Keep the Beat – Read a Poem

Rhythm is more than marching to the beat of a favorite song or keeping time with the music by tapping a foot.
Different languages are filled with different kinds of rhythm. As we learn to talk while we are very young, we are also learning the rhythm that helps us understand and communicate in our language.

To help young children appreciate the many types of rhythm—in addition to the ones they hear in modern music—show them how they can mark time in poetry.
That is, read a poem aloud and ask them to feel the rhythm by walking or waving an arm “in time” with the words.
Each poem has its own unique “meter”, and you may want to use several different ones as examples.

This is also an excellent way to introduce your child to poetry, to enrich his or her storehouse of ideas—and to add an abundance of new words to his or her vocabulary.