Reasons for Nursery Rhymes

Did you know that scientific research has proven that one of the best indicators of how well children will learn to read is their ability to recite nursery rhymes upon entering their kindergarten year?  Although this is true, fewer and fewer children begin school having heard nursery rhymes, let alone being able to recite them.  As this trend became more and more obvious a few years into my teaching career, I made a scientific based decision to start using nursery rhymes as the basis of my literacy curriculum.  The chosen rhymes became the foundation of everything else I did in the classroom:  my themes and phonological skills, as well as social concepts taught came directly from the nursery rhymes. Both classic and modern nursery rhymes naturally lend themselves to a balanced literacy program, but also to a differentiated instruction and a multidisciplinary approach in teaching.  Teaching with nursery rhymes benefit students who have a wide range of learning styles, abilities and interests.  My kindergarten students are filled with excitement and anticipation when a new rhyme is being introduced.  They know that, along with the many different literacy concepts they will be learning, will come opportunities for hands-on exploration, music and movement activities, science and math extensions, art projects and many other exciting opportunities. 

Did You Know This

Interesting Brain Research?

The only information that people hold in their memory, with word-for-word accuracy, from childhood is songs and rhymes.  Human brains are uniquely wired to learn through music and rhyming with little to no effort because the rhythms of sound have such a profound effect on cognition.  Children are able to develop expressive and fluent oral language, hear and distinguish sounds, and understand concepts about print much earlier than their visual systems are able to track and decode printed words.  Children begin developing the neural pathways and can become confident “readers” at a young age, so it is vital to expose children to well known rhymes and songs as early as possible.  This repeated exposure will accelerate oral language development and naturally build phonemic awareness, all while a child is delighting in the sounds of language and projecting that to the joys of print.  Prolonged rich and varied experiences with oral language are vital for children to reach their potential as readers, writers, speakers, and thinkers.

Knowing that “scientific studies have shown that children who have heard and recited nursery rhymes in their younger years end up being better readers and doing better in school when they get older”, have you recited or read a nursery rhyme with a young child today?
I have additional information AND a nursery rhyme freebie listed on my blog.  Come on over and check it out.  Make sure you follow me at my blog as well so you don't miss my future freebies:

Mrs. Miner's Monkey Business Nursery Rhyme Post

It's a Jungle Out There (in kindergarten, that is)

I am so honored to be a part of this new blog! 
Sometimes being a kindergarten teacher, you feel like you are an entity of your own.  Even when conferences, activities, and workshops say they are created for K-3, you know that it really won't be pertain to you and your grade level if you teach K.  This is because most of your students come to you not being able to read, not being able to write and, often, not knowing how to appropriately socialize and interact in a group of 20+ children with only one adult overseeing.  It is a huge job to do, but someone has to do it and it might as well be me, someone who loves the challenge!

Here I am with one of my beanies from last year!

My name is Krissy Miner and I am a kindergarten teacher (for 12 years and counting).

  Is it easy? 

Absolutely not, but the challenge is what makes it all worth it in the end.

There is no other grade level that the students leave demonstrating as much growth as they do from start to finish in kindergarten.  Some come with little to no letter knowledge and leave, wait for it...

....READING and WRITING

(oh, and sitting still for longer than 15 minutes). 

Writing a book "about the ABCs".  Look, he has
directionality!

 If that isn't amazing to anyone with connections to education, I would say that nothing is. I can't say that I agree wholeheartedly with the standards expected of these little beanies at such a young age, but they are what they are and I can say wholeheartedly that they are more than capable of achieving these expectations with lots of nurturing, accountability and believing in them.

As an author at PreK and K Sharing, I am devoted to bringing you the latest trials, tribulations and, of course, the celebrations straight from the jungle of Mrs. Miner's Monkey Business.  I would love to address specific questions and concerns about kindergarten from parents or beginning teachers in my postings here since it is all about SHARING, right?

Take a peek in my classroom (this was right before the kids joined me this year--it all goes to pieces once that happens!  You know the saying, "Excuse the mess, there's learning going on here."):

I would love for all of you to hop over to my blog to see what's going on there where I post regularly about kindergarten happenings.

Until next time,

Krissy Miner