Mother Goose is on the Loose!

Nursery rhymes are more than just silly stories about Jack and Jill, this Old Man, and the Woman in the Shoe. Rhymes help young children learn the rhythm and feel of language and can also help kids learn their numbers. 

Many traditional rhymes have finger plays that go with them. Most of us can remember the itsy-bitsy spider going up the water spout or playing Ring Around the Rosy and ending up in a heap of giggles. Small children love things like this, so if there’s a particular rhyme you like, you can even make up your own family actions to go along with it. Nursery rhymes and finger plays can be easy-to-remember, fun distractions for little ones when everyone’s tired, and you’re stuck waiting in an office or in line at the grocery store, too.

If you’ve forgotten some of the rhymes you loved from your own childhood, don’t worry! The library has great nursery rhyme collections – some with art by familiar children’s illustrators like Helen Oxenbury and Rosemary Wells. Recently, authors and illustrators have also taken traditional fairy tales and given them a more modern and urban spin in books like The Neighborhood Mother Goose and Dan Yaccarino’s Mother Goose. Itsy Bitsy-The Smart Spider, The House That Jack Built and To Market, To Market are also great fun for kids and adults!