History and Role of Nursery Rhymes
Rajni Sheth
December 24, 2007
"Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after."
Almost every child has grown up learning to love and enjoy singing nursery rhymes. However many parents including kids are unaware that ‘Jack and Jill’ and other popular nursery rhymes have a phenomenal amount of history and hidden meanings.
They are loaded with political and historical references and the history of these nursery rhymes can be traced back to at least the 17th century. Some were mostly spoofs on royalty and the Government of those times as direct opposition would likely have lead to death.
Most rhymes were started by common folk, to pass down information from one generation to the next, which talked about important events in the lives of those people. However children today are more interested in how catchy the tune is and the various actions they can do while singing a rhyme.
By exposing kids to the joy of nursery rhymes, they can learn to appreciate music at a young age. Hand actions and dancing gets them to be more active, in turn adding to the excitement. Interactive nursery rhymes like ‘Ring a Ring o Rosies’ and ‘Oranges and Lemons’ can be an excellent group activity for young children while ‘Incy Wincy Spider’ or even ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ gets them to make funny faces and loads of hand actions. Rhymes bring an element of fun into a child’s learning.
Parents and kindergarten teachers encourage the singing of nursery rhymes because they can help children develop more quickly especially when they are toddlers. This teaches children to get better at their language skills and to become effective communicators. As children grow older a great activity parents can inculcate in children is find the history of nursery rhymes they sang all through their childhood. This helps them in getting acquainted to books and the art of reading.
The effects of rhymes on babies, has often shown exceptional results in their ability to grasp words and remember them. Known as lullabies for children, these are soft melodies with a gentle yet soothing tone which mothers often use to quiet their restless babies.
Lullabies like “Goodnight, Sleep Tight’ or “Little Star Sleep’ are great to sing when getting your baby ready for bed.
Getting children to sing nursery rhymes in public provides great entertainment at a family gathering. Repetition breeds familiarity and in the case of nursery rhymes its helpful in making babies understand various sounds and often gives them a head start when they begin kindergarten.
To fetch a pail of water
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after."
Almost every child has grown up learning to love and enjoy singing nursery rhymes. However many parents including kids are unaware that ‘Jack and Jill’ and other popular nursery rhymes have a phenomenal amount of history and hidden meanings.
They are loaded with political and historical references and the history of these nursery rhymes can be traced back to at least the 17th century. Some were mostly spoofs on royalty and the Government of those times as direct opposition would likely have lead to death.
Most rhymes were started by common folk, to pass down information from one generation to the next, which talked about important events in the lives of those people. However children today are more interested in how catchy the tune is and the various actions they can do while singing a rhyme.
By exposing kids to the joy of nursery rhymes, they can learn to appreciate music at a young age. Hand actions and dancing gets them to be more active, in turn adding to the excitement. Interactive nursery rhymes like ‘Ring a Ring o Rosies’ and ‘Oranges and Lemons’ can be an excellent group activity for young children while ‘Incy Wincy Spider’ or even ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ gets them to make funny faces and loads of hand actions. Rhymes bring an element of fun into a child’s learning.
Parents and kindergarten teachers encourage the singing of nursery rhymes because they can help children develop more quickly especially when they are toddlers. This teaches children to get better at their language skills and to become effective communicators. As children grow older a great activity parents can inculcate in children is find the history of nursery rhymes they sang all through their childhood. This helps them in getting acquainted to books and the art of reading.
The effects of rhymes on babies, has often shown exceptional results in their ability to grasp words and remember them. Known as lullabies for children, these are soft melodies with a gentle yet soothing tone which mothers often use to quiet their restless babies.
Lullabies like “Goodnight, Sleep Tight’ or “Little Star Sleep’ are great to sing when getting your baby ready for bed.
Getting children to sing nursery rhymes in public provides great entertainment at a family gathering. Repetition breeds familiarity and in the case of nursery rhymes its helpful in making babies understand various sounds and often gives them a head start when they begin kindergarten.
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