Review on Apologia Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics

Apologia Educational Ministries is a Christian faith based homeschool science curriculum. "What began with a single textbook has grown to include a K-12 Creation-based science curriculum, worldview curriculum for ages six to fourteen, practical and inspirational books about homeschooling, refreshing retreats for moms, and online classes from Apologia Academy."

The science program that was given to me to review was Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics. This homeschool science resource uses the Charlotte Mason methodology to introduce children in grades K-6 to chemistry and physics. Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics teaches students about the study of atoms, molecules, simple chemicals, laws of motion, electricity, magnetism, and simple machines.

This homeschool science program uses notebooking journals to help solidify what the student has just learned. The Junior Chemistry & Physics Notebooking Journal for Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics is designed for younger elementary students or for those with limited writing skills. Age appropriate activities include fun and easy experiments, mini books, coloring pages, Scripture copy work, and field trip sheets.

A suggested lesson plan is provided for the instructor, making the course ready to use. "How to Use This Book" page is also provided giving the instructor suggestions on how to use the science program. 

$39.00

Price subject to change without notice. 

$24.00

Price subject to change without notice. 

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1-888-524-4724

My daughter and I love Apologia. I love that the homeschool program is Creation based. Every single lesson starts with a verse and coloring sheet. The copywork also involves a verse from the Bible. For example, lesson one implemented the verse "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:7" 

In lesson 1, my daughter learned about volume, mass, buoyancy, matter, Archimedes, and density. "My Matter Projects" made it easy for me to see what my daughter had understood about the lesson. This activity gave her an opportunity to write down what she did for that particular lesson and what she learned. The flap books were another resource that I used to understand what my daughter had grasped from the lesson. The flap book provided the opportunity for her to narrow down what she had learned about every topic. 

For every lesson, I would read a few paragraphs and then stop to ask comprehension questions. I wanted to make sure she understood what I was reading. Once we finished a few topics, we would try the experiments. The "Try This" experiments were my daughter's favorite sections in the whole book. For the first experiment in lesson 1, we played "I Spy." We looked around the room and chose items around us. We had to ask yes or no questions about the item. Each question had to describe the properties of the object. 

When she learned about volume, she decided to fill up my bath tub and measure the amount of water. Then she got in the tub and measured the amount of water again. She was able to visually see that volume is the amount of space that something takes. Another "Try This" experiment that we did was the one on buoyancy. We took a pan of warm water, build a ship out of aluminum foil, dropped a few drops of blue food coloring, and added salt. She was suppose to place pennies in the ship and see how many pennies it would hold before it sank. When learning about matter, she completed another experiment found in the book. We went outside and she was to find rocks with geometric shapes. Once she found all of the rocks that she wanted, she drew pictures of them on construction paper. The final project for this lesson was making a lava lamp. From this final experiment, she learned that Alka - Seltzer does not react in vegetable oil.  When the Alka - Seltzer was placed in water and vinegar, gas formed. 

We loved  Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics and we would recommend it. 

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

"Read what the rest of the Crew had to say about  Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics."

Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Carole P. Roman Children's Book Author

Carole P. Roman is an award winning children's book author. She received the award Kirkus Reviews' Best of 2012 for her first book. "She has just finished the first of six books in a groundbreaking new nonfiction series about culture around the world. "If You Were Me and Lived in..." combines her teaching past with her love of exploration and interest in the world around us." These books are geared for children from Pre-K to age 8. The colorful paper back books "If You Were Me and Lived In Mexico," "If You Were Me and Lived In South Korea," "If You Were Me and Lived In France," and "If You Were Me and Lived In Norway" focus on teaching children the love and appreciation of other cultures. In the first few pages of every book, there was an illustration of that particular country and its capital. On the last page you would find the pronunciation of every native word used in that particular book.

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Each book is under $9.00

Price subject to change without notice.

The first book that we decided to read was "If You Were Me and Lived In Mexico." We learned about the capital Mexico City and the historical building Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts). The story also included names that the children would be called in Mexico. And what the children would call their parents. We learned about the Mayan Temple Chichen Itza. La muneca (the doll) is what a girl would play with in Mexico. If someone was watching a sport, futbol (soccer) is what they would be watching. She also learned about the Descubrimiento de America. It is a day to honer the discovery of American by Christopher Columbus. 

My daughter is currently learning about Europe so the book "If You Were Me and Lived In France" was a good review. She reviewed that France is in Western Europe and its capital is Paris. I showed her the illustration in the book of the Eiffel Tower and she was able to tell me what it was.

She learned that in 1828, Paris was the first city in Europe to use gas lamps to light the streets. This is why the city is nicknamed "La Ville-Lumiere" ("City of Lights"). Maman and Papa is what she would be calling us (parents) if she lived in France. Le Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in France. My daughter would be playing with a poupee (a doll). She also learned that the 14th of July is a very special day in France. It is the French National Day.

Learning about Norway was really interesting. We learned that Norway is known as "The Land of the Midnight Sun." Oslo is the capital and has 343 lakes and 2 rivers. A kroner is the type of money one would use if I lived in Norway. "Din velkommen" is "You are welcome." When we learned about Kirkenes Snow- Hotel, I googled the words and found some really awesome pictures of the building made solely of snow and ice. From November to January God puts on a show in the sky of lights called Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. I also googled Northern Lights and found some pretty fantastic pictures of the light show. While we learned about Norway, I had Norwegian music playing in the background. Here is the link music.

While studying about South Korea, my daughter learned that the country is located in East Asia. The capital city is Seoul. It is the largest city in South Korea. She also read about Min Sok Chon, the Korean Folk Village and museum located in the city of Yongin-si. If she was to eat in a restaurant, she might order bulgogi, or Korean barbeque. The Korean barbeque is eaten with kimchee, which is spicy cabbage. She also learned about their ancient martial art of self defense. In Korean the children would bow to their grandparents to show respect. This is a You Tube video showing pictures of South Korea while playing instrumental music. You Tube

We really enjoyed reading the books "If You Were Me and Lived In Mexico," "If You Were Me and Lived In South Korea,""If You Were Me and Lived In France," and  "If You Were Me and Lived In Norway" and we would recommend them.

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on: VocabularySpellingCity

About VocabularySpellingCity:

VocabularySpellingCity is an on-line award winning game learning tool for students in grades K-12. The program encompasses subjects such as vocabulary, spelling, writing, and language arts. VocabularySpellingCity offers customizable sentences and definitions. Teachers and parents have the ability to save their customized lists. If you do not have your own list, the program offers over 50,000 words and 60,000 sentences read by a real person. VocabularySpellingCity also has twenty five games to play on-line or to print such as "Hang Mouse", "Crossword", "Word Search", "Word-O-Rama", "Vocabulary Test Me", and "Alphabetize." Free printable handwriting worksheets and teacher training videos are also available. The teaching resources with lesson plans are very beneficial for instructors. Teachers also have parent letters available as a PDF form to print and send home with the student's word list. VocabularySpellingCity offers a free version and also the Premium Membership. With this option the user will receive:

• Vocabulary, writing, spelling, and language arts activities
• Access to ALL games and interactive Flash Cards
• Student progress tracking
• Automated testing and grading
• Personalized learning with assignments for differentiated instruction
• Student logins with no commercial ads

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 Families Up to 5 students $29.99
Price subject to change without notice.

Our Homeschool Experience:

My daughter really enjoyed playing some of the games provided by VocabularySpellingCity. One of her favorites was "Hang Mouse." "Hang Mouse" is an on-line version of hangman. To play she would click on the letters one at a time and try to complete the word before the cat caught the mouse. This is one of the games offered for free. "Word-O-Rama" was another game she wanted to try out. "The object of "Word-O-Rama" is to identify words by their definitions, synonyms, antonyms, or by their context within a sentence." She also enjoyed completing the "MatchIt Definitions." In this vocabulary game, she had to match the word to its correct definition. "MatchIt Defitions" was also able to be printed.

Since we have been learning about the different parts of speech, I had her try the game "Parts of Speech." The object of the "Parts of Speech" game is to identify the part of speech of the given word as it is used in each sentence.This game provided a fun way for her to learn not only the different parts of speech, but the parts of a sentence as well. "Word Find" was a fun educational game that helped her learn her spelling words while searching for new ones. The game also provided an opportunity for her to make other words using the letters in each word on her spelling list. The more spelling words she found, the more points she earned.

The "Teacher Resources" page had many useful lessons, word list, educational articles, and how to videos. The "Premium Teacher Tool Box" had all of the links the teacher/parent would need to review the students' grades, manage the assignments, and many other useful information.

We loved VocabularySpellingCity and we would recommend it.

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

"Read what the rest of the Crew had to say about VocabularySpellingCity."

Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on "Diary of a Real Payne Book 1: True Story"

About Dairy of a Real Payne Book 1: True Story:

Barbour Books presents the fiction novel Diary of a Real Payne Book 1 True Story written by Annie Tipton. Diary of a Real Payne Book 1 is geared for children between the ages of 8-12. This paperback book tells about a 10 year old girl named Emma Jean Payne (aka EJ). She lives in a little boring small town called Spooner in Wisconsin. In her journal EJ dreams of one day leaving her boring life behind. One day while shopping for school supplies with her mom and brother, Emma Jean Payne notices a chessboard that looked like a checkered flag. She began to day dream about being a race car driver. One day she leaves her hometown to do some really big things. "This colossal-fun series is overflowing with humor and memorable life lessons."

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Our Homeschool Experience:

Reading the book "Diary of a Real Payne Book 1" with my daughter was a lot of fun. The protagonist EJ, was extremely creative and spunky. We loved to read about her wild adventures as a race car driver and then as a First Lieutenant on a space ship. We also loved to read about her new job at "Marine World." She had been hired as a dolphin trainer.

I loved how the author Annie Tipton included Bible stories in her book. For example, when Mrs. Winkle told EJ about King Nebuchadnezzar. She mentioned how he was a proud king and through Daniel in the lion's den. Mrs Winkle also told her the story about the Persian King Xerxes. The king one day had a huge feast. At the party he was bragging about his beautiful wife Queen Vashti. He requested for her to appear at the feast but she refused. He vanished her and began his search for a wife. He meets Esther and marries her.

We loved this book and we would recommend it.  

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on God's World News

About God's World News:

God's World News is a faith based magazine that uses current real - life events to help your children grow their faith by assisting them in understanding the world. "Six age-level packages provide engaging ways for kids to explore world events, discoveries, people and places, all in a safe Christian context." GWN publications includes subjects such as science, social studies, geography, religion, civics, and economics.

News Flash is designed for 3rd through 4th grade students. This magazine introduces students to biblical worldview on current events. The stories are age appropriate and illustrate how God is active in the world. 

With each subscription, you will receive:

1) 10 monthly issues (every month except December & May).
2) 32 pages per issue, filled with age-appropriate news and activities.
3) Children's website access at kids
4) Weekly e-newsletter for adults, including answer keys to the magazine quizzes and puzzles.
5) Biographies to download and print, with quizzes and answer keys.
6) Locator maps correspond with a full-sized (20" x 30") world map sent in September (five maps sent to homeschool groups).

Full-Year News Flash (3rd-4th) 10 monthly issues $28.00 

For prices on individual issues, please visit GWN.

Price subject to change without notice.

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Our Homeschool Experience:

We loved God's World News. One of the issues provided a supplement to a lesson that my daughter had learned in a homeschool co-op. This issue used a prism and light to explain how the light passes through the glass item and causes colors to appear. In the homeschool co-op that we are involved in, my daughter had used a prism and light and was able to see the colors appear. 

The article titled "Butterfly Science" found in the August issue discussed how scientists have figured out how to detect fake dollar bills. The issue discussed the Blue Morpho Butterfly's wings and  how their wings are covered in ridges. The ridges are so small that air can not get through them. "The ridges catch the light, break it apart, and reflect." This process is what makes the butterfly's wings appear blue and shimmery.These scientists have been able to learn how to copy these nano-shapes and make marks on important documents, such as dollar bills. The marks can be viewed if the dollar bill is authentic.     

We also loved the kids' website. Once my daughter was logged in, she loved the "Fun Stuff" tab. Here she was given links to click on. The activity that she selected to complete was "Map Coordinates Island 1." In this particle assignment she learned how to find things on a map by using coordinates. Another activity that she loved to complete was "Puzzling Times." With this worksheet, she was to start from the bottom last box and work herself up. There were boxes provided and some clues. A word was to be placed in each box with one letter changing with every step up the ladder. Thank God there was an answer key to the activities or we would of been in trouble. ;) Especially with the worksheet "Puzzling Times." It was definitely fun and very challenging. We loved it. 

Another tab found in the kids' website was "Know Me." Here she found biographies. The one that she read was Goliath. My daughter's favorite story when she was younger was the story about David and Goliath. My husband and I would take turns nightly reading it to her. It was the only story she wanted us to read. The story found in this biography was more detailed then the children's story we use to read to her before bed time. The publication included dates, information about the restoration of ancient things in Israel, and questions to check for comprehension. 

God's World News is a fun supplement to our curriculum and we would recommend it. 

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Flip Flop Spanish

About Flip Flop Spanish:

See It and Say It is a 2 year curriculum for ages 3 to 93. The program comes with 3 sets of flash cards, a whiteboard paddle, and 4 audio CDs. You will go through each lesson three times per week. "Lessons include optional writing elements as well as plenty of voice bubbles coming from mascot Egg Head to explain the grammatical concepts along the way." Every 6 weeks, the program provides an opportunity for your family to enjoy a Spanish movie or review old flashcards.The flash cards have a picture of the item on one side and on the back, you will find the Spanish word broken down into sounds, a colored line, and underneath the line, the English word. All 3 sets of cards have a different colored line in between the Spanish and English word. "If you keep your cards in sandwich baggies, or rubber bands, and in order, this makes it VERY easy to find which cards to begin with each day." On the website, you will find a tab labeled Tips and Games. Here you will find suggested games such as Bingo, Extend and Challenge, and many more.

$99.95
Price subject to change without notice.

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Our Homeschool Experience:

Flip Flop Spanish is a great program. We loved being able to play the suggested games and make sentences using the flash cards. One of the games that we enjoyed playing was "Using Spanglish." In this game, I would ask my daughter a question using both English and Spanish words. For example, I would have her hide while I placed the flash cards all around our living room. When I was finished, I would have her come out and ask "Adonde esta the fork?" She had to go around the room and once she found the "fork" she would say "El tenedor esta aqui." The fork is here. We also used the flashed cards and made sentences with them. For instance, we would take the flash cards with the picture of the dog and the one with the ice cream on it. We would write the word "and" on an index card (in Spanish its "y") and build a sentence using both flash cards and the index card. We also played "Red Light Green Light" using the flash cards. I would stand at one end of the room and my daughter would stand at the other end. I would show her a card and she would tell me in Spanish what was pictured on the card. If she answered correctly, I would say "green light" and she would move towards me until I said "red light." The object of the game was to have my daughter touch me. Once she "touched me," she won the game and now it was her turn to pull out the flash cards while I had to tell her what was pictured on them. Since I'm fluent in Spanish, I knew the names of the objects on the flash cards. What I would do is answer incorrectly and see if she would figure it out.

I also enjoyed being able to review a particular lesson while we would be in our vehicle traveling out of town. We participate in a co-op that is about 45 minutes away from were we live. On the way to and from we would play games using the flash cards from that days lesson. My nephew (He is almost 4.) and my other daughter (She is 3.) would also participate in the games.

The lessons were really short and user friendly. It probably took us about 15 minutes to complete an entire lesson. This prevented boredom which happens frequently with a 7 year old. The lessons would provide information such as what materials were needed for that lesson and what cards were going to be used for the following task. This helped me to be a bit more organized since I knew ahead of time what flash cards I was going to need for the following day.

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Time 4 Learning

About Time 4 Learning:

Time 4 Learning is an online curriculum for kids in preschool - 12 grade that combines education with interactive fun. "Animated lessons, interactive activities, printable worksheets and detailed reporting make the learning system a top selection of the Homeschool.com "Top 100 Educational Websites" list, year after year." Time 4 Learning provides automated grading, lesson plans, and detailed reporting that track progress. The lessons are presented at the student's pace. Language Arts and math correlate with your state's standards and science, social studies, and art are available in most grades. Please click on this link so you may find some demos.

PreK-8th Grade:

$19.95 Per Month

$14.95 each addt'l child

High School:

$30 Per Month

Includes 4 Courses

Prices subject to change without notice.

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Our Homeschool Experience:

My 7 year old really loved completing the assignments found in Time 4 Learning. From all of the subjects offered, she loved Science the best. Once she signed in and clicked on the icon for Science, she saw 3 choices, "Patterns in Nature", "Force in Motion", and "Earth and Space". Even though there was an arrow showing the suggested sequence,  she decided to complete them out of order. The first one that she was interested in was "Moon and Earth". Once she clicked on this icon, she had two other choices to choose from. The 2 resources provided were "Sun, Earth, and Moon" and "The voyage to the Earth, Moon, and Sun". When she clicked on "Sun, Earth, and Moon" the animation made it seem like she was inside of a spaceship. Here she met "Neep". "Neep" would teach her about the sun, earth, and moon. With "The voyage to the Earth", my daughter was at a carnival. Here my daughter learned about the Sun being a star and how it shines on the Earth and Moon. She also learned that Earth is a planet and has water, air, and life. As far as the Moon, she learned that it is cold and it does not shine on its own. After these two lessons, she was given a quiz.

She had so much fun playing some of the games found in the "Playground". But the only way she was able to access this section was if she completed the lesson until the timer ran out. The "Page Color" gave her an opportunity to personalize the look of the site.In the section "Parent" I was given the opportunity to change the time settings for that particular day or permanently. In the section labeled "My portfolio"I was able to find what assignments she had competed that day, week, or month.We really loved Time 4 Learning and we would recommend it.

 

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again

About Book:

The family owned company Greene Bark Press was established in Connecticut in 1991. Greene Bark Press publishes colorful and imaginative products for young children. "Similarly, Greene Bark Press sells other products from publishers and manufacturers who have a similar publishing or manufacturing philosophy and whose materials compliment the Greene Bark Press list of published titles."

Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again is one of the books that Greene Bark Press sells. The book is for children ages 3-8. In this book Wally Waddlewater wants to mail a birthday card to his grandmother. But first, he must find a mailbox and learn the rules of crossing the busy streets in his neighborhood.

 

$8.50

Price subject to change without notice.

Greene Bark Press
P.O. Box 1108
Bridgeport, CT 06601-1108
Telephone: (610) 434-2802
Fax: (610) 434-2803
E-Mail: service@greenebarkpress.com

Our Homeschool Experience:

We LOVED this very colorful and fun to read board book. My 3 year old would wanted me to read the book to her every night before going to sleep. When I was reading the book and Wally would say "look left, look right, look left again", I would raise my daughter's hand. I'm hoping this will help her remember her left from her right. :)

On one particular day, I took both girls (My 7 year old and my 3 year old ) out for a walk around the neighborhood.

The girls and I right before our little walk.

Before we started our little walk, we cited what Wally would said in the book "look left, look right, look left again". Since my oldest is 7, while on our little walk, I would ask her about the street signs and what they meant. 

When we arrived at this traffic sign, I asked the girls what direction the arrow was pointing to. My oldest answered correctly. 

Now, on Sunday mornings when we park across the street from our church as we approach the road, my oldest will say "look left, look right, make sure the cars are out of sight".

This was such a fun book to read as a family. We loved it and would recommend it.

 

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

"Read what the rest of the Crew had to say about the book "Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again"

Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Hands of a Child

About "In the Hands of a Child":

Hands of a Child provides adults with a wide choice of products in electronic format. The packs are available as Lapbooks or as Note Packs. Kitchen Science is one of their hands-on curriculum including Lapbook Projects, Notebooking Packs and Thematic Unit Study Packs. This unit study is designed for children in K-3rd grade. The student will learn about chemical reactions, oxidation, heat, density, and the similarities between a kitchen lab and a science lab . "This pack includes a 5-day Planning Guide, Related Reading List, 15 Hands-On Activities PLUS 1 Fun Extension Activity, a 5-page Research Guide, and an Answer Key."

Regular Price $12
Special Price $5
Price subject to change without notice.

Customer Service: 

1-866-426-3701

Our Homeschool Experience:

Hands of a Child was really a lot of fun!!! My daughter loved to do all of the experiments. For each activity, I would print out the template and have her fill out the required information. For example, for the vocabulary words and their definitions, I had her glue the information onto the Lapbook. Before we would begin every lesson, I would go over the vocabulary words with her. I would say the word and she had to tell me what the definition was. She also learned the difference between a science lab and a kitchen lab. We saw the chemical reaction when mixing baking soda and vinegar. She learned why fruits and vegetables become "brown" when exposed to oxygen. We also learned why a frozen onion will not make you cry.

My daughter helping me cut the onion before placing it in the freezer.

I appreciated the planning guide. It provided a 5 day schedule of what vocabulary words she needed to learn, what books we could incorporate into the lesson, and what activities we needed to complete for each day. 

She also learned what happens when we placed marshmallows in the microwave. The above picture is her numbering the marshmallows. Each one had to be placed in the microwave at different settings. After each experiment, she wrote down what she observed. Once the marshmallows cooled, we talked about the texture of each and their appearance.

With the experiment above, my daughter learned about density. She learned how the density of the water changes when salt is added. After we discussed the results, she answered the questions provided in the packet. "Why do you think the egg floated in the salt water? Do you think an egg would float or sink in the ocean?"

The packet also included very simple instructions on how to create your own Lapbook.  The questions and answer key at the end of the packet were very helpful. My daughter and I learned a lot from this packet. We loved it and would recommend it.

I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on Bible Study Guide

 

 About The Bible Study Guide:

The  Bible Study Guide is a curriculum that takes your family/church through the Old Testament and some of the New Testament. The student will learn about the Bible and how to apply it to her life. The entire basic edition contains 104 lessons. The Primary Level is designed for children in the 1st and 2nd grade. Each student will be working out of their Primary Student Pages while the teacher uses her Primary Teacher Guide. Both guides provide the teacher and the student with step by step instructions through the lesson. The lessons are designed for a wide variety of reading levels. "Because students in the first grade and second grade differ so widely in reading level, we have created a Teacher Guide/Student Page combo that works in situation where the students barely read at all or where students read well OR in situations with a mixture of the two!" Besides providing both guides, the program also offers Summary Cards and a Children's Songs CD Set.

$9.95

$24.95

$5.95

$19.95

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Our Homeschool Experience:


I loved Bible Study Guide. My 7 year old liked it but she was hoping to be able to complete some hands on projects. She is a tactile learner so she LOVES to do crafts and things of that sort. She also thought that the lessons were a bit too kiddish for her. I'm not sure if this is an issue with the program or just the child's maturity. Maybe I should of selected a higher grade. Something that I found to be a bit frustrating  was the way the student pages were bound. Having a spiral book would of been a bit easier to keep all of the pages from falling out. 

Besides all of this, the program was great. I loved the review section found in every lesson. This would help me to incorporate what she learned the day before into what she was learning that particular day. I also loved the "Memory Work" section. This section contained drills that would teach the Bible. The "Children's Songs CD" was one of my daughters favorite activities. She loved the songs "Twelve Sons of Jacob", "The B-I-B-L-E" and "Love Is Something if You Give It Away." With this last song, she would sign to it.  She would have me play all of these songs over and over again. The "Get Active" section helped her to actively use her body. This section reinforced the lesson in a fun way. For example, Lesson 6 taught my daughter about being wise and praying to God for help in this area. The activity in this section asked for me to write the letter "x" (showing wisdom) on one sheet of paper and a "w" (not showing wisdom) on another piece of paper. I taped one sheet on one wall and the another sheet on the opposite wall.  I read the scenarios found in the book and my daughter walked to the "x" or "w" depending if the individual in the scenario was being wise."Today's Bible Text" helped my daughter study the Bible. I would ask her to turn to a certain book, chapter, verse, and then I would ask her to read the verses. We would take turns reading the illustrated Bible story. The "Time Line" helped her to "understand the story line of the Bible and how all of the people and events fit into God's overall plan." "Apply It" section provided real life situations where she could learn how to apply the Bible verses she had just learned. I would definitely recommend this program. 

 I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew

Review on "The HomeGrown Preschooler Teaching Your Kids in the Places They Live

About The Homegrown Preschooler:

Gryphon House is an award winning resource site. One of the resources that the site provides is the book  The Homegrown Preschooler. This how-to parenting book offers organizational tips, recipes, and over 200 hands on activities for your preschooler. The resource book helps one to find learning experiences in everyday occurrences. "As straightforward as a parenting how-to book and as easily applicable as a set curriculum, The Homegrown Preschooler will inspire parents to use their homes as classrooms and take advantage of the naturally rich learning opportunities existing in everyday life!" The site also provides hundreds of  free activities and free crafts for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary school children.

$29.95

Gryphon House, Inc.

PO Box 10

6848 Leon’s Way

Lewisville, NC 27023

ORDER PLACEMENT: 1-800-638-0928 (US only)

Fax: 1-877-638-7576

Our Homeschool Experience:

Both of my daughters loved the activities in this book. Even though the book is designed for younger children, I was able to include my 7 year old in many of the activities. For example, both girls love to paint. One particular morning, I had them paint to music. I played a variety of music and encouraged the girls to paint whatever they felt the "music sounds would look like." Another activity that they were able to do together was playing with the sensory table. My father in law built one and the girls have not been able to stop playing in it. They have taken their toys and hid them in the sand. I hid different shapes and asked my 3 year old to try to find them. Once she did, she had to try to tell me what the shapes were. Another activity that the girls did together was the "Salt Dough." Once they made the dough, my youngest created some shapes and my oldest spelled some of her spelling words. Learning how to sort was another activity in the book.  A few days ago, I was doing the laundry and I had my girls help me sort it out. This daily mundane task became a teaching moment for the youngest.

We also made some of the recipes found in the book. "Sweet and Crunchy Chicken" was the best. We all loved it. The recipe called for chicken breast, honey, spicy brown mustard, olive oil, salt, garlic, black pepper, panko, and pecans or almonds. The day before we made this recipe, I had cooked a whole chicken and had some left overs. I saw this recipe in the book and decided to try it out. Even though the recipe called for strips of chicken, I used shredded chicken. For the breading, I did not have enough walnuts (recipe calls for pecans or almonds) so I added peanuts and panko. It was really good!!!!!!! Another recipe that we tried was the "Chicken Bundles". The ingredients needed were chopped chicken, salt, cream cheese, chives, peas and carrots, milk, crescent rolls, butter, and crushed croutons. We did not enjoy this recipe as much as the other one but I'm not sure if it was because I used ground beef instead of chicken.


Gardening was another activity in the book. Coincidentally my oldest was involved in a summer gardening camp at the same time I was reviewing this book. One particular day, after the gardening camp, she came home with seeds in a paper towel. Because of this, we were able to do the activity "The Root of the Process".  Once the roots started growing both of my girls were able to see them  and I was able to explain how the roots receive their nutrients. This was a fun and really educational book. We all loved it and we would recommend it.

 

 I have been given this product free of charge for review purposes. 

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Schoolhouse Review Crew