Using Nursery Rhymes in the Classroom

Do your kids know Nursery Rhymes? I know mine don't. I just can't imagine never saying Humpty Dumpty in a kindergarten class.  But when? When do we have time for Nursery Rhymes? How can we develop a system that will ensure that we have a systematic approach to teaching the Nursery Rhymes? I decided to do a Nursery Rhyme each week. Here are some of the things that I think about:

• I can usually tie it into my unit. For example, if I am doing Space, I could do Hey Diddle Diddle. Or, when I am doing a Family unit, I could do There was an Old Lady. Christmas Unit-Little Jack Horner. School or Farm Unit-Mary Had a Little Lamb, etc!

• I send the rhyme home on Monday in our Peek at Our Week newsletter.
• We say the rhyme each day as part of our circle time.
• Many artists have recorded versions of the Nursery Rhymes. I made a play list on my phone for each rhyme. When it is clean up time, I can play the Nursery Rhyme Library.

• Create motions for the rhymes. This makes it easier for the kids to remember to words. 
• Chart the Nursery Rhyme on chart paper. Interact with the poem throughout the week. Find words, punctuation, etc. Track print as you read.
• At the end of the week, we have The Nursery Rhyme Challenge. Kids take turns saying the rhyme throughout the day. As they say the rhyme, the sign their name to the Nursery Rhyme Chart.

• Each child has a Nursery Rhyme book. On Monday, when we introduce the Nursery Rhyme, the children glue the new rhyme into their book.

• The Nursery Rhyme books are kept in their carpet bags. This allows for quick and easy access anytime we need them.

You can read more about carpet bags in this blog post. Carpet Bags Blog Post
The Nursery Rhyme Book can be found in the Pack It! Learn It! Morning Meeting Unit.