Who doesn’t love nursery rhymes? Nursery rhymes are part of everyone’s childhood. These are the songs our parents usually play or sing to us to entertain us. Before we learned about bands and pop songs, nursery rhymes were our jam. Nursery rhymes are traditional poems and songs for children. They usually tell short stories of animals and people using repetitive lines and rhyming words. They have simple and repetitive melodies that are easy for children to follow.

However, do you know that nursery rhymes are actually more than just a means of entertainment for the kids? They play an important role in a child’s development as well! Here is how nursery rhymes benefit your children:

Speech Development

Nursery rhymes helps in the child’s speech development. By listening to the song, the children learn to recognize words and music. They begin to imitate repetitive words they hear from the song. The more they listen to it, the more they remember it until they can finally enunciate the words properly.

Cognitive Development

Repetition in nursery rhymes is very useful in developing a child’s brain. It improves their memory skills and comprehension through new words that they encounter. It also develops their thinking skills.

Reading Comprehension

Nursery rhymes can help children improve their reading comprehension because a nursery rhyme is essentially a short story. This is where children first understand the sequencing concept of simple stories which has a beginning, a middle and an end. It also develops their understanding through the different concepts and social setting in the story.

Language Proficiency

Nursery rhymes also develop children’s vocabulary. It is where they first encounter words and meanings. They learn to understand the meaning of words and interpret words based on the context of the story. Songs are also a good way to help improve a child’s spelling ability as children find it easier to follow along with the catchy tune and lyrics.

Physical Development

Some nursery rhymes involve actions and little dance steps that children usually follow. This would make them move which helps improve their overall coordination and enhances their gross motor skills. It can also be a form of exercise for them.

Social and Communication Skills

Nursery rhymes involves social situations which children can learn from. It teaches making friends and communicating with other people. Nursery rhymes can also be used in group activities which provides an avenue for the children to meet other people.

Enhances Creativity

Nursery rhymes allow children to imagine scenarios in their head. This enhances their imagination and develops their creativity when engaging in pretend play activities.

Mathematics

Nursery rhymes helps in developing the mathematical ability of children. The songs usually involve the concept of sizes and shapes. Some songs even teach children how to count and spell numbers!

Simple things such as singing and dancing along to these nursery rhymes can be both educational and fun for your child. Not only do they get to learn from these songs, you get the opportunity to bond with your child too. Nursery rhymes are more than just simple songs. Why not give it a try?

Bibliography

Healy, L. (n.d.). The Benefits of Nursery Rhymes on Preschool Development. Retrieved from https://pambarnhill.com: https://pambarnhill.com/nursery-rhyme-benefits/

Loy, C. (n.d.). 7 Useful Benefits of Nursery Rhymes. Retrieved from thenewageparents.com: https://thenewageparents.com/benefits-of-nursery-rhymes/