Welcome to November, Hip-Hop Classroom. We had to post these raps – fresh in from Loudon, VA and Cheshire, CT.
First, we have a truly top-notch rap about the Vietnam War from Ms. Zecher in Sterlin, VA. The key content/vocabulary is even in bold, just like Flocabulary. Fantastic work Jen Zecher – let’s get this on wax!
Up next, 5th graders from Doolittle School in Cheshire, CT created a rap about science of sound concepts. We love it! Here’s what teacher Tracy Ajello wrote when she submitted the rhymes: “Hi, my fifth graders wrote this rap to teach about grade 5 science of sound concepts. We LOVE your raps, so we wrote our own.”
Big Up all you educational hip-hoppers: the movement grows each day…
Vietnam War Hip-Hop U.S. History: Oh Domino,
by Ms. Zecher, Park View High School
At the Gulf of Tonkin, two U.S. ships went under
And LB Johnson instituted his plan of Operation Rolling Thunder
Men as young as 18
Were drafted and fightin’ in the Army, Navy, Air
Force and Marines
Back then you could be 18 to fight and have a beer
But had to be 21 to vote for the President who sent you here
Glad things are different today
Thanks to the 26th Amendment you can have it your way
Oh Domino….If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
The Viet Cong used guerilla warfare
U.S. soldiers were surrounded and unprepared
For the ambushes and the elephant grass
“Where is Charlie?” Screamed a grunt
These enemies are sure difficult to hunt
Oh Domino….If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Lyndon B. Johnson could not understand
How could the U.S. fail at this plan?
Bombing all day and all night
How could the Vietnamese win this fight?
Stuck in the theories of containment and the ColdWar
In 1968, LBJ said “no more”
He did not accept the Presidential nomination
Leavin’ U.S. soldiers in frustration
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
1968…the most important of years
Khe Sanh and the Tet Offensive raised Americanfears
Anti-war protesters wanted to give peace a chance
As well as hang out in Haight-Ashbury and dance
Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy
represented the hopes of a nation
But we lost both to assassination
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Then came the presidency of Richard Nixon
Who realized the nation needed fixin’
He planned to train the South Vietnamese to fight
So American soldiers would get home alright
This policy known as Vietnamization
Tried to keep South Vietnam its own separate nation
In 1973, Nixon gave us peace with honor
But in 1974 he resigned and was a goner
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Soldiers return to no fancy parades
Some wonder if this war was just a charade
In D.C., the Wall is filled with memories of those lost
58,156 deaths for freedom that is quite a cost
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
Oh Domino…If one falls to communism the rest will go
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School Day, Sound Day
by Doolittle School 5th Grade Class and Ms. Ajello
I was walking down the hall, listening to vibrations,
Y’know the sound waves that give ya hearing sensations.
When I reached my class, it was so loud,
I realized it shouldn’t be allowed.
There was no resting point,
Where sound could take a break
It was just nonstop sound all around.
The waves per second, y’know the frequency,
It was through the roof and no one was listening to me.
I’d have rather been in a vacuum, a space devoid of matter,
Then in here with all this crazy chatter.
There were so many different timbres
The difference in voices between madams and sirs.
Some people’s voices were high, some people’s voices were low,
The pitch was so different, y’know
The teacher walked in, all angry,
And said, Class, you’re gonna be spending recess with me!
