ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Seventh graders at Ron Clark Academy became an overnight sensation during the presidential election when their YouTube performance of "You Can Vote However You Like" catapulted them to online stardom.



"The higher the expectations, the higher the results," says Ron Clark, seen here with his students.



Now, their creative and scholastic talents have proved the students to be more than just "one hit wonders."



Academy students showcased their poetry and writings for CNN's documentary "Black in America 2," hosted by Soledad O'Brien.



Cultivating student creativity is just one of the goals of academy founder Ron Clark, an enigmatic educator known for his unconventional teaching methods.



Under his strict tutelage, students at Ron Clark -- who are predominantly African-American -- are expected to excel in all subjects and maintain a high standard of respect for their peers and teachers.



"I'm teaching an eighth-grade curriculum to fifth-graders," says Clark. "Some people say my expectations of the kids, academically, is too high, but the higher the expectations, the higher the results."  Watch Clark's students perform their original poetry »



But with high academic expectations come an equally high quotient for fun.



It's become one of Clark's trademarks: singing and dancing to popular rap and R&B songs during class to get the kids engaged.



"My first day at Ron Clark Academy, I thought all the teachers were psychopaths," says seventh-grader Jai Springs.



"I thought Ron Clark was going crazy. He was up in front of the kids on desks, he was dancing. ... I never saw a teacher get up on a desk and dance. But now I'm used to it, so I get up on the desk and dance too," says Jai.



Clark, formerly a schoolteacher from North Carolina, founded the academy with money he earned from his book titled The Essential 55, which detail Clark's 55 golden rules for success -- in and out of the classroom.



Clark was invited to be a guest on the Oprah Winfrey show after winning Disney Teacher of the Year Award in 2001. Oprah believed so much in the well-mannered Southern school teacher from South Carolina that she encouraged him to write the book. Later she promoted The Essential 55 on her show, prompting it's ascension to New York Times bestseller list.



Together with co-founder Kim Bearden, Clark transformed a decaying factory in a rough part of Atlanta, Georgia, into a state-of-the-art educational model for middle schools across the country. See newsmakers and iReporters on race, challenges, solutions for black America



Soon after the school opened its doors in 2008, a Christmas package from Winfrey arrived for Clark in the form of a $365,000 grant, or "a thousand dollars for each day of the year," as Oprah referred to it in the letter.



Then came the elections, with a tight presidential race between Sens. Barack Obama of Illinois and John McCain of Arizona.



Inspired by rapper T.I.'s hit song "Whatever You Like," Clark's seventh grade class penned their own lyrics and dance moves. The students' performance carried a message: Cast your ballot because you support a candidate's policies rather than just his skin color.



When they perform the song, half the seventh grade class touts the virtues of GOP's McCain while the other half root for Democrat Obama: "Obama on the left. McCain on the right. We can talk politics all night. And you can vote however you like."



The students "can talk politics with the best of them," says Clark. Video clips of the kids performing have garnered over 15 million hits on YouTube.



"We got lots of media attention. But when the media arrived to the school they realized the song is not the story, it's the kids," says Clark.



One of Clark's credos is teaching a "global curriculum" with a heavy emphasis on current events. Himself an avid world traveler,
What does Clark teach? What kind of l curriculum was taught? What is the opinion of Clark? What is the  Aaademy name? What curriculum are fifth graders taught? How many youtube hits did the '08 YouTube rap performance  get?
"I'm teaching an eighth-grade curriculum to fifth-graders," eighth-grade "The higher the expectations, the higher the results," Ron Clark Academy eighth-grade over 15 million
question: What does Clark teach?, answer: "I'm teaching an eighth-grade curriculum to fifth-graders," | question: What kind of l curriculum was taught?, answer: eighth-grade | question: What is the opinion of Clark?, answer: "The higher the expectations, the higher the results," | question: What is the  Aaademy name?, answer: Ron Clark Academy | question: What curriculum are fifth graders taught?, answer: eighth-grade | question: How many youtube hits did the '08 YouTube rap performance  get?, answer: over 15 million