The Flocabulary Blog

October 16, 2017
Nirali Patel

Halloween Ideas for your Classroom

Get ready for your classroom to be swamped with goblins and ghouls this Halloween! It’s only two weeks away, but there are plenty of ways to plan for a classroom Halloween celebration. We’ve compiled a list of resources to help you organize lesson plans and ghost-ify your classroom this year. But wait - don't forget about your costume! Luckily we've got that covered too. We've created a quiz for you (and your students!) to determine what you should be for Halloween this year.

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October 6, 2017
Lindsay Rothfeld

There’s No Such Thing As Being Good Or Bad At Science

While I enjoyed studying the different biology courses in high school and college, I would never have admitted to anyone that I was good in science. However, when you’re a poor college graduate looking for a paycheck, and they offer you a science teaching position, you take it or starve! Thus, my first few years of teaching were in math and science. The amazing thing is how I learned to teach it effectively through the lens of a kid who struggled--yes, that kid was me! Do you sometimes feel stuck when teaching science? Can I be of any help? Here…

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September 22, 2017
Nirali Patel

Ideas to Celebrate Banned Books Week in Your School

Tread with caution, Banned Books Week is here! From September 24-30, books that have been deemed inappropriate, challenged or previously banned will be celebrated in libraries and classrooms across the country.

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September 14, 2017
Emily Gover

Classroom Design and Student Engagement

Engaging learning spaces are as much about physical and interior design as it is instructional: one study found that the physical space of schools can positively (or negatively) affect a student’s academic performance by as much as 25% in one school year. Businesses are moving away from the Office Space days of cubicles and fluorescent lighting, opting instead for couches, standing desks, bean bags and other methods of creating comfortable environments. (In fact, I’m writing this sprawled out on a couch tucked away in a cosy corner of Flocab HQ.) The same should go for classrooms, and yet it has…

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September 13, 2017
Molly Cronin

Writing to Celebrate Student Voice: Flocabulary Visits Standing Rock

At the start of 2017, Flocabulary traveled to Standing Rock, ND to work one-on-one with students in the community. Why the trek from our hometown of Brooklyn to the Great Plains? The students in this community are Lyric Lab pros, and with the school’s special focus on the arts as part of the nationwide Turnaround Arts program, we wanted to collaborate to offer avenues for student voice and expression in a community embroiled in a national controversy.

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