery Rhymes.  Research has shown that children who struggle with rhymes will more than likely later struggle with reading.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119367885/abstract

Here is a list of Nursery Rhymes that you and your child may enjoy together

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~pfa/dreamhouse/nursery/rhymes.html

Here is a site where you can print (for free) simple nursery rhyme booklets for your child to enjoy and color

http://www.state.lib.la.us/la_dyn_templ.cfm?doc_id=826
There are many benefits to learning nursery rhymes and preschool songs:

1. Nursery rhymes, poems and songs will provide your children with opportunities to develop an appreciation for rhyme and rhythm.

2. The development of auditory skills comes from listening to poems, songs and rhymes and LISTENING is an important skill to develop.

3. Poems and verses use words to paint mental pictures and help to expand their imagination.

4. While you read, sing, play and act out nursery rhymes together you are conveying to your children that sounds make words and that words are fun and you are creating a sense of humor.

5.  Rhymes and Fingerplays help children to develop fine motor skills and coordination.

Invest in your child’s future and purchase a nursery rhyme book that the entire family will love.  Your child will enjoy hearing the rhymes over and over until he/she knows them by heart.