Taking Another Look at Reading Kingdom {Review}

                 

You may remember that a few years ago we had the opportunity to review Reading Kingdom, an online program that teaches children ages 4-10 to read and write to a 3rd grade level. 

Well, to be honest, at the time Reading Kingdom was not one of our favorites.  I used it primarily for Computer Girl and Alpha Boy, who were 7 and 4 at the time.  They did not really enjoy Reading Kingdom which I attributed that to the lengthy Reading Skills Survey, but I noted in my review that I believed this was a good program and could be a good fit for other children. 

It turns out that Little Bits is one of those "other" children.  He LOVES Reading Kingdom and is doing really well with it. 

Little Bits likes to build words and sound them out with Reading Kingdom. 

Little Bits just turned 5 in July and started kindergarten about 6 weeks ago.  Up until now, we had not done much in the way of formal phonics with him.  At this point he is learning phonics, but we are moving at a gentle pace.  He has been doing Reading Kingdom several times a week, as a supplement to his phonics program. 

Let me tell you a little about how Reading Kingdom works.  Reading Kingdom is based off of the research and experience of Dr. Marion Blank, "a world renowned expert on literacy and the Director of the Light on Learning Institute at Columbia University," who developed this 6 skill model approach to reading...

The Reading Kingdom approach goes beyond the phonics and whole language approaches, and includes several other necessary skills for reading and writing success.  By focusing on all six of these skills, children can master both reading and writing more easily.  Reading Kingdom is currently the only program that includes all six of these skills in their approach to learning to read and write. 

The Reading Kingdom believes that every child is different.  Instead of fitting each child into a "one size fits all" box, children are given a thorough Reading Skills Survey test to properly place them in the program. 

Once children are tested on their reading and writing skills, they can then beginning learning from their personal reading level.  Children do not have to continue going over something that they already know, which can lead to boredom and lack of interest.  Nor are they pushed a head to a level they are not ready for, only causing frustration.  I believe that with the help of the very thorough Reading Skills Survey, Reading Kingdom can almost perfectly place a child in the right reading level.

Children also learn their way around a keyboard while they are learning to read.

My little guy is just learning his letters, so after taking the Reading Skills Survey test he was placed at the beginning of the program.  He started out doing visual sequencing and keyboard skills.  He is great with a mouse but is still getting used to when the letters on the keyboard are, which is a big part of Reading Kingdom. 

Little Bits has been having a good ol' time with Reading Kingdom.  He is currently "making words," as he calls it.  He gets pretty excited and likes to call me over when he learns a new word. 

My little guy has been processing well with Reading Kingdom.   I plan to continue out the 12 month subscription with him, along side his regular phonics program. 

A Reading Kingdom subscription is available for $19.99 per month, or $199.99 per year per child.  The yearly subscription gives you a 20% discount.  Additional children are given a 50% discount at a rates of $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year. 

Reading Kingdom offers a 30 Day Free Trial that you might want to check out prior to subscribing. 

Visit the TOS Crew Blog to see what others are saying about Reading Kingdom!

Notgrass American History {Review}

 

 

A few years ago a friend of mine mentioned the Notgrass Company's History Curriculum, America the Beautiful and how her kids really loved it.  After hearing her rave review, I knew that once my kids were old enough I wanted to check it out.

The America the Beautiful History Curriculum from the Notgrass Company was given to us to review for the TOS Crew.  Let me tell you what we were given to review and what we thought of them.  

 

America the Beautiful Parts 1 & 2

These two hardcover textbooks are the meat and potatoes of the curriculum.  They are beautifully bound hardcover books with pictures on most every page, some black & white and some color.

Part 1 takes you from 1000 to 1877, and Part 2 continues from the Late 1800's the Present.  Together they tell American history from a Biblical Worldview.  

I have to say, I am not usually a fan of textbooks, but these are pretty impressive.  

The books are set in chronological order and consist of 15 units each, making a total of 30 units.  There are several different types of lessons in the America the Beautiful books:

• Our American Story - These lessons are about the major events in the time period the unit is based on.
• God's Wonders - These lessons teach students about God's creation, like the Chesapeake Bay, Yellowstone and the great Mississippi River.  
• American Landmark - Here you learn about important sites in American history, like Plymouth, the Erie Canal and the Alamo.
• American Biography - This focuses on a particular person that lived during the time period being studied.  In these lessons you get to learn more about people like John Jay, President of the American Bible Society, George Washington and Robert E. Lee.
• Daily Life - These lessons give a glimpse into the day to day lives of the people of the time period.  In the unit on the Civil War, the daily Life lesson is called Two First Ladies.  Here we learn about Mary Todd Lincoln and Varina Howell Davis.

I liked the layout of the books.  I found them to be very informative and enjoyable.  I do however wish they were a little more on the conversational style that we are used to.  

If you have read some of my other reviews, you probably know that I love to learn from living books.  I think using only a textbook can quench a child's love for learning.  In saying that, I do feel that there is a time and a place for a textbook.  Currently, the kids and I are starting to read about the American Revolution.  We are learning a ton from biographies, chapter and picture books, but there were several things in the America the Beautiful that did not read about in our other books. 

   

After reading each lesson, there is a list of several activities, usually about 4-6, that include writing, vocabulary, timeline, map, and workbook assignments.  There are also Thinking Biblically assignments that have the students looking up scriputre to answer questions.  There are literature assignments from We the People and recommended living books, like Amos Fortune, Across Five Aprils and Little Town on the Prairie.  You or the student can pick one or several of the assignments to be completed for the day. 

They encourage family discussions about the days lesson.  The book also has family activities, like making an Iroquoian Longhouse, have a peaceful Boston Tea Party, and make a Liberty Bell Mosaic.  

The way that we have been using this, is that my 8th grader has been reading the lessons independently and doing some of the actitivies on her own.  

I have also found myself picking it up and reading it for fun.  Yes really, for fun.  I have also used it to better educate myself on the topics we are studying, so that I can casually pass the information along to my younger kids. 

We the People

This hardcover black & white book is a wonderful collection of writings from America's history, that include historical documents, poems, letters, songs, newspaper clippings and songs. 

One of the assignment suggestions is to read selections from the book that relate to the lessons topic. We like this book and find it to be a wonderful addition to the curriculum.

Maps of America the Beautiful

This workbook has maps that correlate with the lessons.  Students are given assignments to color and label the various maps. 

Timeline of America the Beautiful

Also in workbook form, this black & white timeline allows students to color and label the timeline as they work through history.  

 

America the Beautiful Student Workbook

This workbook includes fun word searches, matching, multiple choice questions and drawing assignment.  Probably best suited for children in 4th-6th grade.  

 

America the Beautiful Lesson Review 

Full of daily lesson and literature review questions to help parents measure children's comprehension of the material being studied.

My 8th grader and I have done several of these together orally.  

 

America the Beautiful Answer Key

You guessed it, this is where all the answers are {smile}.  This includes answers to the timeline, vocabulary, Student Workbook and Lesson Review questions.  

  

Over all, I really love this curriculum.  I know it will remain on my shelf for the duration of our homeschooling years.  It is excellent as a source of reference for American history. It also makes a well rounded American History curriculum for 5th-8th graders, that could be used independently for older students.  I also believe this would work wonderfully for multilevel teaching.

America the Beautiful is designed to be completed in one school year, working on it 5 days per week.  It would, however, be very simple to adjust the schedule to complete it in two years.  

I appreciate the flexibility America the Beautiful offers with the variety of student assignments,  and literature suggestions. They offer all the bells and whistles of a traditional textbook, but also have a unit study type feel to them.  This my friends is a keeper! 

You can purchase the America the Beautiful curriculum, for $99.95.

The Student Workbook and Lesson Review can be purchased separately.

Please see what other TOS Crew members have to say about Notgrass products including America the Beautiful and the Draw the Learn Bible Series. 

Bible Study For All Ages {Review}

I love all things multi-level teaching, meaning subjects that I can teach everyone the same thing, at the same time.  Bible is one of those subjects where I try to keep everyone on the topic or study.  

I had not heard of Bible Study For All Ages, until the opportunity to review for them came about from the TOS Crew.  

The Bible Study For All Ages is a curriculum that has families {or Sunday school classes} studying the same part of the Bible at the same time, but on their own levels.  This curriculum takes you and your family through several parts of the Old and New Testaments each year. 

There are 416 Bible Lessons that take you through an in depth study of the Bible. 

We were given the following materials for this review:

 

Beginner Level Student Pages 

Beginner Time Line

 

Children's Songs CD Set

 

 Advanced Level Student Pages

Bible Book Summary Cards 

Let me give you an example of how the lessons are laid out.  Let's take a look at lesson 14, we are studying Genesis 49-50, which is the account of Joseph.  We have been studying Joseph since lesson 1, which started at Genesis 37.  

Here is a sample of one of the Beginner Student Pages.

Here is the layout for the Beginner Student Pages and how it works for us.

Learn the Basics 

• We review our timeline cards, which we have hanging on a large kitchen doorway.  

These have been really helpful to us.  The kids love to take turns reviewing the cards.

Sing & Remember 

• In this portion we told to review books of the Bible we are memorizing (Matthew - Galatians)
• We sing He's Got the Whole World in His Hands, which is on our Children's Songs CD
• We also do about 4 or 5 review questions.  

The kids love to do the review questions, they especially LOVE THE SONGS!  They now know all of the names of the sons of Jacob thanks to a song we've been singing!  

Get Active 

• This section give ideas to get up and do something. This one has you blindfolding one child and talk about who takes care of us.  

Discover the Bible

• Here is where are read over the scripture for the day.  Most days it is a one chapter in the Bible, today there are two.  
• There are several pictures that show what happens in the scriptures we just read.  Each picture has an explanation and something to do.  For instance, one of the pictures talks about Jacob wanting to be buried in a cave, so the child is asked to color the cave brown.

This is the main part of our study.  We read through the scriptures, discuss and follow along with the activities they has us do.  I fell like this part is really helpful.  

Apply It!

• This part has a picture to color and application questions.

At the end of our study we talk about the picture and go over the review questions together.

Now for the Advanced Student Pages, these pages are set up a little differently.  Here is how we use them...

Remember It?

• This is the portion with review questions.  They are a little more difficult than the Beginner Student Pages.  Today the review is in the form of a matching/fill in the blank activity.

My girls do these on their own.  I do the review questions for the Beginner Pages aloud with everyone.

Memory Workout

• Here the kids are asked to review the New Testament Books and the Genesis Bible Book Summary.

We do the Bible Summary Card reviews together.  These are 8x11 flash cards that summarize the books of the Bible with one or more pictures.  On the opposite side of the picture there is a description that summarizes the book of the Bible that the card represents.
 

Guess What...

• These are mostly Bible facts like what a cup bearer and baker were to the Pharaoh. 

My girls usually read these on their own and share their new fond information with the rest of us.

Discover the Bible

• Just like with the younger pages, this is where we read the scripture and go through the pictures and questions.

We do this part together as a family. The Advanced Questions are more challenging than the ones on the Beginner Pages.  My girls have been fine following along with us for the scripture reading and then doing the questions on their own, asking me for help when needed.

Timeline or Map

• The timeline has several questions that the kids get to answer from reading a biblical timeline on their student page.
• The timeline portion alternates with mapping skills.  Which include labeling areas that were discussed in our Bible readings.
  

My girls do this on their own as well, of course I am available if they have a question. 

Get Active

• This is basically the same activity as the one on the Beginner Page, except this one goes more in depth with the application on blind faith.

We generally don't get to these.  

Apply It!

• This is the application part of the study.  Today's lesson includes re-reading a scripture, answering several questions related to our scripture and a prayer suggestion.

You guessed it, they answer these on their own as well{smile}

Conclusion

I like the over all idea of this program, a lot!  But I found it was hard to get into a "groove" with the different student pages.  It was a little frustrating at first, to be honest.  I felt like everyone was all over the place and Bible was taking a really looong time. 

The way that I tweaked this to work for us was that I stopped reading the scriptures twice.  At first I read the scripture while the boys colored the application picture. THEN, I would re-read the scriptures as we did the Discover the Bible portion of the study.  

I decided to pick and choose what was most important to me and focus on those things.  So we do the songs, timeline and review questions from the Beginner Student Pages.  Then we do the Discover the Bible portion, this is the scripture reading and discussion part.  Then we finish with the application.

At first I was trying to go over all the parts of both levels together, this did not work for us.  I am really glad that I found a way to make this work, because I love many things about this study.  

All of the different components in this Bible Study really set it apart from the rest.  The constant review through questions, songs, timeline and summary cards help the children to remember what they learned even two weeks prior.   I am amazed at what the kids have learned and retained about Joseph by using this study.  I believe my 5 year old could tell you Joseph's whole life story!

Another thing I want to mention, I liked that they did not include scripture on the student pages.  I know that may sound strange, but I think it makes it much easier to use your own Bible version

The student page booklets each have 26 lessons, priced at $5.95 per booklet.  To complete the whole program you would need 16 booklets per student.  First, you need to choose the products that would best suit your family, depending on grade and reading levels. 

I would love to continue with this program, but I am not sure it would not be affordable for us. I am figuring that it would cost a total of $380.00 for all four children to complete the whole study.  

If this was more affordable for me, like say if I could purchase the all the lessons together as a pdf download at a discounted rate, this would be what we used for Bible. 

You can see what other TOS Crew Members have to say about Bible Study for All Ages by clicking HERE!

Timeline Builder

 

History is one of my favorite subjects to learn, ahem, I mean teach.  As a high school student history was the one class that I really enjoyed.  Unfortunately, it wasn't until I started homeschooling that history really came alive and clicked for me.  Prior to homeschooling, what I knew about history seemed fragmented and sloppy.

One thing that I think has really helped the kids and I to put things in perpective is having a timeline.  It allows one to stand back and look at the big picture.  Enter, Timeline Builder from Knowledge Quest, a user friendly App for history lovers of all ages!

 

 

 

Things we really liked about the Timeline Builder:

• We do already have a LARGE timeline on the wall in our school room, but I love that this one can be seated right next to me wherever I am.  Like when the kids and I are snuggled on the couch reading a good historical fiction and we want to add some thing we learned to the timeline or look something up.

 

• Timeline Builder is very user friendly, for moms and kids! This App has instructions that explain how to get the most out of your timeline.  I felt that the timelines were easy to create, change and add to. 

 

• When adding a new timeline event or figure you can connect to Wikipedia to add facts and pictures.  I must say this is quite an awesome feature!

 

• I like that you can create several different timelines.  You could have one for American history, Ancient history, your state's history, composers, scientists or even your family tree!  Endless possibilities!  The kids can also personalize their timeline a bit by choosing their own background.

 

• Fun!  The Timeline Builder is actually really fun to work with.  The kids and I both enjoy using it. We like that you can be creative and design your own timelines.  Kids love to move the pictures around to arrange their timelines.

 

What I felt could be improved:

• While this is not a huge deal, I would like to be able to create a timeline from creation to present that we could scroll through.  This doesn't seem to be possible due to the fact that each timeline is a as big as one iPad page.  Not a deal breaker by any means, just a feature I wish they had.

Here is a great video of the Timeline Builder in action....

 

The Timeline Builder is one of our favorite products that we have reviewed.  We will continue to use it for years to come!

You can purchase your own Timeline Builder through the App store.  Normally it is $6.99, but it is currently on sale for $4.99.

 

 

You can see what others on the Schoolhouse Review Crew have to say about the Timeline Builder over at the SRC site.

 

 

IEW's Primary Arts of Language

 

 

 

 

Institute for Excellence in Writing, also know as IEW, is a pretty well known curriculum in the homeschooling world.  They have built a reputation that homeschoolers have grown to know and trust.  We actually got to review their Student Writing Intensive for them a few years ago. 
 

 

This time we received their Primary Arts of Language (PAL), which is a complete language arts program for children in kindergarten through second grade.  PAL is broken down into two separate programs, Primary Arts of Language Reading and Primary Arts of Language Writing.  While they are purchased separately they are meant to be used together. 

 

 

First let's talk about the PAL Reading curriculum.  This program, based on the Blended Sound-Sight System of Learning by Anna Ingham, takes a mixed approach to teaching reading by using both phonics and whole words.  It incorporates Classical, Charlotte Mason and Montessori methods of teaching.  PAL uses poetry to teach phonics and whole words, while using phonetic games and a farm themed sticker board to help reinforce phonetic concepts to build a good foundation for reading.

To teach children how to write each of the letters and help them remember their sound, PAL uses fun little stories for each letter.  My 6 year old knows his letters already but the has a hard time remembering the difference between b and d, the letter stories help to remember which is which.  I think this is my favorite thing about PAL, well this and the poetry!

 

The Phonics Games are AWESOME!!  My boys get to feed bones to a done named mugs and park cars all while learning the letter sounds!  This is also one of our favorite parts of PAL!

 

The PAL Reading Complete Package includes the following:

Primary Arts of Language: Reading Teacher’s Manual

Primary Arts of Language: Reading DVD-ROM - the DVD includes:

• Instructional Video by Jill Pike
• The Four Language Arts MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Nurturing Competent Communicators MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Poetry as an Integrator MP3 Audio by Anna Ingham
• Intro to the Blended Sound Sight Program MP3 Audio by Anna Ingham
• Primary Arts of Language: Reading Student Book (e-book)

Primary Arts of Language: Phonetic Games

Primary Arts of Language: Phonetic Farm folder with Stickers

The PAL Reading program is available to purchase for $69.00
________________________________________________________________________________

Now about the PAL Writing program.  The writing part of the program includes printing, copywork, composition, and spelling.  As, I mentioned earlier, the PAL Reading and Writing curriculum's are meant to be used together.  The only exception would be if your child is already reading independently.

The first 23 lessons teach the children how to properly print each letter, after that they start using copywork for printing fluency.  PAL also includes Story Summaries, Journaling, Style and Composition. 

The PAL Writing Package includes:

Primary Arts of Language: Writing Teacher’s Manual

Primary Arts of Language: Writing DVD-ROM - this DVD includes:

• Instructional Video by Jill Pike
• Reading Comprehension MP3 Audio by Adam Andrews
• Dictation, Narration, and Public Speaking MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• The Four Language Arts MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Primary Arts of Language: Writing Student Books (e-book)
  (Would you rather have us print out your PAL student e-books for you? Click here)

All About Spelling Basic Interactive Kit

All About Spelling Level 1 (Teacher’s Manual and One Student Material Packet) By Marie Rippel

Bonus e-audio downloads:

• Units 1 & 2 in the K–2 Classroom MP3 Audio by Shirley George
• Unit 3 in the K–2 Classroom MP3 Audio by Shirley George
• Preparing the K-2 Writing Environment MP3 Audio by Richelle Palmer

The PAL Writing Program is available for purchase for $89.00.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Alpha Boy learning how to spell his colors.

I am going to be honest, at first this curriculum looked a bit overwhelming to me.  But after watching the DVD's going over the teacher's manuals it didn't seem as overwhelming to me. 

The TM's are set up so that you can easily follow along.  The lessons are so well laid out and explained that even the newest of homeschoolers will feel like a pro!

I feel that PAL is a very well rounded program.  It has all the bells and whistles that you would hope for in a language arts program.  To me, it is very hands on with lots of fun stories and games to help the children actually enjoy learning.  Yes, there is a little bit of prep for mom in the beginning but after that it is pretty much smooth sailing!

 

 

I am not the only one that loved PAL!  Check out what other TOS Crew members have to say about PAL.

Disclaimer: We received this product at no charge for review purposes only. 

 



Grace & Truth Books -With the Children on Sundays {Review}

We were recently given a copy of With the Children on Sundays by Sylvanus Stall from Grace & Truth Books to review.  Written in 1893, With the Children on Sundays is known as one of the greatest Family Worship books ever written.  This book is full of wonderful stories that speak biblical truths to children in a way that captivates them, while sharing the truths of the gospel and of Christ.   It is great for all ages, but particularly good for children ages 4-10.

There are 52 stories in With the Children on Sundays, some of them include:

• Oyster and Crab- Conscience
• Worm in the Apple - Sin in the Human Heart
• Nuts - God Means that We Must Work
• The Polished Stone - Perfection Through Suffering
• Lanterns - The Best Light for Our Path
• White and Charred Sticks - Good and Bad Company

The children and I are enjoying reading through this book together. The stories are interesting, as well as thought provoking.  We have also delighted the simple illustrations that are speckled through out the book, as well as the discussion questions at the end of each story.  They have really opened doors to some wonderful conversations. 

One of the things that I love about homeschooling is that I have the privilege of picking and choosing what my children read. Whenever I can, I try to incorporate good books that offer character building stories and biblical truths. This is one of those books.  It is a rare gem that we will continue to use over and over!

With the Children on Sundays has been out of print many years and is not being printed by anyone at this time.  Currently, there are only a limited number of copies of it available. You can purchase your copy from Grace & Truth Books for $17.50

 

Other members of the TOS Crew reviewed this book and many others from Grace & Truth.  Check the reviews out here! 

Science & Math Activity Bags {Review}

A few years back I participated in an Activity Bag swap for preschoolers.   I found a swap group online and signed up to do one of the pattern matching activity bags.  It was really simple to do.  I gathered the supplies that I needed and assembled ONE activity bag for 20 different children.  Even after a few years, those bags still get pulled out pretty much on a weekly basis. 

When I found out that we had the opportunity to review for Activity Bags I started jumping up and down!  Literally! 

Activity Bags were created by two homeschool moms, Paula and Sherri, that set out to have fun, educational and independent activities for their preschoolers.  The idea was to have activities ready for younger siblings to do while their older siblings were working on their school.

Activity Bags have since grown, and they now have several Activity Bag books for preschoolers as well as children in K-8th grade.  The books that they currently offer are:

• Preschool Activites in a Bag - eBook 1
• Preschool Activites in a Bag - eBook 2
• (Preschool Activites in a Bag - eBook 3 is in the works)
• Science Experiments in a Bag- eBook 1  Biology, Nature and General Science
• Science Experiments in a Bag - eBook 2 Chemistry, Human Body and General Science
• Science Experiments in a Bag - eBook 3 Chemistry
• Reading Games in a Bag - eBook 1
• Math Games in a Bag - eBook 1
• Travel Activities in a Bag - eBook 1
• Coordinator Book - for those that was interested in hosting swaps

  

     

 

   

 

We were given the Science Activities in a Bag eBooks 1,2,3 and the Math Games in a Bag eBook for this review. 

When Sherri and Paula created the Activity Bag books they created them in a format that makes it very simple for several moms to get together, each take an activity, assemble them and then swap.  But, if you are a homeschooler you know that we are famous for thinking outside of the box, right?! 

I decided that for our family right now, the best way to use the Activity Bag books was to do the individual experiments and games with out assembling all of them prior to use.  I think that, for us, we will work through the experiments and games one by one and then assemble the Activity Bags for the ones that are our favorites. 

For example one of the experiments that we have done so far is the Dancing Peanuts.  It is from the Science Experiments in a Bag -eBook 2.  In the experiment the kids start with a glass of water and baking soda.  Next they add 5 peanuts, and then vinegar.  The peanuts dance by moving up and down in the glass.  This is one of the experiments that we will make a bag for, because I know it is something that they will want to do over and over again. 

I really like how the Science Activity Bags not only include the experiments, but experiment logs, with observation questions and additional experiment suggestions.  I was happy to see that they also suggest for the children to draw what happens in the experiments. 

 

Each of the Science Experiments in a Bag have 25 experiments in them.  Some of the experiments included are:
 
eBook 1

• Catch a Web - observe intricate patterns of spider webs and draw them.
• Feasting Yeast - see how yeast and sugar can inflate a balloon.
• Fungus Amungus - learn how to grow mold.
• Worm Farm - learn what earth worms do that is good for soil.

eBook 2

• Big Bubbles - kids make their own bubble frame and make some pretty big bubbles too!
• Crayon Creations - see how heat changes a solid to a liquid, and then by cooling the liquid, how it changes back into a solid.
• Siphon It - learn how a siphon works.
• Spinning Around - how heat makes a spiral turn.

eBook 3

• Get Gluey - learn how to make glue from vinegar and milk.
• Lots of Lava - make a volcano with flowing lava.
• Seltzer Rocket - learn what happens when gas builds up.
• Sun Burn - learn how to cut a string by the sun's rays.

The Science Experiments in a Bag eBooks are available for $15.00 each.  You can also purchase the Science in Experiments in a Bag eBook Bundle, which includes ebook 1,2 & 3 for $39.00. 
 

We also got the chance to review the Math Games in a Bag.  This eBook has 32 games in it!  The games are geared for kids in elementary grades.  Some of the games included are:

• Telling Time
• Trickster #1 - find out how all roads lead to 99
• Word Problems
• Place Value - roll the dice and put numbers in the correct place value. 
• Number Writing - practice writing numbers

We were pretty impressed with the games included in this book, although I felt that they were more for the younger elementary grades.  There are lots of activities to help students master things that they are already learning. 

The Math Games in a Bag eBook 1 is available for $15.00.  Here are some sample pages from this  book.

Activity Bags has a short survey on their website to help them better gage the wants and needs of their customers.  If you take just a few minutes to fill this out they will send you a free eBook sampler of the different Activity Bag books available.

I recommend Activity Bags, they are an easy and inexpensive way to incorporate fun, hands on learning activities that can be used independently!

 

 

Check out what other TOS Crew Members have to say about Activity Bags!

Disclaimer:  We received the Activity Bag eBooks mentioned in this review at no cost to us in exchange for a fair and honest review.

TOS Crew: Top 10 Favorite Reviews & Blue Ribbon Awards for 2011-2012

With the 2011-2012 TOS Crew year coming to an end, once again the TOS Crew Blue Ribbons have been Awarded!

This was an amazing year for us with the TOS Crew.  We are very grateful that we got to review so many wonderful products! 

The TOS Crew members have voted and you can now view the list of Blue Ribbon Award Winners on the TOS Crew's website.  

I thought it would be fun to do our own Blue Ribbon Awards for LSG's Top 10 Favorite TOS Crew Products that we REVIEWED this year.  These are not in any particular order, truthfully it hurt my brain way too much try to figure out which one particular product would be number one - there were just so many great ones! 

Here goes....drum roll please....

How to have a H.E.A.R.T. for Your Kids by Rachel Carmen

Apologia: Who Am I?

We Choose Virtues

WriteShop

Math Rider

Creek Edge Press

TruthQuest History

Dive Into Your Imagination

Wits and Wagers

Say Anything

The 2011-2012 TOS Crew is over but we are looking forward to a new year with the Crew!!

TOS Crew: Dive Into Your Imagination!

Being on the TOS Crew has been a huge blessing for our family.  We have been given treasures to review that we would not necessarily find on our own.  Dive Into Your Imagination is one of those such treasures!!

Dive Into Your Imagination was started by Annie Crawley, A.K.A Ocean Annie.  With her experience as an underwater cinematographer and scuba diving instructor, and her passion for our environment and ocean, Ocean Annie gives us a fabulous ocean education!

Members of the TOS Crew were given the opportunity to review one of the 3 Dive Into Your Imaginations DVD's.  The choices were:

What Makes a Fish a Fish? - the first DVD in the Dive Into Your Imagination series. This DVD teaches children about astounding fish from around the world. How do fish take a bath? Learn the truth about sharks. Play hide and seek on the reef. The underwater realm provides boundless opportunities for parents to learn and laugh with their children. An upbeat original score celebrates the ocean and brings it to life. The DVD has three audio tracks.

Who Lives in the Sea? - teaches children and their parents about animals living in the ocean. Why do dolphins move so fast? What kind of noise does a sea lion make? Did you know turtles walked with the dinosaurs? Meet whale sharks, octopus and blue-footed booby birds! After your kids watch this DVD, they will want to swim like a dolphin and laugh at the nudi, nudi, nudibranchs!

Dive Into Diversity - teaches children about all the variety of life under the sea and how animals rely upon one another for survival. Take a ride to a depth of 1500 feet in the deep sea with a submarine pilot! Find out what happens on the reef at NIGHT. Learn what eating ice cream and brushing your teeth have in common. Answer questions like, why do crabs have claws and what can grow three feet in just one day?

While they all looked great, we chose the What Makes a Fish a Fish? DVD.  I remember the first time I put it on.  The kids were not in the science/ ocean video kinda mood for some reason but I, as Mom, over ruled and we watched it {smile}.  With in about 30 seconds Little Bits was yelling excitedly about the different fish!  Then, one by one, the other kids became glued to the video.  They were calling off names of fish they knew, and were very interested in to learn the names of the ones they didn't.  They especially liked learning about the Stone fish, that guy was super cool!!

We learned things like what makes a fish a fish {of, course}, about sea anemones and sharks, what fish eat and how they take a bath! 

This is a great video and all my kids loved it!  I would love to have the others in the series.  We found What Makes a Fish a Fish? very informative.  Not informative in a boring documentary way but in a fun and engaging I could watch this again and again kind of way.  Annie is a wealth of knowledge and her passion the ocean overflows in the this wonderful video. 

Included in our review, we were also given the PDF study guides that go along with the DVD we received.  Can I just say W-O-W!  I could not believe how much information was in these babies!  We downloaded the Pre K - K and 1-3 grade guides.  Just to give you an idea of how much is in this guide let me just tell ya that it is 374 pages long.  They are full of lesson plans, discussion questions as well as coloring and activity pages {things that would fit nicely into a science or nature notebook}. 
This series would make a great addition to any homeschool library.  I believe that these DVD's are worthy on their own, would nicely compliment a study of swimming creatures and ocean life or they would also be great as a stand alone science curriculum for student in 3rd grade and under.

Each video is available directly through Dive Into Your Imagination for $19.95. For the months of May and June, Annie is offering FREE Shipping!

The PDF's are also available for sale.  The guides are available as a printed version for $299 for the whole set of 6, which would the Pre K - K and 1-3 grades for each of the 3 DVD's.  They can also be purchased as individual PDFs for $69.95.

As a special for the Homeschool Crew and The Old Schoolhouse Magazine and followers Annie Crawley of Dive Into Your Imagination, Annie is willing to GIVE you a set of PDFs with purchase of the DVDs, meaning for FREE!  When you place your DVD order, just let her know in the notes that you are a Homeschool Parent!

Take a peek at what others on the TOS Crew are saying about the Dive Into Your Imagination DVD's!

Disclaimer: As a member of the TOS Crew, I received this product, at no cost to me, in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are mine.