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Nursery Rhyme theme for toddlers: a week of activities

A nursery rhyme theme lesson plan for toddlers: what a day looks like, then the week's circle time (two or three minutes, on laps), books, craft, song, snack, letter and outside time, each with what changes at this age.

Plan this week for toddlersThe whole nursery rhyme week

A day of the nursery rhyme theme with toddlers

  1. Arrival and free play on the floor.
  2. Sing “Humpty Dumpty” with actions; repeat it while you change and feed.
  3. Hold and pass something real for the week (rhyme), and say its name.
  4. Snack: a toddler-safe version of mini cracker pizzas (check the recipe's lines for under-4s).
  5. Outside: a short walk looking for sing.
  6. Read Man, Pan, Map on laps, pointing and naming.
  7. Nap, then the song once more at pick-up.

Nursery Rhyme circle time

  1. Hello song: sing hello to each child by name.
  2. Look out of the window together: sun, rain or clouds?
  3. Show the theme: hold up something real and name it.
  4. Sing: Humpty Dumpty.
  5. Read: Man, Pan, Map (level 0).

Infants and toddlers: two or three minutes, on laps.

Nursery Rhyme theme books

  • Man, Pan, Map (level 0, free on peabody.kids): Rhyming words in a row.
  • Six Cats, Six Hats (level 1, free on peabody.kids): Cats and hats: a rhyme in the title.
  • The Hat Cat (level 3, free on peabody.kids): More rhyming fun with a cat.
  • Fish in a Dish (level 2, free on peabody.kids): Fish and dish: rhymes to listen for.

Infants and toddlers: one book, read every day; point and name.

Nursery Rhyme craft: Humpty Dumpty puzzle

You need (4): an egg shape on card, crayons, a grown-up's scissors, a paper wall.

  1. Draw Humpty's face on the egg.
  2. A grown-up cuts it into three pieces.
  3. Put Humpty together again on his wall.

With a grown-up. No heat, nothing hot.

Infants and toddlers: let them touch and hold the materials while you make it; nothing small enough to swallow.

Nursery Rhyme song: Humpty Dumpty

The words

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men Couldn't put Humpty together again.

Traditional; public domain. From Top 52 nursery rhymes with lyrics.

Nursery Rhyme snack

Mini Cracker Pizzas from the Peabody Kitchen: picture steps, allergy swaps and safety lines on the recipe.

Swap: Round crackers → gluten-free round crackers.

Letter R activities

RrR is for rhyme. Print the two pages (a trace page and a color page).

Infants and toddlers: skip the trace page; show the picture page and say the word.

Outside activity: Rhyme and move

Jack be nimble: jump over a block. Little Bo Peep: find the hidden sheep. Act out a rhyme each day.

Nursery Rhyme theme for 2 year oldsNursery Rhyme theme for 3 and 4 year oldsNursery Rhyme theme, all ages

Checked 2026-10-30