College Prep Genius

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!

Hank The Cowdog

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

Grapevine Studies

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

Classical Education

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

Time Flies

Today I am supposed to be planning...planning our school for next year, planning our schedules and chores. Instead I have been reading some E-books that I downloaded from The Old Schoolhouse Store. WOW! I have to say these books are EXACTLY what I needed! The First one a WeE book: Time Flies While History is Written by Deborah Wuehler. Time does fly NOW, now that the kids are older, now that I can look back on a "past" for our family, now that I am 50. In the beginning when the older ones were all under 10 the workload was all consuming I was not as purposeful in my direction. I want more for my younger ones. Like Deborah says, "I want my history to be better than my firstborn son's history. I want my children to remember a joyful mother of children and not a tired, worn-out nag" I so want this! This little booklet has helped me see how I can "start over" with purpose to rewrite our history, by recognizing my sins and move from failure to victory. As Deborah says, "since time really does march on and today turns into yesterday faster than we can keep up, we really should be making our priority one of knowing the word of the Lord." I agree with Deborah and she has written a powerful booklet that reminds us of the larger story- His Story. This booklet is a must read for all of us Mothers from those just starting families to us "older" Moms still writing our history with the younger blessings the Lord has given us. This E-book is on my night stand to re-read