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Nurseto enjoy to
Contents
Talk, talk, talk!
Rockabye baby
3
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
Hello again!
Five little monkeys
13
Twinkle twinkle little star
14
Happy Birthday
15
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.
When you and your child read, sing,
play and act out nursery rhymes,
you are learning together that words
and reading are fun.
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.
Some nursery rhymes introduce
numbers and counting. You could
ask your child questions like “How
many little monkeys are there?”
2
We hope you enjoy this collection of
nursery rhymes and actions with
your child, developed especially for
parents and carers in Sunderland.
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
patient and making learning enjoyable,
you can use your time together to create
special memories.
A year of nursery rhymes
Talk, talk,
talk!
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!
A year of nursery rhymes
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!
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)
6
Have fun together and follow the
actions in the rhyme!
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)
(press your finger to your nose to
beep the horn!)
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.
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.
(Now make a pincer action with your
hands and imagine the people
chattering to each other!)
Well done!
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.
10
A year of nursery rhymes
August
Driving in my car
I’m driving in my car,
I’m driving in my car,
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
I’m driving in my car.
The light is turning red. I must stop
my car,
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
I must stop my car.
I’m driving very fast,
I’m driving very fast,
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
I’m driving very fast.
The light is turning green. I can go
again,
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
I can go again.
I’m driving very slow,
I’m driving very slow,
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
Beep! Beep! Toot! Toot!
I’m driving very slow.
A year of nursery rhymes
11
September
If you’re happy and you know it
If you’re happy and you know it,
clap your hands,
If you’re happy and you know it,
clap your hands,
If you’re happy and you know it,
and you really want to show it,
If you’re happy and you know it,
clap your hands.
If you’re happy and you know it,
stamp your feet,
If you’re happy and you know it,
stamp your feet,
If you’re happy and you know it,
and you really want to show it,
If you’re happy and you know it,
stamp your feet.
If you’re happy and you know it,
shout “we are”!
If you’re happy and you know it,
shout “we are”!
If you’re happy and you know it,
and you really want to show it,
If you’re happy and you know it,
shout “we are”!
12
Just do as the rhyme says…
clap, stamp and shout together as
loud as you can!
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
A year of nursery rhymes
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!
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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All information correct at time of going to press.
Published March 2012
cs19272