A Journey Through Learning {Review}

 

As a home school mom I have learned that learning doesn't have to be boring.  I love finding new ways to make learning interesting, as well as enjoyable! There are several ways to do this, two of my favorites things to do are add lapbooks and unit studies. 

Recently, we were given four downloadable products from A Journey Through Learning for review.  Here's the line up of what we received:

Letters, Numbers and Shapes Lapbook (ages 3-5)

The Earth Lapbook (grades 1-4)

Knights and Castles Lapbook and Learning Guide (grades 2-7)

Astronomy and Space Unit Study (grades 2-7)

 

 

 

        

 

 

After looking them over, I decided to do Letters, Numbers, and Shapes with Little Bits, my four year old. Can I just tell you I can hardly think of a time that I have seen a kid so excited to do school! Literally, every single morning my little guy would faithfully bring me his workbox of supplies so we work on his lapbook. 

Through the Letters, Numbers, and Shapes lapbook we got to learn and trace each letter, as well as search magazines for pictures to go with each letter. We practiced counting and tracing numbers. There was even a memory game that we got to make and play, then store in the lapbook. We went over shapes and what shapes different objects are.  We also got in a pretty good amount of practice with our cutting skills.

 

 

Here are some of the letters we traced and cut out pictures for.  You can also see the pictures used to describe the different shapes.  

 

 

More letters!  There is a counting booklet where we were able to trace numbers and number words in.  You can also see the cards to a matching game we got to play.

 

I was pretty impressed that there were even games, activities, poems and book suggestions included!

 

 

Little Bits really enjoyed all the cutting and gluing that he got to do.  He especially liked the ice cream cone, bubble gum machine and fire truck for the shapes portion of the lapbook.  This lapbook has become his favorite things to!  I think that the variety of letters, numbers, shapes and games really helped to hold his interest. 

I thought that the Letters, Numbers and Shapes lapbook, as well as the other lapbooks, were very well laid out and had a good number of components with each of them.  There is enough content for a child to learn, yet not so much that they get overwhelmed and bored. 

Even if you have never done a lapbook before I recommend giving it a try.  They are lots of fun and the kids love to show them off and retell (narrate) what they have learned.  When I first saw them I was a little intimidated but really it is just like scrapbooking.  Here is a quick video on what lapbooks are and how to do them.

 

See, it's easy!

 

 

I would most definitely recommend the lapbooks from A Journey Through Learning!  They offer tons of different lapbooks on all kinds of different topics at affordable prices.  All of the lapbooks that we received are available for instant download for $13.00.  There are several lapbooks that are even available for just $1.00!

Check out what other TOS Crew members have to say about A Journey Through Learning's lapbooks and unit studies!

Flowering Baby Review

 

 

 

My youngest child is 4 years old.  Many times I have wonderful intentions of doing this and doing that with him. Sadly, many times these ideas continue tobe just ideas.  We read together and do a few letter crafts here and there, but for the most part that is about it. 

When we got the opportunity to review a fun and interactive preschool curriculum called Flowering Baby I was pretty excited.  After I looking over the sample activities, I knew that they would be a good fit for Little Bits, and simple enough for me to implement.  You may also have read that I am contemplating/ taking classes to open a home daycare.  I also thought that Flowering Baby would be a great fit for a home daycare curriculum. 

  

 

 

Flowering Baby is a simple, yet effective, curriculum that helps children to develop cognitive, language, gross and fine motor skills, emotional, social skills and independence. 

We were given Volume 4: Three to Four Years & Volume 5: Four to Five Years in CD form to review.  While we used Volume 5: Four to Five, I did look over Volume 4: Three to Four Years.  I felt that they were similar in nature, just a younger level.

The Flowering Baby curriculum is laid out by calendar month, and includes 10 -15 days of activities, each taking about 30-45 minutes per day.  During the month of January you learn about the color blue, ears, healthy foods, and cold days, while reading books like Blueberries for Sal, Owl Moon and The Berenstain Bears: Too Much Junk Food. 

The suggested activities focused on the areas of language, math, music, science and foreign language.  More specifically you do things like:

• practice writing and counting numbers
• focus on a new letter each day by practicing to write that letter and looking for things that start with that letter
• when learning about shapes you do activites like reading a book about shapes and then making some of your own from paper
• reading and then having children retell (narrate) back to you what they just heard
• learn about holidays and make various crafts to go along with that particular holiday
• learn about body parts, colors, weather, firestations, magnets, etc..
• learn Spanish words for colors, shapes, numbers, etc..

The second part of the curriculum is the theme or mini-unit study part.  Each month gives 2-3 suggested themes.  For instance, the themes that they suggest for January are Aquarium, Arctic Life & Dinosaurs.  The activities in this section include books, crafts, field trips and fun ideas to cement what you are currently learning from the reading. 

What I liked about Flowering Baby:

Just as I suspected!  It is fun, creative and SIMPLE, SIMPLE, SIMPLE!  This curriculum allows me to focus my time on my son and teaching him, not on planning.  The curriculum guide is easy to understand and very detailed, giving you a list of supplies needed, suggested books to read and specific activities to do with your child.

I liked the different themes, I think they offer the perfect amount of activities.  They study a topic long enough to learn about it, but then they get to move on to something new and exciting the following week.  I feel that the activities included are enjoyable, engaging and challenging for my little guy.

If you know me, then you know I have a love for books.  I think Flowering Baby did a superb job with their literature selections!  And I LOVE that she has these little guys narrating back!  Never had I thought to do that with my little one.

I also did not feel bogged down by this curriculum, you type A mommys now what I mean!  Things were simple enough to accomplish in a short period of time, it was just enough. It was freeing to me that there where not scheduled activites to do every s.i.n.g.l.e day, especially at this age.

What I would change:

As far as the curriculum itself, I think they did a fine job and I really would not change anything. They have letters and number concepts down. And they include LOTS of great books and activities!

Purchasing Info:

Flowering Baby is currently available in CD and PDF form, which is great for keeping costs down. I actually received the CD for this review.  They are currently working on a printed option.

The CD and PDF files are available for each age level.  Birth to One, One to Two, and Two to Three are $30 and Three to Four and Four to Five cost $38 each.  You may also purchase all five year plans for $132.  This is a very reasonable price for all that is included.  The Flowering Baby curriculum is available for ages:

 

Would I recommend this?

I would indeed! If you are interested, but kind of on the fence, try out a months worth Flowering Baby for FREEEE!  You can do this by clicking on one of the links above and scrolling to the bottom.

Birth to One
One to Two
Two to Three
Three to Four
Four to Five

 

 When you order PLEASE take advantage of a 10% discount by using the CODE: Blog10
(good only at www.floweringbaby.com)

 

Please check out what other TOS Crew members have to say about Flowering Baby!

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this product through the Schoolhouse Review Crew in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations.

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.

The Purpllinker

We were recently given the opportunity to review The Purpllinker from Timberdoodle.  Timberdoodle is a family run business that offers lots of other REALLY fun stuff for kids and homeschoolers, at amazing prices. You might want to consider following Timberdoodle on Facebook, sometimes they have some really cool giveaways!

The Purpllinker, believe it or not, is one of the most amazing toys I have ever seen!  Really! I will admit at first glance, I didn't feel this way BUT after watching my kids (especially the boys) play with it I was convinced.

This is a house with a carport. 

The Purpllinker kind of like reminds me of those old fashioned measuring sticks that fold up like an accordion.  It is made with durable plastic arms and aluminum rivets, right here in the US of A.  The assembling and packaging of the Purpllinkers are actually done by adults that have developmental disabilities, which I fully support.


Let me tell you some of the wonderful things that The Purpllinker can be used for:

• Developing fine motor skills
• You can make every letter of the alphabet, including the upper and lower case letters
• Numbers 1-10
• Geometric Shapes
• Many different animals like a giraffe, horse, snake and camel
• Physical Therapy
• Your imagination is your limit, really!

If you were a Knight and needed a sword, or if you were an Solider and needed a gun, the Purpllinker has you covered!  It really amazed me all the things that my kids ended up making with the it. 

Alpha Boy makes his letters from A to....

The Purpllinker would be great for toddlers, early learners or any child that likes hands on learning (which is pretty much is all of them, right?).  It would be great for traveling or to keep in your purse for when you are out and about.  I already have holiday gifts on my brain, so I have to add that the Purpllinker would make a fabulous stocking stuffer!

Z!  Thumbs up for the Purpllinker!

You can get you very own Purpllinker directly from Timberdoodle for $11.25.  The Purpllinker also comes with instructions on how to make all the letters, numbers and many different shapes as well a few games.


As part of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team, we received the Purpllinker free of charge for review purposes only.  We were not in any way compensated for our opinions, they are our true and honest opinions about this product. 

Homemade Playdoh

A friend of mine from church recently made some homemade playdoh for Little Bit's Sunday school class. 

Yep, all homemade.  The last color was red and then it got mixed with another color.  I could hardly take pictures before they were all over this stuff!

I thought it was a neat idea.  I had heard about making playdoh, just never attempted it myself.  I guess I thought that it wouldn't be the same, that it wouldn't be like real playdoh.  Yes, it is a little different but still quite worthy in my opinion. 

I was hanging out with Little Bits this morning in his Sunday school class and this gave us a chance to play with the playdoh.  This reminded me that I wanted to try my friends playdoh recipe. 

I can't believe that I have 4 kids and I am just now getting around to making my own playdoh.  Shame, shame.  I also can't believe how simple it was.  Here is the recipe:

1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/4 cup salt
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
Food Coloring - adjust according to shade you are trying to achieve

Yes, I dirtied a few pots but it was well worth the effort.  In the larger pot I doubled the recipe and added yellow food coloring.  Once it was all mixed up I pulled half of it out and ten added red to make orange.

Place all ingredients in a medium sized pot. Cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly.  Dough eventually becomes harder to stir and will gather on spoon. At this point dump the dough onto wax paper, allow to cool somewhat, and knead it until it is smooth. Store in plastic bag or container.

We just added color until we had a shade we liked.



Here computer girl is helping with the stirring.  This is a great recipe for the kids to help out with.

Isn't this just a beautiful picture!!

Just a side note, do not omit the cream of tarter, it keeps the playdoh fresh for about 6 months.



Enjoy!