4 Campfire Songs to Teach Your Scout Troop

February 14, 2022

Time to read 3 min

There’s nothing more fun than camping with your scouts, and now that spring is approaching, it’s time to plan your first camping trip! One of the best ways to develop relationships with your girl scout troop is to gather around the fire together before bed and learn fun songs together.

The best campfire songs are fun and unique because they are one of the few remaining aspects of oral storytelling we have left in our culture. Many campfire songs have different personalized versions based on where you learned them and sometimes your age.

This time is such a fun opportunity to pass songs down to the next generation and share your memories of camping and being a scout growing up. Plus, if any of your girls are pursuing music badges, you can incorporate their musical talents for the benefit of the group.

Here are some of the best Girl Scout camp songs!

We’re Going On a Bear Hunt

A campfire favorite! This is such a fun song, especially for young girls! It can really stimulate your troop’s imaginations, and you can teach the motions to your troop. This is a new song to ad-lib on if your girls want to add to this song. I know we always have a lot of giggles when we make up parts to add to this song – what a great way to encourage unique thought.

If you’d like to make this song extra special, you could add fun props like a safari hat, binoculars, an oar, a bear mask, and a representation of grass (maybe a grass skirt?). If you use props, you can give different kids “roles” in the song. This can really help bring in girls who are otherwise shy and help them feel like active participants in the group.

Boom Chicka Boom

I learned this one as a young girl in summer camp! If you’re just starting with camp songs, it’s always fun to start with a “repeat after me” song to help your girls participate and get into singing, even if they aren’t familiar with campfire songs. There are so many variations to the lyrics, while the melody stays the same, the song leader makes it their own. It’s an approachable song for new scouts and young children.

Here is one compilation of a lot of different versions, if you’d like some creative help to prepare lyrics and motions before your big camping trip with fun campfire songs.

Girl Scouts Together

Of course, this should be your favorite song. If your troop is in Girl Scouts, this perfect song is one of the absolutely essential scout songs for troop leaders to teach! It will bring your girls together and remind them of the Girl Scout values, like teamwork, citizenship, integrity, STEM, and loyalty to family. And, of course, it’s one of the Girl Scout traditions!

In case you need a refresher, you can find the official lyrics on the Girl Scouts’ website. It is listed for brownies, but it could be used with any group of girls.

Singing In the Rain

What a classic song. As the night wears on, it’s fun to bring out sillier songs, get a good laugh, and let your girls express their goofy side! Singing In the Rain is a fun campfire song that requires all the girls to stand up and do a series of silly motions after each repetition: thumbs out, elbows in, feet together, bum out, tongue out.

You can also add other steps, like knees together, head up, or toes out. And don’t be afraid to join in, your girls will love it if you do the song with them. I love seeing my girls’ personalities and giggles come out when we do this song together! Just make sure you don’t do the last steps too close to the fire.

Fun Tip:

One more way to make these songs fun and inclusive is to bring easy percussion instruments for your girls to join in as you sing! You and your scouts can bring a box drum, tambourines, claves, or shakers.

If you don’t have access to any of these, you can make homemade shakers out of toilet paper rolls, tape, and something on the inside, like rice, beans, or beads. This is yet another way to help girls come out of their shell and feel more a part of the activity.

If you’d like to see more songs, you can find these and 155 more, along with all the lyrics, in the Official Girl Scout Song Book. All these songs will help you and your girls be happy campers!

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