Customer Reviews

Grammar Rock (Schoolhouse Rock 1973)

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When it comes to the rules of grammar I know the difference between an independent and a dependent clause and that is about it. If you want to talk about the building blocks of sentences I really do not even know the basics (you only had to go up and diagram sentences on the board if you were not putting them together directly and I was reading books all the time and sort of picked up correct sentence structure by osmosis, so I know how to fix sentences even if I am totally incapable of explaining the rules). Anyhow, the point of this meandering down memory lane is simply to state the obvious: Here are the basics. Learn that "A Noun is a Person, Place, or Thing," "Unpack Your Adjectives," and take a ride down to "Conjunction Junction." Also included are "Verb: That's What's Happening," "Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Adverbs Here," "Interjections," and the immortal "Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla" (no excuses if you do not know that last one is about pronouns).

"Schoolhouse Rock" was created in the 1970s, when an advertising executive noticed his son was having trouble memorizing his multiplication tables but knew all the words to rock songs on the radio. The marriage of pop music with information spawned a series of three-minute cartoons on government, history, grammar, science, and math that aired on ABC television from 1973 to 1985. This CD presents all of the "Grammar Rock" lessons, which are still pretty good even without the cartoons (but having the video of the cartoons is better). As long as the rules of grammar do not change (and they look like they are pretty much engraved in, uh, rock) then these ten mini-lessons are going to be useful to teachers and students alike.

I am a teacher in Scotland and I remembered Grammar Rock from when I grew up in California. So naturally, when I had to teach grammar to the kids in my class, I turned to Grammar Rock. These songs are absolutely brilliant for helping kids with grammar because each song gives good examples of a part of speech. Not only is it educational, there is nothing cuter than a group of little Scottish kids grooving to "Conjuction Junction", with their own Scot-ified lyrics. Grammar Rock has truly gone global!

When I taught English Composition at the university level, I found myself constantly singing these lyrics to my students, most of whom were non traditional students and thus remembered the lyrics--a nice bridge to discussing the different parts of speech (and the mistakes you can make in using them). I'm going to buy all of these Schoolhouse Rock things for use in my courses.

School House Rock is etched in my brain. These are tools I wish to share in the future with my kids. Saturday mornings in the 70's & 80's were fun as well as educational. I found myself looking forward to the breaks in-between cartoons to sing along with School House Rock. This series was especially helpful during tests. I would replay the jingles in my mind to help me to answer problems correctly!!

The current prices are outrageous, but these old 3 minute cartoon songs are informative, cute, and catchy at the same time.

The Schoolhouse Rock Series is one of the most creative and educational music and video recordings ever! My kids were raised on the TV broadcasts and Multiplication Rock LP and now my grandson can see the cartoons and learn the songs. This is wonderful stuff. Highly recommended.

Not only do these tunes bring back fond memories, they're musically fun. And in case I'd forgotten any of the things they teach, I can learn them all over again. Lots of fun.

The song most imbeded in my brain of this collection? It has to be "The Noun Song" - I never forgot what a noun was because of this song. I actually like "Mr. Morton" about predicates; this is not one of the originals from the 70's - in fact I'd never heard it before I bought the DVD - but I think this song has the best story line of ANY of the songs, and I like the melody! Also love "Interjections."
Not my favorite: "Conjuction Junction." They over-played this during its initial run in the 70's; even back then I used to say when it came on: "Not again!"

How can it get any better than Grammer Rock on a CD. After you listen to these songs, just *try* to forget what an adverb is. The tunes are catchy and can stick in your head for days. The SchoolHouse Rock! collection is great for anyone, and can be used in a classroom, or just as fun music to listen to.

Grammar Rock has some really good songs to remember the parts of speech and how to use them correctly. I think some adults would do well to be reminded, too, and these songs are clever enough for all ages.