Rivers of Joy: Life with 13 Children

Lobster Network

2010-05-13T17:18:00.000-07:00

LobsterNetwork is a new web application that helps you share your stuff safely and securely. The hope of the creators is that it will help to create community amongst friends and strangers. Besides making it easy to lend and borrow things to/from other people, you can also use it to log and track your own stuff for purely personal use.

Lend it. Borrow it. Trade it. Sell it. Give it away.
All with the click of a button and only with whom you choose.
How LobsterNetwork works:

	It's simple.	Create a personal library of your stuff.
	It's easy.	Create friendships with the people you know.
	It's fast.	Browse your friend’s stuff and request to borrow something.
	It's flexible.	Approve or reject any request for your stuff.
	It's controlled.	Decide who sees your stuff. Even create "communities" of friends that only share stuff with each other.
	It's helpful.	It tracks your stuff on loan and automatically reminds your friends when to return your stuff.
	It's secure.	Keep a private inventory of your stuff online for insurance purposes. Include pictures too.
	It's free.	Best of all it's free.

For a video introduction check it out HERE

Ideal Curriculum

2010-05-11T17:17:00.001-07:00

As a part of the TOS Crew I was given an opportunity to review some items from Ideal Curriculum . Ideal Curriculum is a preschool curriculum. We are just ending our preschool time with our 5 year old twins, so this was timely.

I received the month 1 kit which has a theme of transportation. Each monthly kit contains literacy lessons (letters, sounds, phonological awareness, sight words), science and social studies themes, math lessons and calendar lessons. With each kit you get teacher's manuals (one each for literacy, math, and the science/social studies themes). Each teachers manual is 20-50 pages long and that is only for one month of lessons. You also get weekly schedules that have lessons. Each lesson has direct teaching ideas and "practicing through the day" ideas. There are also instructions on which workbook pages to do for each lesson. You also receive print and music files. The print files have the worksheets and any pictures or charts you need to teach. The music files have the songs that go along with the lessons.

I see Ideal Curriculum being a good fit for someone who wants something simple that is all laid out for them. It could be a good starting place for beginning homeschoolers.. All activities are designed for classrooms. Although I was able to use and adapt a few activities for my two this was not something which fit well with our normal homeschooling philosophy–which tends to be literature rich.

The price is quite high for material at this level, especially if you purchase the print option.

This curriculum is published as month-long all inclusive kits. Customers may choose from either electronically downloadable or monthly print versions in the following formats: $30 for a monthly unit in download format
$55 for a monthly printed unit
$526 for one year’s curriculum

If you would like to see what my CREW members Thought of this curriculum please click HERE.

Sue Gregg

2010-05-05T17:16:00.000-07:00

As part of the TOS crew I received Introducing Whole Foods Cooking from Sue Gregg for review.

Here is the information about the book from Sue's website:
Introducing Whole Foods Cooking dispels the myth that healthy whole foods must necessarily be appetite appeal-less. Model recipes start you on a culinary adventure that breaks the barriers to success without resorting to white flour, white sugar, or hydrogenated shortening. Essential nutritional concepts and the 2 Stage Process explained. Serving and Connecting segment shows you how to make Jesus a welcome guest at your table. PowerPoint Demo CD includes group teaching materials and a high school level semester course for Menu Planning and Meal Preparation.

I was/am very excited about this wonderful cook book! First some background...... We have really, really been trying to eat well around here and Mom and Dad have actually really trying to loose some weight, well lots of weight :) BUT the real goal and aim has been to gain health for all of us. My hope has been to introduce my family to more whole foods, AKA God made foods verses man made! Introducing Whole Foods Cooking is Wonderful....and includes all the health aims we have for our family and great tasting recipes that the family loves.

The CD is full of colorful Power Point presentations of different techniques and recipes, making them seem both easy and appealing. It is definitely a worthwhile addition to the book.

Since this fell in line with our goals we decided to add in a semester of "home-Ec" based around this book. We have had such fun making a new recipe each week, learning about nutrition and God's word ( a Bible study is included to follow along with your studies), menu planning and so much more! Some of our favorite recipes have become the:
Blender Waffles/Pancakes (the kids beg for this one, yum)
Tuna Bunsteads
Baked Parmesan Chicken

The fun part has been cooking as a family, and really enjoying healthy food together. The pluses: we have lost weight! ya :) and enjoyed ourselves and the food we are eating in the process.

Introducing Whole Foods Cooking $17

To see CREW Reviews of this cookbook and others by Sue Gregg click HERE

Lesson Planet

2010-05-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

As part of the TOS crew I received a 3 month membership to Lesson Planet for review.

Lesson Planet was designed to help teachers find material that is relevant to what the are teaching quickly and easily ~ providing over 150,000 lesson plans and 75,000 worksheets. It was created by educators as a search engine that is member supported and available to any teacher public, private or homeschool, to use in lesson planning.
Teachers can find resources in the following ways:

Searching by keyword, grade level and overall rating
Clicking the Narrow, Related or My Recent Searches keyword options
Browsing for reviewed resources by Subject, Calendar or Theme
Exploring relevant State Standards, matched to each member’s state
Utilizing Advanced Search to narrow by duration, method, technology, and more

My teaching style is not one of putting together lesson plans from different sources to make a smooth flowing course. So even though Lesson Planet has their material arranged very nicely, it does not fit my needs. Now if you like to use a large variety of sources for your teaching or if you like to do supplemental lessons for special days, then Lesson Planet could be a gold mine. It is very nice that the material has been reviewed and rated so you can have some idea of its value without having to look over it completely yourself.

Most of the lesson plans are very scripted and not suited for a homeschool environment. I truthfully didn’t find any lessons that would be useful to me without quite a bit of modification.

For teachers or parents interested in this type of search engine, Lesson Planet has a 10 day free trial before committing to a $39.95 per year membership.

While Lesson Planet wasn't a good fit for our family, some of the Crew members did find it helpful. Cklick HERE to check out the review.

Super Star Games

2010-04-25T12:01:00.000-07:00

I was given an opportunity to review some Super Star Games as a part of the TOS Crew. Debbie Lott from Super Star also sells a speech therapy program called Super Star Speech. If you have a child that is struggling with speech please check out her materials . Since I don't have a child that needs speech therapy, I am going to review some of the games that she offers. Each game retails for $3.50.

Play The Insect Game to learn all about insects or to reinforce your current study of insects. Players answer questions to earn insect parts, attempting to be the first player to build a complete insect. This game is designed for 2nd to 6th grades.

The object of Covering the Continents is to "settle" more continents than any other player. Covering the Continents includes a game board/ map and game cards that ask questions about each of the seven continents. Players try to be the first to answer three questions about a continent to "settle" it. Fun for ages 6 to 10.

Players of the Exploring Egypt Game will race to be first to the top of the pyramid by answering the most questions about ancient Egypt. Game question topics cover geography, politics, daily life, and religion of ancient Egypt. The game can be adjusted to accommodate players of different ages and abilities. Designed for 3rd to 8th grade students.

The Inventors Game will teach your child about 24 famous inventors. Instructions are included for two different games, with variations for difficulty. Children have fun matching inventors to their inventions or playing a timeline game using the dates of different inventions.

these are just some of the games we tried and loved! These games are a wonderful way to reinforce what your learning, but also just fun for learning. My kids are not studying inventors but have played this game over and over...FUN and LEARNING....whats NOT to love?

The TV teacher: Alphabet Beats

2010-04-21T22:39:00.000-07:00

Alphabet Beats is an award winning handwriting program that uses visual, auditory, and a hands on approach to teaching writing the alphabet. There are memorable chants that the children listen to and learn to help them remember how to write the alphabet.

I was sent a free copy of the LOWER CASE Writing DVD to use and review as part of the TOS crew.

I was a little worried of a DVD for teaching handwriting, so was pleasantly surprised when I put this in and my 5 year old twins and grandchildren 6 and 3 became very excited!

Each letter chapter is very short, less than 5 minutes. The idea is that after watching a segment, you’ll practice making the letter on paper.
Ms. Marnie, the TV Teacher, introduces each letter by tracing it with her finger and saying a chant (for instance, little line down, up over and down, n) as a reminder of the correct way to form the letter. The rest of the segment consists of Ms. Marnie writing the letter on paper, while saying the chant and on a chalkboard again while saying the chant, talking about n words like nuts, new /old nickel, nurse (and what a nurse does) net, numbers (she goes over 1-9). It's a varied mix of stills, video, and activity.
Ms. Marnie has, a “bubbly personality.” All smiles, exaggerated speech and hand movements, intended to keep a young child’s attention. And it works. . My kids/grandkids were begging to choose a letter and they are writing random "letters" to everyone!!! This program teaches the ball and stick form but I see no problem with a child's ability to transfer into another style latter. We use italic and I will "transfer" them over latter.

Alphabet Beats Upper Case DVD is available for $35.
The Lower Case DVD is available for $35, too. Or buy both for $64.99.
There are also spiral-bound workbooks available for $4.49-4.99 each.
You can view a free demo of the Alphabet Beats Lower Case DVD here .

To see other reviews click HERE

Time 4 Learning

2010-04-14T09:53:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to try Time 4 learning So I was really excited when as part of the TOS crew I received a one month membership to their online preschool program. My 3 preschoolers were excited that they had a special COMPUTER program for them!

Time 4 Learning is an online PreK - 8th grade curriculum that can be used a supplement to your current curriculum or even as your entire curriculum for language arts, math, science and social studies. The curriculum is tailored to each of your children's educational needs and levels and includes animated lessons, interactive activities, unit assessments, and printable worksheets for reinforcement (and it is ad-free!). Lessons are also correlated to standards in all 50 states.
The preschool curriculum offers two different levels of difficulty and covers 40 different topics including: shapes, numbers, feelings, human body, insects, color mixing, weather and much more.

Each box is a topic the child can click on. Inside the topic the child will find a selection of activities to choose from, including:

Storybooks
Match It game
Patterns
Find It game
Memory Match card game
Which is Which? identification game
and more

As the child completes an activity, a check mark appears over the icon. The child can still play again if desired.
What I liked MOST about Time4Learning Preschool is that the program speaks to the child, explaining how to play and naming all things they scroll over. They do not need to be able to read independently. The activities were fun. My kids begged to play all the time! The PreK 2 level covers similar themes in more depth.

Membership is:

$19.95 / Month for the First Child

$14.95 / Month for Each Additional Child!

You can learn more and try free demos from the Time4Learning website.
You can see more reviews HERE

All About Spelling: What Am I ? Reader

2010-04-12T21:42:00.000-07:00

Earlier this year I reviewed the wonderful spelling program All about Spelling and the Beehive Reader 1.
We have also received for review the second reader Who Am I?

This reader follows Beehive Reader 1 (which, by the way, is getting a new title -- Cobweb the Cat -- same great book, different title), and coordinates with the first 14 steps in All About Spelling Level 2. It can be used whether or not you use All About Spelling. This book includes longer stories, but similar wonderful illustrations of endearing characters.

Like the first reader this one is wonderful! it is available from All About Spelling for $19.95

Tales From Terrestria by Ed Dunlap

2010-04-10T21:04:00.000-07:00

As part of the TOS homeschool crew I received two books from Ed Dunlap Ministries, The Tales From Terrestria book 1: Quest For Thunder Mountain and book 4: The Isle of Dragons to review.

Ed Dunlap is an evangelist, who has written many books to reach out to children.

His latest set of books are fast paced, exciting and entertaining. They contain no magic or wizardry, making them an excellent alternative to popular, secular books of today. Yet, they also contain an important message.

Here is what the web site says:

Book One – The Quest for Thunder Mountain (203 pages)

A dangerous quest to a mysterious mountain—but how will it end?...When Gavin’s career comes to an

abrupt end, the talented young minstrel learns that King Emmanuel has plans for him—plans that promise life and purpose. But Gavin must make a difficult journey to a mysterious mountain.

The young minstrel eagerly starts on his quest with three companions, but the travelers are warned that Thunder Mountain is a place of terror and treachery. Will Gavin and his friends find Emmanuel’s will on the mountain, or are they walking into a trap?

The Quest for Thunder Mountain, written to show the wonder of doing the will of God, is the first book in the new young adult allegory series Tales from Terrestria, a companion series to the Terrestria Chronicles.

Book Four – The Isle of Dragons (201 pages)

The Dragon Tournament—a mysterious event that draws young people by the thousands. Admission is free, but what price do the...

participants really pay?

When sixteen-year-old Joel of Seawell, the son of a peasant fisherman, receives an invitation to the Tournament he is thrilled beyond words. Too late he learns the terrifying secret of the Isle of Dragons.

Captive in a hostile land, Joel gives up all hope, certain he will never again see his home or experience the happy life he once knew.
In his despair, he has overlooked a powerful force—the unconditional love of his father

Peer pressure—a powerful force for evil. Parental love—a powerful force for good. The Isle of Dragons—a powerful book to encourage young people to listen to the right voices.

We really enjoyed these books as our read a loud! The kids would beg me to keep reading! I highly recommend these books.

There are 3 books out in this series (you do NOT have to read them in order) of the seven planned. Each book is $7.99 or 3 for $19.99

If you would like to see what other crew members have to say , please click HERE.

ally enjoyed these

The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks Virtual World

2010-04-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks, a massive online virtual world for kids aged 7-14, has been the buzz around our home for the last month As part of the TOS crew we received a membership to review this sight..

According to the website, WW promises:

“…an experience in which players will be able to travel to places around the world, through time and space, meet famous historical people, play dozens of fun enriching games, make new friends, buy exotic islands, build culture-inspired houses, wear clothes from different countries, explore secret locations, solve mysteries and become a legendary traveler!”

My kids have been following the plot by traveling around the world to help locate a group of historical people who have lost their memory from traveling through a time warp. Their goal is to help them regain their lost memory. Your child will meet characters like Buffalo Bill, Galileo, Albert Einstein, Beethoven, and Emperor Qin in their travels.

I would have to warn parents that at this sight your children may encounter some things that you may wish to watch out for!
Your child may be exposed to evolutionary content through characters like Charles Darwin and objectionable material like the false gods. Your child may also be exposed to foul language. because of the chat feature.
children are able to chat live with other children from all over the world. WW has a strict policy on safety and children are taught to report any offending or illegal behavior – and trust me they do! But, my children have still been exposed to inappropriate language.
WW does have a set of proprietary rules and safety featureshttp://parents.wiglingtonandwenks.com/safetyfeatures.html:

No numbers (designed to filter out phone numbers and addresses)
No URL links (prevents the sharing of inappropriate websites)
No vulgarities (language is censored and repeat offenders are banned)
No private messaging (no unsupervised conversations)
Reporting feature (Players report and moderators investigate inappropriate behavior)
Chat logs (parents can request children's chat logs as far back as 90 days)
Parent/Admin panel (parents can monitor playing habits)

However, there are ways around these safety features and children do find these ways!

The Travels of Wiglington and Wenks, a product of Wiglington and Wenks Worldwide Pte Ltd, is free for a basic membership, but to gain access to all of the features , special areas and extra privileges, you will need to purchase a WW Membership.
Membership Price:

Monthly: $5.99
3-Month Ticket: $16.99
6-Month Ticket: $29.99
1-Year Ticket: $59.99

Though it is touted as educational, I didn't see that much education on the actual WW site that my older kids did not already know. It was easy to click and not read the educational info given.

Critical Thinking Company

2010-04-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

We have used some of the Critical thinking Co. products before, so I was very happy to receive from them for review as part of the TOS crew the book: Balance Benders Beginnings

Here is what the Critical thinking company says:

Description & Features

Move over Sudoku, here come Balance Benders™! You can use these books as quick, fun logic problems or as stepping stones to success in algebra. Children develop deductive thinking and pre-algebra skills as they solve balance puzzles that are more fun and addictive than Sudoku puzzles! Children must analyze each balance to identify the clues, and then synthesize the information to solve the puzzle. Try one—and then try to stop!

My children found this book on the table and started in on these fun problems before I even introduced them! The problems gets harder as you progress and this just made them try to be "the first" to get the answers!!!
To give you an idea as to how the problems look here is a sample page..

As you can see a balance is set up and the student has to figure out which of the "equations" below are true based on the top balance. My kids really enjoyed this book.

There are several levels of Balance Bender books:

Beginning: Grades 2-6

Level 1: Grades 4-12

Level 2: Grades 6-12

Level 3: Grades 8-12

Each book retails for $9.99 and has 48 pages.

If you would like to see what my CREW members have to say please click HERE

Family Mint

2010-03-25T13:10:00.001-07:00

We were asked to review Family Mint as a part of the TOS crew. Family Mint is currently a free program that you can use to keep track of your child's allowance, spending, savings, and money goals. It can be a teaching tool to show your child how to manage money. It is also a tracking system for your child's money. parents are the bank and your children manage their money by setting goals and entering transactions. Essentially, it works like this: The kids give you their money -- allowances, payment for work done for others, gift money, etc. -- then, mark their "deposit" in their Family Mint account. No actual money transactions take place online. As far as anyone else is concerned, the funds on the Family Mint site are virtual money. When the kids want to make a withdrawal, they enter the transaction, which you have to approve or deny. If approved, you give the kids their money.

This did not work for us as we do not give our children allowances, and at this time my youngest have no way they "get" money.

That being said, there are some nice features to Family Mint, Some of the fun things you can do with Family Mint are:

Set up a savings plan for a specific goal. You or your child can enter the dollar amount of the goal along with the deadline and receive a breakdown of how much the child needs to save each week to reach the goal.
Set interest rates to reward saving.
Fund matching. If your child is saving toward a certain goal and you've agreed to match funds, you can set the program up to reflect this.

I think that this is a great concept to help your kids manage their money! It is all in one place, and you as the parent can keep track of what they are saving and what they are spending their money on. I found the system easy to use, everything is pretty self-explanatory. To learn more about this program and to sign up, click here.

If you would like to see what my CREW members have to say please click HERE

Math Galaxy

2010-03-25T13:07:00.000-07:00

As part of the TOS crew I recieved from Galaxy of Education Math Galaxy for review.

"Galaxy of Education strives to produce supplementary materials starting at the beginning with addition, focusing on multi-step problem solving. Their premise is that teachers and computers are both important in teaching math, with the computer's main strength being the ability to review specific skills without getting frustrated or tired. From their website, "Our goal is to provide students a foundation for analytical thinking in the modern world and for higher-level math and science."

The main product type is a computer program (that works on both PCs and Macs) that gives you a choice of topics, and within each topic you can be guided step by step through the problem, or just give the final answer.

There are several levels of programs here they are with topics in each level:

The second product type is a worksheet generator. It is a computer program that will create riddle worksheets. The third product type is an e-book with already created riddle worksheets.

E-Books are available for Whole Numbers and Fractions.

We are enjoying these the kids love solving the riddles and there is so much here for years to come!

The best way to see Math Galaxy’s programs is from their home page . They offer free limited use or examples of nearly everything. Simply scroll down the page and click on what you want to try. If you like what you see, you can purchase the full version of any of the programs on CD for $29.95 per level

If you would like to see what my CREW members have to say please click HERE.

Children's Bible Hour Ministries

2010-03-25T12:11:00.000-07:00

In our house we know of Children's Bible Hour Ministries (CBH) because of Key's For kids Devotionals, Which the children use for their quiet time. CBH sent us as part of the TOS crew The Seasons Of Faith Illustrated Books for review.

" The Seasons of Faith illustrated books encourage children to learn about their faith in God. Based on CBH Ministries’ treasure trove of radio scripts, these stories teach core truths of the Bible so that kids can easily apply them to their lives. Each book focuses on a season of faith-developing topics."

My children enjoy story books whether I read them aloud or we listen to the audio book version. When the Seasons of Faith Series came in the mail from CBH they got the best of both worlds.The four books in this series are really nicely illustrated picture books that include a CD in the back to listen along with.

The 4 books are:

Seventy Times Seven: Brad and Doug a good friends, but Brad is upset about a few things Doug as done to him. One day, while the boys are playing baseball, Brad accidentally hits a ball through Mr. Jeffries' ice cream shop window. Mr. Jeffries forgives Brad. Can Brad do the same and forgive Doug?

Braving the Storm: Things have been pretty tough for Thomas and his family lately. Thomas is feeling pretty down, so his Grandpa tries to help him get through the tough times by depending on God. Will Thomas learn the lesson his Grandpa is trying to teach him?

Race with Midnight: Becky is off to spend spring break in Montana at her cousin Sarah's ranch. She's looking forward to learning how to ride a horse and doing lots of horseback riding. She is also praying that she will have the opportunity to share the gospel with her unsaved family members. Will Becky have the opportunity to share the gospel with Sarah and her family? Will they listen?

'

You Can't Come In: Zack and Adam are new best buds who decide to build a fort together. During the process, Zack ends up getting completely muddy. This leads to some interesting conversations between Zack and Adam as well as Zack's parents later on in the evening. Will Adam be able to share the gospel message with Zack? Will Zack understand what Adam is telling him?

Each of these books are well-written and teach spiritual truths like salvation, forgiveness, and trust in God. At the end of each book is an explanation on how to receive Jesus as your Savior. There are discussion questions available for each book HERE.

You can buy the Seasons Of Faith set for $40.00
Individual books are $10.00
At CHB.

If you would like to see what other members of the CREW have to say please click HERE

R. E. A. L. Science Odyssey: Chemistry Level 1

2010-03-22T19:50:00.000-07:00

My kids have wanted to do chemistry all year, they thought it would be all about mixing "potions" and blowing things up!! So we were all happy and excited when as part of the TOS crew I received R. E. A. L. Science Odyssey: Chemistry level 1 from Pandia Press for review.

What is R. E. A. L. Science Odyssey? R. E. A. L. stands for Read* Explore* Absorb* Learn and that is exactly what this curriculum is all about!

There are 7 units in this 400+ page book that will cover topics like:
What is Chemistry?
Atoms
The Periodic Table of Elements
Molecules
Matter
Chemical Reactions

Each lesson begins with a poem that introduces the lessons vocabulary, then the lesson which is given in a fun story like presentation that introduces the chosen topic, there are then the hands on activities/labs that reinforce the topic for the children. Along with the experiments/activities are worksheets that help the children to fallow and lean well what is being taught.

The beginning of the book gives an outline of the main topics and subtopics, lists of recommended supplemental reading books, and a list of supplies and needed material for each unit. The back of the book has answers to the crossword puzzles, vocabulary words with definitions (glossary) and a chart of the Periodic Table of Elements.

This is truly a very engaging study of chemistry and a great foundation. I love that this program makes chemistry available to the younger children grades 2-5 (my 14 old loved it too), AND made even the tricky subject of chemistry make perfect sense to them.
I like that there is very little preparation time, copy the lesson and worksheets for each child and gather supplies.... have fun.

I love it....My kids are loving it...they understand it----- that makes a great combination

If you are interested in this chemistry program or the other 2 available Life or Earth and Space you can browse the try it before you buy feature HERE.

The E-book version can be purchased at Pandia Press for $ 38.99

To see what other CREW members have to say please click HERE.

DIY Dish

2010-03-21T10:11:00.000-07:00

I love creativity, love making things, altering old into something new, sewing, scrapbooking..... you get the idea :) I just watched this new web show what fun! The girls and I are going to make cake pin cushions.Go check out their first episode.

Sign up for the chance to win a Janome sewing machine and some really adorable pin cushions!!

Homeschool In The Woods

2010-03-20T22:40:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to receive two map sets from Homeschool In The Woods, Olde World Style US and World maps as part of the TOS crew for review.. We have used their Timeline Figures and "Record of Time" timeline notebook for several years and love the work that Amy Pak does!!!

Here is what you will get with these maps:

US Maps

*over 180 maps

*Maps of each state

*Historical maps for American History

*Color flags for each state

*State Facts Pages A notebooking page for each state

There are FREE samples of the US maps HERE

World Maps

* over 130 maps

*Ancient maps

*Modern maps of current areas and countries

*Color flags of all the countries

fnotebooking pages: explorers, country flags, country pages, seven wonders of the ancient world, and many more

There are Free samples of the world maps HERE

We are studying the Ancient World and the maps of Egypt were beautiful as are all the maps!

But what I truly love are all the wonderful creative notebooking pages! Brochures, flags geography..... they just make learning so much fun!

Each maps set At Homeschool In The Woods comes in download form or on CD. Here are the prices:

Downloads

US Maps: $18.95

World Maps: $18.95

Combo: $28.95

US Maps: $19.95

World Maps: $19.95

Combo: $29.95

Artistic Prusuits

2010-03-17T22:03:00.001-07:00

I have always wanted to teach art to my children, that being said we have not really ever had formal art lessons. We are very crafty and do include drawing in our notebooks, but not art solely ment for the purpose of art study. I was really excited that as part of the TOS crew I received 2 books from Artistic Pursuits for review.

"The ARTistic Pursuits approach to teaching art is a welcome departure from typical art instruction books. This award winning homeschool art program meets the specific needs of homeschoolers at home. A variety of fun applications teach both the expressive and technical aspects of art while allowing children to make choices about what and how they will draw, paint, and sculpt. Assignments work within the stages of artistic development of children and guide them to mature artistic expression in the visual arts"

Artistic Pursuits is an independent curriculum with levels from preschool to high school. Artistic Pursuits combines the artistic techniques using a variety of mediums with the study of art history and appreciation. The child is given the freedom to choose what they would like to draw, paint or sculpt, allowing your child to develop their own sense of artistic abilities.

I received the grade 4-6 book 1 The Elements of Art and Composition and the Senior High book 1 The elements of Art and Composition.

ARTistic Pursuits, Grades 4 - 6, Book One, The Elements of Art and Composition 2ND EDITION
This book gives students their first in-depth look at the elements of art in a simply written text with lots of illustrations in pencil, marker, and scratch art, the media they will be using. The elements of art and composition are explored through American art.

	Written to the student
	No teacher preparation needed
	Four unique projects in each unit
	Art appreciation and art history
	Techniques and How to use Materials
	Special projects including scratch art and silhouette
	Sharp color images printed on bright white heavy-weight paper

We are loving this book! At first my kids 8-14 were a bit intimidated by having to choose what they were to draw but by the 3rd lesson were off and running. I love to see them excited and willing to move into these lessons even the ones who said "art was not for them!" Click HERE to see a sample lesson and a list of all the lessons in book 1.

ARTistic Pursuits, Senior High Book One, The Elements of Art and Composition 2ND EDITION

This book gives students in-depth experience with the elements of art and composition. Organized for clarity and understanding, the book will lay a solid foundation for first time high school art students and challenge experienced students as well with emphasis on personal expression and application of the creative process. Students explore the elements of art and composition through European art.

	Written to the student
	No teacher preparation needed
	Four unique projects in each unit
	Art appreciation and art history
	Techniques and How to use Materials
	Sharp color images printed on bright white heavy-weight pape

My two oldest girls 16 and 17 are doing this one, they are not as happy as the other kids, they feel like its to much and that they missed something by jumping in to this book with no formal art study. That said they want to use the same book as the rest of the children and then come back to it at a latter time. If you would like to see a sample lesson and list of what is taught click HERE

Overall I am really excited about Artistic Pursuits and am hoping to start the younger kids out with the lower programs soon.

Artistic Pursuits sells for $42.95 per book .

Homeschool Library Builder

2010-03-14T21:06:00.000-07:00

"Homeschool Library Builder, your resource for literature-based homeschooling. We offer quality new and used living books at bargain prices -- selections recommended by your favorite curricula such as Five in a Row, Sonlight, Beautiful Feet, Veritas Press, Tapestry of Grace, Ambleside Online, and others."

I love this site! Homeschool Library builder is run by 2 homeschooling Mom's who love excellent literature in education as much of us do. They offer new and gently used books that are used by many of the literature based curricula. You can search for the books you need or want by categories (historical fiction,science...) or by the curriculum provider (Tapestry Of Grace, Ambleside, Veritas...)

I searched Homeschool Library Builder by Tapestry of Grace ( this is the program we are using) and found several books I will need for our next unit. I then searched for several books we just would like to have and found several of those too!

They offer a:

Frequent Buyer Program·-- customers are rewarded through HSLB’s book points program. Fifteen book points equals one dollar for use toward future purchases. These points never expire. Points can be earned a number of ways:

Purchasing Books (one book point is earned for every dollar spent on books)
Referring friends to HSLB
Linking HSLB’s Website from the Customer’s Website or Blog

Best of all membership is FREE!!!

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say about Homeschool Library Builder Click HERE

What's Going on At The Old Schoolhouse!

2010-03-09T20:34:00.000-08:00

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine (sponsors of the TOS Crew review team) are holding their first online expo in May and I will be checking it out. All they ask of me is that I help spread the word and share this announcement with you this week and the next. No problem! I think it looks pretty cool. What do you think?

"If you're looking for homeschool encouragement, resources, and fun, check out all that is going on at The Old Schoolhouse!

Right now March Madness and Win Big are going on in the Schoolhouse Store. During March Madness, over 240 items are 10 to 40 percent off!
Click here to read the details. (Link: http://www.bit.ly/9vn2G9)

Then, if you're customer 139,000, 139,500, or 140,000, you will win over $348 in prizes. Prizes include a 5 year subscription to TOS (U.S.
only), Scripture Sleuth literature series, guitar lessons on CD, and more! Hurry, they are just past customer #137,818.

The BIGGEST news of all--The Schoolhouse Expo is coming in May!
Pre-register now and save $5!

As homeschool teachers?what do you need to learn? More about teaching multiple grades? All about different homeschool methods? Transcripts?
Could you use some help with reading, language arts, math, and more?
Are you intimidated by the idea of teaching middle school and high school?those dreaded, advanced courses? Would some encouraging words and motivational Scripture help you on your way? Get answers when you attend The Schoolhouse Expo, an 3-day, online conference, presented by The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine and The Old Schoolhouse® Speaker?s Bureau.

Pre-register today for only $19.99 through March 31.You do not want to miss this unbelievable, virtual homeschool convention! PLUS, you'll receive over $300 in free gifts when you register.
Get the details and preregister here http://www.schoolhouseexpo.com"

Graphics Toolbox

2010-03-07T18:44:00.000-08:00

Graphics Toolbox is a professional graphics program, that as part of the TOS crew I received for review.
This software program has so many wonderful uses the more I learned the more excited I became! Let me back up though, as anyone who knows me I am not a "software" person I am easily confounded by anything "computer" and please do not take me out of my comfort zone of what little I know!!! Well Graphics Toolbox did just that! I downloaded it, OK my wonderful husband did that. I stared at it and promptly downloaded and printed the Manuel, which is 80 pages of excellent explanations. I then started playing around and learned some of the amazing capabilities of this program. I am so excited at the potential that this program has for school, the kids are creating a poster for their Ancient Egypt studies, and I already have ideas for their Chemistry and Language arts!! The children learned this program very easily and they are already "playing" just for fun with this.
I also am excited to use this with my scrap-booking, but have not yet had the time to play with my favorite hobby, as soon as I can I will post some my completed projects.
To see all the features that this program has to offer, click on this page , you will be amazed at all this program has to offer.
Here is the page of education Ideas.
Graphics Toolbox also offers several tutorials to help you get started

So, to wrap it up, Graphics Toolbox is a software program that allows you to create or enhance any kind of image. With over 20 years of experience, a team of graphics programmers wanted to create a program that was easy to use and understand. The product they designed can be used by a wide range of individuals – home-schoolers, students, teachers, and business people. There are many ways to use the software, scrap-booking, blog graphics, card making, and enhancing or editing photos are just a few uses.

A 30-day free trial download is available. If Graphics-Toolbox sounds like it might fit your needs. A single license costs $149, and multiple license discounts are available. Make sure to check the system requirements before downloading this product.

Beehive Reader-1

2010-02-23T19:28:00.001-08:00

A couple of months ago I reviewed the All About Spelling Program (HERE). We have also received the Beehive Reader 1 from All About Spelling .
The Beehive Reader:
was created for the beginning reader.

It is a collection of 10 short stories on 160 pages inside a high-quality hardcover book.
Each page is printed on non-glare paper, making it easy on the eyes for children.
The reader correlates 100% with All About Spelling Level 1.
When one is using AAS Level 1, instructions are included in the corresponding lesson when it is time for the student to read a story in the reader, making it easy on the parent for scheduling reading time.
The reader can also be used independently of the AAS program.
It is written with natural phrasing and line breaks, making for smooth, enjoyable reading for the student.
The subtle underlining helps with tracking if needed, but otherwise easily ignored if not needed.
Beautiful illustrations throughout the book are included, and the stories use simple words and sentences.
Natural language and real storylines, including some funny stories make reading enjoyable for both student and parent.
Beehive Reader 1 was recently awarded a Silver Medal for The Moonbeam’s Children’s Book Awards

This book is a book you will want to keep. My younger girls are beyond this book, but just loved reading it to my 3 year old grand-daughter. My 5 year old twins will be learning to read in this book soon as they get far enough in their All About Spelling program. I am really excited that there are plans for more readers to go along with The All About Spelling Program.

Beehive Reader 1: $19.95

If you would like to read what other CREW members have to say about this reader click HERE

Math Mammoth

2010-02-20T18:36:00.000-08:00

Math Mammoth workbooks and worktexts are fully reproducible and are for grades1-12. Maria Miller the author of these books says:

"My aim is to help parents and teachers teach math so our children and students can really understand what is going on. I've strived to explain the concepts so that both the teacher and the student can "get it" by reading the explanations in the books. In essence, the books become practically self-teaching."

There are four different series of Math Mammoth books. The options include a full curriculum, The Light Blue Series. Worktexts by topic, The Blue Series. Worksheet collections either by topic The Green Series or by grade, The Golden Series and Make It Real Learning workbooks.

WORKTEXTS BY TOPICS
The Blue Series

Worktexts with both explanations and problems. Each book is on a particular topic, such as clock, multiplication, or geometry. Cover topics in grades 1-5.

The Blue Series books contain explanations of the topics and are like a textbook & workbook in the same book. They can thus be used for many situations: for initial teaching, remedial teaching, or for review.

Each book in the Blue Series concentrates on a few topics only, such as addition & subtraction, multiplication, clock, fractions, division, geometry, etc.

THE FULL CURRICULUM
Light Blue Series

Covers grades 1-5. Mastery-oriented. Emphasizes conceptual development in a logical sequence. Practically self-teaching - only a little teacher involvement needed

Math Mammoth Light Blue books constitute a complete mathematics curriculum for grades 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. Just like the Blue books, they contain explanations of the topics and are like a textbook & workbook in the same book.

The Light Blue series covers all topics for a given grade level. Each grade level includes two parts of a worktext (A and B), tests, cumulative reviews, answer keys, and a worksheet maker.

WORKSHEETS BY GRADE
The Golden Series

For grades 3-8, organized by grade. Contain problems only

The Golden Series books are worksheet collections by grade-level (from grade 3 through Algebra 1), and provide variable problems in a convenient one-topic per sheet format.

The Golden Series books do not teach the topics, and thus suit best teachers or tutors. They are great for classwork or homework, for general review, reinforcement, or practice material.

WORKSHEETS BY TOPIC
The Green Series

For grades 3-7, organized by topic. Contain problems only

These are worksheet collections by topic, and provide very variable problems in a convenient one-topic per sheet format.

The Green Series books do not teach the topics, and thus suit best teachers or tutors. They are great for classwork or homework, for general review, reinforcement, or practice material.

We Received the Light Blue Series grades 1-5. Each grade level comes with two worktexts A and B.
Math Mammoth does not bombard the student with multiple topics at the same time. In fact, the Light Blue Series 1st grade curriculum only covers a handful of topics: addition, subtraction, place value (tens and ones), time, counting coins, shapes and measurement. The emphasis is on mastery, developing a strong foundation, one topic at a time, and yet showing how topics are connected. Even in the beginning stages of addition, the background is being laid for subtraction by having the student supply the missing addend, for example, or splitting a number of balls into groups.

We have struggled here with finding a math program that works for my children and one we can afford! This program has been a God send!!! First The children have been saying: " Mom I understand it!"....."Mom, I really CAN do this!" I am really excited about this program and so are my children. We have set aside 30-45 minutes a day for math at first the children were cautious and wanted me to go over everything with them, but by week 2 I noticed my daughter and son, the ones who were the most cautious about making sure that I explain it were already doing their math BEFORE school even started! The children are steadily moving through this program and are now much more confident than ever about doing math.
I desperately needed something that is systematic and EASY for me to teach. The Math Mammoth Light Blue series sure seems to fit the bill.

If you think Math Mammoth might be for you, I highly recommend signing up for Math Teaching Emails or Math Mammoth Tour. You’ll receive a download of 280 sample worksheets, and a series of emails, so you can try it out firsthand.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say about Math Mammoth click HERE

The Light Blue Series A-B can be downloaded for $29.70. It is also available printed.

Presidential Penmanship

2010-02-19T18:37:00.000-08:00

Zeezok Publishing sent me Presidential Penmanship, Italic Style Complete Program CD as part of TOS Homeschool Reviews. This

"Complete Program CD contains handwriting practice pages in a font similar to the Italic writing style for first grade through senior high. Print what you need, when you need it. Using presidential quotes and speeches along with famous documents from American history, Presidential Penmanship seeks to enlighten students on the principles of our nation's founding and history while reinforcing character qualities of good citizenship. Great for memorization or discussion as well as penmanship practice"

Presidential Penmanship is available in 6 different writing styles:

AB style (similar to A Beka), DN style (similar to D'Nealian)
BJ style (similar to BJU Press)
DN style (similar to D'Nealian)
HWOT (similar to Handwriting Without Tears)
Italic style (similar to Getty & Dubay Italic)
ZB style (similar to Zaner-Bloser)

Individual grade levels are available as eBooks or all levels can be purchased at once on CD. The CD which we received had selections arranged by grade level with selections starting out brief and progressing to full page selections.

We love our Italic penmanship program and Presidential Penmanship italic Style is a great complement. We use it every other day and all the kids really enjoy this program. My younger girls were so happy to have "real stuff" (smile) to write. The boys are copying George Washington's Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior--each rule is accompanied by a relevant scripture verse. The boys really liked these and have asked to use this program only . What's a Mom to say? They WANT to work on their handwriting! Plus we have actually seen improvement in these last few weeks. I really like this program it has greatly enhanced our handwriting program.

Here is a link to a sample pages

Presidential Penmanship Complete Program CD $39.99
You may also purchase as an E-Book $39.99
Or as individual level E-Books $9.99

If you would like to read more reviews on this program please click HERE

The Ultimate Guide To Homeschooling

2010-02-15T19:17:00.000-08:00

I love books, I collect books......I am a bookaholic!!! One of my favorite subjects to read and collect are books on homeschooling. I love to "see" other peoples insights into this adventure of homeschooling. we can always learn from others and I was very excited to receive as part of the TOS Homeschool CREW, Debra Bell's book: The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling, from Apologia Press. Yes Apologia Press, for those who recognize the name Apologia you are probably thinking Science (Exploring Creation with....Series)

This past year, Apologia Educational Ministries has undergone some changes and has added some new features to their ministry. One new addition is the Apologia Academy, which offers online classes for your students in the areas of Bible, Apologetics, and Worldview. Apologia Press offers curriculum and parent resources .

This is a very large book with over 500 pages!

Look what's inside:
Foreword by Michael Farris
Tips to use this book
Introduction
Part 1: Homeschooling: Is it for You?
Part 2: Choosing a Curriculm
Part 3: Organization and Planning
Part 4: Preventing Burnout
Part 5: What to Teach—When and How
Part 6: Homeschooling Teens
Part 7: Computers in the Homeschool
Part 8: Creative Solutions
Part 9: Measuring Your Success
Pre-Game Pep Talk
Part 10: Resource Guide
Note
Index
Contact Author

This book is not just for those who are new to homeschooling, We have been doing this 20+ years and I loved this book! Burnout Busters, Part 4 was a great reminder and insight of a few things that can be "forgotten" or overlooked as we are in our day to day teaching mode.

This book is on of the 100 Top Picks for HomeSchool Curriculum by Cathy Duffy. And has a foreword by Michael Farris, Founder of the HSLDA foundation. –So, you know it’s a reliable source. This much valuable information in one book, for $20.00—I’d say it’s a good deal. What is great is that you can read this book cover-to-cover or select by topic (e.g. Part 2: Choosing a Curriculum or like Part 4: Preventing Burnout).
Resource guide alone is superb!

While this book contains a lot of information about homeschooling, I don’t think that it should be treated as “The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling”. It is a compilation of one persons ideas, thoughts, experiences and suggestions. Many of her perspectives and ideas are good and helpful, but each family has their own set of goals and values. That is the beauty of homeschooling, each family striving to follow God in the manner and way that He has called them.
The Ultimate Guide To Homeschooling by Debra Bell sells for $20 @ Apologia Press

If you would like to read other reviews of this book from my CREW members please click HERE

Eclectic Education Series

2010-02-14T19:23:00.000-08:00

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew I received the Eclectic Education Series from Dollar Homeschool.

The Eclectic Education Series (EES) is a set of textbooks which from roughly 1865 to 1915 WAS education in the United States, almost exclusively. They were the standard textbooks in many states and were chosen independently by over 10,000 school boards as their standard textbooks.

The EES covered every topic. Some of the series are still household names almost a hundred years after they ceased being used. These include McGuffey's Readers and Ray's Arithmetics. There were many other extraordinary series in the EES such as Pinneo's Grammars, Thalheimer's Histories and Norton's Sciences that were used by countless students. (from DollarHomeschool.com)

this Cd includes:

Ray’s Arithmetic

Ray’s Primary Arithmetic.
Ray’s Intellectual Arithmetic
Ray’s New Elementary Arithmetic 192 pages. /Rudimentary Arithmetic.
Ray’s New Practical Arithmetic
Ray’s New Higher Arithmetic
Ray’s New Elementary Algebra
Ray’s New Higher Algebra
Ray’s Treatise on Geometry and Trigonometry
Ray’s Analytic Geometry
Ray’s Differential and Integral Calculus

History

Thalheimer’s Histories
Cromwell
Progressive Course in Reading
Cyclopedia
Andrews Constitution
American Poems
Rhetorical Reading
Good Morals and Gentle Manners

Science

Norton’s Elements of Chemistry
Norton’s Elements of Natural Philosophy.
Norton’s Elements of Physics
Ray’s Elements of Astronomy
Ray’s Surveying and Navigation
Complete Book Keeping
Schuyler’s Principles of Logic
Introduction to Botany
Nature Study
First Year Science
Political Economy
Simplified Industrial Mechanics
Guide to Health

McGuffey’s Readers
The Grammar Series

Long’s Language
Pinneo’s Grammar
Harvey’s Grammar

While nearly all of these E-books are available free online, what Dollar Homeschool has done is save hours of searching to collect these books. I would not have known where to begin finding even what books are in each series, so this is a big time saver. You can print pages as needed, or work from your computer.

The amount of material here is HUGE And is years and years of school work Kindergarten through high school! For A $159 you are getting your family an education that

A hundred million students in one-room schoolhouses got, a first-rate educations using this Eclectic Education series - and went on to build and shape America.

So, how have we used these? To be honest, I’m still wrapping my brain around how I will use these. Although I love the concept of the one-room schoolhouse and many of the methods they employed, much of the content is dated. Grammar rules have changed in the last century, and scientific discoveries have also advanced since these textbooks were written.
A few concerns: The illustrations in many of the books, so classic and well drawn in the print editions, come through blurry and smeared. This is not only an aesthetic problem, but many of the exercises refer you to a picture that is impossible to interpret. happening. In addition, all have been scanned in black and white, and many of the primary materials refer to shapes by their colors. My twins could not use these because of this.

Though all the textbooks for a kindergarten through high school education are gathered into one place, which does save you Time from finding all these resources it would be far to time consuming for me to implement this method of education with all of my 8 children.

Though my children enjoyed the McGuffey readers, we do prefer a more living books and unit study approach in our homeschool.
The Eclectic Education series is a great Resource, but not a main curriculum for us.

If you are looking for the Classic Textbook approach in your homeschool I would definitely recommend this series

The Eclectic Education Series sells for $159 At Dollar Homeschool

If you would like to read other reviews from my CREW mates please click HERE

MathTutor DVD's

2010-02-09T18:20:00.000-08:00

As Part of the TOS Homeschool Crew I received 2 DVD's from MathTutorDV D for purpose of review.

The first one Young Minds numbers and counting is a new release from this company and is for the 3-7 year olds. This DVD is really awesome, my grand-daughter age 2 loves it! In fact my 5 year old twins think this DVD is great too. The DVD is visually beautiful the classical music is calming and lovely to listen to. The children are shown stunning pictures of animals and everyday objects to count done in such an enthralling way that my kids willingly want to watch this video.
According to the MathTutorDVD.com website, where you can view a clip of the DVD, your child will learn:

- To recognize the numbers 1-10.
- Associate the number with physical objects.
- Count from 1-10.
- Animal names and sounds.
- Fruits and Vegetables.
- Names of colors.
- Names of machines such as cars, airplanes, etc.

Bonus features include:

- Repeat Play
- Picture Puzzles
- Connect the Dots
- Name the Animal

The second DVD The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor is a 2 DVD set .

This 8 hour DVD course is geared for students who have been exposed to basic math skills but need help in gaining the skills necessary to solve basic math word problems. During this course the instructor works on examples narrating each step. The lessons teach strategies on how to do word problems. They go over vocabulary that is used in word problems so that kids know how to set up the equation. I loved that the children are encouraged to draw pictures that "set up" the problem.
The subjects covered in these 2 DVD's are:
Section 1: Adding Whole Numbers
Section 2: Subtracting Whole Numbers
Section 3: Multiplying Whole Numbers
Section 4: Dividing Whole Numbers
Section 5: Adding Decimals
Section 6: Subtracting Decimals
Section 7: Multiplying Decimals
Section 8: Dividing Decimals

Disc 2Section 9: Adding Fractions
Section 10: Subtracting Fractions
Section 11: Multiplying Fractions
Section 12: Dividing Fractions
Section 13: Percents, Part 1
Section 14: Percents, Part 2
Section 15: Ratio and Proportion

I really like BOTH these DVD's. My children are becoming more confident with math especially word problems and they can watch the lesson till that "light bulb" moment and then the have that knowledge and are much less anxious about math!!!

Young Minds Numbers and Counting sells for $19.99
The Basic Math Word Problems Tutor 2 DVD set sells for $26.99

For more reviews on this product please visit my CREW mates HERE

KinderBach Preschool Piano Lessons

2010-02-08T20:23:00.000-08:00

Music is something my little boys love....so does my entire family, but our little ones, twin boys age 6 have imitated playing all kinds of instruments! So when I received a subscription for online piano lessons from KinderBach for TOS Homeschool Review Crew I was really excited for them.

KinderBach is a music program for young children 3-7 years. You will need a piano or keyboard to do the lessons.

KindderBach is a tried and proven method of teaching young children to play piano and read music. They will also learn intervals, rythm, and music patterns all with really cute and fun characters.

In the first lesson the boys learned about the black keys and sang a song :) they then worked on a worksheet that reinforced what they had learned. They loved it! They giggled , had fun...oh and they LEARNED, that makes me happy I want them to enjoy music and have fun in the process, this program offers excactly that.

There are 6 levels and each level lasts 10 weeks ( over 240 lessons). KinderBach is available as either an online program or you can purchase DVD lessons.

Online lessons are$7.99/month

DVD and CD packages start at $40.45/per level

If You would like to read more reviews of this program please check out what my CREW mates have to say HERE

FactsFirst

2010-02-03T15:54:00.001-08:00

We all know that memorizing our math facts will make math so much easier, that does not make learning them fun or even easy!

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew I received a free 90 day trial at Saxon's FactsFirst .

FactsFirst is an online math program from the publishers that brought you Saxon Math.

factsfirst was created for children to develop fluency in basic math facts in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division through placements tests, lessons, review, and practice. Arcade style games reward students upon completion of a unit.

your student starts by setting up their avatar. My kids like doing these avatars and had a blast creating them.This image will fallow them through the lessons.

Each lesson is divided into 5 sections:

1. Learning two new facts

2.Using the communative property with the new facts

3. Practice time

4. A quiz

5. Scoring of the lesson
At the beginning of the lesson the student is taught 2 new facts, they practice these till they know them before more are added.

At the end of the lesson their is a chart to show the student his/her progress, very encouraging!

Here is a picture of this chart.

After your child is done with the lesson they get to spend 5 minutes in the arcade games, to practice what they are learning.

So how did this work for us? My kids want to improve on their math facts and this has really helped. First they are given credit for knowing the answer, a check mark on the chart, but if they get it fast they get a check mark plus!!! So being a bit competitive with themselves they quickly aimed for the best!!! The lessons are quick and encourage speed, meaning they really must learn the facts well to beat the clock. This was a bit difficult in the beginning for my 8 year old but she is really picking up her speed now, and that is the goal.

A 1 year subscription to FactsFirst costs $49.99. That price gives you a household license for up to 4 students, less than $12.50 per student for an entire year of math practice. You can try the addition or multiplication demo HERE (buttons at the top of page).

Math Practice With MathScore

2010-02-01T18:36:00.000-08:00

My kids do not jump up and down begging for more math to do, but they do love a chance to play on the computer, so when we received a free membership to MathScore to review they were all eager to try it out! What is MathScore you ask? Mathscore is an online membership site.
Developed by MIT graduates, MathScore is proven to raise math test scores through adaptive math practice. MathScore supports 1st grade through Algebra I.

This is not a site full of all the frills and fluff, but one that generates a worksheet style of problems for your child to work on, starting with learning the 10 key pad so they can learn to type in answers quickly, this is called Copycat preparation. When the child has gained proficiency at this they move onto the math worksheets.
Your child earns points as they go and are advanced to certain ranks like trainee, cadet. When they are promoted to the next level, fireworks display is shown to them as an indication that they have advanced.

MathScore is a supplemental program and as such, does not teach them math lessons. The program has a help button with a little lesson to remind them if they need it.
Some of the subjects covered are:

Fast Addition

Fast Subtraction

Mixed Addition and Subtraction

Basic Word Problems

Telling Time

Odd or Even Fast Multiplication

Fast Division

Rounding Numbers

Long Subtraction

Unit Cost

Triangle Area

Rectangular Solids

Integer Addition

Exponent Basics

Algebraic Word Problems

Greatest Common Factor

Least Common Multiple

I love the fact that this program adapts to each individual child! My kids are learning and their speed and accuracy have noticeably increased! We all agreed that this is really helping and we are continuing to use this program. I will post frequent updates to post our continued progress.

To see a preview of mathScore click here

Pricing Information:

First child $14.95/month

Second child $5.00/month

Each additional child $3.95/month

*You are allowed to freeze your account such as when you may be taking time off for holidays or for vacation * (I think this is a pretty cool option!)

*MathScore also offers a 2 week free trial and you can sign up as many children for this free trial.

For additional reviews of MathScore please visit TOS Homeschool Crew

Keyboarding For The Christian School

2010-01-28T10:00:00.001-08:00

Computers are a daily part of our life here in our home, and I really want my children to learn to type with accuracy and speed. So I was very happy to receive as part of the CREW: Keyboarding for Christian Schools (for grades 6th and up) and Keyboarding For The Christian School Elementary Edition (for K-5th grades).

"Keyboarding is another term for Typing. These tools will pay for themselves many times over as your student utilizes this valuable skill for success at school and work while instilling Christian values."

Now do not let the title "for the Christian School" put you off, this is a very good program and easily used for homeschooling as the lessons stand alone.
These are e-books that you download and print for your child to work on. The lessons start by learning proper form such as where to place your fingers on the keyboard. After you learn basic form, the other lessons introduce new letters. The lessons are easy and take only 15 minutes to complete. I really like this program and I have found that my children enjoy the learning process while using it.

This curriculum Keyboarding for The Christian Schools includes everything your students need to accomplish in a basic typing class, and additional lessons on the following word processing skills:
Enumerated lists
MLA Reports
APA Reports
Cover Pages
Bibliography
Personal and business letters
and much more...

The Elementary Edition which is more colorful, includes typing letters, keyboard symbols, numbers and some basic word processing skills.

The best part of these books is that our children are learning easily AND they are typing Bible verses for practice!

Check out some of the free samples HERE

Keyboarding For The Christian School sells for $15.95
Keyboarding For The Christian School Elementary Edition sells for $12.95

For Additional reviews of this curriculum please visit TOS Homeschool Crew

Worship Guitar Class

2010-01-05T19:12:00.000-08:00

As part of the TOS Crew I received for review Jean Welles Worship Guitar Class volume-1. This is a DVD course with book and designed for ages 10-adult. The core training is on the DVD with the teacher taking you through the beginning steps of how to play guitar.
Jean Welles has a masters degree in guitar performance and is a worship leader in her church. She shares her story and how she is inspired to share Christ and worship through her music. The first lessons explain the parts of a guitar and how to tune it corectly, then the next lessons are on different chord progressions with a song to be learned with each lesson. Songs taught are: My All and All, More Precious Than Silver, Lord, I Lift Your name On High, and more.
There are also practice sessions for each song, these give more tips for playing the song and are slowed down for the beginning leaner.
By the end of these lessons your student will have learned to play 7 worship songs, 10 chords and 6 strumming and finger patterns.

My husband is also a worship leader and guitar player, and my son has been begging to learn guitar so this was a "gift' for him! I decided that as I am NOT musically inclined, (though I LOVE to worship) I would hand this over to him and my son...so here is what he has to say: Hi, Bruce here and I love this program! I love the fact that it is all about worshiping the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! The scripture references, the way the material is presented, the tone and everything about this program is top notch. My son is learning the best way to play the guitar, and that's to play to honor and exalt Jesus Christ. If you have ever wanted to learn the guitar, this program is for you! Jean Welles says it best, on the very first page of the book at the top, in a written banner that states "Learn to worship our awesome God!" This could be the very resource you need to take you from wanting to learn to play guitar, to actually playing the guitar. Jean Welles also has a wealth of additional materials when you are ready to take the next step beyond this program. Please take a look at her website: http://www.worshipguitarclass.com

If you would like to see what other crew members have to say about this program click HERE

ACT,Advantage.....EXPLORE/PLAN

2009-12-27T20:55:00.000-08:00

Earlier this year, as part of the crew I reviewed the Discover Career Planning program from ACT, Advantage

(review here)

they have also provided me with the EXPLORE and PLAN tests to review.

What are EXPLORE and PLAN? They are tests based on the ACT, but designed for 8-9th graders, EXPLORE, or 10th graders, PLAN. These tests are shorter than the ACT, but will give you information to see how your child is doing in four areas: Math, English,

Reading and Science. There is help in the back of the book for scoring and understanding the test results. These tests were designed to help you get an early indication of how your child will do on the ACT.

These tests are a great way to help your children and you see how they are doing and see were there are any areas of weaknesses.

Sometimes as homeschoolers our children are not as exposed to the "pressures" of testing, nor just the experience of the testing situation these test are a great help in that preparation.

If you are planning on having your child take the ACT. I highly recommend PLAN and EXPLORE.

PLAN and EXPLORE are available from ACT, Advantage for $22.95 each.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click HERE.

Maestro Classics

2009-12-17T20:29:00.000-08:00

Maestro Classics is the publisher of a series of CDs that put orchestral music together with classic stories. This award-winning classical music series for children and families from Maestro Classics has done an outstanding job of combining music appretiation with great stories.

I received a CD: The Tortoise and the Hare to review as part of the TOS Crew. The CD contains several tracks, the story with music, information on the story, Aesop, and fables and a discussion of the moral, an explanation as to how the music was chosen to fit the story, and a sing a long song.. There is also colorful activity booklet that comes with the CD with great information on instruments, the orchestra, notes and time signatures,crossword puzzles and more.

I was really impressed with this CD. The narrator was excellent and the music fantastic. My kids listened to the CD willingly enough, but after the explanations were eager to listen again with "new" ears! Though all my kids listened to the CD, my youngest ones 5-10 enjoyed it the most and have in fact listened to the CD many times.

Maestro Classics has several tiles available including:
                                   The Story of Swan Lake
                                   Peter and the Wolf
   Juanita, the Spanish lobster
                                   Juanita, la langosta espanola
                                   Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel
                                   Casey at the Bat
                                   The Sorcerers' Apprentice
With new titles to come!

Check out the Maestro Classics website they are having a sale 3 for $45 with free shipping
Regularly $16.98 each

If you would like to see what my CREW mates have to say about Maestro Classics click HERE.

Mathletics

2009-12-15T20:22:00.000-08:00

Math is my most challenging subject to teach. I group the children together for unit studies in most of our school, but in math each child is on their own level and with 6 kids in school and 3 starting into school that is 7 levels! We have struggled through several different programs over the years. Most of my kids drag their feet to math lessons.
As a member of the homeschool crew I received a 45 day subscription to Mathletics from 3P Learning for the purpose of reviewing.
Mathletics is a web based math service that allows children to work through age specific lessons that include step by step animated teaching, and live challenges, were the children compete with other children from all over the world. The student accumalates points as they go through the lessons, play games and do live challenges. With the earned points the students get to go shopping for clothing and backgrounds for their character, which they create at the begining set up.
Mathletics also has games that the students unlock as they progress through the lessons, and additional games are available through access to Rainforest Math.

At the Parent Center, parents can view each childs progress, print workbooks at each level and even set it up so that your child must complete certain activities BEFORE having access to everything!

3P Learning states their Mission as "to engage every student everyday with a personalized, responsive and intelligent resource that inspires a delight in math and an innate drive to better results."

The kids moaned at the thought of another math "thing" they would have to do. I spent an afternoon setting up their accounts...the process is very easy I just had 7 to set up! My grandson was watching me and got very excited so he was the first to try it out, I could NOT get him off! He just wanted to do one more lesson, and that was before I even showed him the games. OK he is 6 and just starting out he loves school, even math. What did the other children think? This program was a hit with all my kids!!!! Yep ALL
They can spend time doing their lesson on the computer ( they all like being on the computer) and if they are not sure about something in the lesson they click on the ? and an animatted explanation comes up to help them. They each are encouraged as they go through the lessons as their earned points go up. Best of all they have individual lessons that are challenging and captivating and that respond to their individual strengths and weaknesses. If I am busy with another child they can still move forward with math using this program, they do not have to wait for me to introduce the next lesson or wait when a question arises. Yes I did have to stay involved there are always those questions that need a little bit more help or work to understand, but Mathletics has allowed us to keep moving forward at a faster pace for each child as they can log into their lessons and go through them even if I am with another child or otherwise occupied .OK "gulp" do lessons at non school time!!! Yes this did happen, Mathletics gave us this ability and freedom for my children to do their math when they wanted and I would not have been able to "do" a lesson. Best of all they enjoyed working through the lessons so they could play the games. My children were cautious at first about the live challenges, but quickly found them fun. I see that the challenges help them really grasp their learning.

Mathletics is an internet, subscription based product with a price of $59 per student per year. If you know the Human Calculator's favorite number (hint: 9 ) and you enter that when you check out you can purchase a single child subscription for $49.95 per year.

Bottom line for us with 7 and really 9 children wanting this program it is just to much right now, that does NOT mean it is not good this is an EXCELLENT program.

If you are interested in what my CREW mates have to say about Mathletics please click here.

Tektoma

2009-12-11T12:48:00.000-08:00

As part of the Homeschool Crew I was given a 3 month membership to TEKTOMA to review.
So what is TEKTOMA?
TEKTOMA is a website that offers video tutorials to teach game programming. These tutorials require a free version of gameMaker software from YoYo Games, that you download for free. Children ages 7-17, (and even us adults), can learn to create computer games using these very friendly and easy to understand video tutorials.
The tutorials will teach varying skill levels from beginner to those with more experience.
The complete game tutorials include:
Racing game
Arcade game
Memory game
Platform game
Fantasy game

My 12 year old son who loves playing computer games, was excited to try this out and make his own game. Once we downloaded the required free resources and watched the tutorial: "How to watch the tutorials" he was ready to go on his own. He decided to create an arcade game which is for all skill levels and 1 hour 37 minutes long. He spent more than this time, working through this as when he was overwhelmed he would walk away, then come back and "see" easily what he was supposed to do. The video tutorials are really very good and each step explained well. Though this child decided playing is much more fun than creating! I have another son wanting to try this now.
I was really impressed that these videos take you through this process of programming a game
and made it very easy to understand with the result being the reward, your own game!

Membership to TEKTOMA is: $14.95 per month or $140 per year

If you are interested to see what other CREW members had to say please click HERE

The Promise

2009-12-07T18:16:00.000-08:00

Tonight a friend has lost her beloved husband and my heart is grieving for her and the children. Yes he loved his savior God with all his heart and he is dancing before the Father, but we are left asking WHY? so suddenly, no idea that this morning was the last time they would see each other on this earth. YES they have the HOPE of eternity. I know that this is a fallen world we live in and death is part of that. I know that this makes no sense to a hurting heart....
the Father God used my daughter to bring this song to me...

"This is what it means to be held
how it feels, when the sacred is torn from your life
and you survive
this is what it is to be loved and to know
that the promise was when everything fell
we'd be held"

My friend you and your children are held tightly in our loving Fathers arms and I pray that you feel those arms in this overwhelming time.

All About Spelling

2009-12-03T19:03:00.000-08:00

I received the starter kit , level 1 and level 2 of All About Spelling for review. Now I should tell you I was very excited because I have heard that this is a really good program, and we were struggling with the one we had, and my children were not exactly pleased with the thought of yet another spelling program. We are all very pleasantly surprised and happy with this awesome program!

"All About Spelling is multisensory. The lessons involve sight, sound, and touch. Children learn best when they are physically involved in the learning process, so we take advantage of that fact with this hands-on approach to learning and teaching spelling.
All About Spelling is logical. Spelling concepts are taught in a logical, understandable order. Each lesson builds upon the previous lesson. The sequence has been carefully tested to produce long-term results. And this is as much a benefit to you as it is to your student—especially if you’ve been struggling with how to teach spelling.
No gaps. This is something that you can trust with the All About Spelling program: your child won’t be left with gaps or holes in his or her understanding of spelling. If there is a reliable rule that will help your child out, we teach it. If there is a tip that will help your child master a certain spelling pattern, it’s in there. And it’s all presented in a very logical order.
The program is mastery-based, not grade-level based, so when students master a specific concept, they move on. If a child needs more practice in a certain area, we allow for that so the child can really master each concept. There’s no sense building on a shaky foundation, because that will cause spelling difficulties down the road when the spelling words get harder. At All About Spelling, we’ve identified the concepts that are most important for your child to master, and we’ve weeded out any busy work.
All About Spelling has continual review. As the child learns new material, he or she also constantly reviews previously-taught concepts. We don’t just “teach it and forget it”…we make sure that it really sticks.
Finally, the program is clear. This means that children are taught what they need to know in a direct manner. They don’t have to guess or come to their own conclusions about the English language."

I have to say that All About Spelling is working for us, the lessons are scripted so I have to just fallow the book, all the set up of this program is in the beginning before you start. the starter kit contains all you need except a file box, and magnet board (we use a big cookie sheet!). In this kit you get all that you need, yellow phonogram cards, red sound cards, blue key cards and green word cards. These go into a file box and are placed behind the appropriate divider, review, mastered or future lessons. I love how organized this makes my lessons. You also get colored letter tiles that are laminated you just have to cut them out and put a peel and stick magnet piece on the back.
We decided to start at level one with all the kids to catch any gaps and just go through each step as quickly as possible. This served two purposes to get the children used to this new program and catch any gaps they may have.
All About spelling is not just about memorizing lists of words and rules it is learning and understanding. MASTERY.
I really like this approach to spelling and better yet my kids like it and are "getting" spelling.

All About spelling starter kit sells for $26.95, level 1 (teachers manual and one student materials packet) sells for $29.95, level 2 (teachers manual and one student materials packet) sells for $ 39.95.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click HERE

Professr In A Box...Financial Accounting

2009-11-29T14:29:00.000-08:00

Learn financial accounting in 4 easy steps!

Watch the lectures
Complete the homework problems
Check the solutions
Take the exam

Professor in a Box, Financial Accounting by Michael P. Licata, Ph.D is the first accounting course for high School homeschoolers.

"Any homeschool high school student interested in a career in business or in someday owning their own business will benefit from this course.

All course content is incorporated into the lecture slides for each chapter. There is no textbook and no 40 page chapters to read. The course is comprised of 12 chapters which are covered in 28 lessons (including exams) and can be taken in either a semester format or over an entire academic year. Each chapter’s lectures include a discussion of important concepts and demonstration problems featuring step by step illustrations of how to work through the various types of accounting problems covered.

Course Objectives
The objective of Financial Accounting by Michael P. Licata, Ph.D. is to introduce students to the study of accounting which is known as the language of business. The main purpose of financial accounting is to measure and report the performance of a business to interested parties both outside and inside of the business. These interested parties use accounting information to make a variety of decisions such as:

Investors - Deciding whether to purchase or sell a company’s stock.
Bankers - Deciding whether to lend money to a business.
Managers – Making day-to-day business decisions such as whether to increase inventory levels, or to spend more on advertising.
Students will learn to prepare and interpret the four basic financial statements - income statement, balance sheet, statement of owners’ equity and statement of cash flows. See below for detailed Learning Objectives by Chapter.
Any homeschool high school student interested in a career in business or in someday owning their own business will benefit from this course."

I received this course free to review for the Homeschool Crew.

This course is a kit with 4CD's, a syllabus, pencil, calculator and a list of course contents.
Professor in A Box is designed primarily for high school students who have a basic math understanding, and an interest in learning accounting.
The lectures are a slide presentation given by Michael, who has a pleasant voice. These presentations are clear and understandable. They are lectures and we did get bored, and interest wondered, we solved this with note taking to keep us on task...after all this is what will be done in college! :)
Now I am no math wizard, or even into accounting, but in my opinion Professor in a Box is a REALLY GOOD course!
After you complete this course you can choose to take the CLEP test, and if your student passes they will have 3 college level credits!

To view a sample chapter click HERE
To view the lesson plan go HERE

Professor in A Boxis currently on sale ( as of 11/29/09) for $134.99, regularly $149.99. Free Shipping!

If you would like to see what other crew members have to say click HERE

Exploramania: GyMathtics DVD

2009-11-20T16:58:00.000-08:00

AS part of the CREW we received the DVD GyMathtics for review.

Exploramania uses exercise mixed with learning for a fun multi sensory approach.
The Gymathtics DVD is a 30 minute exercise routine that incorporates math facts and learning into the routine. It includes four sections:

Shape Stretches Warm Up: Stretch your mind and body with line, circle, and polygon stretches.
Counting Calisthenics: Aerobic movements work your heart as fun counting concepts work your brain.
Pattern Power: Growing and repeating pattern exercise combination's challenge minds and strengthen muscles.
Well-Being Wind Down: Relaxing stretches cool down the body and open the mind to think about healthy lifestyle choices including the Nice Wave Stretch and Big Dream Stretch.

My youngest ones 2, 5, 8, and 10 really enjoyed this DVD! They were challenged with the exercises and they are still enjoying the program! I love hearing them repeat the math concepts long after the DVD has been put away!

Here is a video that shows it best.

The GyMathtics DVD sells for $24.99 And it is well worth it!

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click HERE.

AVKO Membership

2009-11-17T20:41:00.000-08:00

AVKO is a non profit organization that was founded by Don McCabe. AVKO specialises in helping with the teaching of reading, spelling, writing and typing especially those with dyslexia. AVKO creates materials and books using a multi-sensory approach, combining the visual, auditory, and kinesthetic approaches. By using all of the sensory styles AVKO products can teach to any type of learner.

As a CREW member I received a membership to the AVKO site for review. Membership opens up a lot of resources especially for those using the sequential spelling program, which AVKO also sells. I did not receive this program, just the membership, and we currently do not use this spelling program. This site contains a great deal of helpful information like the book STARTING AT SQUARE ONE which will:

Teach your K-1 students reading, spelling, handwriting, and keyboarding (optional) as the alphabet is taught.
Lay the foundation for your student's literacy: phonemic awareness and word attack skills are learned from the very beginning of the reading process.
Teach your older students the phonemic awareness and word attack skills that they never fully learned while first learning to read and spell.
Use the completely decodable words as the letters are taught for additional practice in
handwriting, reading, and spelling.

Other benefits to an AVKO membership include:

Discounts on AVKO printed materials
Hundreds of dollars worth of FREE e-books (PDF)
Access to the Member Only section
AVKO Newsletter with freebies, discounts, resources, and promotions
Access to Don McCabe's most popular workshop recordings in MP3 format.
Supplemental Curriculum Materials including word games, worksheets, activities, and more!
Access to Pretests and Placement Tests
Access to the Answer Keys for the Unscramblers and Family Reunion exercises of the Engaging Language Kits

I would most likely not purchase the AVKO membership. this website might be of greater value to those families that need additional, support, information, and resources for their special needs learners, or those that may be using the sequential spelling program. It is definitely a good value for all that you receive, it simply does not meet any needs in our household.
The cost for a one year membership to the AVKO website is $25.00.

If you would like to see what other CREW members had to say please click HERE.

American Heritage Education Foundation

2009-11-07T20:55:00.000-08:00

American Heritage: An Adventure in Liberty is a FREE American history curriculum offered by the American Heritage Education foundation. I received a copy for review for the CREW.

The American Heritage CD contains lesson plans for K-12, divided into 3 levels, elementary, middle school and high school. These lessons are based around the themes of freedom, unity, progress, and responsibility. Each of the lessons focuses on an event, person, icon or document to demonstrate one of the themes. This is a supplemental curriculum so it has a lot of games, activities and worksheets, but not a lot of information. These lesson plans were written more toward a classroom setting so the activities are really not practical to a home school. Though a homeschool could easily use the worksheets and puzzles. Also since this is written to public school teachers there is a section at the end of each level that discuss how to teach religious expression in a public school!

We homeschool to be able to give our children a history that is God centered, so these lesson plans were not the best fit for us.

If you are interested at seeing this curriculum you can get the CD or an instant download at their website for FREE.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click HERE.

Bright Ideas Press

2009-11-05T20:59:00.000-08:00

I love science and music they are probably my most favorite subjects, but teaching them has been really difficult for me....that is until now!!! I received as a gift from BRIGHT IDEAS PRESS, Christian Kids Explore Biology and A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers to review.

Christian Kids Explore Biology is user friendly, hands-on, elementary science curriculum, that includes all the kids 3-6th grade to study together and with a bit of adjusting you could even include the younger ones. The teaching lessons are done in a conversational style that is engaging and interesting to the children. All you need to teach is in this book. The lesson, which has beautiful coloring pages, are not simple coloring pages but beautiful works of art! Also included are review sheets, writing assignments, vocabulary lists, memorization lists, supplemental book lists and at the beginning of every unit a materials list of all you'll need to do your hands-on projects. Plus many more in the appendix.

We are really loving this biology program. First it is truly Christian and the kids are learning about God's world from a biblical worldview. There are 35 weekly lessons with teaching two times per week. We spend the first day teaching the lesson and doing any of the "Discovery Zone" which are little extra ideas or thoughts to help the kids understand the topic, I then would suggest some of the books from the supplemental resource list for our library trip or any we had at home. There is an included daily reading sheet that the children fill out as they read and research on their own. For my little girls 8 and 10, the year long Animal Kingdom Book that they are making is the highlight so far! For me its that they are LOVING biology so much that they beg me to do it DAILY!!!!!

If you would like to see a sample week click HERE
The Table of contents HERE

Christian Kids Explore Biology book: $34.95

We are also using A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers.

A User-Friendly, One-Year Curriculum for Grades 4–8

Christian, Creative, Chronological

Why take the time to “Crack the Code” of Classical Music?
• Music is from the Lord. He created it, and He created us with the ability to both make and appreciate music.
• “Classical” music is uniquely part of our Western civilization.
• Research suggests that both listening to and playing classical music aids brain development.
• Even rudimentary exposure increases one’s level of enjoyment and understanding.

This course provides a close-up look at famous composers, their music, and their times, with special attention to character traits and Christian testimony (or lack thereof). Even the musically challenged will enjoy this course! It’s perfect for grades 4–8 but is easily adaptable for younger and older students. Minimal teacher prep will return maximum enjoyment!

• 32 Weekly Lessons
• 26 Bios of Famous Composers
• 6 Eras of Music Explained
• Easy-to-Use Comparative Timeline
• Easy-to-Use Maps
• Composer Info-Cards & Game Directions

• Note-taking Pages
• Quizzes
• Answer Keys
• Listening Suggestions
• Intricate Coloring Pages
• Resource Books

I love music it is a big part of our lives, but I know very little "about" music and especially the composers of classical music this book is awesome! We started in Ancient music and music in the Renaissance , then moved on to cover the Baroque Period. As we study our composers we are creating a Folderbook as suggested in the introduction, this is a great hands-on project that allows the kids to keep 'track" of their work, and have a convenient review of what they are learning! The kids love creating their composer info cards (kind of a composer trading card) . The lessons are meant to be taught on day 1 which utilizes a selection of the composers music (there are selections suggested) then through the rest of the week we listen to these selections of music and work on our cards, maps and folderbook. This is a very easy to follow curriculum, and we are learning so much. Again I have to say this is a real hit with us and we will continue to follow the rest of the musical periods.

If you would like to see some sample pages click HERE

Paperback book: $34.95
CD-Rom book: $29.95

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say about these programs and other Bright Ideas Press products that are being reviewed click HERE.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET ISABEL!!!

2009-11-04T21:28:00.000-08:00

Everytime we think of you, we thank God,
and pray for you with prayers of joy.
For God began a good work in you,
and will complete that work in years to come.

Our prayer for you now is this:
that your love grow richer
in knowledge and insight of every kind,
that you learn by experience
what really matters,
that on the day you appear before God,
God welcome you as a flawless gift,
a rich harvest of praise,
through Jesus Christ. Amen.

(cf Philippians 1)

May the Lord bless you and keep you;
May the Lord shed his light upon you,
May the Lord look upon you kindly
and give you peace.

We love you so much!!!!!!

ACT Advantage Discover program

2009-11-04T11:30:00.000-08:00

I received as a member of the CREW a gift from ACT Advantage their Discover Program To Review.
The Act Advantage Discover Program is:

A career planning system developed for professional career counselors and used by millions of students to develop a comprehensive career path.

DISCOVER is jam packed with career tips and uses a proven developmental guidance process to help students:

Assess interests, abilities and job values.
Explore occupations, majors and schools.
Build an education plan that relates to career plans.
Improve job-seeking skills and develop a resume

I used this on my oldest daughter 17, we were rather curious as to how this would work because she has felt the Lord telling her to remain under the cover of her Father till she is called into a mission Field, her hearts desire. So she started with the assessments, then she looked into the careers that came up as high interest for her. It revealed what we would have guessed at and some that were not at all "her" idea of interesting.

This program has so much information contained within it, everything from a "birds eye" view of finding a career down to the details of resume writing! It can be daunting at first few looks but they have all the help/guides you need to focus and find out about the career choices available, what each one will take education wise and the colleges to choose from!

My daughter had fun seeing what careers this program thought she was suited for, but in most cases it was far from her personal interests. Unfortunately this software and company are secular and there was little there that was faith-based career wise. We also believe that GOD has a plan for our lives and that he is leading and directing her steps even in a "career" choice she only needs to listen and follow Him.
ACT Advantage Discover is a helpful resource but it is not the only thing we would rely on.

Act Advantage Discover: Price: $19.95 for a three-month license, $24.95 for a six-month license.

If you would like to see what other CREW have to say about this program please click HERE.

ABC Teach

2009-11-02T19:25:00.000-08:00

As a member of the homeschool CREW I received a one month, free trail membership to ABC Teach.
ABC Teach is an online resource for tons of printable worksheets, activities and tools for the homeschool Mom! They have ABC Tools that will help you generate custom worksheets like:
Handwriting
Word Search
Crossword Puzzles
Spelling
Sudoku
and may more!
Some of the things you can search under are:
Subjects
Themes
Flashcards
Clip art
Learning Centers
and that's just a few!
There was so much to offer at this site I spent hours browsing and printing! I found fun worksheets that my 3 little guys did for learning the alphabet and counting, cut and paste, and learning their colors. I found Ancient Egypt in the themes section and a mummy crossword to go along with The Magic Tree house book one of the kids had gotten from the library, and a pyramid math game that they enjoyed. There is just so much this site has to over!!

A one year membership runs $40 and you can print out as much as you want. The materials run from Preschool to 8th grade level. This is well worth the $40 for a year and they are always adding new material. Some of the material are free for you to try.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say about ABC Teach please click HERE.

.

2009-10-31T01:03:00.000-07:00

My Access Online Writing Program

2009-10-24T20:22:00.000-07:00

I received as a gift a one year subscription for 6 students from Vantage Learning to their MY Access!^® Home Edition to review.

MY Access!® Home Edition, by Vantage Learning, is an online writing program designed to guide students through the writing process with engaging and interactive writing activities, self-guided instruction and motivating feedback.

Each 12-month subscription to MY Access!^® Home Edition includes one parent account and your choice of three or six student accounts.

MY Access!^® is completely Web-based, so there's no software to load and it's accessible anywhere you have a computer and Internet connection—at home, at school, or at the library.
90 pre-loaded writing topics for three different distinct age groups (8-10, 11-14, and 15-18) encourage students to begin writing immediately.
Parents can easily enter their own writing topics to make writing across the curriculum a reality.
Self-paced and interactive lessons guide students through the writing process: planning, organizing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.
Graphic organizers and other printable resources help students plan successful essays.
Essay scoring and individualized feedback is available immediately through a powerful, award-winning artificial intelligence scoring engine
Detailed, prescriptive revision plans focus students' revision activities on the key traits of writing: focus, content development, organization, language use, and grammar.
Individual progress reports are easy to access and share with others.
A writing portfolio enables students to monitor their own progress and easily share their writing with family, friends, or teachers.
Dozens of annotated samples of actual student writing help students see the potential in their own writing.
A word processor with editing and writing tools including a thesaurus, grammar-checker, spell-checker, and word bank lists help students vary and develop their vocabulary.

I used this with my kids 8-17 , it was very easy to set up our account and get each one of the kids started. They really enjoyed earning the points by doing lessons and aiming for their personal goal. I knew this would be a challenge for my youngest ones as our focus is on reading still so writing is still a beginning endeavor for them, but they did enjoy trying and watching the improvements they made. The older kids could move through this much easier and with less of a struggle. I like that its self paced and that each child could move at their own pace.

That being said we did have some difficulty with the point system as the kids figured out that they could get points for doing work without very much effort. Also my 16 year old worked very hard on one of her first essays for well over 45 minutes and had to leave before she was finished and we could find no way to save her work except to submit it before she was finished. The corrections the children received were too vague for them to be helpful, with comments like "write your sentences correctly" or "run on sentences" leaving them frustrated.

With that being said, I still believe that this is an excellent program, and that it's best use would be as a tool for intermediate writers.

Each 12 month subscription to My Access! Home Edition includes one parent account and your choice of: 3 students at: $99.95
6 students at: $129.95

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say on their review of this product and others please click here.

Amazing Bible History Timeline

2009-10-24T19:55:00.000-07:00

When history and Bible are taught as separate subjects we may not see the interconnectedness of them. After all History is God's story so the two really are inseparable... We study the two subjects together to see God's hand at work in all of history, so when I received the Amazing Bible Timeline to review I was really excited.

"The Amazing Bible Timeline pinpoints the relationships between seemingly unrelated events. Which prophets, kings and wars were linked and how. The ability to view it all at the same time clarifies connections. If you want an in depth knowledge of religion and history you will benefit from having The Amazing Bible Time-line to view and study.

See the Whole Bible At Once!

Using the Amazing Bible Timeline you will easily grasp the timing of the major Bible stories, peoples and events. You can readily see the flow of major events, the timing of the stories in the Bible in relationship to each other as well as other nations.

Jam packed with information!

You have over a thousand references at your fingertips. All the important historical events of the main religions and world cultures are indexed and outlined in one simple to understand format. It's color coded so you can track families, nations and related events easily."

We are studying Ancient history right now and we are loving this timeline, The kids have made some great connections by going and looking at the timeline and being able to see not just what is going on in ancient Egypt, but in other parts of the world at the same time has really enhanced there understanding and enjoyment of history.

The timeline comes with two free downloads, one is a PDF version of the timeline, and the other a neat interactive layered map of the holy land from 1850 BC to 4 BC. This timeline can be found here for $29.97.

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click here

Sue Patrick's Workboxes

2009-10-23T19:36:00.000-07:00

Specialized and Structured Teaching^sm

Sue Patrick's Workbox System^SM

An effective teaching system to reduce your organizational time and increase your child's self-control, independence and learning.

Iam so excited to have been chosen to receive this book from Sue Patrick!
I have been browsing through many blogs about this system and thought" that is exactly what I need" This book Workbox System Users Guide explains in detail all about this phenomena that has been on so many homeschooling blogs. Sue explains what exactly the workbox system is, who this system is for and how it works.
The workbox system is actually a physical structure of 12 boxes that you divide your child's work into along with some of those projects, or work we never seem to organize into our daily schedule. This is actually a "physical" schedule your child fallows that has order and allows the child to see his/her progress towards finishing his work goal for the day.

There is a great video at Sue's web page that explains the workbox system... please click here

The author, Sue Patrick is pretty adamant in her book to do things exactly the way she explains it, well with 6 kids in school and 3 kindergartners and 1 preschooler.....12 boxes each mmmm that's 120 boxes AND a place to put them, now our house, nor I could handle that many boxes! BUT I saw the potential and I knew that this system could revolutionize our school day so, I did what homeschoolers are so very good at... I tweaked it to work for us!

The 4 crates on the top shelve are the big kids' workboxes (aka: files)
The plastic shoe boxes will be what the 4 youngest ones will work from.

So far I have the 6 oldest kids using the "workboxes" and I am setting this up for the youngest this week. So how did I get this to work for us? We used a crate for each child then instead of boxes they have 12 hanging files. These files are set up the same way as the boxes and this is working for us. This workbox system has made such a positive difference in our school day, the kids feel like they are accomplishing so much more and they KNOW what it is they have to do. No more "forgetting" some of the assignments, or misplacing what they were supposed to do its all in their crates and files! We are getting so much more work done and that's encouraging to the kids and ME! I have also been able to schedule into their days those things we had just not been able to...games, Lego Technic, art, oh I have so much that I am excited to be able to finally find the "time" to do!!!! Yup to say that this has really helped us is an understatement.
The kids love it,
I love it.

I Do really recommend getting the book to get the best picture of the way this system can work, plus Sue has some wonderful ideas for centers!

Sue Patrick's Workbox System: Users Guide $19

If you would like to see what other CREW members have tosay about Sue Patrick's Workbox System please click HERE

Virginia Soap and Sents

2009-10-20T20:23:00.000-07:00

I received a wonderfully exotic smelling package in the mail from Virginia Soaps & Scents. We eagerly opened the package which contained soaps, shampoo bar and a laundry soap kit to review. Quickly these soaps found homes other than my bathroom:)!!! I had to go search them out in the kids' bathroom.

Virgina Soap & Scents is a homeschooling family owned company located in southeastern Virginia. Their venture began as a homeschool project that turned into a business. Their soaps are all handcrafted olive oil soap, this is REAL soap not detergent. All natural ingredients, no added chemicals. They also use a " generous amount of coconut oil".

I was so excited about the laundry soap kit, I have so wanted to try to make our own laundry soap, but have just never got around to doing that. We were due to get a new bottle of laundry soap so instead I made up this kit, which contained a pre-measured amount of everything needed to make the laundry soap I just added water! The process is easy: melt the pre-measured and grated soap in heated water add the next ingredients add more warm water and stir every so often till cool. I ended up with a pretty pink (yes I do love pink!) gel that I put into a left over ice cream bucket and placed in our laundry room with and old measuring scoop to measure out the gel into the loads. I loved the fresh smell and it cleaned really well! We are sold and we will be transferring to homemade laundry soap!!!

Those soaps I had to try out, were the bed and breakfast sizes of soap bars of: Coconut Lemongrass, Oatmeal, Milk & Honey, and Fresh Orange. Now I would be hard pressed to choose my favorite as they all smell DIVINE, and I loved how my skin felt clean but not dried. After all we do live in a dry climate and if I am honest, age has made my skin dryer! The boys; 12 and 14 loved the Oatmeal, Milk and Honey as it cleared up their faces, and as long as they kept using it their faces stayed clear! This is a wonderful plus for us as I really do not like them using the chemical laden "Nationally advertised and more expensive products."

The other product I received was a Ginger lime Shampoo bar. The shampoo bars are also olive oil based but contain Castor oil which acts as an extra humectant (holds moisture). You just wet your hair and rub this all over and it lathers up. My 17 year old daughter is using this one as she is always looking for something that will make her hair clean and not greasy looking, and this soap does the trick and she loves it!

Viginia Soap & scents has a wonderful line of poducts: Gourmet Soaps, Shaving Soaps for both men and women and Bath and Body stuff that includes lotions, scrubs and powders. They have many scents to choose from including Lavender and Country Clothesline.
They have a Christmas collection out for the Holidays that sounds like it would smell wonderful in my bathroom!

Check out their website HERE to see all they have.

REMEMBER CHRISTMAS......these soaps would make great gifts!!!!!

If you would like to see what other CREW members have to say please click here

CHOOSE TODAY.....

2009-10-15T20:39:00.000-07:00

CHOOSE TO MAKE TODAY A MASTERPIECE...TO HIS GLORY!!

Live out His calling in your life today with persistence, determination,and perseverance.

You can do all things in Christ who gives you strength. Philippians 4:13

Sarah's Wish

2009-10-14T20:38:00.000-07:00

SARAH BOOKS by Jim Baumgardner is a series of 3 books about 19th century Sarah and her friends. I received the first book in this series: SARAH'S WISH to review.

This is a wonderful "living" history book that takes place in Ohio in 1858. Sarah whose Father has already died looses her mother to an accident, all in the first chapter. Sarah is now an orphan and she has a secret she shared with her mother, that she promised to tell no one. Sarah needs help and learns to share this secret, which involves her and her mothers part in the underground railway. This story is so well written that my kids kept telling me "read more"! In fact they downloaded the audio and listened to it every opportunity they could! ALL my kids LOVED this book.
The author Jim Baumgardner dedicated this book to his grandchildren and says: " I wrote it for them. I want them to know about history and where we as a people have been. I hope they learn that although the United States allowed the curse of slavery to imprison a race of people in body and mind, yet that same nation finally rose up to defeat those who were intent on keeping the status quo. Sarah’s Wish introduces them to the institution of slavery and sheds some light on those who opposed it. The defeat will come later in the Sarah books. The books have been referred to as Christian fiction. I prefer to describe them as Young Adult fiction written by a Christian author. Sarah’s faith is important to her and she lives by it, but the books do not try to convert the reader to anything. The stories do teach Christian principals of living a good life and treating others as you would have them treat you. I do not ignore the evil in the world and Sarah must confront it at times just as we all do."

I love that this book brings you right into history as if you were there living it, feeling it. To help you learn more about this time period Sara's web has little "tidbits" of information, a section on the underground railroad, a newsletter and excerpts from the books.

These books would make a GREAT Christmas gift...My kids already have them in mind!

Sarah's Wish sells for: $9.99 And includes a code for the audio version, download!

If you would like to see what the other CREW members have to say, please click here.

Do you ever feel like this?

2009-10-14T20:13:00.000-07:00

All day some days! this is so funny it made me laugh till I was crying.

Where have all the posts gone?

2009-10-13T22:23:00.000-07:00

Ok I started this blog with the intention of really posting daily.....really I did! Then life does have a way of just "happening". We have a beautiful new baby grand-daughter in the house, AND we started a new curriculum in school. Not to bad but being in a new house I have had to organize and find how school will work here. All this has just taken time, mostly because I am that person that LOVES organization, but seems that I am forever organizing..well there comes that time when you say lets WORK through this now!!! We are up and running, well maybe walking hehehehe but we are doing and that's whats important! So now if I somewhat "publicly" say I will try to post more often does that mean I will? I will TRY!

Guardian Angel Publishing

2009-10-13T17:26:00.000-07:00

Guardian Angels Publishing is a company that publishes both print books and e-books (and their books are also available on CD). They have picture books, early readers, easy readers, storybooks, and chapter books for children ages 0-12. I received 4 books from them to review.

The Sums Of Our Parts: No Bones About It
By: Bill Park
This book about our 206 bones is written in a rhyme to help kids memorize the bones of the body. The rhyme is really 'catchy" and my kids all enjoyed this one. The older kids loved the "factoids" the boxes on the page with bone information, they really learned a lot and the phrase was heard throughout the house "did you know......" for many days.

E-book download: $5.00
E-bookCD: $9.95
print book: $10.95

EARTHQUAKE
by: Susan J Berger

This book is a science one also based on information about earthquakes and how they affect us and how to be safe during a quake. There is also information on how to be prepared for an earthquake emergency. My kids loved the information that was both simple and advanced so they all came away learning. They especially loved the project that had them prepare "pockets" for their beds to keep a flashlight, slippers etc, in case of an earthquake.

E-book download $5.00
E-book CD: $9.95
Print Book: $11.95

RAINBOW SHEEP
By: Kim Chatel

In this book Genevieve the shepherdess talks with a pale rainbow in this imaginative story. The pale rainbow is sad and Genevieve knows that if she makes the rainbow happy his colors will be bright again. She does such a good job the rainbow laughs till he cries colored tears onto her sheep!
This is a cute book illustrated with fiber art pictures. At the end of the book is a mini lesson on fiber arts and a project for making felted sheep. My little girls are on the lookout for the materials for this project :)

E-book: $5.00
E-book CD: $9.95
Print Book: $10.95
Book DVD: $9.95

ANDY & SPIRIT GO TO THE PARK
By: Mary Jean Kelso

This book is one of 3 Andy books about a young boy in a wheelchair and his horse Spirit. In this book Andy shows Spirit at the state fair 4H show. He overcomes nerves and a few of the jeers from kids who are not very nice. This is a great book to share with children to show them that others in wheelchairs are the same as they are!
The end of this book has extra information on how the US manages wild horses, and information on 4H clubs.
My little ones had lots of questions about why Andy was in a wheelchair and this book brought about many good discussions.

E-book download: $5.00
E-book CD: $9.95
Print Book: $10.95
DVD Book: Coming Soon! $9.95

A portion of the proceeds from this book are donated to Healing Reins of Bend, OR.
www.healingreins.org , a non-profit organization,
and Horseplay of Fernley, NV. http://downshorseplay.googlepages.com

Guardian Angel Publishing has many more books like these, to check them out at their web site here.

To see what other CREW members have to say please click here

Natures Friend Magazine

2009-10-01T17:14:00.001-07:00

Nature's Friend Magazine is a "children's magazine the whole family, including grandparents, can enjoy." This so true! First, my kids all loved this magazine and I am a mom and grandma, I love this magazine. :)

Nature's Friend provided me with 2 free copies of their magazine to write this review, August and September.
These are full color magazines that explore the wonders of God's creation and does it, with breath taking photographs and wonderfully informative articles. "Since the doctrine of Divine Creation is foundational in Scripture, our children must be able to stand on it securely to withstand the undermining influences from our culture. Nature Friend has chosen not to be controversial or militantly confrontational about creation vs. evolution. "Our policy has been to simply stand on the truth of God's Word and to present it as enjoyable fact while learning about the creatures God has created." Nature Friend recognizes that God has planned for man to be wise stewards over His creation, and that He alone is to be worshipped, not His creation."

Every month you get invisibles these are an "I spy" type of pictures to find some hidden objects, my 5 year old twins loved this and were happy to sit and find every last object. Articles on animals in our awesome nature along with some of the most beautiful photographs I have seen, science activities, creation close-ups, and a monthly drawing lesson my girls tried their artistic hand at several times, enjoying getting better at the lesson each time. there is so much in this magazine that each month's issue was still being looked over when the next one came in the mail.

I really enjoyed the Study Guide with activities like crossword puzzles, fill in the blanks, a how to take a photograph guide, and a study in nature, a lesson in writing. this is an "extra" to add into your subscription, but one I feel really helped me make this magazine a total learning experience.

Natures Friend Magazine sells a one year subscription for $36
the study guide is an additional $2/ issue
Between now and November 30, 2009 you can get $3 off a new subscription with this code: BLOG93

This would make a wonderful Christmas gift that will last all year long!!!

If you would like to see what others on the CREW have to say please clich here.

College Prep Genius

2009-10-01T16:49:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, I posted about this program College Prep Genius the post is here.
A real quick overview, this is a very rigorous program to study for the PSAT/ACT tests.
Initially this program was overwhelming with all the information it has. That does not mean its a bad course , its NOT, but if you take it one step at a time it does get clearer. This course would be an excellent choice for those students looking to get high PSAT/ACT scores in order to receive scholarships to colleges. We are not that audience and found this course to be a bit to rigorous for us. Though we found lots of really good information. I will be keeping this one for my younger ones if they should choose to go to college.
If you are in the audience of wanting to get the highest possible scores on your child's PSAT/ACT test so that they can get into the college of their choice and receive scholarships then I HIGHLY recommend this program. Though I do recommend an early start (freshman or Sophomore year) in this study to get the most out of this program, though I am sure any amount of hard work in this program would help.

Educational Diagnostic Prescriptive Services

2009-10-01T12:35:00.000-07:00

I was given 4 products to review from Educational Prescriptive Services.
1. Roots and Fruits
2. Write With The Best Volume 1
3. Write With The Best Volume 2
4. The Complete Career, College, and High School guide For Homeschoolers

Roots and Fruits:
This is a vocabulary curriculum for K-12, where you learn latin and greek roots. This is the most comprehensive program I have seen with 673 roots and 1,716 vocabulary words to go along with the roots.
The program is easy to teach. Your students will learn 2 (or more for the older kids) roots and their vocabulary words a week, by finding the definitions and writing sentences. Activities and games help to reinforce the learning.
you can look at samples here
Roots and fruits is available as an E-book download or in print form for $14.98-19.98
The E-book is on sale right now for $11.25

Write With The Best Volumes 1 & 2:

This is a creative writing program that uses great literary works as a model to teach the basics in writing. How better to teach writing than to study great writers that have stood the test of time. Some of the authors you will study are Jules Verne, Charles Dickens, and William Wadsworth.
Write With The Best does interweave some grammar within the context of writing, and covers topics such as writing a descriptive paragraph, dialogue, writing a short story, writing a fable and more.
Daily lessons are written to be done 5 times a week with about 45 minutes per lesson. The objective is not to rush through this program but to gain mastery in each skill before moving on to the next genre. This is a family centered program so everyone is on the same lesson but you grade and expectations are based on their abilities
Once volume 1 has been finished you move onto volume 2, which has more advanced instructions. To see a sample please click here
Volume 1 $ 14.95 on sale right now
Volume 2 $ 18.65 on sale right now

The Complete Career, College and High School guide For Homeschoolers

This is a guide that will help get your kids ready for a career. Their are 4 assessments to help you and your child figure out what type of career your child would best fit into. This guide is easy to use and loaded with so much information. I really appreciated the way that the material was broken down into easy to follow steps.
Some of the topics covered are:
ACT/SAT Preparation
high School planning
Jobs in most demand
Exploring career choices
To see a sample please click here

This guide sells for E-book $26.20 on sale right now
Soft cover book $39.95

A Journey Through Learning

2009-09-28T16:18:00.000-07:00

First, do you know what lapbook is? A Journey Through Learning explains it as
A lapbook is a FUN, HANDS-ON and CREATIVE way for your child to record information that he/she has learned about a certain subject. First, you create the folder part of your lapbook. This part is made from colored folders that are folded in a special way and glued together. Mini-booklets are then cut out, constructed and glued inside of the folders. Kids really like that!
At this house that is true my kids really do love doing lapbooks, so we were excited to be able to review these lapbooks from A Journey Through Learning, A team of homeschooling moms Nancy and Paula who create a wide assortment of lapbooks and unit studies. After some debate we chose to work on the Desert and The Parables of the King.

These lapbook guides contain every thing you need to finish your lapbook. The guide contains the lesson and after each lesson are 1 or more mini-booklets to fill out with the information you have just learned. These booklets are in color with great clip art on them. Each booklet page tells you exactly were your mini- booklet is to be glued into the lapbook, no guessing how to make all those booklets fit!
The back section of these lapbooks is MY favorite part there is a page of suggested additional reading, to encourage your child to learn more about what they are studying. A page that they can list their reading, narration forms, and NICK a page to help your child organize notes, and in Parables a biography report form about Jesus. We are working on trying to take notes with my younger kids and the forms have made this fun for them.

From when we started these lapbooks to now, (we are not all the way finished as we have taken extra time to do them). I have to say these lapbooks are easy to use, full of information, and my kids like them alot! They are learning about deserts and that has made our study of Ancient Egypt more interesting. The Parables of the King is keeping our morning Bible time hands on and creative. The kids are learning about the parables and deserts, the important key here is learning AND enjoying the process.

A Journey Through Learning has a wonderful variety of lapbooks to choose from.
Instant download $13, On CD for $14 and the printed version for $21

If you would like to see what other crew members have to say about the lapbooks they chose to do, please click here.

Nutrition 101: Choose Life!

2009-09-25T21:58:00.000-07:00

Nutrition 101: Choose Life! is a biblically based family centered curriculum that is both a health and science course. This program covers healthy eating based on the body systems and how they function.

This is NOT your typical health/nutrition program that is based on the standard American diet (SAD). Nutrition 101 is based on God's wonderful design of our bodies and His plan for His people to live in wellness and health using a more Nourishing Traditions/whole foods approach to a lifestyle diet.

Nutrition 101 is based on an approach, that is based on the body systems. Each unit is arranged around a body system, and how that system functions (science), then how our food choices support (or not) that system (health).
For example, the first unit is on the brain and nervous system, you learn how each functions and the foods that promote brain/nervous system health, such as omega 3, 6, and 9 fats that are especially important in our diets for the brain and nervous system , and how to choose supplements for your brain and nervous system to function optimally. You will learn about all the different fats and why we need fats in our diet.
Each chapter has discussion questions, activities, and a power recipe to try.
For the youngest ones this may go over their heads as written, so we used a lapbooking/notebooking approach with the children to help them better understand the material. They are getting the idea that our food choices effect how our bodies perform, and that is exactly what I want for them!

Nutrition 101: Choose Life! is broken down into 6 units that cover the following:
1. The Brain and Nervous system
2. Digestion and Elimination
3. Respiration and Olfactory
4. Muscular and Skeletal systems
5. Cardiovascular and Immune systems
6. Endocrine system and Emotions
Each unit has 4 chapters with activities, discussions, and activities for both elementary and secondary levels so the whole family can study together. This is a huge book with 448 pages!
The appendix alone is over 100 pages of great information, like how to select fresh produce, vitamin and mineral charts, an article on milk the big debate, sugar alternatives and so much more!

There is so much in this program, I love that I have a way to teach my kids nutrition from a Godly perspective and in a way that follows how we are trying to change our lifestyle/diet.
The kids love the human body study that ties in nutrition, and that they can make edible "experiments" (aka..recipes). These recipes are awesome, and a great way to introduce healthy food to your family...if the kids make it they are much more likely to EAT it!

Nutrition 101: Choose Life is available at the Growing Healthy Homes website as a:
CD e-book for $79.95
printed book for $99.95
a combo CD and print book for $129.95
Please don't let these prices scare you off, this is so worth it!

If you would like to see what the other CREW members have to say please go here.

STUDYPOD

2009-09-22T15:37:00.000-07:00

What is a STUDYPOD? It's a book holder for starters but in reality, so much more!

Here's a quote from the STUDYPOD website:

"Developed by a teacher, the STUDYPOD book holder provides a simple way to improve your studying. It holds any size textbook and study sheets upright at a comfortable level (similar to the angle of your computer screen) helping maximize your focus. It holds virtually any textbook wide open, freeing hands for writing, typing or eating. You’ll love the book-like design and the handy internal pocket that can hold your other study supplies.
Think about this- 30 years ago, not many students used a backpack for school. Mostly hikers and outdoorsmen used them. Fast forward to today- Every student uses one. They ease students’ loads, organize their belongings and come in a variety of shapes and colors. We believe the STUDYPOD book holder is the next backpack. Once you use it, you’ll wonder how you ever studied without it!"

This is one versatile tool! I have used it for so many things... a cookbook holder and a notes holder during our TOG discussions to name a few.

This item is great for holding a book while you work or while you are multi-tasking and holding a baby! I really like that it holds my pens, pencils and hi-lighters all together with the book or notes that I am using. This is one tool I could use in almost every room in our home. The children love to use the STUDYPOD when they are studying too, so much so that I am going to need to buy one for each of my kids.

Christmas is just around the corner and the STUDYPOD is a great gift!

The STUDYPOD and BOOKPOD book holders are physically the same products but are sold under different names and colors. The STUDYPOD is available in Black, Blue, and Pink and the BOOKPOD is available in Black, Gray, and Beige. You can buy one unit for $19.95 and if you buy two or more you can buy them at the discounted price of only $16.95 each. You can mix and match the STUDYPOD or BOOKPOD to take advantage of the available colors and the still get the discounted $16.95 price. And as a CREW review reader you can save $5 buy using the code: TOSBLOG5

If you would like to see what other crew mates have to say about the studypod please click here

Rocket Phonics

2009-09-17T23:29:00.000-07:00

I have received some wonderful curriculum to review on the crew, but I have truly prayed for a reading program that would help in a number of ways. first I have some struggling readers that are very discouraged and second I have to teach three 5 year old boys this year. I also still have two girls that are working towards that independent reading stage. that means I have 7 very different children needing to be working on reading!!! My answer came in the program that I have been blessed to review: ROCKET PHONICS.
"Rocket Phonics is a research-based, scientifically proven method of teaching reading. Hands down the best phonics program available today, it’s fast, fun, easy-to-use, over three times as effective, and half the cost of competing programs. Rocket Phonics is so effective your child could be reading by the end of the very first lesson!

Created for children ages 4-10, Rocket Phonics turns reading lessons into a world of fun with games, riddles, jokes and classic stories.

Perfect for children of all learning styles, even very active kids. With Rocket Phonics readers go from non-reader to 5th grade reading in two years or less".

So whats so different about this program? The initial teaching alphabet (ITA) uses a different approach. Instead of teaching the 26 letters of the alphabet and the many sounds they make, the child learns the 36 ITA sounds. This is done with the play and learn cards. These cards have the letter or letter pair and a picture to represent the corresponding sound. Once these sounds are learned through games like bingo, go fish and letter leap Your child will begin blending, and moving on to using "helpers" to read. Helpers are used with the non-phonetic words, as a prompting system and it is really simple!

The system looks like:

Now this is were this programed just "shined" for us. My struggling readers got it! They could read AND understand what they had just read, because they did not have to struggle to sound it out. They could spend time comprehending what they read without reading the same passage over and over. This was a real boost to their confidence. Eventually these helpers are phased out as the student progresses and the words are learned.

I love this program! I will be giving updates as we go through Rocket Phonics this year and will share how my readers are progressing. I have a feeling this will be the one that will allow them to soar with their reading.

What's The Cost For This Incredible Program?

For only 3 payments of $54, you and your children
can experience
the magic of Rocket Phonics. Of course,
Rocket Phonics is
completely satisfaction guaranteed. And now
Rocket Phonics is
even a better value than ever, too:

Each Rocket Phonics kit comes with:

2 big Rocket Phonics readers
Two sets of Play & Read symbol cards
Bingo chips
Rocket Peeker
Bingo sheets and Word lists for testing
New! Big-movement games for preschoolers
and active learners -- and bonuses, below

As a special gift with your purchase you will
receive three
free bonuses valued at over $100

Free Bonus Gift #1: Free 28 bonus gifts:
With your purchase,
you’ll receive by email free

each week for 28 weeks a bonus gift to
your kit. New! Now
included: Spelling Strategy—

multi-sensory, developed by spelling specialists,
and nearly foolproof!
Also, 12 Writing

Lessons, perfect for kindergarten or first grade.
You and your child
will be thrilled with each

week’s additional stories, riddles, games, beginning
reading tips and
more. There's extra

practice for each grade level! ($69.95 value)

Free Bonus Gift #2: Two Rocket Phonics
Treasure Hunts: The
rhyming clues are
written both with and without Rocket Phonics’
unique helpers, so very
early readers can
read beyond their grade levels to figure out
clues and find the treasure.
Your children will
love these. Prizes, such as sticky hands, kazoos,
etc., are all included
and ready for fun.

($16.95 value)

Free Bonus Gift #3: Rocket Phonics Word-Find
Treasure Hunt
and the Rocket

Phonics Phrase Game: Your child will delight
in finding and reading
one word or phrase at

a time with these games emailed to you.
($19.95 value)

If you would like to see what other CREW members
have to say about
Rocket Phonics please click here

Emily is Born

2009-09-15T21:00:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR NEW GRAND DAUGHTER !
Emily Mayumi
8pounds 2oz
21"
Congratulations Jacob and Maki she is beautiful!

College Prep Genius

2009-09-09T22:35:00.000-07:00

How does one study for the SAT or PSAT? This can be an intimidating task to say the least. Many young people today take these tests with little or no preparation, which can lead to lower scores and taking these tests again. I have found an answer to this dilemma, and the answer is College Prep Genius.

There is a method to these types of tests. The SAT and PSAT are not tests about knowledge, they are tests about your ability to apply logic and reasoning. It is vital for students to understand how to master these types of tests. I have great news! This is exactly what College Prep Genius is all about.

College Prep Genius Master the SAT Class: the no brainer way to SAT success. This set includes: The DVD lecture series, textbook and workbook. The 4 DVD set contains over 5 hours of relevant and informative lectures. The topics of these lectures include: introduction to the SAT, Critical Reading and Math and Writing. The Textbook is chocked full of test taking strategies, tips and shortcuts. The included workbook has sample SAT and PSAT problems for the student to practice what they have learned from the lectures series and the textbook.

This class has provided invaluable information for successful SAT and PSAT testing. I have also seen how this information can be used to bolster general test taking strategies. We are beginning to work thru this program and will provide an update on our progress in the coming weeks. This is a valuable tool to assist your students to achieve higher test scores, and one that I would recommend.

To begin your journey to higher SAT/PSAT scores, please click here and please take a moment to sign up for their informative newsletter while you are there. Oh, one more thing, the program is available for a special discounted price! Please see the details below!

Introductory Price:

$79 (30% OFF!)

There is no need to spend a fortune on an SAT prep course. For a limited time, the entire COLLEGE PREP GENIUS DVD set is available at the discounted price of $79. This price includes the revolutionary textbook, workbook and teaching DVD's. That’s 30% off the retail price!

Title: Subscribe to The Old Schoolhouse™ Magazine for only $7.95!

2009-09-07T18:22:00.000-07:00

Homeschooling is a Labor of Love, and the Old Schoolhouse™ Magazine is celebrating your hard work as a parent by putting their one-year print subscriptions on sale! For a very limited time, you can subscribe or renew for $7.95! (US only). International customers can subscribe to the digital edition for only 7.95!

You can buy a gift sub for friends, too! To gift a subscription:
1. Go to the one-year subscription page (uS only)
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page.
3. Enter the name, address, email, and phone information for each recipient
4. click "Add this to my cart".
5. The information will display in your cart and simply proceeed to check out.

There are only 2000 of these available, and they are going quickly! Your subscription begins with their Fall Issue.

If you live in an international location, you can subscribe to their digital edition for only $7.95! It's the same great content as their print magazine, except it is instant and interactive!

Here are the two links:
http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_176_181&products_id=12261

http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=175_178_185&products_id=2330

Hank The Cowdog

2009-08-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

Have you ever heard of Hank the cowdog or Drover? Well in this house several years ago they were all we heard about. My older kids found this series of books and couldn't get enough of them. I was pretty excited when we got the package in the mail from Maverick books, AKA Hank the cowdog. I was looking forward to allowing my younger kids the chance to experience life with Hank and Drover.

Hank the cowdog stories are all about life on a cattle ranch in the Texas Panhandle, as seen through the eyes of Hank the cowdog head of ranch security! The ranch animals all have amusing character and the adventures that Hank and his sidekick Drover get into are hilarious.
The book that we read was Hank The Cowdog: The Case of the One-Eyed Killer Stud Horse, Hank finds himself in some pretty funny situations like getting "dressed up" by the cousins, getting sick on bacon grease and all the while having to deal with "Tuerto" the one eyed horse. Now these stories are all told from Hank's point of view and that's why the stories are funny, as Hank see things from a different angle! As much as we have enjoyed this book and the others in the series, I would recommend a bit of caution for this story. Some of the language is that of a rough around the edges cowboy type character and some of the words used by this character are not what we would allow in our home, phrases such as "you moron" or "dummy" is not language we would encourage with our children. These words can be edited if you find them to be objectionable while you are reading aloud. You would not have that ability when listening to the CD.We also had Tales and Tunes from Hank the Cowdog to review. This is an audio CD that contains excerpts from 10 of the Hank books, plus 9 original songs. They are performed like and old time radio show with sound effects and each character has their own unique voice. Once your kids hear these recordings, they will want YOU to use those voices when you read out loud!

I have to say that these stories are not only fun they are funny. My 12 year old overheard the CD and pointed out the name calling issues (ie: moron, stupid, dummy) immediately. When I read these to my first group of children in our homeschool, they were a bit older and we talked about how this is a story and that we do not talk this way in "real life". This worked well for us and we did not have any issues. I will read aloud to the younger kids, with a bit of editing. Please realize that I don't want to "throw the baby out with the bath-water" These are wonderful stories, and I have used them and I will continue to use them.

The Tales and Tunes Cd will be for the older kids that have learned the ability to filter out the name calling.

Another product we reviewed from the package was the game Tornado.

"It's a race to be the first to get your three "characters" from the start to the finish. But watch out, your opponent is chasing you and they may send you back to the start. And landing on a tornado space can send you flying in any direction!The only safe place is a finish space. And in this fast paced game it's truly, never over until it's over!"
My youngest kids really enjoyed this game, they have played it many times, in fact the game has really cemented the concept of odd and even numbers for them. You can take this game with you as it folds up into a nice compact package with all the pieces stored inside.

The books are available individually as paperbacks for $4.24, or also in hardcover, and in sets. The Tales and Tunes sampler CD is available for only $3.00, and audio-book CDs are available as 2-book sets for $28.99. The Tornado Game is sold for $12.99.

If you would like to read what the other crew members are saying please click here

Web Design For Kids (...and Curious Grown-ups!)

2009-08-27T21:01:00.000-07:00

Web Design For Kids (...and curious grown-ups) is an instructional DVD that will take you step by step through the process of building a web page. You will using Notepad, Internet Explorer and paint. These 3 basic programs are included within Microsoft Windows

Brian Richardson, a middle school computer literacy teacher, guides you through each lesson. He demonstrates each of his verbal instructions on his computer so you can see each of his instructions being carried out. A wonderful plus for us visual learners!

There are 7 lessons that will teach you the basics of HTML code. This is accomplished as you build 3 different web pages.

Some of the topics covered on this DVD are:
basic HTML code
adding pictures
designing backgrounds
making text move across the screen
The DVD also includes a bonus section on file management featuring information on saving and organizing files.

My daughter was very excited to get this one! She was supposed to spend some time working with this program over the course of a few days. When she got started, she was so excited and engrossed with the material that she spent all day working through the lessons and then promptly asked when the next level of the program would be available! The kids all loved learning about the moving text (and all of the topics). I was called over numerous times to see their creations. This is truly great for kids. (Also a great tool for some of us clueless adults who do not have even a faint idea of what HTML is!) :-)

Please click here to view a sample of the DVD

Web Design For Kids sells for $40.00. For a limited time it is on sale for only $19.99 plus shipping!

Another great thing about this product is that a portion of the sales of Web Design For Kids goes to the following charities:

The Smile Train
Ronald McDonald House
Children Miracle Network
Miami Project to Cure Paralysis
The American Foundation For The Blind

See what other TOS Homeschool Crew members are saying about Web Design For Kids here

Quarter Mile Math

2009-08-26T17:16:00.000-07:00

We have been reviewing the Quarter Mile Deluxe Edition. This is a creative, online subscription based computer game that makes math drill fun! When kids hear about "drilling math facts" they instantly think boring! Not the case with Quarter Mile. This application is way more than flashcards. The Quarter Mile is easily installed in a few minutes and is quick and easy to learn. The format of this game is a race of either cars or horses.
(For those of us who would want to avoid the idea of horse racing and gambling I quote Christopher of the Quarter Mile) "we know that some families are sensitive to the issue of horse racing. This might be because of the association with gambling. Because of this, horses in the Quarter Mile Math don’t have jockeys and they race on a grassy meadow. (Of course, the likelihood of getting wild horses to run in a straight line in a meadow is very low, but you get the idea!) We refer to them as “riderless horses” and avoid using phrases like “horse race” or “race horse.”
The faster your child answers the problem the faster their car or horse moves. For the first 5 races, you race against "Fast Eddy" who is actually a bit on the slow side, so your child is sure to win right off the bat. From that point on your child races against his or her own best time.
One of the best features of this program is that the game is able to detect even the smallest improvements, this feature provides constant encouragement to your child. Beating their own best score is both the challenge and the motivator that keeps my kids playing over and over again and when you hear your child say, "just one more race Mom" you know they are enjoying the learning process.

The topics in the Quarter Mile go far beyond basic math facts, with skills from kindergarten level to pre-algebra, problem skills in fractions, decimals, percents and estimation. With 70,000 available math problems you kids are not going to out grow this anytime soon.

My kids are really enjoying the learning experience, and I love that they are improving their math skills. A few of the many benefits of Quarter Mile are: Game play builds confidence quickly, and my math challenged kids are having fun while learning. The children are experiencing "winning" with math and they want to play (learn) more, and that makes me happy! :-)

Here are some of the features of this deluxe program: The children can use any of our Internet ready computers, since their scores are recorded on the online Barnum server. There is also a report that you can generate for each child that will show all of their races and times, this allows you to monitor their progress. Up to 12 people can use it, this is great for large families like mine. All this is available for $19.95 per year ( or $2.95 per month)
The standard version is also available. You can see a comparison of the standard version verses the deluxe version here

The web site also has a page just for homeschoolers that will help you set up a family tournament, print out progress charts plus several articles that you can read for additional information.

I recommend The Quarter Mile Math! If you would like to read more reviews of the Quarter Mile please click here

A special offer for crew review readers from the Quarter Mile: $5.00 off of either the Deluxe or standard product with code: 7B7W7
This offer is good till September 30, 2009

Sense and Sensibility Review

2009-08-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

Sense and Sensibility is a company that sells original vintage patterns by Jennie Chancey. Jennie is a homeschooling mom who has been designing vintage dresses since she was 14.

For my Homeschool Crew I had the privilege of reviewing the Edwardian E-Pattern and E-class bundle . Ok I was a bit nervous about this as sewing brings back some bad memories of my 8th grade home Economics teacher telling me how bad I was at this sewing thing! I have done some sewing since then with more "horror stories" than good ones :) But I really love sewing and these pattern at Sense and Sensibility are beautiful, so I dove in with anticipation as after all this bundle had a class.

First the download of the pattern, it is 25 pieces five across and 5 down. You lay them out on the floor (or large surface). I did have a bit of difficulty in lining these printed pattern pages as the printing does not go to the edge of the page. they must be trimmed and the lines, lined up taping as you go. My perfectionist tendency arose here, but really this is not a problem, the pattern when cut out worked perfectly.

The best part of this bundle for me was the E-class. Jennie talks you through with a power point showing pictures of her sewing. Plus she has videos of some of the trickier things. These videos are awesome! I watched them till I "got it" then so easy to go back to the class and follow along. I was able to finish the apron with no problems and was so excited and happy I made a second and am also working on a 3rd one for my little grand daughter! This class will also teach you how to make your own double fold bias binding so you can natch your binding to the apron material. the instructions are very good, but my girls really wanted to choose a colored binding with the material they had picked out.

The Sense and sensibility patterns are beautiful and the classes are so well done that they took away my fear of sewing. I have a success. My girls love their aprons and already want more than one! I am going to try a dress next!

To order this E-bundle for $24.95 go to Sense and Sensibility here. Enjoy your sewing experience and have a beautiful apron to prove it.

If you would like to see more reviews of Sense and Sensibility visit the Homeschool Crew Reviews here.

Hanna and Isabel in their Edwardian Aprons. I used the contrasting
binding.

Grapevine Studies

2009-08-17T23:06:00.000-07:00

Old Testament Basics
A program designed for multiple age groups
By: Grapevine Studies

I have chosen TOG as our main curriculum, but I wanted to have a bible time program that I would be able to use with all of my children at once. This can be a bit of a challenge when you have a house full of children ranging from the ages of 5 to 17! My answer came via a crew review, and my Godsend called Grapevine Studies. As their website says: "A bible study that engages the intellect, while stimulating the imagination!"
This is an amazingly easy to teach curriculum that uses stick figures. All of my kids find this simple and enjoyable. (even the older kids!)
I am currently using The old Testament basics, which utilizes the teaching method of catechism.
Questions & Answers to learn the facts of the Old Testament. Each lesson begins with a question, then a bible verse reading and finally the drawing of stick figures on our whiteboard to illustrate the answer. The first few lessons the kids just watched and followed along as I used the stick figures to "write out" the answers. Now the children have begun using the stick figures themselves and they are naturally embellishing them, to help them to remember the questions and the answers. The girls find their stick figures are rendered with dresses and long hair, and when the boys step up, their representations are rich with background information and details. The littlest ones color in everything! The best thing about this program is they are getting it! They are learning the material and they know it and own it.
All of the questions in the Old Testament Basics center on biblical facts, not doctrinal issues. The Old Testament Basics contains 225 questions for students and the Teacher's guide contains both the the questions and answers complete with stick figure drawings. It is great fun and we are really enjoying it! The cost of this program is $24.95.
For an additional $15.95 there is a Student Workbook that contains: The Bible verses, questions and even a place for your students to draw out their answers.

Biblical Feasts and Holy Days
13 Lessons

The Biblical Feasts and Holy Days study is a great way to explore the original 7 Levitical feasts, the Sabbath & Purim. I love the study of the feasts. We are really learning and gaining a better understanding of these original biblical holy days. This is one of the best resources I have seen to learn more about the Feasts and Holy days.
The Teacher's book is available for $19.95 and the Student book costs $11.95

Homeschool Lounge Open House

2009-08-06T11:15:00.000-07:00

Hi, Thanks for stopping by to read my THL open house 2009! My name is Cynthia I am a mother of 13 children and Grandmother of 2 with another grandchild to join us soon!
I just discovered the Homeschool lounge! It's a fun place to connect with other homeschooling mom's. This month they are having an open house so I am joining in the fun!
We call our school Ark Covenant Academy because our home is the ark that our children can run to from the trials of the world. Not that our home is perfect or overly peaceful or even free of trials, But we do love each other. Of course "the ark" is quite full when every one is home too, as there are19 of us! Our home is still full even with our oldest children out on their own.
This year for school the twins and my grandson (all who are 5 years old) will be joining in the mix this year! This means I will be teaching and learning with 9 children, both a blessing and a challenge. We are using a classical/Charlotte Mason approach and lean toward the eclectic. But this year we have chosen Tapestry of Grace volume 1 as our core curriculum.
I am really excited and have been planning up a storm and putting together our student notebooks. I love using lapbooks and notebooking pages to get our learning into the hands-on mode. The children are responding to the lessons and I find they retain the information easier, and enjoy the learning process using this method, because its FUN.
This year I really want to have a special time of encouragement with my daughters and spend some time going through some of the books I have collected over the years. Here are a few that I recommend and will be using:The Women God Designed, Raising Maidens of Virtue, Before You Meet Prince Charming and Beautiful Girlhood .I really want my girls to know that being a strong women of God is truly a blessing and a path worthy of following .I am amazed at the number of books that I have gathered together over these last few years. Life is busy in this household and sometimes "girltime" takes the back burner, Soooooo this year I am making time for just being together with my girls and learning about Godly womanhood, modesty and courtship with purpose!
I have not forgotten my little men either. We will be using Boyhood and Beyond with them. God desires strong Godly servant leaders in our boys.
We will also be using various curriculum that I review for the homeschool crew. We are blessed with a wonderful of curriculum to review this year, and we are all so excited! Please bookmark this blog and check it out from time to time so you can see how we are doing and pick up what I hope will be some valuable insights on all of the wonderful curriculum we will be experiencing!
I am still very busy with planning and organizing but we will be starting school next week. My ideas, schedules and plans do not always mesh with the reality of life! So I have to remind myself to stay flexible and make adjustments, after all, we are all "works in progress!"

The Home school Lounge has some awesome prizes for the open house. My choices are:
#1 Rainbow Resource $50 gift certificate
#2 Currclick $50 gift certificate
#3 Families with a Purpose $25 gift certificate

Classical Education

2009-07-23T16:34:00.000-07:00

planning and more planning! that's what I have been up to. I love the idea of having everything all ready for several weeks in advance ( I gave up the idea of being 9 or more weeks planned out ) I am aiming for 4-6 weeks ahead. I am making student notebooks this year, they will have all their assignments, workbook pages coloring pages anything they will need to complete their week. I got the idea from The Counter- Culture blog. In Tapestry of Grace the idea is to help the children to become independent by keeping their own school planners so they know exactly what they need to do each week. I am really looking forward to helping my children learn to be responsible for their learning, not to speak about how much this will help me as I delve into the learning to read with three 5 year old boys!
I have also been really blessed and encouraged in reading The Well Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise. I love the classical education method, how I wish I had known about this back when we started to home school 20+ years ago. This book has helped me to have a direction in all our schooling, not for just now but our years ahead as well. I have been inspired, given hope and excitement again for teaching my children. I was beginning to feel that I had forgotten how to bring the joy of learning into our days. I was also feeling a lack of direction and the "how" to keep doing this and do it well and right. YES even after home schooling for 20 years I found myself floundering, questioning how I could keep going as we were. I felt that I was not "doing enough". I have been in this place before and the only answer: SEEK MY FATHER GOD'S FACE. That is what I have been doing crying out to Father and asking him to show me the way for our family. He lead me to Tapestry of Grace and then to The well Trained Mind. He has supplied us with our way and the tools to follow that way. I am once again excited

Character Formation

2009-07-18T23:15:00.000-07:00

I am heavily into planning our school for this next semester, we are using a new to us program: Tapestry of Grace. I was re -reading some notes from Marcia Somerville the author of TOG ,and she made a statement that really stood out to me
" Character formation is both
the foundation for learning
and the ultimate purpose for learning"
In all my planning of my childrens academics, the most important thing to remember is who they are inside. I wish for all my children to have the character of Christ. To think like Him, to act out of a heart like His in all they do. That means KNOWING Him. We can not imitate someone we do not know, or fallow someone when we are not watching.

Happy 5th Birthday Micah and Isaiah!

2009-07-14T09:45:00.000-07:00

Wow my babies are 5 years old. Five years ago they were born at 28 weeks and 2 and 3 pounds. Micah and Isaiah you have come along way! What a miracle and blessing you two are.
Happy Birthday Micah and Isaiah
We love you so much!

God Bless America!

2009-07-04T10:20:00.000-07:00

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, and
the people he chose for his inheritance.

Psalm 33:12

Happy 4th of July!

Family Reunion picture

2009-07-01T15:24:00.000-07:00

All together! Mom, Dad, 13 kids plus 2 beautiful grand babies, Aaron's beautiful, sweet girlfriend, and our wonderful beautiful new daughter-in love Maki ( Jacob's wife who is expecting their first this fall). I just love this picture personality abounds.

The Homeschool Planner Review

2009-06-23T10:57:00.000-07:00

The 2009 Schoolhouse Planner
Published by: The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
Cost $39

I have dreamed of getting this planner, I mean think about this I love to plan and organize- I am always looking for THAT perfect planner. I have considered ,OK maybe even drooled over the old schoolhouse planner so many times, but the price just seemed a bit much… WELL let me say that after spending several hours going through this huge resource of 375 pages ( yes that is not a typo), I wish I had gotten this last year, it is worth every penny!
So why?
Let’s start with the monthly modules. Each module has a two page monthly calendar, a mini theme overview and links to more resources to dig deeper. With themes like: The Basics of Getting into College ( May) or Lapbooking a Creative Road to Retention (April). Oh and recipes that sound so good I can’t wait to try some.
Then there are pages of miscellaneous educational information, like conversion cheat sheet, the U.S. presidents list, famous artists, and so much more—all those lists that you usually need at some point but don’t have the time to go searching.
Next comes the homeschool forms. There are planning sheets, evaluations, transcripts, grading sheets, tracking logs, and so much more. This is very complete and will have me organized for our new school year better than ever. I loved the daily and weekly schedules, they are set up for 2 children to 5 children. There is even preschool activities forms so I can purpose my learning fun with even my youngest.
Next and yes there is more!
Household forms…have you ever wanted to gather all those home and family related things together, you know, remember someones birthday or what about all the projects you have or dream of doing? There are forms. Menu's, grocery lists, chores, prayer journal…as you can see there is an eclectic list of forms that will get your household planner put together and yo u will have it all in one place. I am going to call it my “brain”
Everything I need or want to remember, or plan to let my home life run a bit smoother and yes more organizedJ
Anther resource that complements the planner is the monthly modules these are filled with information, and facts for studying a mini unit in depth each month. Each monthly module has a different theme. They are available as a monthly membership for $ 71.55 or individual months for $ 7.95.
I am so happy with my planner, this is a resource that will be used over and over all year long.
Would you like to see what others have to say about the planner and how they use it? Check out the Crew reviews .

Purchase the 2009 Schoolhouse Planner at The Old Schoolhouse Store

Father's Day Video

2009-06-21T12:52:00.000-07:00

This is a song that Bruce wrote, Mikaela made the video for his Father's day gift.

Happy Fathers Day

2009-06-20T23:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Fathers Day to all the Fathers .
I especially want to bless the fathers in my life, Bruce the father of our dear children, who works so hard to provide for us, and who loves us so deeply.
My own father whom I love.
My oldest son Ryan, being a father is the hardest "job , but THE most rewarding!
To my son Jacob, yes you are a father already, even though your daughter will not join us till latter,
may you anticipate with joy the job of being a father.
HAPPY FATHERS DAY to you.

I Made The Crew!

2009-06-07T07:07:00.000-07:00

What's the crew, you ask? Well, the crew is a group of wonderful homeschoolers who like me enjoy the variety of curriculum and products that help us with our learning adventures. We all want to help others find out about what's available and give you some insights into these wonderful products so you can choose whats best for your family.
The Crew is part of a community of homeschoolers with so much great support starting with the best homeschooling magazine: The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. Here you will find support for homeschooling, newsletters, and an on line store. This site has a wealth of information.

Addicted to The Search

2009-06-05T22:03:00.000-07:00

I love planning. I love the thought of organization. Together the two of these could be a problem for me as I can spend so much time thinking about them , researching and never really coming to a point of implementing anything! I absolutely love the challenge of finding just the right curriculum and just the "thing" that will make my life easier..you know THE chore chart that will have the kids wanting to do chores :) or THE file system that keeps everything in perfect order for latter finding whatever it is without a hassle... yep I am addicted to the search!
So every day I must remind myself that though I make all these plans, they are just that MINE, and Gods plans are not always MINE. I must keep ever before me the ultimate purpose , the reason we have chosen to homeschool all the blessings the Father God has given us. Because He was the one who lead us on this path and He is the one equipping us, not me and my plans. Not that God does not want me organized, nor should i go into my year of school UNplanned, I just need to remember where it is He has lead me and not try to continually reinvent , redo or add onto what is already do

Family Reunion

2009-06-01T19:35:00.000-07:00

I am so excited for the first time in about 4 years ALL the kids are coming home! This is no easy feat as we have moved from Texas our home for the last 17 years. In our move to Arizona we left behind 4 of the oldest and 2 grand kids. Our third born is in the Navy and stationed in Japan with his wife and little one due in August.
This month we will all be together for a few short days. This is such a blessing and joy for this Mamma's heart! I am so excited to have a big family celebration. To get pictures of the extended family ALL together! How fun and I remember when the kids were younger thinking about when they were older married and with kids of their own what it would be like to have family get together..how time goes by, here we are with our first one and it was just a dream yesterday ..well many yesterdays :) sigh of anticipated happiness!

Tapestry Of Grace

2009-05-26T21:07:00.000-07:00

It has been so long since I posted, I have been so caught up in my school planning and so excited about our new curriculum! We have chosen to use Tapestry of Grace redesigned year 1.(TOG) I have been reading and making up student notebooks because I want this to work, with as little new start up confusion (what the seasoned users call the "fog") as possible. TOG is such an awesome curriculum and the ability to teach all my kids together is exactly what I was looking for. I love the classical approach along with the Charlotte Mason ideals mixed in. My kids love reading books that go along with what they are studying and TOG has a great selection of them, so much so that I must remember to go through the buffet of books and pick a few and not load our plates with more than we can handle and cause both my kids and I to become discouraged with goals that are not reasonable. Let alone the fact that I want them to enjoy learning this year.

Happy Memorial Day

2009-05-25T05:08:00.000-07:00

And I 'm proud to be an American,

where at least I know I'm free.

And I wont forget the men who died,

who gave that right to me.

Lee Greenwood

God Bless all our Military families! Today especially I pray for those families who have lost men and women to keep us safe here; Father God wrap your arms of love and peace around them, they are NOT forgotten.

Blessings

2009-05-07T19:46:00.000-07:00

We are coming back from the world of sickness and as you might expect sickness can hit one of two ways here, either all of us at once or as I like to say, a slow meandering train, When one gets sick then when that one is almost well the next one gets "picked up" for the sickness train. :) Well these last few weeks the train has been rolling through the house! then as the last child was finally better the train decided to speed up and run Mom over! I was down hard for two days leaving 10 kids to "run" the house and take care of each other. Today I woke up feeling much better and took survey of my house and kids. The kids thriving and happy, the house well its still standing. The crafts supply cupboard is all over the house BUT I have beautiful cards. the dishes are done and put away, we wont mention the floor but I really do have LIGHT colored tiles most days! As I stood in the center of the house I smiled as I thought yes the house needs some cleaning the laundry mountain is high, but my blessing: the kids took care of each other they took care of me and I remember to look to the goal and not at the circumstances right now. Yes I am blessed.

Kids Say...

2009-05-07T14:35:00.000-07:00

Kids say the funniest things. One of the children got in trouble and had to sit in a corner for a time out( names not used to save the one in trouble from ultimate humiliation as they said!) Well in this particular corner is a wooden bunny statue. OK the stage is set here is the conversation

Child 1: don't talk to " ? " he is in trouble and has to VISIT with the bunny!

so now Kaylee my 2 year old grand daughter will yell at the nearest child who even bothers her a tiny bit "go to visit meemee's bunny!"

now this has become the funniest thing in this house at the moment and you will hear the children tell each other "go visit with the bunny" often and the twins relish the ability to tell the child who has broken a rule to "visit with the bunny"