A rhyme is one of two or more words that end in the same sounds.
The ability to notice and work with sounds in language, also called phonological awareness, has proven to be key to kids learning to read. The ending sound of words (i.e. rhyming) in repetition plays an important part on that reading development.
The importance of rhyming for reading development
Research has shown there’s a correlation between understanding rhyming and learning to read. Particularly, a child's familiarity with nursery rhymes has proven to impact that child’s readiness to read.
Rhyming teaches children about word families and the sounds those words make. The sounding out of those word families in a repetitive manner helps early readers solidify and recognize those words, as well as understand the patterns of those words.
The importance of rhyming for oral language
Speaking in rhymes, and making up rhyming games, allows students to practice the sounds of words and discover the patterns of language. Oral rhyming is more free flowing as students aren’t hindered by trying to sound out letters and words on a page.
Rhyming orally allows students to experiment with words in spoken form and allows them to playfully control their language. We could equate this to using the training wheels when learning to bike. Students are not constrained by other skills they need to learn (reading and writing) as they focus on the task at hand: working out words that rhyme.
The importance of rhyming for learning to write
As students learn to write, they notice that words that rhyme may have some letters in common as they write them down. Learning about commonalities and patterns in words in an important stepping stone in learning to write. One that students often lean on later, when they try to write unfamiliar words.
Rhyming worksheets for kindergarten students
In the sounds and phonics section of our kindergarten worksheets, we have four sets of rhyming worksheets for kindergarten students, some using pictures that rhyme and others using words that rhyme.
