--- title: Back to School Highlights description: Discover engaging back-to-school music activities, games, and planning tools to build community and boost student engagement in your music classroom with MusicplayOnline. --- [![musicplay-logo](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/musicplay-logo-2.png?width=2701&height=877&name=musicplay-logo-2.png "musicplay-logo")](http://musicplay.ca) Open main menu Close main menu # Back to School Highlights ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=45&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) [Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner) [Share this blog post on Twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I+found+this+interesting+blog+post&url=https://blog.musicplay.ca/back-to-school-highlights) [Share this blog post on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://blog.musicplay.ca/back-to-school-highlights) Back-to-school season is here—even if we’re not quite ready to say goodbye to summer! MusicplayOnline’s *Back to School* unit is a great place to start, filled with activities designed to make those first weeks fun and welcoming. This week, we’re highlighting resources that help you get to know your students and build community in your music classroom. Name games are a fun and effective way for specialist teachers to learn—and remember—student names. This week, we’re sharing options for both primary and upper elementary students. We’re also highlighting a printable booklet from the *All About Me* activities in the *Back to School* unit, a simple way to learn your students’ interests and musical preferences—insights that can guide lesson planning and boost engagement all year. [Back to School Unit](https://musicplayonline.com/units-list/back-to-school/) # Cookie Jar Chant #### [Musicplay Kindergarten - Song #8](https://musicplayonline.com/songs/cookie-jar-chant/) [![Cookie Jar Chant Notation](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Cookie%20Jar%20Chant%20Notation.jpg?width=500&height=375&name=Cookie%20Jar%20Chant%20Notation.jpg)](https://musicplayonline.com/songs/cookie-jar-chant/) | Teaching Suggestions:  Begin in a standing circle with the class chanting together: *“Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? (Say your name) stole the cookies from the cookie jar!”* Respond with, *“Who, me?”* and the class answers, *“Yes, you!”* Say back, *“Couldn’t be!”* and the class replies, *“Then who?”* At this point, roll the ball to a student in the circle while saying that student’s name, then sit down. The class continues the chant, inserting the new name: *“\_\_\_\_ stole the cookies from the cookie jar!”* The exchange repeats in the same pattern until every student has had a turn. Students sit after their turn. | | --- | # Concentration ## [Musicplay Grade 5 - Song #2](https://musicplayonline.com/songs/concentration/) [![Concentration-1](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Concentration-1.png?width=428&height=330&name=Concentration-1.png)](https://musicplayonline.com/songs/concentration/)   Game Directions:  All begin by singing the first part of the song. After the line, “When you hear your name, the game begins!” the teacher sings their own name, followed by a student’s name. The student continues the game by singing their own name followed by a classmate’s name. See how many times your class can continue to add names without missing the beat. Once students are comfortable, you can attempt an elimination version of this game, and when a student misses a beat they are out.  Students who are out can move to a xylophone and and keep the beat by playing "D" and "A" together. ---   # Music and Me Booklet ## [Back to School Unit](https://musicplayonline.com/units-list/back-to-school/) [![MP-Music-and-Me-Booklet](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/MP-Music-and-Me-Booklet.png?width=441&height=571&name=MP-Music-and-Me-Booklet.png)](https://musicplayonline.com/units-list/back-to-school/) - This folding mini-book includes quick questions you can ask at the start of the school year to learn what your students enjoy about music and music class. - Their answers can help guide your planning—when you connect lessons to what students enjoy and listen to at home, engagement increases! --- # Musicplay Mentorship ## Session #2 - Planning Tools and Resources [![Musicplay Mentorship 2-1](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Musicplay%20Mentorship%202-1.png?width=600&height=300&name=Musicplay%20Mentorship%202-1.png)](https://workshops.musicplay.ca/courses/musicplay-mentorship-with-stacy-werner-session-1/) ## About the Webinar: In this webinar, Stacy will guide you through the powerful planning tools and resources available in **Musicplay Online**. You’ll explore the **Lesson Planning** section, dive into the **Scope and Sequence** and **Year Plans**, and learn how to customize lessons to fit your teaching style and your students’ needs. We’ll also walk through key features like **Lesson Modules**, **Song Lists**, and the **Units** section to help you streamline your planning and make the most of everything Musicplay has to offer. [![Register for Musicplay Mentorship](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/6813175/b25269dc-8ef0-42ad-aff3-fcfd24656dff.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/6813175/b25269dc-8ef0-42ad-aff3-fcfd24656dff)   ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=150&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) #### Stacy Werner Stacy Werner is a music specialist with 15 years of experience teaching elementary music in Alberta, Canada. She is the author of the “Super Simple Music Centers” series and the Education Director for Musicplay Online. Trained in Orff and Kodály, she’s committed to ongoing growth as an educator, guided by her mentor, Denise Gagne. ### Leave a Comment ## Related Articles [![](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/VickyWebberStorybooks%20for%20Blog.png)](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-vicky-weber-storybooks) ### [NEW! Vicky Weber Storybooks](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-vicky-weber-storybooks) [Note: This newsletter is best viewed in your browser for full access to all content.](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-vicky-weber-storybooks) ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=45&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) [Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner) [Read More](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-vicky-weber-storybooks) ### [New! Genres of Music Unit](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-genres-of-music-unit) ## New Genres of Music Unit with Student Projects The brand-new *Genres of Music* unit on MusicplayOnline gives you everything you need to explore different musical styles... ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=45&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) [Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner) [Read More](https://blog.musicplay.ca/new-genres-of-music-unit) #### Our Products - [MusicplayOnline](https://musicplayonline.com) - [Musicplay Store](https://store.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Downloads](https://downloads.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Workshops](https://workshops.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Help](https://help.musicplay.ca) Follow us on Facebook Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Instagram ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Stacy Werner", "url" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner" }, "dateModified" : "2025-08-26T18:37:52.265Z", "datePublished" : "2025-08-26T18:37:52.000Z", "headline" : "Back to School Highlights", "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/back-to-school-highlights", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/musicplay-logo-2.png" }, "name" : "Themes & Variations Musicplay" } } ```