With the size of her classes dwindling each year, Newton High music teacher Malvina Adams is asked to retire. Trying to prove she's still got it, she composes a school fight song which finds its way into the hands of bandleader Bob Crosby who turns it into an overnight hit. Over the protestations of her stuffy niece Abby, Malvina travels to New York and performs her song with Bob's band and becomes even more popular. The newness of the song fades quickly though, and, faced with becoming a flash-in-the-pan, Malvina tries to write one last hit song before giving up and returning to Newton.
