8 Reasons why principals choose Flocabulary for their school
In most scenarios, we hear from classroom teachers about student expectations around engagement and achievement, but what are school administrators and principals saying?
“I never met a kid that didn’t want to read,
by Ike Ramos, Director of District Partnerships at Nearpod, Flocabulary Artist
Didn’t want to learn, didn’t want to succeed
If we listen close, they’re telling us what they need,
If it’s real and relevant, they’ll follow our lead.”
Referencing the lyrics above, imagine being able to leverage the world’s most popular music genre, hip-hop, to support literacy (read) and academic success (succeed), to address student needs and foster social emotional learning skills (need), and to create a culturally responsive classroom where students’ interests are at the forefront, motivating them to trust and follow their teachers (lead). This is where the hip-hop-inspired tool that principals love comes in, Flocabulary.
As a school administrator, you’ve likely observed the challenges that many teachers encounter when attempting to engage their students. Given the multitude of factors competing for students’ attention and influencing their behavior, it’s understandable why achieving student engagement can be difficult. These factors include video games, social media, cell phones, hormonal changes, outdated curriculum, insufficient incorporation of student perspectives, home-related challenges, limited parental involvement, past negative school experiences, peer pressure, and more.
This challenge brings us to the primary reason why we, along with other principals, cherish Flocabulary! Here’s an example of the engaging videos you can discover on Flocabulary, complemented by a suite of accompanying activities.
New to Flocabulary? Administrators can get in touch with us to learn more about unlocking the full power of Flocabulary through Flocabulary Plus. Teachers can sign up for a trial to access our lesson videos and assessment activities.
8 reasons why principals love Flocabulary
1. Regardless of class, language, and age, hip-hop engages
Flocabulary is uniquely equipped to level the playing field and help all teachers engage students around the content and standards. Music itself is a universal language, but hip-hop and R&B combined are the most popular genres among young people. According to © Statista 2021, “A closer look at the distribution of streamed music consumption reveals that R&B and hip-hop is the most streamed music genre in the United States. Roughly 30 percent of all streams came from this genre in 2021, which can at least partially be explained by its popularity among young and digitally savvy listeners.”
Flocabulary gives all teachers a powerful entry point for introducing, teaching, and reviewing academic content in a fun, catchy, and engaging way rooted in hip-hop, a genre many students already like. Groccia (2018) discussed works by researchers (e.g. Belmont and Skinner) showing how student engagement has led to sustained behavioral involvement in learning. This behavior was determined to have resulted in an overall positive emotional tone which lends itself to students challenging themselves, showing initiative, and expressing curiosity and enthusiasm during learning.
Any of us who have stood in front of a classroom knows that it all starts with student engagement, but there are several other reasons why principals love Flocabulary.
2. It’s all standards-aligned
Flocabulary units and lessons are aligned to all state and national standards for English language arts (ELA), math, science, social studies, and health and physical education. Teachers can easily search for videos and full lessons by standard, subject area, and grade level.
3. Proven to enhance vocabulary
While Flocabulary is not solely a vocabulary program, there is a deliberate focus on ensuring that each Flocabulary video and lesson teaches and reinforces both Tier 3 academic vocabulary (such as “homogeneous mixture”) and Tier 2 interdisciplinary vocabulary (such as “perceive”), which are typically associated with higher-level reading comprehension. A broader vocabulary enhances comprehension and facilitates access to content.
Additionally, Flocabulary’s Word Up lessons have been demonstrated to enhance scores on state tests and student achievement. The findings of this study strongly indicate that Flocabulary can significantly contribute to improving state language arts/reading scores, with a notable 25% increase observed in reading test scores following the implementation of Flocabulary’s Word Up.
4. Supports literacy and comprehension across all subjects
Flocabulary supports literacy across the curriculum. Each video includes a lesson sequence with a suite of interactive activities. The music videos and activities provide students with multiple opportunities to sharpen their literacy skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Whether it’s listening to the song and reading along with the captions, reading the passages in Read and Respond and completing the comprehension questions, or writing their own lyrics in Lyric Lab, Flocabulary helps students build their literacy skills while mastering standards from across all subject areas. One study (Lee, 2014) showed that students had higher reading scores when they showed more effort and perseverance in learning and also felt that they were part of the school community.
With Flocabulary Plus, teachers can use Flocabulary Mix and Break It Down to teach comprehension strategies and check for understanding. Flocabulary Mix guides students through a Skill Video and a Video Text to go along with it. Then, teachers can use Break It Down as an analysis activity designed to help students develop and practice comprehension strategies and habits of evidence gathering.
5. Unlock insights into student learning
Flocabulary’s Vocab Analytics feature provides administrators and educators with crucial insights into students’ vocabulary acquisition and comprehension. By utilizing this feature, educators can monitor students’ exposure to new words, evaluate comprehension via practice activities like the Vocab Game, and measure proficiency levels. This robust student data facilitates informed decision-making, enabling educators to pinpoint effective Flocabulary implementations, identify areas for improvement, and compare proficiency across subjects and disciplines. With the ability to assess progress against school or district objectives and exchange best practices, Vocab Analytics equips educators and administrators with the resources necessary to refine vocabulary instruction and elevate student learning outcomes. Ultimately, principals can use Vocab Analytics to cultivate a culture of continuous improvement, ensuring that every student receives the support they need to excel academically.
6. Targeted vocabulary instruction through data
Flocabulary’s Vocab Practice Sets feature enables teachers to personalize vocabulary instruction according to each student’s proficiency level, drawing insights from the Analytics dashboard. With a selection of up to 10 words tailored based on proficiency and practice history, students receive personalized study materials like Vocab Flashcards and contextual videos. This personalized approach extends to the accompanying Vocab Game, providing students with additional opportunities to reinforce understanding and improve proficiency scores. By leveraging this feature, teachers can effectively address learning gaps, customize instruction, and foster student mastery in vocabulary acquisition, without the need for customized content creation. Principals can also utilize Vocab Practice Sets to support teachers in delivering targeted instruction, promoting collaboration, and ensuring equitable access to high-quality education for all students.
7. Captivate all learners with Nearpod Original videos
Nearpod Originals, now part of Flocabulary Plus, provides principals and teachers a robust resource to engage students across subjects and grade levels. These videos, featuring relatable hosts, humor, and storytelling, provide dynamic learning experiences distinct from traditional Flocabulary videos. Principals can leverage Nearpod Originals to support teachers in creating dynamic classrooms that address diverse learning styles and preferences.
With over 75 videos available and ongoing additions, Nearpod Originals provides a wealth of engaging content to inspire and accelerate learning. You can find these videos under Nearpod Originals in the lesson menu, using the search functionality, or under “Recommended Lesson” links in existing Flocabulary lessons.
8. Implements SEL skills
Flocabulary features over 40 lessons in their Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) section. Teachers have engaging videos and multiple activities to create learning experiences around topics such as Diversity, Effective Communication, Growth Mindset, and more. These videos visit relevant student scenarios using diverse characters practicing an SEL skill. In general, using music in the classroom supports social and emotional learning. With Flocabulary, you can elevate student voice, create moments for student creativity, and build student connections and community.
The power of Flocabulary Plus
In conclusion, school administrators want to know that they are providing their teams with access to resources that will help them increase their students’ academic performance. We possess a talent, for creating hip-hop music, that easily engages the youth! Many educators often ask us, “What if I’m not a rapper?” Our response is, that you don’t have to be. If you’re open to letting your students explore this genre that they already know and love, and provide your knowledge of content for them to create, therein lies the magic!
“Capture their hearts and students minds will follow,
Capture the magic preparing them for tomorrow
So many relevant strategies you can borrow,
Helping them master their universe, so they can have the POWER!”
by Ike Ramos, Director of District Partnerships at Nearpod, Flocabulary Artist
New to Flocabulary? Administrators can get in touch with us to learn more about unlocking the full power of Flocabulary through Flocabulary Plus. Teachers can sign up for a trial to access our lesson videos and assessment activities.
