TOS Review ~ VocabAhead: SAT Vocabulary Cartoons, Videos, & MP3s

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Do you have someone in your household studying for the SAT’s, ACT’s, or GRE’s? Are you looking to increase your own vocabulary? Well, VocabAhead may just be what you’re looking for to help!

VocabAhead offers several different products to help build your vocabulary including a book that covers 300 words, and a DVD that contains 1000 words.  If your tech savvy, there is also an iPhone App. We received a copy of the book SAT Vocabulary: Cartoons, Videos, & MP3s a few weeks ago and Marie and I have been working through it.  We were pleasantly surprised that the book also includes a free download of MP3s and videos on your computer or iPod, something that my teen liked.

The book works like this.  The book is divided into 30 units with 10 words each.  Every page includes one word, with its part of speech, a short definition, a cartoon illustrating the word, and two or three sentences illustrating the word’s use in context. Also included is a list of synonyms and antonyms for each word. At the end of each unit, there is a review to test your knowledge learned. The answers are provided at the end of the book for easy grading.

VocabAhead is an affordable resource the is available through Amazon for just $12.95. The DVD option is priced a bit more at $24.95 and is also available through Amazon.  While I think this may be a great resource for increasing your vocabulary, I was a bit taken back with some of the illustrations and sentences.  While not all of the examples were bad, there were a few questionable ones that made me raise my brow and try to give another sentence or illustration.

To see what others thought of this book or DVD check out the TOS crew site.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  I am a member of The Old Schoolhouse 2010-2011 Crew and as such received a copy of VocabAhead in exchange for a thorough and honest review.  Though I am compensated with free products, I am not compensated in the form of cash for my reviews.  The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but are not influenced by the company or the free product provided .

Hurricane

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Another early day in our gymnastics world. We had to be out of the house by 715AM to get to the meet on time. 

 

The girls had a blast hanging out before the meet with their teammates and getting loose. We love this tight-nit group of girls, they make practice and meets fun!

 

Coach Natalie does such a great job with these girls, it’s amazing. She has taught them well and these four little girls are showing our area that our gym is a force to be reckoned with.

This meet we were up against most of the same girls that we  competed against back in December 2010 during the Dave Brown Memorial meet, including the 2010 Level 4 State Champion in Madison’s age group.

 

The girls once again rocked the floor and Madison redeemed herself from placing 22 AA (all-around) out of 40 girls at the Dave Brown Memorial meet to placing 14th AA, narrowly missing the podium by .10 of a point!!! Nonetheless, we were all so excited and proud of everyone!!!

 

Madison’s results:

Beam ~ 8.575 (12th)

Vault ~ 8.60

Bars ~ 8.550 (10th)

Floor ~ 8.40

AA ~ 34.125 (14th)

  

Mikayla’s results:

Beam ~ 8.85 (3rd)

Vault ~ 8.90 (8th)

Bars ~ 8.60 (4th)

Floor ~ 9.00 (4th)

AA ~ 35.35 (4th)

***to qualify for State Championship a gymnast must score a minimum of a 33.0, so far so good, they just need to be on their game at the March sectional and they both will be on their way to State Championship Meet Mother’s Day weekend***

  All tuckered out after the meet.

38 ~ 365

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037 ~ 365

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The weather was really nice today after the gymnastics meet (results to come later today). McKenzie decided to test out her riding skills for a bit. Her legs are still too short to reach the pedals but maybe by summer she’ll be riding.

TOS Review: Dig it! Games ~ Roman Town

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Can you dig it???

Do you have a child who is a budding archaeologist? Are you traveling through Ancient Rome in your History studies? If so, Roman Town may  be a great educational supplement for you.

 

Roman Town is a fabulous resource that allows your children to explore historically accurate excavation sites. Journey through a 3D exploration through Roman Town after Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD and discover what life was like.  With two children as your guide you will explore six areas of Roman Town including a common area of a Roman home.

Roman Town was “Founded by a professional archaeologist and teacher. Dig-It! Games is an independent computer game developer committed to creating innovative, interactive, instructional computer games based on historical themes with high-value educational content. Dig-It! Games presents authentic and accurate historical information that conforms to the curriculum mandates and Standards of Learning of many states.”

Main Features include:

• Engaging hands-on, interactive learning for all ages, specifically designed for 5^th – 8^th grades.
• Game-play develops analytical thinking
• Puzzles teach problem solving strategies
• Authentic artifacts and realistic excavation site
• Accurate information about Roman Life and Roman History
• Encompasses the full excavation experience from start to finish
• Archaeology introduced logically

System Requirements *PC only*

• Windows Vista/XP/2000
• CPU 800 Mhz; RAM 412MB; Hard Drive 350MB

Dig it Games is offering a special price just for TOS readers. From now until February 21,2011 you can get a copy of Roman town for $19.96. That’s a substantial price reduction as normally the price is $39.95. Use the coupon code TOS2011 for your savings but hurry before the code expires!

We had a great time exploring this game. The girls couldn't get enough of exploring the evacuation sites and making discoveries. Overall, 2 thumbs up for this game! You can find Dig-It Games on their website, Facebook and Twitter.  See what other members of TOS review crew thought here.

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I am a member of The Old Schoolhouse 2010-2011 Crew and as such received a download of Roman Town in exchange for a thorough and honest review.  Though I am compensated with free products, I am not compensated in the form of cash for my reviews.  The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but are not influenced by the company or the free product provided .

035 ~ 365

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17 mo. weight check:

16.6 pounds

28.5 inches

McKenzie gained exactly 1 pound and grew exactly 1 inch since November’s check up.

*and the Dr. still thinks I am joking that she won’t drink any milk. We have tried everything under the sun with no luck. She does LOVE yogurt though*