Supporting pre-reading skills:
Research by Bradley and Bryant has demonstrated that the better children are at detecting rhymes, the quicker and more successful they will be at learning to read (Bradley, 1988c, Bradley & Bryant, 1983, Ellis & Large, 1987).
In fact according to Fox in studies of literacy and child development, if children know 8 nursery rhymes by heart by the time they are four years old, they are usually amongst the best readers by the time they are eight. (Fox, M. (2001). Reading Magic. San Diego, CA: Harcourt.)
We sing lots of different songs and nursery rhymes at Panda to help children develop these pre-reading skills. Some of our favourites are Jack and Jill and Miss Polly had a Dolly, Humpty Dumpty, Baa Baa Black Sheep, The Grand Old Duke of York, Hickery Dickery Dock, Inchy Winchy Spider and Row, row your boat. You can view the words – if you fancy singing along at home.