Nursery rhymes are likely to be the first poetry that a child meets. Babies delight in the rhythm and play of "Patty Cake" and "This Little Piggy". For the Kindergartner or Preschool child the opportunity to memorize a rhyme gives a preliterate child command of a text. I would tell my Kindergartners that if you have the rhyme in your head, you own it, an idea that clearly delighted them.

Select a body of rhymes to present to your children throughout the year. For a basic list you might consult A First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: What our Children Need to Know by E.D. Hirsch Jr. Houghton Mifflin 1989. Choose those that appeal to you. You will certainly find rhymes in complete collections which are not "politically correct" such as "Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief.." or "Pissabed pissabed barley butt.." but you will also find dozens of delightful poems along with the most famous rhymes that every child should know.

The Benefits of using Nursery Rhymes with children are many:

• Vocabulary development, Learning nursery rhymes allows children to speak words they never would otherwise. Make sure that children understand every word. This can lead to some very interesting discussions.
• Appreciate the rhythm. Some lines absolutely sing.
• Appreciate the sound of the words, how the words feel in your mouth.
• Look for opportunities to dramatize the rhymes and to play with the structure.

Respect the rhymes and have fun!

CapORushes

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