Rhyming Words
Background Information & Activities

People of all ages are naturally drawn to rhymes because of their melodic quality. Thus, rhyming is a fun and engaging way to help children read and write. Rhyming develops phoneme recognition and literacy skills and gives children the tools to read challenging words. Beginning and struggling readers can use rhymes and word families to help them read difficult words. Remind your children that when two words rhyme, they sound alike. Rhyming words share the same ending sound, as in cat/hat, sun/fun, think/blink, etc. Encourage your children to come up with words that rhyme.

Rhyming words share the same ending sound, and rhyming words can belong in the same word family. Review with your children that a word family is a group of words that share the same pattern of vowels and consonants. Vowels are the letters a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y. Consonants are all the other letters that are not vowels. The words bear and pear belong in the same word family because they share the ending --ear. Point out to children that words in the same word family are spelled in similar ways. However, your children should understand that words outside of the word family can still rhyme, such as hair and mare. Some children might recognize that words that are spelled in similar ways may not rhyme, as in hour and four. Present your children with different words and have them brainstorm words in the same family that rhyme and words outside of the family that rhyme.

Beginning or struggling readers can use word families to help them read a challenging or new word. They can look at the challenging word and find words in the same family that they do know how to read. For example, if children have difficulty reading the word blind, they can come up with words in the same family that they do know how to read, such as mind, kind, or find. By giving your children helpful reading strategies, you empower them to become independent readers.

Rhyming is a wonderful way for children to explore language and learn to read. Encourage your children to look for rhymes in books, poems, songs, and advertisements. Help them identify the words that rhyme and find other words that rhyme. Exposing your children to different words and providing a text-rich environment, you can help them become strong readers.

Rhyming Words Teacher Activities – Click Here!

Rhyming Words Family Activities – Click Here!

Rhyming Words Teacher Activities

Nursery Rhymes

Together as a class, brainstorm different nursery rhymes. Invite students to sing or say the rhymes or write them on the board or in their notebooks. Help students find rhyming words and discuss if they are in the same word family. Then have students make up their own rhymes. You may want students to work together in small groups or pairs to create a rhyme and find rhyming words. Encourage students to use rhyming dictionaries from the library or on the Internet.

Rhyme Rap

Create a rap together about school. Brainstorm different ideas to put into the rap and write the first line together. Then have each student write a line of the rap. You can set the rap to music or have students bang on drums to create a beat. You may wish to perform the rap in front of family and friends during an open house or back-to-school night.

Rhyme Round

Have students sit in a big circle and bring in a ball. Say a word and roll the ball to a student to say a rhyming word. Then have that student come up with another word and roll the ball to a different person. Make sure every student gets an opportunity to say a rhyming word.

Rhyming Words Family Activities

Rhyming Hunt

Together with your child, walk around your home and find an object, such as a hat. Then have your child find another object in the house that rhymes with hat. If your child cannot find an object, he or she can say, draw, or write a rhyming word. Remember to switch roles with your child.

Sing-Along

Many children’s songs use rhymes. Sing different songs with your child and identify and discuss the rhyming words. Then come up with your own rhyming song, using a tune of a favorite song. If possible, record you and your child singing the new song!

Mad Ads

Have your child find ads that use rhymes. Encourage him or her to look in magazines, newspapers, or even billboards. If possible, have your child take pictures of ads they see on the street. Discuss each rhyme and talk about what words rhyme and their word families. How do rhymes make things easy to remember? Why might ads use rhymes? Then have your child make his or her own ads using rhymes. You may want to give the ads a public service or public health focus such as caring for the environment, reading more, or getting exercise. Post the ads around the home or neighborhood.