When asked by a Year5/6 class teacher to help with a science topic “Flowering Plants” I scanned the KS2 science curriculum for relevant vocabulary and composed this song, “When My Roots Begin To Grow” to use as a starter activity to spark curiosity and research, and also to use as a plenary activity to test understanding. It’s also been used in music activities (away from the science) as a cheery, up-beat song for classes and school choirs:

The lyrics take you through the life cycle of the flowering plants and use concepts and processes from the KS2 Science Curriculum, as well as introducing a few KS3 notions as well:

When my roots begin to grow 
And the water starts to flow, 
My shoots and stems reach for the skies 
And I feel the warmth inside, 
I start to photosynthesize.
I am a flowering plant 

See my petals so pretty, 
Smell the scent within me, 
Taste the nectar sweetly. 
I am a flowering plant. 
Breeze fly past, 
admire my vibrant springtime costume, 
Insects creep inside 
and smell my sweet perfume,
Bees buzz by, can I tempt you 
with  my nectar restaurant? 
Take some pollen with you as you go. 
I am a.... I am a.... I am a flowering plant.

Take my pollen gently, 
Bring some other quickly, 
Feel the seed within me. 
I am a flowering plant. 
Pollen from my stamen 
flies away aboard the bee, 
In return he brings some 
other pollen back to me. 
Pollen meets egg in the stigma secretly, 
Deep inside the seed begins to grow.
I am a.... I am a....  I am a flowering plant.

Taste the berry so juicy, 
See the seeds so lightly, 
feel the pods so heavy. 
I am a flowering plant. 
Birds fly by, then feast: 
a fruity banquet they have found, 
Gentle breezes waft the 
feathery seeds all around, 
Fat pods burst and scatter 
lushness on the ground. 
Seeds take flight! Create a new life!
I am a…. I am a…. I am a flowering plant.

The music is up-beat in a rock-ish style and has been popular with all groups from aged 7 to around 12 year-olds – I did use it with some Year 7s in a middle school setting. If you’d like a score of When My Roots Begin To Grow, click here!

I’ve also used the song as part of my “Seeds Grow Into Plants” Musical Science Unit, which you can find here: Seeds Grow Into Plants

It also sparked a request from a teacher in KS1 for a similar song but with easier vocabulary and that resulted in “I’m A Plant”, which features verses about carrots, oak trees, cactus and sunflowers. The video below has all the lyrics for singing along to!