Orators of folk literature and nursery rhymes entertain, inform, and persuade their audiences through the straightforward plots in those genres. Because nursery rhymes recitations usually happen in groups, they help children acquire the mechanics of oral communication and promote communal bonding. Although nursery rhymes have a simpler form than…

Songs, rhymes, and sayings entered in this handbook are particularly useful as basic teaching techniques for babies and small children. Popular and easy to learn, many are simple Mother Goose nursery rhymes. Others are traditional songs and sayings that have been passed on from generation to generation in our culture. Some are appropriate for use…

The pairing of Mother Goose rhymes and nursery tales with the scientific thinking process is an effective instructional strategy linking reading and science learning at the primary level. This paper presents several such pairings which stress the basic science processes in grades K-3 of observing, communicating, comparing, ordering, and…