Nursery World - To the Point - Today's nursery rhymes

Last time I wrote that I cannot sing for toffee, I was politely rebuked by one or two people who quite rightly say that everyone should feel confident about taking part in musical activities.

So, for some other reason I was sitting in a circle while a group of children was singing with an enthusiastic and tuneful family support worker in a Children's Centre in Bethnal Green. I found myself wondering what sense the children were making from the songs.

In the middle of 'The Wheels on the Bus' it struck me that practically none of the children will ever hear someone being asked for a ticket on a London bus, now that everyone uses electronic Oyster cards to touch in. Then the children were taken even further back in history as they sang about someone called a conductor telling passengers to 'move along please'.

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