Little Red Wagon (Bumping Up and Down in My)
🛑 Racism
The tune is Ten Little Indians which has aa racist history, derogatory lyrics, and troubling content. As such its on our list of songs that we recommend against singing at storytime.
Further Reading:
12 Childhood Nursery Rhymes You Didn’t Realize Were Racist. (We realize you probably did realize that 10 Little Indians was racist but, unfortunately, it’s even more racist than it seems!)
💚 Suggested safe alternatives:
- The Self-Care Stretch by Ms. Christina (counts up to twelve).
- One From The Left by Jim Gill (counts up to ten).
- Diez Pajaritos / Ten Little Birds by 123 Andrés (counts down from and up to ten).Â
A note from Ms. Kate:
This one hurt, you guys. I didn’t immediately notice that these were the same tune but then I looked at the scores and they’re identical tunes with some minor changes to the rhythm. Unfortunately, it is the same tune, and I’m not singing this one anymore as much as I miss it! We’re definitely looking for more alternatives to sing instead so please send me an email if you have more ideas for replacement songs!
