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Songs with actions are great for your child to remember new words and meanings.
Encourage your child to take the lead and wait for them to sing and gesture if they can remember.
You can try singing any nursery rhyme or song and adding in your own actions and moves!
The benefits of singing action songs with toddlers
- Singing songs with actions helps build vocabulary.
- Many nursery rhymes repeat the same words over and over again, this will help your child to learn, understand and remember new words.
- Learning the actions that go along with songs help children connect actions with words.
- Encouraging your child to take the lead helps them to form simple sentences.
- Repeating actions helps with children's coordination and motor skills.
Find out more about the benefits of nursery rhymes for babies and toddlers.
Top tips for singing actions songs with toddlers
Let your child lead when singing songs with actions, especially if it's a well-known nursery rhyme. You can help them if they get stuck and get them to repeat any lines they’re unsure of.
Make up your own moves if you want to, this is a fun way of keeping your little one’s attention on the song.
If your child only wants to sing one song, don’t worry, the repetition will actually help them to learn the words.
You can mix it up by slowing the song down, speeding it up or adding surprise pauses.
Why not also try to incorporate these new words into everyday life? This will help your child hear these words in different contexts and help build their understanding.
For example, if your child enjoys the song 'Wheels on the Bus' and 'wheels' is a new word for your child, you could try pointing out lots of wheels on the street or on your child's toy cars.
Action songs to try with your child
Some of our favourite action songs on the Tiny Happy People website are:
- The Wheels on the Bus is a catchy rhyme with some lovely descriptive sound words.
- Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes is good for helping your child to learn the names of their body parts.
- Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is another nursery rhyme that can involve hand movements to help your little one stay engaged.
Or why not try making up your own songs and actions together?
