Education is an intricate part of any child’s upbringing. From the day our children arrive out of the womb we are educating them; educating them on how to eat, walk, and talk. In addition to walking and talking we like to teach our children to read or have the want to read at an early age. We teach them through songs, reading books to them and as our children grow older, they become more interested in the television and the various shows available to them to watch.
But sometimes as busy parents we do not always censor what our children watch and or learn on TV. I have been a fan of PBS since I was a young child and watched Sesame Street as my learning platform. Now PBS has an even extended platform of various learning programs for all the different learning styles and the ages that watch their shows.
My kids have recently become huge fans of PBS television shows like Sesame Street and recently I was introduced to Mother Goose Club. Featured on PBS stations, the Mother Goose Club is a series of 1-minute educational programs for preschoolers promoting early literacy. This live-action and colorful program, invites your little one to sing and dance along to their favorite nursery rhymes. Early childhood research has shown that familiarity with nursery rhymes helps young children learn to read and my kids have an amazing memory and enjoy the songs and rhymes.
They watched the DVD and listened to all the CD’s non-stop. In the car, in the house, they couldn’t get enough singing,
nursery rhymes and fun playing with each other. I found my daughter, while she was coloring at the table, singing her nursery rhymes and my heart was warmed at how much she enjoyed the Mother Goose Club Super Pack.
Why Nursery Rhymes Matter
Helping Children Read. Nursery rhymes help children learn to read. Research has shown that familiarity with Mother Goose and other nursery rhymes helps children develop pre-reading skills, including the ability to detect rhymes. Children who can recognize rhyming words, cat and hat for example, learn to read quicker and more successfully than their peers. This relationship holds true regardless of a child’s socio-economic background or the education level of the parents.
How Do Nursery Rhymes Help? Nursery rhymes are short and rhythmic, which makes them easy for children to learn and memorize. As children hear, sing or read nursery rhymes, they develop “phonemic awareness†or the ability to detect the individual sounds that make up words, a crucial first step in learning to read. Nursery rhymes, especially Mother Goose rhymes, also introduce children to new vocabulary which increases comprehension and benefits learning in all subjects. Most importantly, nursery rhymes are full of colorful characters and stories, which make them fun. The delight children experience as they engage in rhyme activities fosters an enduring enthusiasm for books and reading.
How Mother Goose Can Help Parents. Nursery rhymes are terrific tools for parents and teachers to help get young children ready to read. Spending a few minutes each day reading or singing nursery rhymes with a child is a simple, cost-effective and enjoyable way to promote early literacy at home. The Mother Goose Club website contains a collection of rhymes, including many Mother Goose rhymes, with illustrations, audio narrations, songs and printable coloring pages. Some live action and animated videos are also available. For parents and teachers, the site offers activities and tips on using rhymes to promote literacy at home and at school (Sockeye Media LLC, 2011).
In addition to the shows, books, CD’s are also available, not to mention some online printable sheets for your children to color and have the lyrics readily available for them to learn to read and sing along to. You can purchase all the various Mother Goose Club CD’s, books, DVD’s and coloring books online at the Mother Goose Club store. All items are an average price of $20 which makes this learning gift a wonderful item for your children this year at the holidays or any time of the year. Share in all your children’s favorite nursery rhymes with this wonderful, educational gift.