A Stable Beginning

Friday, November 14, 2014

Weekly Wrap Up: Random 5 on Friday {style} ~ November 14th

1 ~ today at 12:29 P.M. Madison turned 14 years old. Wowzers, this girl is growing up so fast! She is such a joy to our family. She never asks for anything and works diligently and hard day in an day out, so Mr. M and I decided she was finally ready to take on the responsibility of getting a phone. Verizon dropped the ball on us by cancelling our order out of the blue, so we had to upgrade her at no additional cost so she would have her phone by the time she left for the weekend for her yearly craft show with Aunt Joyce. She loves it and I love the little messages she sends me Smile

science crater fun

2 ~ another week, 12 weeks exactly, is in the books! I am so excited to be booking along with school. The girls decided this week that they wanted 2 weeks off at Christmas instead of just one. Hmm…I am all about democracy and majority rules, but I hope I have enough stamina come mid-February when we are knee deep into the winter months.

3 ~ today we went on a field trip to an animal education center. Besides the frigid weather and the detour that had us lost out in the country, it was an amazing time! I will write more about it next week, but my animal lover, Montana, was in Lions, Tigers, and a Grizzly Bear heaven! We are already planning to go back in the spring with our Science Club friends.

4 ~ you know what’s stressful? Remembering at 7:55 AM that the girls have a dentist appointment at 9AM. Throw in the fact that we live 35 minutes away from their pediatric dentist and you might have a slightly stressed out Momma. But you know what, we made it with time to spare and I did not raise my voice even once at the girls to get a move on. Everyone knew what needed to be done to get all 7 of us out of the house in less than 25 minutes. Love when that happens!

5 ~ This week I found out that I have been invited back to be apart of the TOS Review Crew, YES!!! I hope you all appreciate my reviews and they help you find new and amazing products to use within your own homeschools. I finished up my last review today and on Monday I am going to be showcasing our top 5 favorite products we reviewed for this year so I hope you come back to read that post. Also, I am going to link each of the reviews I did this year on one page for easy reference sometime this weekend.

So that’s my randomness and my week in a nutshell. I hope that you have had a great week and I look forward to sharing more with you next week.

I am linking this post up at:

Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

The Pebble Pond

Collage Friday

©2008- 2014 A Stable Beginning. All rights reserved. All photographs, text, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the author. http://astablebeginning.com

beauty captured {135/365}

Happy 14th Birthday Madison!

Snake Oil ~ a TOS review

Whether it's a board game, card or video games we love playing games at our house! So it should not be a surprise when I tell you I jumped at the chance to have my last review of the 2014 schoolhouse review crew be a game called Snake Oil from Out of the Box Games.

Since 1998 Out of the Box Publishing has created several fun and engaging party, card and board games to enjoy spending time with family and friends. They believe games should be fun and provide a diversion to our daily lives but at the same time bring us together for real entertainment and interaction with the ones we love and care about. All of the games sold by them are games that:

~ can be learned in minutes
~ are colorfully illustrated and fun to play
~ can easily be played in less than an hour
~ are efficiently designed in smart packaging
~ feature dynamic player interaction from start to finish

Snake oil is a hilariously fun game to play and is geared towards ages 10 and up. You need at least 3 player to play or you can have up to 10 players. This game retails for $19.99 and takes about 20-30 minutes to play. Playing the game is easy and fun to do.

First, select one of the players to be the Customer for the first round then the remaining players each take six Word Cards. The Customer then takes a Customer Card from the center of the box and reads it out loud for everyone to hear. The Customer Card tells the Customer which role he or she will take on for the round, whether that be a babysitter, superhero, Santa, ninja, or any of the other fun choices.

The remaining players then combine two of the Word Cards from their hand of six and create a sales pitch for the Customer in a clockwise direction from the Customer. Players only have 30-40 seconds to convince the Customer and sell their item.
Once everyone has made a pitch, the Customer then picks the best item and awards the player with the Customer Card.
The Word Cards that were previously played are discarded into a pile and the player to the left of the preceding Customer becomes the new Customer. The remaining players then take two Word Cards to bring their hand back up to six, while the original Customer draws six cards.

The game continues to go around until each player has had a turn to be the Customer. The player with the most Customer cards wins the game!

We love playing this game! The girls love it because it is fun to make up sales pitches and to sell their product. I love it because it is forcing them to communicate and use their thinking skills. With word choice cards like Umbrella, Spring, Butter, Prize, etc. you really need to get creative in trying to pitch your product.

Overall this is a great game to play with your family and friends! We give it two thumbs up and definitely recommend you try it out. With the holidays coming up it is always fun to gather around the table and play a good game and this one will not disappoint!

Be sure to check out what my CrewMates thought of this game and the other game, Snake Oil – Party Potion, being reviewed by clicking the banner below.

Company ~ Out of the Box Games
Product ~ Snake Oil
Price ~ $19.99
Ages ~ 10 and up

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Thursday, November 13, 2014

Purposeful Design: Understanding the Creation ~ a TOS review

I have a real treat to share with you today. It’s a book called Purposeful Design: Understanding the Creation penned by Jay Schabacker at Purposeful Design.

This is a beautiful hardcover book was written by Mr. Schabacker to share God’s creation with all the children of the world. The book reveals the “Purposeful Design” showcasing the personal ways that God created everything in our universe. This book does an excellent job at directing the reader’s attention to the details that the Creator has made in just a few short days.

What I love most about this book are the beautiful, full-color pictures that each individually capture the beauty of the seven days of biblical creation.

Chapter 1 ~ The First Day: Creation of the Heavens and the Earth {the Foundation of it All} In this chapter you will find discussions on the solar system, the application of the second law of thermodynamics as it applies to the movement of the planets as well as a little about Albert Einstein.

Chapter 2: The Second Day, Creation of the Atmosphere and Water details the complex rain cycle that could not have happened by accident. This chapter also discusses the fact that 71% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, and this creates an atmosphere perfect for life.

Chapter 3: The Third Day, Creation of the Dry Land and Vegetation tells about the 258,000 varieties and uses of vegetation as a whole.

Chapter 4: The Fourth Day, Creation of the Sun, Moon, and Stars explains the “filling” that occurred after the first three days of “preparation”. Including touching on the orderly daily changes in sunrise and sunset times, the phases of the moon, tilt of the earth, and ocean tides, and the seasons and how they are created.

Chapter 5: The Fifth Day, Creation of the Birds and Fish we learn how the birds and fish were created to clean the earth. This chapter touches on the inherent “instinct” that the Creator placed inside of almost all living creatures.

The Sixth Day, Creation of Land Creatures and Humans tells the amazing design of the creatures who populate the earth including humans. You learn how each one is perfectly made to survive in its own environment. Several pages are devoted to the amazing design of the human body.

Chapter 7: The Seventh Day is the shortest chapter but reminds the reader of the importance for rest and for giving honor to our Creator.

While the book is useful and meaningful for a range of readers, it is most likely suited for second to sixth graders. However, several of the passages are written on a high school level. The book retails for just $18.95 plus shipping and would make an excellent book to have lying around on your coffee table.

I LOVE this book! Each chapter begins with the scripture reference for each day of creation giving you a visual to go along with the verse. The imagery and photographs are stunning and capture the eye. We had no problem devouring this book and reading through it in one setting as a family. After that I left the book on the fireplace mantle and I found the girls pulling it down to look at during a meal. It was a great time to have discussions and answer questions, especially from my younger girls.

This is a great book to give to anyone looking into doing a study on creation, especially when you add in the free Young Explorer’s Club workbook. This work book is a PDF file that has seven corresponding sections that go with each day and chapter of the book. It includes both open ended and discussion/comprehension questions and also the opportunity to do some really fun hands-on activities. An answer key and certificate of completion is also included in the PDF too.

We wholeheartedly give this book 2 thumbs up and will recommend it to anyone looking to discuss or teach about the seven day creation. It’s no wonder that Purposeful Design has won many awards for this great book including:

Be sure to check out what my Crewmates thought of this book by clicking the banner below.

Company ~ Purposeful Design

Product ~ Purposeful Design: Understanding the Creation

Price ~ $18.95 hard copy book

Ages ~ usable for all ages

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Wednesday, November 12, 2014

B is for balance

Balance beam is one of those apparatuses where you are on, or you are definitely off. There is very little in between. Well, except if you can levitate. {I have seen it done before, and it is simply amazing and boggles the mind and leaves you as the spectator wondering how in the world the child stayed on the beam}.

Mikayla has been off for a few weeks now. So much so that she avoided doing beam at all costs. There were many days during the late summer where she was told she would be staying after practice to finish her assignment…Sigh!

I praised and encouraged her, had her watch videos of herself competing the skill that had her mind blocked until I was at a loss for what to do to help her. I have read just about every article there is on mental blocks and how to get over them. Conferences with the coach and nothing seemed to be helping.

Then I backed off. I quit asking about beam after practice and focused on the events she was excelling on. Last season she had a mental block on vault and was not able to flip over it. Now she does it beautifully.

I began to pray specifically for beam for her in my prayer journal. I prayed over her key words and that she would remember to use them when things got tough. Then one day last week, she did 4 series on a beam with mats beneath it. Not going to tell a lie, but I did a happy dance Smile

Does she still have mental blocks, yes! We are not out of the woods yet, but we are making progress and heading in the right direction. And I will take that over no progress at all.

The first meet of the season is just 38 days away. Mikayla wants to compete all 4 events and qualify for State at this meet like she has done in years past. So, I will continue to support her and pray for her daily to find her balance as she competes in this sport she loves so much.

I am linking this post up with Kristi’s #abcblogging over at The Potter’s Hand Academy. Stop by and read everyone’s letter “B” for this week and link up your own post.

In case you missed my previous letters, I will list the links to previous weeks below.

A is for Apples

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

IXL ~ a TOS review

Hi there! Can I tell you about a online supplemental program that we love to use in our homeschool? It's called IXL and they have online learning programs for IXL Math and IXL Language Arts

IXL offers a comprehensive Online Math Memberships geared towards Preschool skills through 12th Graders. Just recently they added an Online Language Arts Membership section geared towards 2nd through 8th graders. The skills that IXL offers are based off of state standards if your state has them and our current state of VA does.

With IXL you get the following benefits from its program:

~practice that feels like play: gain a whole new appreciation for how fun learning can be!

~ content for your right and left side of your brain: an abundance of questions for every learning style, students can't help but build lasting skills and confidence.

~ practice that keeps you within the zone: Free from gimmicks or distractions, IXL is a place where every minute is spent truly learning.

~ learning that sticks with you: practice environment that rewards hard work and encourages students to learn from their mistakes.

~ numbers that tell a story : progress reports emailed weekly

We received a one year membership in exchange for our review and I have been using the math sections with my five daughters Marie (17), Madison (13), Mikayla (11), Montana (8) & McKenzie (5). Mikayla and Montana have also been using the LA Arts component at the 6th and 2nd grade levels. Memberships starts at $9.95 per month or $79. per year for one child for Math only, Math AND Language Arts, costs $129. Each additional child is just $2.00 per month or $20.00 per year.

Membership benefits include:

- Comprehensive coverage of K–12 math curriculum. Your kids won't miss a thing!
- Interactive language arts exercises for grades 2–4.
- Unlimited questions in over 2,000 skills.
- Fun and colorful practice formats.
- Questions that adapt to your child's ability, increasing in difficulty as they improve.
- Immediate feedback and question-specific explanations to solidify understanding of each concept.
- Audio for all pre-K to first-grade math skills.
- Weekly e-mail updates on your child's progress.
- Informative, detailed reports pointing out successes and trouble spots.
- Awards and certificates for you and your children to print out as they reach important milestones.
- iPad app for mobile math practice.

Setting up the account was quick and easy. Just log on to the website and fill out the parent information to create a master account. Once that is done you have the opportunity to enroll each of your children. I created a profile for each of the girls and they picked their favorite picture to recognize their profile. I really liked this for McKenzie. She knows how to read and write her first name, which begins with an "F", but I think the picture helps to reinforce that this is her special account.
This review came at an opportune time for us since Marie was brushing up on math skills for the ACT test. She was able to go through the sections she needed refreshing on and I am pleased as punch as it helped her raise her composite math score to meet the benchmark for college level math, YES! She should have no problem testing into Math classes when she starts at Liberty in the Fall of 2015.
Madison, who is my 8th grader this year has been using the iXL for Algebra 1. I love that she gets a double dose of math throughout the week. We had a bit of a hiccup at the start of the year and had to switch programs, but now with the addition of iXL she is back on track and math is not such a chore for her.
Mikayla and Montana are both currently working a year ahead in math, so I wanted them to do grade level math review. Our current math program is quite comprehensive in my view, so I just wanted to reinforce the skills that they already learned last year to make sure they were solid. For Mikayla that means really drilling her fractions and greatest/least common multiples and for Montana working with fact families and line graphs.
McKenzie is solidly working within the Kindergarten section and excelling. She amazes me with her ability to log on and just pick up where she left off. It's all fun and games to her and she loves the challenge of some of the sections. I love it because she is learning and excelling.
IXL uses the "smart score" system for its program to help with mastery of skills. Basically, the child starts by answering easy problems for the skill being learned. The more answers they get correct and their "smart score" will rise. If you miss a problem your score will decrease a little but you have the opportunity to raise it back up. 100 points on the "smart score" meter means that the skill has been mastered and your child would then earn an award.Because we have access to every level of math offered, it has been great to have the girls practice a skill on something they are currently struggling with now.

An awards board is available for every level of Math including preschool. It is an incentive system! similar to a sticker chart that is meant to motivate your child to keep practicing. Prizes are given out for mastering certain skills which is fun and you can also get an award for the amount of time you have been practicing a certain skill or the number of questions that have been answered. The award section is all about trying to keep the children engaged and learning and quite possibly McKenzie's favorite part. And who doesn't like stickers!

Mikayla and Montana used the LA section for review on the days when we missed using our own LA program because we ran out of time or just needed to be out of the house. I loved that I could have Mikayla log in on the iPad and she could get in 20-30 minutes of LA review on the way to the gym before practice, especially on Thursdays. Montana uses the 2nd grade program and this year it is the perfect amount of work for her. While she prefers our current program we use, I like that this option is available for those busy days.
Overall, we are all thrilled with the content of IXL and what the whole program has to offer for our family. I am so glad to have been chosen for this review and I definitely think you should check it out for yourself and see if it is a fit for your family! I have not found anything with the program that I dislike and I know we will be continuing to use this subscription until it ends and at that point I will be purchasing yearly subscriptions for my girls.
When you find something that works for your homeschool and children it is not hard to spend the money on it! Be sure to read the reviews of my fellow CrewMates by clicking on the banner below to see what they think.

Company ~ IXL
Product ~ IXL Math and IXL Language Arts
Price ~ Memberships starts at $9.95 per month or $79.per year for one child. Each additional child is just $2.00 per month or $20.00 per year.

Ages ~ preschool – 12th for Math, 2nd –8th for LA

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