Fox, socks! Toad, road! Book, cook!
Rhyming helps children have stronger literacy skills because it helps children understand how language works. With rhyming, they notice and learn to work with the sounds within words. A child’s writing abilities can improve as well because rhyming helps them understand that words share common sounds and letters. When singing rhyming songs or reading rhyming poems, children can even expand their imagination by creating mental images!
Rhyming is a useful tool that can easily be practiced by the whole family! Here are a two simple ideas on how to practice rhyming:
1. Read nursery rhymes together. Nursery rhymes are often times short and easy to memorize. If you don’t already have rhyming books, visit tour local library. Reading the rhymes together and pointing out words that are spelled similarly an help your child begin to identify shared letters and sounds.
2. Play the rhyming game. This game requires no preparation, can be played anywhere, and can continue for as short or long as you want it to! Simply say a word, and take turns choosing a word that rhymes with it. For an added level of fun, limit words to only objects that are visible in the surrounding area!
These ideas are not complicated, but they are a way to encourage your child to have fun with language and to improve and learn new vocabulary. Literacy is important, and it starts at home!