Rhythm, Rhyme, Results

Letter from Lindsey McAdams

I am student teaching in a 5th grade classroom.  I was looking for math songs for my kids because they are always singing.  I came across your music and I think it is awesome!  My kids really enjoyed it!

My kids are now learning about American Colonization.  I bought Redcoats vs. Rebels, but a song about the thirteen colonies would be really great!

Lindsey McAdams
Indianapolis, IN

Thanks, Lindsey!  We have many more songs to make, especially in social studies.

Letter from Peggy Armstrong

Earlier this week we received this exciting email from Ms. Armstrong, a 6th grade science teacher in Georgia, who gave us permission to reprint it here.  Unbelievable!  Have an experience of your own to share?  Email us!

I work in a small, rural school district which is 99%+ African American. I didn’t tell my students what I was going to do when I started the science rap songs. They heard the beat and started bobbing. They heard the rapping and started dancing before realizing they were hearing science songs. They loved it! I printed the lyrics so they could learn them and they started singing along.

The commotion brought on the instructional coach and principal to see what was going on in my classroom. They listened and were amazed, soon they were tapping to the beat. They stayed for three songs and it sounds as though the 6th grade will be able to perform the songs at the next district assembly.

Ms. Armstrong’s class was “the bomb” today. I overheard a student another student what they did in my class today. The student answered “We rapped” which drew a puzzled look from the inquiring student. This ought to be fun explaining to parents!

I’m thrilled to find such a great learning tool for those reluctant students. The information reaches deep into the subject and is accurate. I don’t think I learned about rubisco until college. All I can say is we need more, more, more, especially in science and math.

Thanks so much it was the best $20 I ever spent on the classroom!

Peggy Armstrong

And this followup email:

A 10th grade biology teacher stopped in during class today and listened. She agreed that biology is not taught that deep even in high school. She and I both love the mass and weight song because it is a rather difficult lesson to teach sometimes.The formulas are there and even useful for a geometry teacher in regards to volume.

My inclusion class was also observed today by an inclusion supervisor. Although I never saw her tap or bob, we were given high marks for our creative differentiated instruction strategies. It appears that I made the right purchase at the right time.

Letter from Ms. Ferrell

As an educator, I just wanted to thank you for making these CDs! I teach 6th grade language arts and my kids really love your music. So thank you from the bottom of my heart! Thank you! Thank you!

Ms. Ferrell, Language Arts 6C
Conyers Middle School
Rockdale, GA

Letter from Jennifer Spalding

I teach 6th grade Social Studies (world history) at Middle School 821 in Brooklyn. With my extensive training and professional development through Teach for America, coupled with my penchant for research, I am hungry for resources that will enhance the classroom experience for my students.  Presently, in an effort to create engaging lessons that truly make both history and current events come to life, I often use multimedia in the classroom.  A short movie clip, PowerPoint slideshow, or short song can really hook my students into the topic.

When I learned about Rhythm, Rhyme, Results, I was immediately intrigued—another resource! I have found the tracks to be much more versatile and captivating than music, movies, and slideshows.  While resources not made for the classroom can certainly be effective, they require incredible efforts to locate and contextual discussions inside the classroom.  The RRR tracks are not only incredibly engaging and educational, but they have so many uses in the classroom.

Earlier in this academic year, my students and I embarked on a travel to Ancient Greece.  In this unit, students represented members of the Athenian Assembly. We researched whether or not we (Athens) should go to war with Sparta. After reading the opinions of many fellow Athenians, we crafted speeches to present to the Assembly.  The day before students were to formally present their speeches, I used a RRR track called “Public Speaking” from the Language Arts collection.  Our “Do Now”, or what I call the “Brain Stretch”, was to rate how nervous they felt about presenting their speeches to the Assembly.  We then listened to the RRR track once, and students were instructed to listen for public speaking tips and write the tips in their notebooks.  After the first listen, most students listed at least 80% of the tips presented in the song.  By the second listen, all the students had complete lists.  The most impressive aspect was how excited the students were during the listening.  No one was talking—everyone was concentrating on the message.  By the second listen, many students were singing along.  We then made wanted posters to solicit the “ideal public speaker”.  The next day, before presenting our speeches, we reviewed the tips for good public speaking.  Each class was able to generate the full list of tips from the song.

Just last week, before we read poems about world religions aloud, I asked students what we needed to remember to be good public speaker. One student raised his hand and said, “Public speaking, don’t be freaking…”! At this prompt, other students’ hands shot into the air and we were able to recall each tip from the song. Amazing!

My students respond well to the music because it is well produced, authentic hip-hop.  They retain the information because it is fun to learn lyrics to songs!

Jenny Spalding
Brooklyn, NY
May 2008

Letter from Michael Bagby

I’ve heard LOTS of attempts to combine rap/hip hop with educational themes. This is THE BEST I have heard. You guys are fantastic. I can see my students actually and in reality learning from your recordings and being inspired to learn more.

Michael Bagby
Clearwater, FL

Letter from Ronnie Oller

My sixth graders love these songs. They can relate to this type of music and remember the information presented in the song … Thanks for doing such a great job and helping us teach our future.