This blog is my attempt to document our busy but BLESSED lives raising and educating our children for His glory. A child of God, wife to one, and mom to 6 fabulous kids. We are in our 17th year of homeschooling using a Classical ~ Literature based approach.

Come along for the good, the bad & the ugly.



Friday, March 2, 2012

TOS Review ~ Reading Eggs

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Need a little bit of fun to spice up learning to read for your children?  Check out the online program Reading Eggs.  Reading Eggs introduces beginner readers to the world of reading through interactive stories and games with fun characters. Your children aged 3-7 will learn everything from letter recognition, phonics, to reading early readers while using this program. To capture and hold a young child’s attention and make the reading experience multi-sensory there are also puzzles, games, and songs to make the process F-U-N! Do you have an older child?  No problem, Reading Eggspress {a sister part of the Reading Eggs World} is geared towards older children, aged 7-13, to encourage fluent reading.

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Learning to Read with Reading Eggs:

Learning to read is an important skill for all children, we wanted to

make it an enjoyable experience for children too. Children love

working and playing on the computer and the Reading Eggs

program is all about bringing out the best in each child.

We created Reading Eggs as a unique online world where children learn to read. It supports each child’s learning by offering individual, one-to-one lessons that allow children to progress at their own rate.

                                                                  ~ from the website

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When you first sign your child into Reading Eggs, the first step is for them to take an assessment test. This “test” consists of 40 questions multiple choice questions. Once your child has missed 3 questions, the test is over and your child will be placed in the appropriate level.  There are three levels of play with 4 learning boards in each level. Level 1: Lessons 1- 40 Starting Out for the beginner; Level 2: Lessons 41-80 Beginning to Read for the emerging reader; Level 3: Lessons 81-120 Building Confidence for Early Readers. No need to worry about your child skipping ahead lessons as they are locked so you follow the natural progression of the program. As your child progresses through the different levels you  can track her progress on the map.

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So, you are probably wondering how much this great program costs, right?  Well, there are a few different way to purchase  Reading Eggs.  A 12 month subscription is available for $75.00;    6 month subscription is $49.95 or you can also choose monthly at $9.95 if you do not want to make such a lengthy commitment. To coincide with the levels of the program, Reading Eggs also offers book packs, however, the book packs were not a part of this review.

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We had a great time using the Reading Eggs program! Montana would ask to “play” before doing her formal school work. After completing the assessment, Montana was started on the 5th learning board on lesson 41.  She has quickly progressed to lesson 50 and will be jumping to the next learning board. McKenzie loved to sit and watch and she even tried to get into the action by playing the bubble pop game.  All in all, we recommend Reading Eggs for anyone looking for a fun and exciting reading supplement.  We received a 3 month subscription for the purpose of this review and have enjoyed it.  However, I do not know if we will continue and renew our subscription, solely based on cost factor. It has nothing to do with the program because it is superb, it is just my budget. I do however, recommend you try out the 14 day free trial and see if it is right for your child.  You can’t go wrong with that.  Check out what my crewmates said about Reading Eggs, here.Photobucket

Product ~ Reading Eggs

Price ~ A 12 month subscription is available for $75.00; 6 month subscription is $49.95 or you can also choose monthly at $9.95.

Ages ~ 3-7 years old

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   I received a 3- month subscription to Reading Eggs, 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.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Coming back

I am starting to narrow down our curriculum choices for next school year.  A task that brings joy and stress all at the same time.  However,  I welcome it as I see it as a time of reflection of what worked this school year and what did not quite work for our family. Let me share with you some of the changes that I know we will be making.


Sonlight Customer Heirloom Level Sonlighter Club
Core IGs:
Core P3/4 Core B Core D Core G
Core H
Language Arts IGs:
Language Arts 1 Language Arts 2 Language Arts D Language Arts G
Science IGs:
Science B

Tapestry of Grace to Sonlight:

While the thought of having all of my girls studying the same history time period brought joy to my heart…it just did not work. Period. Marie had switched backed to Sonlight, Core 100 in October and upon reflection for Madison and Mikayla I was tailoring the TOG to be just.like.Sonlight.  I love the concept of TOG, I really do! The book selection and the craft activities are awesome for my craft loving girls, but it just did not work for us. With that said, we will be switching back to Sonlight for the 2012 school year knowing full well that the girls will all be in different History time periods.  And I am O.K. with that! Come August we will be studying Cores D, F, and 200 {if Marie is staying home…more on that later}. As of right now, I am anxiously waiting for the new Sonlight catalog to hit my mailbox.

Latin for Children to First Form Latin:

Can I just say I really love Memoria Press materials! The way the material is presented and taught appeals to me and the girls learning style. Latin for Children is a great program too, don’t get me wrong, you can read my review I wrote last year.  The girls have learned a lot from it and I will continue to use them for Montana and McKenzie’s Latin learning. Madison and Mikayla will be learning FF Latin while Marie will continue with Henle {if staying home}.

Rosetta Stone to ???:

Hmmm…can anybody recommend a Latin American Spanish program?  I am not displeased with Rosetta Stone, I just wonder if there is something else comparable to it?

So, that is what I have for now.  Are you making any curriculum changes to your homeschool next year? I would love to hear what you are planning.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

TOS Review ~All About Reading, Level 1

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As a homeschooling mom I think we all have that one program we would love to try out.  All About Reading was that one program for me.  You can imagine my surprise when I saw my name on the review list a few months ago.  I did my own sort of happy dance and my girls laughed at me when I did a cartwheel…but it was so worth it!

We received the All About Reading Level 1 Deluxe Kit which is a multi-sensory learning experience for students. The program is based upon the Orton-Gillingham method, which involves the senses of sight, sound, and touch, to understand and learn to read and spell.  The interactive design of the program naturally progresses in a logical step-by-step order and builds upon the previous lessons. AAR1 builds upon the concepts to teach five key concepts in reading: phonological awareness, phonics and decoding, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. All the while your student is learning to read in a fun and interactive way.

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The Level 1 Kit includes:

~ Teacher’s Manual {sample}
~Student Packet (includes Activity Book) {sample}
~ Run, Bug, Run! reader {sample}
~ The Runt Pig reader {sample}
~Cobweb the Cat reader {sample}

Normally priced : $107.70 but currently on sale for just $99.95.

PhotobucketThe Deluxe Reading Interactive Kit($48.95) includes:

~  Letter Tiles
~ Magnets for the Letter Tiles
~ The Basic Phonograms CD-ROM
~ Reading Divider Cards                                                                           ~ Reading Review Box                                                                      ~Reading Tote Bag (<3 tote bags)                                                          ~Star Stickers

The lessons are FULLY scripted and telling  you exactly what to say. This makes the program so easy to teach. There are also school days 012 must read helpful teacher scripts in light grey boxes found in the margins of the teacher's manual. You also need a magnetic whiteboard or you can get crafty like I did and use a metal cookie sheet as I did not have any wall space for another whiteboard to go.  Plus, it made the program portable for us.

school days AAR 001 school days AAR 007

AAR 1 is choke full of activities that make learning to read fun.  From fluency practice sheets to just plain fun activities your beginner reader will be hooked from the start.  The readers are excellent books with great stories for your beginner reader. I love that they are hard back books with many different stories photoin each one. One of the best parts of the books is that your child starts reading their first story at Lesson 5. I used this program with Montana who already had a head start on reading short vowel words so this was great for her. She wants to read Chapter books and the books a set up like a Chapter book, so she was a happy camper.

Now, you might be thinking that this is more than what you want to budget for a reading program.  And in all honesty this is part of what held me back from purchasing AAR last fall.  However, I am pleased to say that All About Learning Press' products come with a Go Ahead and Use it One-Year Guarantee.

"That's right. You and your child have a full year to try out the programs! If you find that the curriculums do not meet your needs, simply return the materials at any time within one year of purchase for a full refund of your purchase price."

If I would have know this last fall I would have definitely taken the plunge and purchased this program without hesitation. While we are using AAR 1 in conjunction with another reading program, I wholeheartedly recommend this to everyone looking for a reading program.  With the One-Year Guarantee you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!  Click over here to see what my fellow Crewmates have to say about All About Reading, Level 1.

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Company ~ All About Learning Press

Product ~ All About Reading, Level 1

Price ~ Level 1 Kit: normally $107.70, but on sale for $99.95; Basic Reading Kit: $28.95; Deluxe Reading Kit: $48.95

Age ~ beginner readers

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I received All About Reading, Level 1, 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.

Friday, February 24, 2012

TOS Review ~ Apologia: Who Am I? {And What Am I Doing Here?}

PhotobucketWhen most people hear Apologia’s name mentioned they immediately think of their award winning science programs.  But did you know that they also offer excellent bible curriculum too? Last year I had the pleasure of reviewing the first book in the What We Believe Series, Who Is God. Now we were given the opportunity to review Who Am I? (And What Am I Doing Here?) and I am equally thrilled!

The second book in the What We Believe series, Who Am I? (And What Am I Doing Here?) helps children understand what it means to be fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of the Most High God. This study will enable students to develop a healthy self-image based on these biblical truths: God made me in His image and crowned me with glory; He has given me special gifts and a unique purpose in life; I can creatively express God's love; I am meant to think about beautiful and praiseworthy things, especially God and His Word; I must make decisions based on God's truth; I can always know the wise thing to do; I must cultivate the fruit of the Spirit in my life; I am a beloved child of God whose true identity is found in Christ.

                                                                          ~ from the website

So, what makes this program so great you ask?  Well for starters it comes with a recommended lesson plan. That is always a big plus in my book.  With these suggested lesson plans you can take anywhere from four to nine months to teach and complete the 8 lesson curriculum. This program is also ideal if you have several children on different grade levels as it is recommended for children ages 6-14.  You have the opportunity to beef it up or water it down as much as needed for your family.

Lessons Include:

What are we doing here?

What will you make today?

What’s on your mind?

Can you trust your feelings?

Will you choose wisely? (Click to view sample lesson)

How will you run the race?

What kind of fruit are you growing?

Who do you think you are?

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The beautiful hard-cover book retails for $39, while the student notebooking journal is $24.  Also available are the Who Am I? coloring book which is $8 and the Who Am I? Audio Book, MP3, CD is $19. The CD is an accompaniment to the book and is great for those who are auditory learners or for those who are busy and on the go.  We fall into this category and enjoyed listening on our 30 minute drives to gymnastics practices. The coloring book is nice to keep your younger students engaged and feeling involved.

Apologia's What We Believe Series has four books that can be taught individually and does not require any particular order. We read Who Am I as a family (or listened in the van on busy days. I really enjoy the What Will You Do
section throughout the book. This section gets you thinking and discussing about God and His word as it pertains to your life and situations.  We love all of Apologia’s products; from their full Science programs, writing, geography, and acclaimed parent resources; and I am sure you will too, check them out!


Check out what my fellow Crewmates thought by clicking here.

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Company ~ Apologia Educational Ministries, INC.

Product ~ What We Believe: Who Am I? (And What Am I Doing Here?)

Price ~ Hard-cover book, $39, student notebooking journal, $24, Who Am I? coloring book which is $8,  and the Who Am I? Audio Book, MP3, CD is $19.

Ages ~ 6-14

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I received Apologia’s Who Am I? book, lapbook journal, Audio CD, and coloring book, 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.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012