In my kids’ STEM class, we sing lots of songs. (If you’re surprised to hear that we include music in a STEM class, then I encourage you to read my post on Music and STEM Learning which covers how music reinforces rhythm which relates to math learning, how music helps with memory and with auditory processing which helps children to learn better in the classroom, and how music supports classroom management.) We have a song for every science topic we cover, from chemistry to dinosaurs, from earthquakes to astronomy. The songs reinforce key concepts and make memorable. We’ve written some of these, but most come from other educators who have shared their work on the web.

We wrote three special songs for the class. In the quarter where we study “What is a Scientist“, we sing “What Can We Do with the Scientific Method” sung to the tune of the sea shanty “What Do you Do with a Drunken Sailor.”. When we study “What is an Engineer“, we sing “Look at Me, I’m Building and Inventing” which is sung to the tune of a another sea shanty called Bully in the Alley. For this quarter, when we’ll study “What is an Inventor” and we’ll talk a lot about how inventors are inspired by things seen in nature, such as looking at a bird, and thinking they want to fly too, we’ll sing our new song, “I Wanna Be An Inventor” which is set to the tune of “I wanna be a producer” from Mel Brooks’ musical “The Producers.” You can find instrumental versions of the tune at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agwYVLqpwgM (start at 1:05) or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgrwhsJmrX8 at 1:45.

Basic Theme:

I wanna be an inventor
Invent new tools every day
I wanna be an inventor
Invent toys with which to play
I wanna be an inventor
Do new things that I can’t now
I wanna be an inventor
And make people shout out wow!

Week 1 – Inventors

I wanna be an inventor
Do cool things that human can’t
I wanna be an inventor
Be as busy as an ant
I wanna be an inventor
When my hands just aren’t enough
I wanna be an inventor
To make things easy that were tough

Week 2 – Five Senses

I wanna be an inventor
To see things my eyes can’t see
I wanna be an inventor
To make sounds more clear to me
I wanna be an inventor
Use my senses to explore
I wanna be an inventor
Inventions help me to sense more

Week 3 – Taxonomy – Types of Animals

I wanna be an inventor
I will sort things out by types
I wanna be an inventor
Split by solids, spots, or stripes
I wanna be an inventor
Sorting out the family tree
I wanna be an inventor
I’ll learn about taxonomy

Week 4 – habitat and adaptations

I wanna be an inventor
Staying cool in desert sun
I wanna be an inventor
To make underwater fun
I wanna be an inventor
So I stay warm in the snow
I wanna be an inventor
Comfy everywhere I go

Week 5 – Bugs

I wanna be an inventor
Crawl through tunnels like an ant
I wanna be an inventor
Build a web upon a plant
I wanna be an inventor
Getting pollen from the trees
I wanna be an inventor
With a team of worker bees

Week 6 – Eggs
I wanna be an inventor, Learn what hatches out of eggs
I wanna be an inventor, Some hatchlings have a lot of legs
I wanna be an inventor, Drop an egg from way up high
I wanna be an inventor, If it breaks, then I’ll re-try

Week 7 – Seeds and Plants
I wanna be an inventor, Learn what plants all need to grow.
I wanna be an inventor, And prepare my seeds to sow
I wanna be an inventor, Use soil, water, sun and air
I wanna be an inventor, And nurture plants that are in my care

Week 8 – Sink Float Boats
I wanna be an inventor, I’ll build a new kind of boat
I wanna be an inventor, Gotta make sure it will float
I wanna be an inventor, Test out much weight it will hold
I wanna be an inventor, Outdo sailors from days of old

Week 9 – Under the Sea
I wanna be an inventor, Dive and swim just like a fish
I wanna be an inventor, Can’t wait till I get  my wish
I wanna be an inventor, See sea creatures down below 
I wanna be an inventor. I’ll be a future Jacques Cousteau

Week 10 – Robots
I wanna be an inventor, And design a cool robot
I wanna be an inventor. He’ll have skills I haven’t got
I wanna be an inventor. He’ll do jobs I don’t wanna do
I wanna be an inventor, He’ll be a scientific breakthrough

Week 11 – Projectiles
I wanna be an inventor. Launch projectiles way up high
I wanna be an inventor. Send things up into the sky.
I wanna be an inventor. Plot out the trajector-eeee
I wanna be an inventor. It’ll come back down, yes sirree.