Nursery Rhymes

PORTUGUÊS	ENGLISH
Quem cochicha o rabo espicha	Secrets, secrets are no fun
Come pão com lagartixa	Secrets, secrets (may) hurt someone
Quem escuta o rabo encurta	Let me tell (you) how it all began
Quem reclama o rabo inflama	A little secret got out of hand
Come pão com taturana	But remember this: not all secrets hurt everyone

Nursery rhymes a.k.a Mother Goose rhymes are important to children's development, especially when they are set to music. Educational researchers states that music and rhyme increase a child's ability in spatial reasoning, which aid mathamatics skills. In Brazil, they are called as "cantigas ou brincadeiras de roda" or "cirandas".

In educational terms, parents, teachers and professors can adapt any old rhyme into a modern song. Creativity matters when old ways of children's education fails or in sad and poor environments where people cannot have much access to technology. The example I presented before, the term "Quem cochicha o rabo espicha" would be literally translated as "Anyone who whispers will have his / her tail stretched" or "Your tail will appear if you keep whispering [so much]". In Brazil, we have a parallel between the impoliteness of whispering in front of others and the moral about lies - the latter is most learned from Carlo Collodi's Pinocchio and many other adapted or similar stories about a liar's long nose.

We cannot forget the oldest sources about the dangers of whispering and lies. In the Bible, for example, we have:

Prov 18:8
The words of a whisper [are] like delicious morsels, and they themselves go down [to] inner parts of the body.
>> As palavras do mexeriqueiro são como doces bocados; elas descem ao íntimo do ventre (Brazilian version).

Exodus 20:16
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
>> Não dirás falso testemunho contra o teu próximo.

You see?
Everything is connected.

Regardless of the source, improvised and creative ways of helping children's education are well-welcomed in these days of mistrust, demandings and sometimes unnecessary radicalism.

Shall we remember our childhood just a little bit?

Would you like to present your favorite nursery rhyme?

REFERENCES:
(1) Music helps children learn Maths. Telegraph. 2012.
(2) GALLAGHER, Belinda. 100 Best Loved Nursery Rhymes. Miles Kelly Publishing Ltd. 2002.