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LearningTip #5: Using Children's Songs and Nursery Rhymes To Support Fun, Meaningful Learning

By Joyce Melton Pagés, Ed.D.
Educator, President of KidBibs

Singing is an activity that children of all ages enjoy. Songs can provide a fun way to reinforce family activities. They can also be used to help children learn information for their science, math, social studies, health, music, English, and physical education classes. Nursery rhymes and cute songs that children already know can provide the framework for new songs. For younger children, parents and teachers can apply the information to be learned to the tune or rhythm of the song. The new words associated with the tune can help the child recall the information later.

Older children can work in small groups or as a class to write songs that go with familiar tunes. Writing the words so that they fit a tune reinforces the students' understanding of the information and helps them identify patterns in language and music. Performing the new song for family, friends, or other classes reinforces the content in a fun, entertaining way. Examples of information applied to tunes follow:

Water, Water in Our World
(to teach Water Cycle)

TO THE TUNE OF "ROW, ROW, ROW YOUR BOAT"

Rain, rain from the clouds
Flows gently in a stream,
Evaporate, evaporate
And become rain again.

Our Respiratory System

TO THE TUNE OF "THE EENSY, WEENSY SPIDER"

The cool, fresh air comes in your ready nose
Down through the trachea the new air goes
Into the lungs to remove the oxygen,
The blood takes it to your body
And carbon dioxide goes out your nose again.

A family vacation could also produce fun songs about places, activities, and adventures.

Arizona!
TO THE TUNE OF "OKLAHOMA!"

Arizona
Where the dust devils swirl across the road
Where the saguaro cactus is king
And the August rains bring
A flood down the dusty arroyo.

Some tunes that might be familiar to children and could, therefore, be used to compose some content songs include:

You are My Sunshine

Humpty Dumpty

London Bridge is Falling Down

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Three Blind Mice

Jack and Jill

I've Been Working on the Railroad

Oh, Susanna

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Home on the Range

Old MacDonald

She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain

Pop! Goes the Weasel

The Muffin Man

Over in the Meadow

Hey Diddle Diddle

How Much is that Doggie in the Window?

For more song or nursery rhyme ideas, the following children's books and audiotapes are available from Amazon.com:

The Eentsy, Weentsy Spider: Fingerplays and Action Rhymes by Joanna Cole and Stephanie Calmenson

Pat-A-Cake and other Play Rhymes by Joanna Cole and Stephanie Calmenson

Wee Sing and Play by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp. Audio CD also available.

Wee Sing Children's Songs and Fingerplays by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp. Audiotape also available.

Wee Sing Nursery Rhymes and Lullabies  by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp. Audiotape also available.

Wee Sing Silly Songs by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp. (Audio CD)

Wee Sing Sing-Alongs by Pamela Conn Beall and Susan Hagen Nipp. Audiotape also available.


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