Goodnight Rhymes
What you need
- a soft toy from their bed
How to do it
- Once they are tucked in, say goodnight to something in the room and add a word that rhymes: "Goodnight, bear. Goodnight, chair."
- Do two or three more the same way, slowly, so they can hear the rhyme.
- Then say just the first part, "Goodnight, door...", and wait for them to find a rhyme.
- Any rhyme counts, a real word or a silly made-up one. Finish with goodnight to them.
Why it matters
Rhyming is a game of sounds, and a few quiet minutes in bed with nothing else to do is a lovely time to play it.
What they're learning
- Hearing rhymes
- Bear and chair end the same way, and saying them close together lets them hear it.
- Finding a word
- Searching for a word that sounds right is listening to the inside of words.
- Winding down
- A quiet, slow game that ends the same way every time.
What to look for
Notice them offering a made-up word that still rhymes, like "goodnight, cup, fup".
A tip
Keep your voice low and slow, and let silly words count. The sound is the point, not the spelling.
Make it easier or harder
Easier: say both words yourself and let them repeat the rhyming one after you
Harder: make a chain of rhymes, like moon, spoon, soon, and see how long it can go
