My Backpack

by Anne & David Ellsworth

Your youngest singers will enjoy singing this song about one of their favorite things - their very own backpack! At the beginning of school, especially for very young students, learning to carry, load and unload a backpack is an important skill.

While you could use this song just for the pleasure of singing it, you could also use it as a background theme as students are either arriving and unpacking their backpacks or as they are packing them up again preparing to leave at the end of the day.

As a performance piece, let students use their backpacks as props for which they create movement.

Since the song says "on my back," let them wear the backpacks and do a little dancing or marching around while singing.

Take the opportunity to discuss backpacks and their appropriate use. What do the students use theirs for? Do they really carry worms and newts to school? Why is that not a good idea?

Text is taken from Music K-8 magazine.