Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Jump Rope Rhymes, Clapping Rhymes: Part I


Did you ever jump rope? Double Dutch? Oh, and did you rhyme while you were doing it? If you did, I bet you are super smart. If you did, I bet you are super coordinated.  If you did, do you think you would be able to remember any of your super cool rhymes? If not, don’t worry. I am here to help. Well, I am here to help by sharing an amazing and comprehensive list of rhyme books courtesy of my friend and author Tom Dalzell.

Tom is a slang expert. He isn’t just a slang expert, he is the authority on slang in the country having written or co-written several books on the subject including the definitive dictionary on slang in the English speaking world entitled:


When Hollywood needs to make sure the slang in a movie is accurate, Tom gets the call. This thing is so big it is in two volumes and if you want to beef up your biceps try these on for size. They are enormous. And fascinating. 60,000 Slang entries in all!

A couple of Tom's other books are:
and

Tom has graciously shared his incredible collection of new, vintage, and antique children’s rhyming books with me since I have become somewhat of a nursery rhyme aficionado/freak. These books are so exciting that I am going to put them into categories and share the list with you. We have jump roping rhyme books, counting rhyme books, and traditional rhyme books. The point is; there are wonderful old books out there that can add magic to your child’s story time while enhancing language and rhythm skills at the same time.

So, turn off the computer and become a rhyme tutor! (See what I did there?)

Up first:
Written by Patricia Evans & Illustrated by Gioia Fiammenghi

How’s that for a title? In this book, first published in 1955, the author speaks quite eloquently about how all of these rhymes and stories are passed down from child to child:

“Children . . . in their relaxed, unsupervised playtimes, they sometimes come out with phrases or verses dating back hundreds of years. While they have occasionally learned these from grandparents, they have usually learned them from children just a few years older. Since a “generation” of childhood playtime is scarcely six to eight years in duration, this transmission is real and direct and still vital, with few if any forgotten words.”
Clapping, jump rope, and rhyming games definitely take place in a child’s life between 1st and 6th grade. By the time kids are 12 they are way too cool to be bothered with rhymes and go off to other activities. Our daughter did clapping games obsessively between the ages of 4 and 11. By the time she turned 12 it was soooooo over.

Written by Rebecca Kai Dotlich
 School Library Journal says:
“Grade 1-5-These 32 original rhymes are infused with fresh, colorful imagery and toe-tapping rhythm. Appropriate for reading or chanting aloud while jumping rope, each one has a lighthearted, whimsical quality.”

Well, anything that is toe-tapping works for me!

Selected by Judy Sierra/Illustrated by Melissa Sweet

This book includes several nonsense rhymes which are always a blast to do with double dutch so let’s get out our jump ropes and have a twirl.

My complete list of rhyming books will take a few blogs, so, stay tuned. I think it will be worth it!

To be continued…


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