Join one of Amy Jo Jamison’s Zoom sessions during World Nursery Rhyme Week, and you’re likely to leave singing the featured song throughout the rest of the day. 

Jamison began coordinating sing-along Zoom sessions for the event, which took place Nov. 14-18 this year, when COVID-19 struck and the Parents as Teachers Consortium, Paola Unified School District 368, couldn’t host in-person gatherings. 

“We had to find out how to connect with families,” said Jamison, who started her career with the PAT Consortium in 2019. “Zoom was very new to our families then.” 

Jamison thought the first session would be “terrifying.” Now, with several sessions under her belt, Jamison looks forward to the yearly event. 

“It’s a lot of work on the front end and the back end,” she said. “But with a song, you’re able to change a mood, a behavior. It can draw out other emotions. We had lost that ability to connect (during COVID). Even if it’s just one family, we’re still making that connection.” 

PAT is an evidence-based parent education and home-visiting model. Trained parent educators offer a wide array of services to families with children from prenatal through kindergarten. There are four components to the PAT model – personal visits, group connections, resource network and child/caregiver screenings. 

“This group connection activity offered by the Paola PAT Consortium is an excellent example of the intentionality that goes into the delivery of the Parents as Teachers program in Kansas,” said Lisa Williams, the Kansas State Department of Education’s PAT consultant. 

World Nursery Rhyme Week was launched in 2013 to promote the importance of nursery rhymes in early childhood development and education. More than 5 million children from 113 countries have participated to date. The initiative is open to parents, early year practitioners and anyone working with children under the age of 7. 

Each year, five rhymes are selected, and children are encouraged to sing the nursery rhyme and take part in supporting activities. 

The five official rhymes for 2022 are: 

1. “The Big Ship Sails” 
2. “1, 2, 3, 4, 5” 
3. “Five Little Speckled Frogs” 
4. “BINGO” 
5. “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” 

Nursery rhymes are “excellent teaching tools and can help to develop language and literacy skills, numeracy skills, social, physical and emotional skills,” according to About WNRW - World Nursery Rhyme Week. 

The Paola PAT Consortium serves 175 families and 225 children in seven school districts when they are at capacity, said Callie Hoffman, director of the PAT Consortium and executive director of Kansas Parents as Teachers Association (KPATA). The consortium, which started in 1990, serves the school districts of Paola, Osawatomie, Louisburg, Prairie View, Jayhawk, Central Heights, and Garnett. 

Jamison serves 33 families and 52 children in her role as an educator. 

“We are very proud of our Amy Jo,” Hoffman said. “These virtual group connections were born during COVID but have kept going because they are so enjoyed.” 

This week, Jamison hosted Zoom meetings at 8:30 a.m. The 20-minute sessions usually garner between four to 10 families and are open to anyone. 

On Wednesday, Nov. 16, four families tuned in to hear Jamison sing about “Five Little Speckled Frogs.” 

Participants also have a show-and-tell time where they can share an item that goes along with the day’s theme. On Wednesday, Jamison asked families to share an item that had to do with camping or frogs. Children showed stuffed frogs, miniature plastic frogs and even binoculars. 

While this year’s event is nearly over, Jamison plans to continue to offer the sessions in coming years. And there is one more activity planned for Friday, Nov. 18. Here is the information to join via Zoom: 

• Zoom link: https://us05web.zoom.us/j/86094168903?pwd=MkdFV3JFeEx0TmpTN2Q5amoySEFzUT09.  
• Meeting ID: 860 9416 8903 
• Passcode: D3bH8B 

The sessions incorporate math, literacy and movement, Jamison said. After show-and-tell time, Jamison shows a short video with the song. Next, it’s time for participants to sing. They also read a book and talk about crafts and physical activities families can do together. Jamison even shares resources with participants – such as frogs that can be printed and colored. 

“It’s using developmental and cognitive skills,” Jamison said. “Hopefully, they spend the rest of the day talking about the elements we learned about.” 

And singing the nursery rhyme. 

“I’m usually singing that song the rest of the day,” Jamison said with a laugh.