Nursery rhymes are so much more than those weird silly nonsensical rhymes we learned as kids.
As we looked at them last week, we discovered they can have a strong impact on the development of our little ones in a number of ways.
This week we are going to look at how nursery rhymes can go with us anywhere as a delightful way to play with our children.
After all, they don’t require us to haul around books, tools, pens, musical instruments or any other special equipment. Simply our voices, minds and selves are all that’s needed to play.
Hand & Fingerplay Activities
These motions that include defined hand and finger movements add a lot of fun to nursery rhymes. Even little bitty guys can have fun clapping their hands, smacking them on the table or floor, or waving them in the air.
These types of activities provides a positive opportunity for even the littlest ones to wiggle and squirm releasing energy in a positive format.
Learning the hand and finger movements help your baby learn to control their hands in a more controlled fashion.
Please feel free to visit our sister site Grandma’s Nursery Rhymes for detailed activities for the rhymes below and more. Listed below are a few nursery rhymes you can take along for hand and finger activities:
- Pat A Cake
- Knock At The Door
- This Little Piggy (for infants to enjoy)
- Wee Wiggie (for infants to enjoy)
- There Were Two Blackbirds
Full Body Motion Activities
As your little one gets older, they start to learn how to use their entire body to act out the rhymes.
These motion can range from clapping, stomping to their version of fancy dance moves.
The basic moves that go with the rhymes are fairly easy for them to learn. We think it’s even more fun when they get their creative juices flowing and add their version of moves to the rhymes.
You may find yourself drawn in to the fun to play out a character in the rhyme or be a prop for their character.
By all means don’t limit them to the standard actions that go with a particular rhyme. Encourage them to make up their own dance moves and interpret the rhyme on their own.
Some of the benefits you’ll see them develop from these activities are:
- Interaction with other children and adults
- Burning off of excess energy in a fun positive environment
- Helps to development coordination
- Improving their eye-hand coordination
- Develop a sense of rhythm
- Create the understanding of sequencing events
Here’s a few nursery rhymes for these types of activies. If you want more details, check out Grandmas Nursery Rhymes for more details.
- I’m A Little Teapot
- London Bridge
- The Wheels On the Bus
- The Elephant
Singing Songs
Nursery rhymes generally have a natural rhythm to them. This makes turning them into song pretty easy.
Others are meant to be sung. Little ones tend to love singing, especially as loud as possible.
Singing with your little one their favorite nursery rhymes helps them learn how to match tones. They learn to pick up on the variances in pitch and tone.
They can learn to emote through song. We know songs can stir emotions in us, same for the little people. They learn to sense the emotions in singing and music.
Songs can help you to create a routine that will comfort your little one. There can be a favorite song you always sing at bedtime that helps them to relax and prepare for sleep. Or even a song for cleaning up the play area or their room.
Some favorite nursery rhymes that easily make songs you may want to learn with your little one could be:
- Sing A Song of Sixpence
- Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
- Mary Had A Little Lamb
- The Ants Go Marching
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