A Stable Beginning

Monday, November 14, 2016

Happy 16th birthday Madison!!!

http://astablebeginning.com

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

The Critical Thinking Company: Language Smarts, Level E ~ a TOS review

Just recently I have had the opportunity to work through the brand new curricula Language Smarts™ Level E from The Critical Thinking Co.™ with Montana, who is 10.

Language Arts {The Critical Thinking Co.™}

The Critical Thinking Co. is a family-owned business that has been “empowering the mind” for more than 50 years. They sell critical thinking products/supplements that cover reading, writing, mathematics, science, and history. Instead of rote drilling and memorization, students are encouraged to “carefully analyze what they are learning.” The Critical Thinking Co. is on a mission to develop the critical thinking skills in all children. The Language Arts book is available in either book form or Windows PC download.

We received a physical copy of the book that is a hefty 390+ pages! This product is also available as an eBook too if you have multiple children to use this. I should note that the copywrite does allow you to make copies for your own personal family, something that as a large family homeschooler I appreciate.

This book is written for children in the 4th grade but it does contain information pertaining to 5th grade material too. It is so through that it can be used either as a supplement to your regular Language Arts curriculum or as a stand-alone complete curriculum. We used it as the latter during our review period.

The book covers a lot of material and you can get an in-depth look at the table of contents on the website, however, these are some of the topics covered:

• Syllables
• Word Parts (prefixes, suffixes, roots)
• Word Relationships (synonyms, antonyms, anagrams, analogies, palindromes, etc)
• Spelling
• Editing (Editor In Chief pages)
• Reference Materials (dictionary, online dictionary, thesaurus, online encyclopedia, searching the Internet, nonfiction)
• Parts of Speech
• Sentences
• Punctuation
• Using Words Correctly (homophones, misused words, homographs)
• Reading and Writing (context clues, similes, metaphors, idioms, proverbs, comprehension, drama, poems, etc.)
• Writing (process, personal narrative, opinions, informative, and Writing Detective pages)

Working through the book is quite simple. You can start from the first page and go that route or you can choose to skip around topics as we did. Normally Montana completed 2 pages a day, Monday through Friday, but I skipped around in each section to keep the material fresh. The worksheets instructions are explained thoroughly and always include an example of what is being asked to be completed. For the teacher, the answers are included in the back of the book. I especially enjoy the fact that I can use this as a supplement, especially since we are fast approaching our gymnastics travel season. I know that instead of lugging around our current language arts curricula I can turn to Language Smarts™ Level E and know that Montana is getting quality instruction and material to practice on her level. For that I give this product two thumbs up!

Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of this product and the other items being reviewed by clicking the banner below to read their thoughts.

Company ~ The Critical Thinking Co.™

Product ~ Language Smarts™ Level E

Price ~ $42.99 physical book or eBook

Ages ~ 4th grade, suitable for 5th grade too

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#hsreviews #criticalthinking #languagearts

http://astablebeginning.com

Friday, November 4, 2016

Homeschool Legacy: Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims ~ a TOS review

Can you believe it’s already the 4th of November!? Time is flying by and the holiday season is fast approaching. As a change of pace to our homeschool day we've added a unit study from Homeschool Legacy, all about a Once-a-Week Micro-Studies on Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims . Right now is the perfect time to start a Thanksgiving study and Sharon Gibson has one!

Once-a-Week Unit Studies were created from Sharon Gibson’s passion to help families build a strong, Godly, family legacy. With engaging unit studies families are brought together as they study topics. This precious time spent together focused on one topic will provide your children with a lifetime of memories.

Homeschool Legacy’s Once a Week Studies is a great companion for busy parents like myself. Preparation time is kept to a minimal. You really only need to make a quick stop to the library to pick up books. Unit studies are a great way to learn about any topic you can imagine all the while covering the basics like Bible, reading, writing, history, and/or science.

Want to know something else? These Once-A-Week Unit Studies correlate to your Boy Scouts or American Heritage Girls merit badges. How great is that! Your Boy Scout or American Heritage Girl will be able to earn merit badges all the while completing their everyday school work. I wish they had badge requirements for my Girl Scouts too! We were able to review the Thanksgiving Unit Study that is spread out over a six week period if you use it about 20-30 minutes a day. It retails for $12.00 and is appropriate for grades 1-8, which is perfect for Montana (4th) and McKenzie (1st).

Topics covered include:

Week 1: The Scrooby Separatists

Week 2: The Voyage

Week 3: At Home in Plymouth

Week 4: Happy Thanksgiving

Week 5: The Puritans

Week 6: Merry Christmas!

Preparing for the study was really simple. I just looked at my library for the three recommended books and added them to my library haul for Saturday. Unlike other Unit Studies, this one does not have a list of books or weekly devotions for during the six weeks. We worked on our unit studies for 3 days a week and made Thursdays our Unit Study day to fit our schedule.

Overall, this was a great experience using the Once-A-Day Unit study and being able to connect it with the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. I highly recommend this program! I definitely think you should check this unit study our or one of the many others they offer including:

• Birds of a Feather

• Forest for the Trees

• Horsing Around

• Weather on the Move

• Knights & Nobles

• Native America

• Early Settlers

• Revolutionary Ideas

• We the People: Getting to know your Constitution

• Lewis & Clark

• Christmas Comes to America

Be sure to check out what my Crewmates thought of this Study and the other Unit Studies offered for review by clicking on the banner below.

Company ~ Homeschool Legacy

Product ~ Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims

Price ~ $12.00

Ages ~ 1st-8th grade

Social Media Links

Facebook

#hsreviews #unitstudies #historyunitstudies

http://astablebeginning.com

Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Accountable2You ~ a TOS review

You can find just about anything and everything on the internet. Sometimes that’s a good thing, and other times…well let’s just say it’s not at all. Especially when you innocently type in a harmless word, or so you and/or your child think and BAM you have just opened up a whole new can of worms and been exposed to something you were not expecting.

Accountability across all your devices {Accountable2You}

In this technology driven world, Internet accountability is almost a necessity. Six weeks ago Accountable2You offered us the choice of one of their four plans they offer: Family Plan, Group Plan, Individual Plan and Small Business Plan to review. We choose the Family Plan where you can have up to twenty devices linked up. It works especially well with multiple family members having devices -- including the teen away at college.

Accountable2You is a Christian company that offers families and businesses an accountability tool for those who want to be held accountable. They believe that if a person is determined to sin, they will find a way to sin. By developing strong relationships between partners, members and God Almighty, Accountable2You and their internet monitoring and accountability software seeks to develop character through accountability by monitoring internet usage on devices linked up to the software. However, no software will ever prevent a person from sinning, they just provide an outlet to keep you accountable for your actions. Accountable2You is all about building character through accountability and is built on the concept found in Proverbs 27:17 :

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

One person holding another accountable for their actions may just be what you need to stay on track.

Features:

• Up to 20 Devices

• Unlimited Accountability Partners

• Create Child User Accounts

• Set Time Limit Alerts Per Account

• Real time reporting

• Accountability partners per device

• Daily or Weekly email reports

• Hourly Alert reports

• Instant Text Alerts

• Manage Objectionable word list

This software is easy to install on all types of devices from desktops, laptops, tablets, phones and more. Each device is given an accountability partner who is chosen by the administrator. I chose to be the accountability partner for my children and installed the software on the desktop that the children use as well as on Madison and Mikayla’s laptops, iPhones, and Kindles for Montana and McKenzie.

This review was offered at the right time for us! A situation occurred a few weeks before we were offered this review in which one of my children was led to believe that she needed to focus on something outside of what we teach in our household. For a few days it consumed her thoughts and I found her watching a YouTube video on her iPhone (that is not hooked up to a phone line) when she was supposed to be doing her schoolwork.

She quickly lost all internet usage for a good two weeks and we opened lines of communication between my husband and I with all of our children through a family meeting about what had happened once we spoke privately with the offending child. There was no blame placed on this child, she had been led astray but is now back on the right path and forgiven for her actions. At our meeting, I told the girls that we had installed the accountability software on all of the devices in our household and that we would be able to see what was searched and looked at. No one had a problem with it. I especially appreciate the full activity reports function. I receive an email throughout the day with browsing history of each device selected to monitor. Full reports are also available at any time online through your dashboard. Information is stored for 15 days and you have the option to store them in Excel files if you wish to keep them longer. While Mikayla was at the gym, I could keep track of what she was doing on her laptop.

The report told me specifically what she had opened and looked at and for how long. It was refreshing to see that she was focused on her double days in completing her Latin and History homework instead of goofing off. There is also a function to be able to set up child accounts with time limits. The software will notify you if the child tries to access the internet during hours you have indicated they shouldn't be. "Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted." ~ Galatians 6:1b Overall, I am really enjoying this program and plan to keep it after our 12 month subscription is complete. My only complaint is that this program is not fully compatible with iPhones, however, that is no fault of the company as it is Apple’s policy. Browsing history for the internet is not trackable with this program, however, that does not deter me from recommending it to you! The software has so many other great features that is is still beneficial to have overall. Be sure to check out what my crewmates thought of this software by clicking the banner below.

Company ~ Accountable2You

Product ~ Family Plan

Format ~ online software

Price ~ $9.99 a month

http://astablebeginning.com

Friday, October 28, 2016

CrossTimber: Name Meaning Gifts ~ a TOS review

What’s in a name? Do you know the meaning behind your name? Every name has meaning to it and John and Katie Dehnart from CrossTimber are in the business of researching the history and meaning of names. If you are looking for a special gift for someone during this upcoming holiday season then I have the perfect gift idea; a Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse. Let me tell you more about it.

CrossTimber offers many products to choose from including:

~ 8x10 or 5x7 framed plaques

~ Music boxes

~ Coffee mugs

~ The Names of God Plaques

Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse {CrossTimber} Reviews

For this review, we were offered a 5x7 Personalized Framed Plaques with Name Meaning and Bible Verse. The total measurements with the frame are 7x9 and the price starts at just $25 for a basic frame. I choose to upgrade our frame for just $2.00 more to the dark brown, antique colored frame. It is solid plastic and made from 85% recycled materials, yet looks like it comes from the craft store that offers custom framing because of its intricate scrollwork on the edges.

It’s beautiful in my eyes and I have had several compliments on it from house guest and matches our décor which is a plus too. The hardest part of this review was picking what name to choose! After much thought and prayer, I decided to pick our last name, Caffey. There is a back story to our last name and it stems from my husband’s birth. Long story short is that he was given this last name as it was the name of his older brothers but not the name of his father. His name should have been his mother’s maiden name, or that of his birth father whom we do not know.

This used to bother my husband but he has grown into his name of Caffey and I think God knew what he was doing even if we don’t understand it. You see, Caffey’s have a strong characteristic of individuality that makes them outstanding leaders and peacemakers. They are independent, confident and self-assured, qualities that has helped him in life and during his Naval career.

Overall, we love our plaque and love that our children can see the plaque with their name displayed on it. It is the name that God has chosen for us and we are grateful for it. The verse that goes with the name is Matthew 5… Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of their items ordered from CrossTimber. Some of the stories behind the names are pretty neat.

And be sure to click the banner below to enter into giveaway for your chance to win your own personalized name plaque.