Jennifer Laubach

June 20, 2002

Nursery Rhymes

Definitions:

            Nursery- a room in a home, set aside for the children; anything that nourishes protects, or fosters

            Rhyme - correspondence of end sounds in lines of verse or in words

            Nursery Rhyme - a short poem for children  

(Webster’s New World Dictionary)

Nursery Rhymes began as fragments of ballads, folk, songs, drinking songs, political satire, and playground rhymes.  The rhythms appeal particularly to small children; the words are often nonsensical yet help children to acquire the sounds of their language.  For older children, there are physical games associated with rhymes (Ring Around the Roses), as well as language games, such as tongue-twisters.  (“Nursery Rhymes.” Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2002. <http://encarta.msn. com>)

Examples:  Ring Around the Roses

                    This Little Piggy

                     Jack and Jill

(“The Mother Goose Pages.” <http://www~personal.umich.edu/~pfa/dreamhouse/nursery/rhymes> )

Representational genre:  Single Voice, Narrator

Narrative genre:  Comedy, Tragedy, or Satire - depends on how the rhyme is interpreted

Subject genre/ audience appeal:  Nonsensical rhyme, game, learning tool, humorous historical/political statement

Identifiable highlights of genre in examples:  rhyme, repetition, nonsensical, musical

Related genres: fairy tales, folk songs, playground rhymes, lyric poems, songs, chants, riddles

Discussion Questions:

1.  Because many nursery rhymes were not originally written for children, do you think that it is appropriate to teach them to children?

2.  Nursery rhymes are often used as a learning tool.  As children get older, do think that we should teach some of the underlying/intended meanings as a way to further utilize them as teaching tools?

Ring Around the Roses  

American version:                                                 UK version:

Ring around the roses,                                                         Ring a-round the roses,

A pocket full of posies,                                             A pocket full of posies,

Ashes! Ashes!                                                                       A-tishoo! A-tishoo!

We all fall down!                                                        We all fall down!

This Little Piggy

This little piggy went to market,

This little piggy stayed home,

This little piggy had roast beef,

This little piggy had none,

And this little piggy cried,

            Wee, wee, wee, all the way home.

Jack and Jill

Jack and Jill

            Went up the hill

To fetch a pail of water.

Jack fell down

            And broke his crown

And Jill came tumbling after.

Up Jack got

            And home did trot

As fast as he could caper

Went to bed

            And plastered his head

With vinegar and brown paper.

Aimee:  Yes, it is okay to teach these nursery rhymes to children, they won’t pick up on the underlying meanings.

Reni:  nursery rhymes have been used to help children with speech problems.

Student:  The hand motions are good for eye-hand coordination as well

Janet:  The nursery rhymes make connections with the familiar and the unfamiliar; this is how they draw you in.

Suzie:  They sometimes teach history as well.

Jennifer:  Yes, an example of that would be Ole King Cole which is about a 16th century merchant.

Janet:  They often have political connotations in them.

Dr. White:  The sounds of language gets exercised; I like that.

Aimee:  Nursery rhymes are also used to teach intervals to piano students.

Jennifer: They are very world wide as well.

Dr. White:  They are teaching tools; that is why they are so universal.  They also fall into oral literature more than written literature.  It is also standard to have variations on some of the wording in different cultures.

Reni:  London Bridge has something to do with a war.

Jennifer:  Humpty Dumpty can be taken so many ways and can be adapted to modern situations as well.

Dr. White:  They teach agility and they are fun and nonsensical as well.