At home rhyme time
Nursery rhymes – some parents love them, and some don’t... but babies, toddlers and even older children often find them irresistible making a rhyme time-type group an ideal way to fill long days together. Over the summer lots of these groups will have paused, so we’ve been sharing ways to create your own mini-versions at home.
This week it is all about rhymes and songs, with ideas for all ages which can be done one-on-one with your little one or with a group of friends.
Setting up and settling in
Before you start, do a little preparation to make the time spent playing as stress-free as possible. Find a space which is big enough to hold everyone comfortably if you’re in a group – and where a bit of noise won’t be a problem.
It’s also worth thinking about how you and the other adults will feel singing or speaking rhymes there – if you might be a little bit shy about singing in public the park or a café might not be the best options so arrange to use someone’s home (or garden) instead.
Do enough research, have an idea of what songs you will sing, and make sure you know the words (or are confident making up ones you forget) ahead of time.
If you decide to do one of the activities that uses toys or props, make sure to gather them together somewhere nearby before you start.
Again, again and.... again!
Remember, babies and toddlers love repetition – and learn lots from it too. They feel confident when they hear a familiar tune or words, and build confidence as they are able to join in over time.
Don’t be afraid of feeling a bit boring to other adults and embrace repeating just one or two rhymes or games several times to make up your play time. Although it might start to feel boring for you, it won’t to your little ones.
Getting started
If you have been to a rhyme or singing group before they might always start with a hello song, or a similar way or greeting everyone. You can use this to indicate the start of your rhyme session too, and sing it to everyone.
If your baby is young, simply singing some nursery rhymes to them, and doing actions if possible, might be enough. They will be learning all about patterns, rhythm, movement and connection as they watch you.
Older babies, toddlers and children will be keen to join in, so we’ve suggested lots of active rhymes and games to play with them for you to chose from.
Familiar rhymes and favourites
Singing nursery rhymes to your baby can help create strong foundations for all sorts of development, especially speech, language and communication. Gentle repetition helps to build up your baby’s awareness of words and sounds so start with some familiar rhymes you both enjoy. Here are a few of our favourites:
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
“Twinkle, twinkle little star,
How I wonder what you are.”
Point up to the sky using your index fingers, then use them to draw a big diamond in the air as you say:
“Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.”
Then return to wiggling all your fingers to finish:
“Twinkle, twinkle little star,
How I wonder what you are.”
Old MacDonald Had a Farm
“Old MacDonald had a farm, ee-i-ee-i-oh!
And on that farm he had a.... cow!
With a moo moo here, and a moo moo there,
Here’s a moo, there’s a moo, everywhere a moo moo!
Old MacDonald had a farm, ee-i-ee-i-oh!”
Repeat the verse with a different animal and sound each time.
Finger strength and action rhymes
Lots of rhymes come with actions, and over time learning to join in with these actions will help to strengthen your child’s fine motor skills, as well as building on cognitive and social skills through processing and understanding the time and ways to join in with words and actions together
Some of our favourite action songs are...
Head Shoulders Knees and Toes
Do each action by touching the part of your body as you say its name. You can vary the speed of this song, getting super fast then super slow – it never fails to cause giggles all round!
“Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes.
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes.
And eyes and ears and mouth and nose.
Head, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes.”
Sleeping Bunnies
Start this rhyme by inviting all the children to lie down in a space on the floor. Explain when you say ‘wake up!’ they should get up.
“See the little bunnies sleeping 'til it's nearly noon.
Come and let us wake them with a merry tune.
Oh how still, are they ill... wake up soon!
Wake up! (everyone jumps up and bounces around!)
And... Jump little bunnies, jump, jump jump.
Jump little bunnies, jump, jump jump.
Jump little bunnies, jump, jump jump,
And... stop!” 
You can explore lots of different actions with this song by changing the animal each time, so lions might roar, snakes might slither, birds might flap and so on.
Rhymes with anticipation
Games and rhymes with predictable actions are brilliant for babies and children. While they enjoy the predictable actions and sense of anticipation, your baby is also learning about lots of social skills such as turn-taking and waiting and also beginning to understanding social cues, combining their knowledge of language and facial expressions. This is why they love peek-a-boo and similar games so much!
Some of our favourite rhymes which have anticipation built in are...
I had a Little Turtle
“I had a little turtle,
Their name was Tiny Tim.
I put them in the bathtub to see if they could swim.
They drank up all the water,
They ate up all the soap.
And now they’re lying in their bed
With bubbles in their throat.
Bubble, bubble, bubble,
Bubble, bubble, bubble,
Bubble, bubble, bubble...
Bubble... bubble... POP!”
You can build up anticipation by pausing before you say pop, and unless your little one is easily startled you can clap as you say it to add some excitement.
Ring-a-Ring o' Roses
Start the song holding hands in a circle and gently walking around, or swaying in place if walking is a bit tricky for little ones.
“Ring-a-ring o' roses,
A pocket full of posies,
A-tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down”
All fall down onto your bottoms! You can then sing the second part to help you get up again, stretching out the anticipation while counting.
“Fishes in the water,
Fishes in the sea,
We all jump up,
with a... 1... 2... 3!”
Counting rhymes
Nursery rhymes often include numbers or counting, which with repetition helps young children to understand the pattern of numbers which count up or down, and how they can be used to count actions.
A few of our favourites which include counting are...
Five Little Monkeys
“Five little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mummy called the doctor and the doctor said,
‘No more monkeys jumping on the bed!’
Four little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mummy called the doctor and the doctor said,
‘No more monkeys jumping on the bed!’
Three little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped her head.
Mummy called the doctor and the doctor said,
‘No more monkeys jumping on the bed!’
Two little monkeys jumping on the bed.
One fell off and bumped his head.
Mummy called the doctor and the doctor said,
‘No more monkeys jumping on the bed!’
One little monkey jumping on the bed.
She fell off and bumped her head.
Mummy called the doctor and the doctor said,
‘No more monkeys jumping on the bed!’”
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom...
“Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
We’re going to the moon.
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
We’re going to the moon.
If you want to take a trip,
Climb aboard my rocket ship.
Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
We’re going to the moon.
5... 4... 3... 2... 1...
Blast off!”
Nursery rhyme bag
Adding a game, with props for the songs, will bring a new level of focus to the nursery rhyme time – this is especially good for toddlers and older children who might want to join in more with the running of the session!
What you need
- Toys or pictures linked to songs or rhymes your toddler knows well, such as a star for ‘Twinkle Twinkle’, or a bus for ‘Wheels on the Bus’
- A bag or box
What to do
- Put the toys or pictures in a bag and explain to your toddler that you’re going to choose a rhyme by picking a toy or picture out of the bag.
- Pull a toy slowly out of the bag and stop when a little bit is showing. Can your toddler guess what the toy is? Can they tell you which song you are going to sing?
- When your toddler guesses the song or rhyme, let them hold the picture or toy and sing the song together.
You might just do one song, or if your toddler enjoys the game pick another toy and start again.
These are just a few ideas for story and rhyme activities. You’ll find lots more, all perfect for the skills your child is mastering now, in your activities tab and on the skills tiles, scroll to the bottom to find the connected activity when you open each skill.
Over the summer we’ll be sharing lots more ideas for at home baby and toddler group games, along with recipe ideas, book recommendations and more. If you enjoyed this one, you might like the storytime session ideas as well, you can find them here.
Check your app for something new each day, so you don’t miss out.