Professor: Fun rhyming has benefit for babies

It’s instinctually understood by adults that infants and toddlers enjoy rhymes, and it may be beneficial to them.

“Even the youngest babies enjoy Pat-a-Cake and similar types of rhymes,” says Jill Stamm, clinical associate professor of psychology in education. “Part of this is the special connection being made with the adult.”

One benefit of rhyme is the steady beat. Stamm notes that children who can’t keep a steady beat often struggle with reading.

“Bouncing a baby or patting a preschooler’s leg while chanting ‘Hump-ty Dump-ty sat on a wall’ in a steady beat helps build this pattern into the brain through multiple senses,” she says.