Hello Nursery rhymes and actions to enjoy together
Hello again! Singing nursery rhymes and learning the actions is a lovely way to encourage baby talk and a wonderful way to spend time with your child. Nursery rhymes are a great way to develop your child's social skills, boost their language development and expand their imagination - all of which will set them well on their way to learning to read and write. Contents Talk, talk, talk! 3 Rockabye baby 4 Bouncing babies 5 Little Peter Rabbit 6 Round and round the garden 7 Pat-a-cake 8 The mulberry bush 9 Wheels on the bus 10 Driving in my car 11 If you re happy and you know it 12 Five little monkeys 13 Twinkle twinkle little star 14 Happy Birthday 15 When you and your child read, sing, play and act out nursery rhymes, you are learning together that words and reading are fun. Some nursery rhymes introduce numbers and counting. You could ask your child questions like How many little monkeys are there? We hope you enjoy this collection of nursery rhymes and actions with your child, developed especially for parents and carers in Sunderland. 2 A year of nursery rhymes
From baby babble to pre school chatter developing your child s communication skills Keep talking. Communication is a skill like any other - the more you practise, the better you get! Make learning fun. Play around with words and try making silly rhymes - children of all ages can enjoy the fun of language Listen up: it s not just about talking. Help your child to listen by turning off the TV when you talk and play Use actions with words. Try waving as you say bye-bye or hold your hands to your child saying up. This will help them understand what the words mean Songs and rhymes help children to learn the patterns of speech and language - important skills when learning to read Get down on the floor to play, talk and listen. You ll let your child know that they have your complete attention. This builds their self confidence and allows you to focus on what they have to say Language is vital throughout your child s life in order to learn, make friends and reach their full potential You are your child s first teacher. By being Talk, talk, patient and making learning enjoyable, you can use your time together to create talk! special memories. A year of nursery rhymes 3
January Rockabye baby Rockabye baby on the tree top, (cradle baby in your arms and rock gently) When the wind blows the cradle will rock, When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall, Down will come baby, cradle and all. Classic nursery rhymes are wonderful for helping with speech development. Adding actions and movement to the nursery rhyme also improves coordination. 4 A year of nursery rhymes
February Bouncing babies (Sing along to the tune of Drunken Sailor) What shall we do with the bouncing baby? (Bounce baby on your knee) What shall we do with the bouncing baby? What shall we do with the bouncing baby, early in the morning? Tickle, tickle, tickle their tummies! Tickle, tickle, tickle their tummies! Tickle, tickle, tickle their tummies, early in the morning! Stroke, stroke, stroke their faces, Stroke, stroke, stroke their faces, Stroke, stroke, stroke their faces, early in the morning. Cuddle, cuddle, cuddle them closer, Cuddle, cuddle, cuddle them closer, Cuddle, cuddle, cuddle them closer, early in the morning. Hooray and up s/he rises! (Lift baby up in air) Hooray and up s/he rises! Hooray and up s/he rises, early in the morning! A year of nursery rhymes 5
March Little Peter Rabbit Little Peter Rabbit (make bunny ears with fingers on head) has a fly upon his nose, (point to your nose) little Peter Rabbit has a fly upon his nose, little Peter Rabbit has a fly upon his nose, so he flipped it and he flapped it (bat at your nose with each hand) and the fly flew away! (Hands behind your back) Floppy ears (make bunny ears with fingers on head) and curly whiskers, (draw curly whiskers in the air using fingers) floppy ears and curly whiskers, floppy ears and curly whiskers, and he flipped it and he flapped it (bat at your nose with each hand) and the fly flew away! (Hands behind your back) Have fun together and follow the actions in the rhyme! 6 A year of nursery rhymes
April Round and round the garden Round and round the garden, like a teddy bear. (Draw circle on palm of baby s hand) One step (Walk fingers up baby s arm as you count) Two step Tickle you under there! (Tickle baby under chin or under arms) Use lots of expression on your face and in your voice to keep your baby amused A year of nursery rhymes 7
May Pat-a-cake (hold out hands to support baby to clap) Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker s man, bake me a cake as fast as you can! Pat it and prick it and mark it with B and put it in the oven for baby and me. (Point to baby and then yourself) 8 A year of nursery rhymes
June The mulberry bush (hold baby s hands and move arms together while you sing) Here we go round the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush, here we go round the mulberry bush, on a cold and frosty morning. This is the way we wash our hands, wash our hands, wash our hands, this is the way we wash our hands, on a cold and frosty morning. This is the way we put on our shoes, put on our shoes, put on our shoes, this is the way we put on our shoes, on a cold and frosty morning. This is the way we get dressed up, get dressed up, get dressed up, this is the way we get dressed up, on a cold and frosty morning. This is the way we brush our hair, brush our hair, brush our hair, this is the way we brush our hair, on a cold and frosty morning. A year of nursery rhymes 9
July Wheels on the bus (For this verse use a finger to draw circles in the air) The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round, the wheels on the bus go round and round, all day long. (Now make a pincer action with your hands and imagine the people chattering to each other!) The people on the bus go chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, chatter, the people on the bus go chatter, chatter, chatter, all day long. (press your finger to your nose to beep the horn!) The horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, the horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep, all day long. Well done! 10 A year of nursery rhymes
August Driving in my car I m driving in my car, I m driving in my car, I m driving in my car. I m driving very fast, I m driving very fast, I m driving very fast. I m driving very slow, I m driving very slow, I m driving very slow. The light is turning red. I must stop my car, I must stop my car. The light is turning green. I can go again, I can go again. A year of nursery rhymes 11
September If you re happy and you know it clap your hands, clap your hands, and you really want to show it, clap your hands. stamp your feet, stamp your feet, and you really want to show it, stamp your feet. shout we are! shout we are! and you really want to show it, shout we are! Just do as the rhyme says clap, stamp and shout together as loud as you can! 12 A year of nursery rhymes
October Five little monkeys Five little monkeys (hold five fingers up) jumping on the bed, (bounce fingers up and down), One fell off (drop 1 finger) and bumped his head! Mummy called the doctor, (pretend to use phone) and the doctor said, No more monkeys, jumping on the bed! (Shake finger) Four little monkeys (hold four fingers up) jumping on the bed, (bounce fingers up and down), One fell off (drop 1 finger) and bumped his head! Mummy called the doctor, (pretend to use phone) and the doctor said, No more monkeys, jumping on the bed! (Shake finger) Three little monkeys (hold three fingers up) jumping on the bed, (bounce fingers up and down), One fell off (drop 1 finger) and bumped his head! Mummy called the doctor, (pretend to use phone) and the doctor said, No more monkeys, jumping on the bed! (Shake finger) Two little monkeys (hold two fingers up) jumping on the bed, (bounce fingers up and down), One fell off (drop 1 finger) and bumped his head! Mummy called the doctor, (pretend to use phone) and the doctor said, No more monkeys, jumping on the bed! (Shake finger) One little monkey (hold one finger up) jumping on the bed, (bounce finger up and down), One fell off (drop finger) and bumped his head! Mummy called the doctor, (pretend to use phone) and the doctor said, No more monkeys, jumping on the bed! (Shake finger) And then there were no little monkeys to jump on the bed! A year of nursery rhymes 13
November Twinkle twinkle little star Twinkle, twinkle little star (wiggle your fingers like a twinkling star), How I wonder what you are, Up above the world so high, (point up to the sky), Like a diamond in the sky. (Make a diamond shape with your fingers) Twinkle, twinkle little star (wiggle your fingers like a twinkling star), How I wonder what you are. 14 A year of nursery rhymes
December Happy Birthday Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday dear... Happy birthday to you! (Words could be changed to fit any festival e.g. Diwali, Hanukkah, Eid, etc) Happy Christmas to you, Happy Christmas to you, Happy Christmas to everyone. Happy Christmas to you! A year of nursery rhymes 15
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