Why is rhythm and rhyme important?

Research consistently demonstrates that the more children know about language and literacy before they arrive at school, the better equipped they are to succeed in reading.
The key elements of this include:

* Motivation to learn
* Oral language skills
* Phonological awareness
* Appreciation for literate forms
* Print awareness
* Letter knowledge.


Learning rhythm and rhyme through poems and songs can provide children with crucial experience in all these areas.

For example, you probably never thought learning movement songs can help improve your child’s vocabulary and offer preparation for future reading.

How?

Movement songs help children gain an understanding of concepts such as up/down, front/back, and left/right, and add these words to their vocabularies. Understanding these concepts leads to knowledge of how words are read and written on a page.

Songs and poems will also offer your child exposure to the rhythm of the language which will help them read with animation as opposed to a monotone.
Some additional benefits include:

* Extending the neural networks in the brain
* Sound discrimination which leads to spelling success
* Increased vocabulary
* Abstract and spatial reasoning which leads to math success
* Improved coordination
* Better concentration skills
* Sharper memory
* More focused listening skills

Find out more about Activity Preschool Songs and Lesson Plan Preschool Songs plus Learning To Read Book