Making The Leap From Classroom To Admin (And How To Find A New Balance)

Making the Leap From Classroom to Admin (And How to Find a New Balance)

For five years, I was a teacher. Nearly everyone in our country can envision what (they think) a teacher does - even if it’s just from their experience in school. Naturally, it was easy to explain to people what my job entailed, whether that be to a Lyft driver, on a first date or to my family when I was home for holidays. At the start of this year, I entered a new role: Director of Personalized Learning. This role encapsulates a lot of things I really love, like using technology purposefully, re-thinking the teacher’s role in the classroom and…

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How Hip-Hop Can Transform Our Classrooms

How Hip-Hop Can Transform Our Classrooms

For February’s #FlocabChat, we talked about hip-hop’s ability to transform classrooms and enhance lesson plans. While we covered a lot in our discussion, we wanted to break it down even further, as the benefits of using hip-hop within education are endless. A quick shout out to MC Educator Joquetta Johnson, our fearless discussion leader and hip-hop ed advocate! Her questions were thought-provoking and prompted a great conversation. If you missed the chat, we’ve compiled all of it here.

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How Music Transforms Learning In The Classroom

How Music Transforms Learning in the Classroom

When music plays, you just feel it. You begin tapping your foot or swaying. Maybe you start singing along or humming to yourself. You can’t help it. Even those with hearing impairments find themselves connecting to the rhythm as it throbs and vibrates in our bones and in our brains. Music is powerful. It evokes so much. When hearing the theme from "Friday the 13th" or "Chariots of Fire" we feel correspondingly apprehensive or inspired. Couples have their own breakup, make-up, and love songs that elicit corresponding memories and emotions. I think everyone has an innate connection to music. My…

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

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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The Week In Rap – Free Every Friday!

The Week in Rap – Free Every Friday!

If you didn't know, now you know: by the time you're pouring OJ on Friday morning, there's a brand new, TOTALLY AWESOME, current events rap music video waiting for you at the Week in Rap That's right folks: In 2 minutes, Flocabulary gives you a week's worth of current events, rapped and loaded with relevant, engaging educational power. Subscribe to get the link emailed to you every week. Or just come by the site with on Fridays, and enjoy. You're welcome.

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