The UK's favourite nursery rhyme is revealed
But a new survey shows that nursery rhymes are falling out of favour with parents.
A new survey has revealed that the UK is falling out of love with nursery rhymes, with parents claiming that nursery rhymes are simply too old-fashioned to interest their children.
Only 36% of parents surveyed regularly use nursery rhymes with their children, while almost a quarter admit that they have never sung a nursery rhyme with their child.
More than 20% of young parents claimed not to use them because they were not considered educational.
Over 2,500 people participated in the survey for National Bookstart Day, which takes place this Friday (Friday 9 October). National Bookstart Day celebrates the Bookstart programme, which gives three packs of free books to every child in the UK and encourages sharing books and rhymes with children from as young an age as possible.
The theme of this year’s National Bookstart Day is My Favourite Rhyme.
The nation’s favourite nursery rhyme is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
The top ten across the UK are:
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Incey Wincey Spider
Round and Round the Garden
Baa Baa Black Sheep
The Grand Old Duke of York
If You’re Happy and You Know It
Humpty Dumpty
This Little Piggy
Ring a Ring a Roses
I’m a Little Teapot
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star was the favourite amongst all the regions in the UK, apart from the north east which chose Incey Wincey Spider.
Gender and region played a significant role in the popularity and frequency of use of nursery rhymes. Of the men surveyed, 32% never use rhymes compared to 16% of women.
Parents in the Midlands and Wales most frequently used rhymes, with more than 42% answering that they often sing nursery rhymes. Parents in Northern Ireland were the least likely to use nursery rhymes, with only 28% of parents saying that they sang them with their children.
The research also revealed that:
The younger generation no longer knows all the words to traditional rhymes: over 74% of 55+ year olds knew all the words to Little Miss Muffet, compared to only 58% of 16-24 year olds.
Similarly, over 72% of 55+ year olds knew all the words to Hey Diddle Diddle compared to 46% of all 16-24 year
33% of young parents surveyed (16-24) said that nursery rhymes were too old-fashioned to interest their children while 20% claimed that they were not educational enough to use with their children
Men are far less confident about singing nursery rhymes. 52% of men surveyed knew all the words to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star compared to 83% of women
Only 45% of men surveyed knew all the words to Incey Wincey Spider compared to 78% of women
63% claimed that they used nursery rhymes because they make children laugh, while 18% of parents use them instead of reading a bedtime story.
The survey also revealed the powerful impact of early exposure to nursery rhymes as more than 70% of those surveyed could remember all the words to eight rhymes or more. Humpty Dumpty, Jack and Jill and Baa Baa Black Sheep were the rhymes that were most easily recalled.
But a new survey shows that nursery rhymes are falling out of favour with parents.
A new survey has revealed that the UK is falling out of love with nursery rhymes, with parents claiming that nursery rhymes are simply too old-fashioned to interest their children.
Only 36% of parents surveyed regularly use nursery rhymes with their children, while almost a quarter admit that they have never sung a nursery rhyme with their child.
More than 20% of young parents claimed not to use them because they were not considered educational.
Over 2,500 people participated in the survey for National Bookstart Day, which takes place this Friday (Friday 9 October). National Bookstart Day celebrates the Bookstart programme, which gives three packs of free books to every child in the UK and encourages sharing books and rhymes with children from as young an age as possible.
The theme of this year’s National Bookstart Day is My Favourite Rhyme.
The nation’s favourite nursery rhyme is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
The top ten across the UK are:
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Incey Wincey Spider
Round and Round the Garden
Baa Baa Black Sheep
The Grand Old Duke of York
If You’re Happy and You Know It
Humpty Dumpty
This Little Piggy
Ring a Ring a Roses
I’m a Little Teapot
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star was the favourite amongst all the regions in the UK, apart from the north east which chose Incey Wincey Spider.
Gender and region played a significant role in the popularity and frequency of use of nursery rhymes. Of the men surveyed, 32% never use rhymes compared to 16% of women.
Parents in the Midlands and Wales most frequently used rhymes, with more than 42% answering that they often sing nursery rhymes. Parents in Northern Ireland were the least likely to use nursery rhymes, with only 28% of parents saying that they sang them with their children.
The research also revealed that:
The younger generation no longer knows all the words to traditional rhymes: over 74% of 55+ year olds knew all the words to Little Miss Muffet, compared to only 58% of 16-24 year olds.
Similarly, over 72% of 55+ year olds knew all the words to Hey Diddle Diddle compared to 46% of all 16-24 year
33% of young parents surveyed (16-24) said that nursery rhymes were too old-fashioned to interest their children while 20% claimed that they were not educational enough to use with their children
Men are far less confident about singing nursery rhymes. 52% of men surveyed knew all the words to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star compared to 83% of women
Only 45% of men surveyed knew all the words to Incey Wincey Spider compared to 78% of women
63% claimed that they used nursery rhymes because they make children laugh, while 18% of parents use them instead of reading a bedtime story.
The survey also revealed the powerful impact of early exposure to nursery rhymes as more than 70% of those surveyed could remember all the words to eight rhymes or more. Humpty Dumpty, Jack and Jill and Baa Baa Black Sheep were the rhymes that were most easily recalled.
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