I originally learned about Flocabulary when I attended ISTE last summer in Chicago and went to the Flocabulary concert. Both the energy and message were so inspiring to me. I came back to school in the fall knowing I HAD to get more teachers involved in using this amazing and engaging tool. A great way to do this was by creating a Lyric Lab option for our 10th graders’ yearly personal project.
We are thrilled to announce that we've selected our winner of the Black History Rap Contest: Jaden. Jaden J. is a gifted poet, and with over 1,000 submissions, his immediately stood out for its emotional power and imagery even in its opening line and impressing us with his lyricism all the way through. Jaden seamlessly wove together John Lewis's biography, the broader historical context, connections to today and the impact he has had on him personally. In his video, it's also clear that Jaden is a talented performer. We can't wait to meet him in person when he records his song with…
No doubt you’ve heard about, and maybe even participated in, our Black History Rap Contest. If you’ve been following along, you know that we’ve selected our finalists and you are probably biting your nails in anticipation of finding out the winner.
When working with an ESL population, one of teacher Leah Simpson’s goals is to help students prepare for the WIDA test, an English language proficiency exam used by a number of states across the country, including her home state of Tennessee. The Warren County High School Teacher, based in McMinnville, TN, uses our Word Up Blue and The Week in Rap to help students practice Tier 2 vocabulary and bring nonfiction text into her classroom.
As part of their test preparation, students also need practice with academic vocabulary across subjects. How did Leah decide to boost subject-specific vocab with her class this year? With rhyme-writing, of course! Each of Leah’s five class periods picked a subject—math, science, social students, ELA or social/instructional language—and worked over the course of a month to compose a rap as a group. Students performed their raps for their families at Warren County High School’s ESL Family Night this fall to much celebration. Here’s what Leah told us about the experience:
Each week, we recognize stellar student work submitted to the The Week in Rap and The Week in Rap Junior Shout-Out Contests. For their Week in Rap Shout-Out, students in Mrs. Karen Chin’s 7th Grade Social Studies class at Jane Addams Jr. High in Schaumburg, IL flexed their poetic muscles to produce a plethora of poems dedicated to inanimate objects. Meanwhile, in Houma, Louisiana, Mrs. Parfait’s 4th grade Physical Education class at Acadian Elementary School claimed Week in Rap Jr. Shout-Out fame with a thoughtful entry on their Thanksgiving guests of choice. Read on to explore these excellent entries!
