Wordless Wednesday June 29

Veritas Press Online Bible Review #hsreviews #classicaleducation #onlinebible #homeschoolbible

We study the bible every day at our house. We recently received access to the VeritasBible.com from Veritas Press to add to our day. We have used several items from Veritas Press in our school and Alaina has really been enjoying this new program.  VeritasBible.com is an online program that is a year long subscription for the whole family. All of your children will have their own account and work at their own pace. There are three sections that cover 32 Biblical events each. Genesis to Joshua, Judges to Kings, and The Gospels with Acts to Revelations, with Chronicles to Malachi and Job coming soon. As soon as I got logged in I got Alaina started. Our family has one set of login information and then each child has their own icon on the home screen and that is where you can add new students. Alaina was thrilled that she got to choose her own character for her icon. When the student clicks on their avatar they gain access to the different sections and can choose which one they want to work on. I let Alaina choose where she wanted to start and she decided to start with Genesis to Joshua, but also worked on The Gospels.  Every time Alaina clicks on her section it takes her to a forest map with a dotted trail with circle landing points. The lessons that have been completed have a white star with a blue flag and the lesson that the student is ready for has just a white star. The future lessons are a dark bullseye and cannot be accessed, but the old lessons can be repeated. At least one star must be earned to move on the next lesson with a maximum of three stars earned.  The lessons contain video segments given by people dressed in time appropriate attire. There are timelines, interactive flashcards, reviews, bible readings, and a worksheet at the end. The student can view the worksheet when they are finished to see which ones they missed. When they get to the final page of the lesson it tells them they are finished and to close the window. Each lesson starts with a review of what was previously taught. If the student misses any of these they have more chances to get it correct and they cannot go on until they get it right.  The video segments are short only lasting a couple of minutes. The video and the interactive activities alternate through the lesson. The flashcards are set to words and music to help the student remember them easier, and the reviews, worksheets, and even the timeline are interactive. Not only does VeritasBible teach bible events it also teaches things that are going on in the world. It evens explains some of the imagery in the bible.  Alaina and I both agree this program is very easy to use. I love that we have one login for our family and that they can all access the program. This can be used by the student without any help from the parent. It tells the student when to read their bible, and they have to get the questions correct to move on. It is also taught in a fun engaging way, but digs deeper in the Bible than just the stories. 

Social Media Veritas Press Self-Paced Bible Facebook Pinterest Instagram Twitter @VeritasPress Members of the Schoolhouse ReviewCrew were offered the VeritasBible.com and the Self-Paced Bible program. They both cover the same information, but they are different. VeritasBible.com is for the entire family, but the Self-Paced is for one student. One benefit of the Self-Paced Bible it offers grading for each student. I'm not sure what else is different, so I think I'll read some Crew reviews of it. 

LearnBop Review #hsreviews #learnbop #onlinemath #homeschoolmath

Like I've said before math is not a favorite subject in our house. We added LearnBop for Families from LearnBop to our summer to keep math fresh in my kids minds.  LearnBop offers personalized math instructions for grades 3-12 using Roadmaps. It will help struggling students catch up or other students move ahead. LearnBop identifies gaps in the students math knowledge and then provides an individualized learning experience for each student.  The first day I logged in and created a user name and password for each student. I was able to select different grades for different students and I can go in and change them if needed. I could choose a Roadmap for grades 3-8, by grades 1-8 concepts, or algebra I, Algebra II, or Geometry. At first the student completes a Warm-Up which is a group of questions on one topic. After completing the Warm-Up the student is given video segments to watch based on how well they did on the Warm-Up. Once those lessons are completed there are questions that are called Bops that the student must complete with a 90% for mastery. Once those questions are mastered the student has the option of working on the same concept some more or move on to the next section. Each time the student completes a task they receive awards of achievement.  When the student is logged in they can see their roadmap on the left side of their screen. It shows how many units there are and how many they have completed. There are also encouraging quotes at the bottom of the roadmap. The student can go to the progress page to see exactly how many achievement they need to receive to complete their roadmap. Some of the questions are multiple choice, true and false, drag and drop, graphing plots, shading, and sorting. In the parent login I have access to all my kids progress. It shows me how much time they have used LearnBop, how many videos they have viewed and what concepts they have mastered on their roadmap.   Amber and Delaney have both been using this program, and they didn't have any trouble using the it. They both thought it was very user friendly and knew where they needed to be every time. I know some of the gaps my girls have, but LearnBop has helped them work on exactly what they need whether I realize they need it or not. I really like the step-by-step instruction when they missed their problems, because I want to make sure my girls master the math concepts and not just finish their work for the day. LearnBop is a great place to get math help. It covers multiplication, geometry, fractions, decimals, statistics, and algebra. Students work at their own pace while LearnBop identifies their learning gaps. There are also comprehensive answers to questions that have been missed. The Family Plan can be used with 4 students and is $19.99 a month or $199.95 per year. For every subscription sold LearnBop is donating a subscription to student who needs it.  Social Media Facebook Twitter +LearnBop 

Wordless Wednesday

Great Expectation E-Guide Review #hsreviews #classicliterature #criticalanalysis #literaturestudies

Every time the Crew is offered a Literature Study Guide from Progeny Press I have such a hard time choosing which one we want. I always look at what is being offered in my kid's age level and then let them all have a say in which one we choose. This time we wanted to review Great Expectations E-Guide. Progeny Press wants students to think clearly and understand literature while relying on truth and values from the bible. They offer Interactive E-Guides for lower elementary students to high school students. There is such a wide variety of titles to choose from and there are titles we have loved for years and there are other titles we have never heard of. We have reviewed several Progeny Press E-Guides for middle school and high school including The Golden Goblet, Anne of Green Gables, Across Five Aprils, and The Last of the Mohicans. 
The Great Expectations E-Guide is 72 pages plus an answer key. It is recommended for students in grades 9-12 and can be used as a one-forth high school credit. It starts with a note to the instructor on how to use the study guide. There is information on Charles Dickens, a novel synopsis, and background information from Dickens time the early to mid 1800's. There are also some prereading ideas to enhance the study. There are nine chapters to cover the book ending with an overview, additional resources, final essay and project ideas. Progeny Press recommends reading the novel in the first week while working on the prereading activities then the second week starting on the study guide. The Answer Key is just that, the answers to all of the questions. 
The E-Guides are interactive downloads. They can be printed and used as worksheets or used with Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0+. By using the interactive feature the student can answer their questions and save them directly in the E-Guide on the computer.
Each chapter contains a vocabulary section, general questions, analysis, dig deeper section, expectations, and additional activities. The vocabulary section works with definitions in different ways. There are matching, underlining, and synonyms & antonyms. The general section contains questions about the story. Analysis questions get the child thinking about what is going on and why. The Dig Deeper section looks more closely at the character and events and students answers with what they think about each situation. Expectations section covers the expectations and the effects of the characters. Additional activities include further research on things pertaining to the story.  
Amber and Delaney have both been using this study guide. It should take eight-ten weeks to complete, so they haven't finished yet. They have both read the novel on their own and then started on their own study guide. They have been working on vocabulary words, answering questions, thinking about the characters and why they behave the way they do. 
My girls really like the E-Guides from Progeny Press. They like that it has a variety of question types. The vocabulary and general questions were pretty easy for both of them, but they liked the variety of the other sections. We all like that there are questions on foreshadowing, irony, comic relief, juxtaposition, and so much more.
After using several titles from Progeny Press I feel they are a wonderful addition to our homeschool. If you are looking for a faith-based literature study that will get your student not only reading but thinking about the themes and ideas in the story then you may want to check out Progeny Press yourself. 

Social Media Progeny Press Great Expectations E-Guide Facebook Twitter @Progenypress

The Crew was offered several titles in all grade levels and you can read those reviews on the ReviewCrew Blog. 

American Girl #americangirlcrafts

Alaina is my crafty child. She can make anything out of what most of us would consider trash. This was a box we received in the mail, I was going to throw it away but Alaina decided she wanted to paint it and turn it into a refrigerator for her American Girl dolls. She had made some Starbuck coffee cups awhile back and she decided to make some other food to put inside. 

She used the end flaps from the cardboard box for shelves inside her fridge, and she used craft foam and a couple of different types of paint to make her food. 

The top left picture is a cake and the next one is sushi. The DVD boxes she had made previously and the last picture she has bags of chips, cookies, and Pop-Tarts.

Here is her doll enjoying a slice of pizza and a coffee from Starbucks. Alaina even made the doll's ring.

She also made tacos, lunch meat sandwiches, and ice cream sandwiches. I'm not sure what she is planning on making next, but she loves making these little things. She found some of her ideas on Youtube and others she came up with on her own or by looking through the American Girl catalog to get some idea.

The Glass Castle Review #hsreviews #glasscastle #jerryjenkins

Several weeks ago we received a package in the mail from Shiloh Run Press and my girls were fighting over who got it first. Alaina said she should read The Glass Castle by Trisha White Priebe and Jerry B. Jenkins first. Amber thought she should get to read it first since she would be done sooner and plus Alaina was already in the middle of a book. 

Guess who won!

The Glass Castle is about Avery, Kate, Tuck, and Kendick. They take charge of a group of kids when all the thirteen year old children are kidnapped and hidden inside the castle. Kate was taken from the woods near her house where she was playing with her brother. They are separated and Kate is determined to find out if he is still alive. Kate learns that all the thirteen year old children are orphans, but she knows her father is still alive. The reason the thirteen year old children were kidnapped and hidden in the castle is to protect them from the new queen. She wants to give the king an heir although he already produced an heir thirteen years ago. No one knows where this heir is, so to protect the children an old lady kidnapped them and hid them in the castle. The teens try to learn the secrets of the castle by snooping on the king and queen. They discover the new queen bribed the King into marrying her and they need to find out what exactly she knows.     The day our book arrived Amber talked Alaina into letting her read the book first. She started it that afternoon and read the whole book only stopping to eat dinner. When she was finished I asked her what she thought of it. She said she really liked it and the only problem with the book is that it should have been written at a higher level. She is an avid reader and has read above her age level for a long time. I also read the book out loud to my family. Amber said she liked the book so much that she didn't mind listening to it even though she already read it. If it were up to the kids (and my husband) they would have loved for me to read the whole book out loud at one time, but we did need to get some sleep. When I finished reading the book everyone wanted to know if we could get the next book. I told them it wasn't published yet and one of the kids said they hated reviewing a new series because they have to wait too long for the next one.   I read this book in one afternoon. I loved the book and didn't want to put it down. The only thing that could make this book better isvif it were written at a higher level. I like to read adventures and mysteries but a lot of times they are not appropriate for me to read. This book doesn't have inappropriate language it held my interest to the end. ~Amber, age 15   I really liked The Glass Castle. It is good and adventurous and sometimes it is hard to find decent adventure books. I love reading books with castles and royal families and I can't wait for the next book to come out so I can find out what happens to Avery and all the other kids.  ~Delaney, age 14 I like when my mom reads me books with adventure. I really liked The Glass Castle because it is a fictional story about kids. It was hard to wait to see what was going to happen next and I can't wait for the next book to come out. ~Alaina, age 11 The Glass Castle is a 256 page hardback book recommended for children ages 10-14. It would make a great addition to any family library no matter if you have boys or girls. 
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Graduation Cookies and Cake Pops

Hey Mama! Print Schoolhouse Planner Review #hsreviews #tosmagazine #homeschool #schoolplanner #schoolresources

Our school year is officially over except for review items we will be using through the summer. That means it's time to start planning for next year. I received the new Hey Mama! Print Schoolhouse Planner 2016-2017 from The Old Schoolhouse just in time to get started. 
I have a coupon code for you to receive $10 off the planner. Just use: CREWCODE by July 15, 2016. I am a paper planner. I love my wall calendar and the calendar on my phone to remind me of appointments and outside activities, but my paper planner helps me stay on track and keep the school year running smoothly. The new Hey Mama! Schoolhouse Planner 2016-2017 is an 192 page softcover spiral bound book. 
There one page calendars for the years 2016, 2017, and 2018 in the front of the planner. I love having this here because it makes seeing what all needs to happen in the next three years easier, but I also hate it because it makes me realize how short those three years really are and I'll have another graduate at the end of them.  The planner actually starts with July. There is a dated two page calendar, a page for note taking, and a Hey Mama note for each month. There are 36 weekly planning sheets that can be used for multiple students or multiple subjects if you have one student. There are five sheets that cover monthly goals, semester goals, yearly goals, and five attendance charts. There are also forms to plan curriculum and keep track of the books that are read throughout the year. Hey Mama notes and information about antiques on the cover of the planner are scattered throughout the planner.
The back of the planner has writing prompts, story starters, and informational lists about the government, presidents, inventions, and more. Lastly there is a blank academic transcript and a checklist for other skills that were learned throughout the year. I love that this planner is spiral bound. I like being able to flip it over and keep my planner open to the week we are currently on without it taking up extra room by laying flat. I started my planner by marking the days I know we will not be having school. I included holidays, my husbands vacations, and family visits that I already know about.  Since I have two high school students and a lot of curriculum to choose from already at home I went to the curriculum planning sheets next. Right now I am planning the rest of Amber's high school years. There are some subjects we know for sure what she will use until she is finished but other subjects I am giving her a choice and they could change. I'll start on Delaney's next. 
All of my kids have their own planner. About third grade they all started keeping their own. It helps them know what needs to be done for each week and makes them responsible for it. Their all time favorite page in their planner is the Attendance Chart. There are 180 squares to mark one off per school day. My girls have always started marking at the bottom, so they know exactly how many school days they have left. I always print the girls planner pages including the attendance chart from the digital Schoolhouse Planner that is available at SchoolhouseTeachers.com. 

The discount code: CREWCODE will let US residents purchase the planner for $19, and it includes shipping. The code is for $10 off, so if you do not live in the US you can still get the discount.

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Essential Skills Advantage Review #hsreviews #literacy #onlinelearning

Essential Skills Advantage offers a Complete Home Learning Suite to supplement grades K-6 in reading, language & grammar, math, science, and geography. 
ESA is an online subscription lasting for one year. It has been proven effective for over 15 years and is currently used in over 20,000 schools and homes around the world. There are over 14,000 activities in these subjects:

• Reading ~ Grades K-6: Covers phonics and reading for grades K-2, reading for third grade, and reading comprehension in grades 4-6.
• Spelling ~ Grades 1-6
• Language & Grammar ~ Grades 3-6: Grammar, writing fundamentals, creative writing, and vocabulary are covered in this section. 
• Math ~ Grades 1-6: Math operations and number concepts. 
• Science ~ Grades K-3
• Geography ~ Grades 4-6: Covers World Geography, American Geography, Canadian Geography, and Map & Globe Skills. 

Alaina started by using ESA American Geography for 6th grade. There are 143 activities on State Names, State Capitals, Major Cities, Bodies of Water, Physical Regions, Biomes, Time Zones, and Natural & Human Landmarks. The activities work on learning the names, locations, and spellings of the states, capitals, cities, and bodies of waters. They will also learn the names, locations, and characteristics of the regions, biomes, and landmarks. 

The activities would start off by showing maps of the United States. If she was working on the capitals the state would be highlighted yellow with a red star to represent the capital. There is a sentence under the map that tells the state and the capital and it is also read to the student. The activities get harder as they go. The student will choose the state on the map or they will spell the state or capital when it is highlighted on the map. The spelling lessons start by showing the name while the student types it with later activities the student will spell the name when they are shown the shape. 

The reading comprehension offers several short stories to read with questions to check the students comprehension. The language & grammar covers grammar and spelling that even goes to ninth grade. The spelling starts by choosing the word that is spoken, then the student will spell the word when shown, in another activity the student chooses the shape that the word would fit in. The student also has to choose the correct word for a given sentence.  The program is very easy to navigate. The student can choose between all grade levels and subjects from the menu at the top of the screen. That makes it perfect for a student who excels in one subject but needs to move down a grade or two with a subject they struggle with.
The parent can also check on the students status by viewing the Marks & Reporting. You can see how well the student is doing, how much of the program that has been completed, how much time they have spent, and generate a report card. 
Alaina hasn't used an official geography program in her school. We have maps hanging on our walls and we travel a lot so she knows quite a bit about the geography of the United States. She needs to work on her state capitals and some spellings so that is why we started with Geography. She has learned a lot from using ESA for just a few minutes a day and she is having fun with it.  

Social Media Facebook Twitter Pinterest Google+ LinkedIn Blog The Schoolhouse ReviewCrew children have been using different grades with their children. Stop over to the Crew Blog to read about those grades.