Who writes it and how does it teach vocabulary words?
I started off singing song parodies but I realized that I would have to pay royalties if I used familiar songs and it would cost a fortune. I used all my own money to buy studio time and finance the project, so I had to keep the expenses down. As it was, I was recording in the middle of the night in the scariest neighborhoods in Philadelphia, so I could get cheaper studio time — and even then we didn’t have money for winter coats one year! So, I started writing my own material and I tried to make it weird and funny to capture the kids’ attention. I have no musical talent and my singing is off-key, but part of the charm is that it’s not slick, it’s goofy. Teenagers really respond to it because it is so real. What it does in terms of teaching vocabulary is use scientifically based memory mechanisms like linking, alliteration, rhyme, repetition, and word-association. Q: What’s the response been to the nine hours of vocabulary prep material? A: I have been amazed at the response. People l
