Rhyming is a foundational literacy skill that children need for a bunch of reasons. When children play with rhymes, they are playing with sounds and learning to recognize sound patterns. Rhyming uses a lot of different skills like listening, distinguishing specific sounds (phonemes), and being able to break a word into syllables. For these reasons, we need to make space and time for lots of rhyming activities in our classrooms. Some of these early literacy rhyming activities can be completed independently, while others are group activities. Many of these activities work on various other skills while working on rhyming too.
10 Rhyming Activities for Prek & Kindergarten
Free Printable Rhyming Board Game <– perfect for partner work.
Rhyme Tag – get outside for literacy time!
Rhyming Dominoes – oh nelly, this is a favorite!
St. Patrick’s Day Rhyming Game – you could take the holiday theme out and just make this a scavenger hunt too.
Rhyming Rockets – free printable
Rhyming Books For Prek & Kindergarten
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Ada Twist, Scientist by Andrea Beaty, is a tale of a little girl who is a born scientist. Ada is brilliant, curious, and a little chaotic too! She asks questions, seeks answers, and can’t stop even when she gets sent to the thinking chair. I love that Ada is spirited and determined and as annoyed as her parents are with some of her behavior, they ultimately accept and love her and her super curious mind.
I Ain’t Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont is guaranteed to entertain your child, even my toddler was laughing and anticipating the rhyming text which tickled me to no end! Now I have had some parents in the past not be happy about the use of “ain’t” and the little boy in the story painting everywhere. I would counter that by saying people do use “ain’t” and kids do paint on things they aren’t supposed to you can use this as an example of what you aren’t supposed to do, and ask your child what they think should happen if they painted all over the house? As far as using “ain’t”I would play the traditional “It ain’t gonna rain no more” and explain that the author used that song as inspiration for the book.
Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans was a childhood favorite, and I remember being a little girl and thinking I want to be just like Madeline because she was so brave. She wasn’t afraid of anything, and what always struck me was how proud she was of her scar. Something that little girls are told by society to hide because it makes us less than perfect physically yet Madeline hikes up her nightgown and shows it off. Of my childhood heroines Madeline was right up there with Anne Shirley, Annie, and Brigitta from Sound of Music. As a teacher and parent, I adore Bemelmans’ rhymes, which at times are a stretch but in a way that gets kids thinking about what does and doesn’t rhyme.
Granny Went to Market by Stella Blackstone is a book I got to know very well when writing lessons for the Itty Bitty Bookworm preschool curriculum using it. This is a fantastic book that is filled with language arts, geography, and math lessons. Granny is a traveler, and everywhere she goes, she picks up several souvenirs. Not only are several countries like Switzerland, Mexico, and Peru visited, but the souvenirs she buys relate to the country’s culture and offer even more learning opportunities for interested kids. The rhyming text will enchant even the youngest world traveler; this is a must for any jet-setting family!
For 21 more books that rhyme check out our list here!
Osahenye Mary says
Wow! Inspiring.