Are you just beginning your homeschool journey and feeling a bit overwhelmed? Are you a seasoned homeschool mom and your homeschool isn’t running how you envisioned it? Do you enjoy and delight in your children as you teach and guide them? Maybe you desire a break, to step away and refresh your heart as you begin this new school year that lies ahead.

I recently had the opportunity to read How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids written by Rachael Carman and published by Apologia Press.  Rachael is a homeschool mom of seven who has been that new homeschool mom and has been the mom who finds she is missing her children even though she is with them every day. She has wonderful words of encouragement and wisdom to share!

Using the acrostic H.E.A.R.T. , Mrs. Carmen shares about having a heart for God, enriching your marriage, accepting your children, releasing them and teaching them the truth. She does this in a manner that makes you feel you are sharing a cup a tea and chatting with a friend.  At the end of the chapters, you are invited to do a Heart Check to help you reflect on the different aspects of having a heart for your children.

How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids is a conversation with the reader that offers encouragement. It would be a great book to share with a friend just beginning the journey. Or perhaps sharing this book with a fellow homeschool mom and reading it together as a refreshment in times of losing focus in guiding your children.

How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids is available from Apologia Press for$13.00.  Want to learn a bit more about this resource?  You can view the Table of Contents or read a sample chapter! Take a moment to take a peek and be encouraged.

Also head over to the Crew and see what other are saying about How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids.

Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Crew,  I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of review. No compensation was made. The opinions/thoughts expressed in this post are my own.

David Ponder is back.  This time the fate of mankind is in his hands.

This is mankind’s last chance. Centuries of greed, pride, and hate have sent humanity hurtling toward disaster, and far from its original purpose. There is only one solution that can reset the compass and right the ship, and it consists of only two words.

With time running out, it is up to David Ponder and a cast of history’s best and brightest minds to uncover this solution before it is too late. The catch? They are allowed only five tries to discover the answer.

David Ponder was first introduced in Mr. Andrews’ book, The Traveler’s Gift. I had not read any previous writings of Mr. Andrews so I wasn’t sure what to expect in The Final Summit. Self-help/motivational books are not the genre I enjoy. Reading The Final Summit did nothing to change my opinion.

Ponder is faced with the quest of finding the answer that is going to save humanity. I think God has that taken care of. He saved humanity when Jesus died on the cross. A “two word answer” obtained by the travelers is not going to save humanity.

I know that God uses man to carry out His will. However, He isn’t waiting on me to find the answer. God is all powerful and all knowing. God is sovereign.  I really struggled to get beyond that thought and find value in The Final Summit. I think we must be very careful in how we offer people “help” and “motivation”. We should always seek to lead people to Christ and finding our answers in Him. Not in man.

Seeking man for the salvation of humanity is always going to leave you seeking more help. The answer to saving humanity is falling at the feet of the Savior.

If you want to read a bit and see if this book would interest you, you can go to Thomas Nelson and get a 35 page peek inside.

**Disclaimer: As a member of BookSneeze.com, I received  a complimentary copy of this book for review. The thoughts/opinions expressed in this post are my own. No compensation was made.

www.ClassicalAcademicPress.com

Recently, I was researching Latin courses to decide what would meet our needs and our financial limits. What an amazing blessing when I had the opportunity to review a product from Classical Academic Press!  After looking over their resources and the exposure my children had to Latin and other languages, I decided the Latin for Children would be the best choice.

When possible, I believe that starting at the beginning is the best option so we chose Latin for Children, Primer A Mastery Bundle. LFC (Latin for Children) Primer A is an incremental curriculum that can be begun as early as 3rd grade. In the first book of a three year series, your child will be introduced to basic Latin vocabulary, grammar  and English derivatives. LFC is designed in such a way that parents new to Latin can learn and engage in this program with their child. The presentation is simple yet engaging.

The main text of this program is the LFC, Primer A Student text and workbook. In this workbook you will find exercises, test and a very helpful reference section. Mnemonic aids are used to help the student in quick retention of grammar and vocabulary. Here is what LFC, Primer A has to offer:

*32 Chapters (suggested learning is one chapter per week)

*Explanations of grammar written so the child can do it independently

*240 high frequency Latin words are taught

*You can choose your pronunciation: classical or ecclesiastical

*Free resources are available online to enhance the curriculum (games, additional worksheets, flashcards)

Thankfully, for parents like me, a LFC, Primer A Answer Key is provided as well. Another great aspect of this program is the DVD and CD . The DVD gives lesson by lesson training from the author and 2 students. The Chant CD is very helpful to retention of vocabulary words; both pronunciations are provided.

A couple more items in LFC, Primer A Mastery Bundle are the History Reader and Student Activity Book. The History Reader allows the student to read actual text using the vocabulary they have learned. The Student Activity Book contains mazes, crosswords puzzles and more to give even greater exposure to Latin.

Purchasing Information:

Latin for Children, Primer A Mastery Bundle is $99.95 which includes the student text, answer key, history reader, DVD , Chant CD and student activity book. What a great price!  You can also choose the Basic Bundle for $76.95 or the items individually. You can make this work for any budget especially considering the free resources LFC provides.

Classical Academic Press provides you with an opportunity to take a peek inside the curriculum. As you read more about each product, you can view a sample of each product to get a feel for the program. There are also more videos available on other resources from Classical Academic Press.

What do we think of this program?

I had two of my children use LFC, Primer A Mastery Bundle. Latin has become one of their favorite subjects to study! I have a 5th grader and 6th grader using this program. I almost regretted not going with a higher level of Latin. However, they have done really well with Primer A and are learning so much Latin!

It is a very independent program and they have not needed my help at all. With a younger student, he may need a bit of guidance. My girls enjoy the variety of activities offered in the student text and activity book. They find the DVD instruction easy to understand and helpful. They look forward to episodes of “How the West was Unus”; an entertaining show that we can see snippets of as the lessons progress.

It is possible that we will need to purchase another Chant CD.  At various times throughout the day, I will hear chanting going on. They happily let it play and repeat as they go about their work. After just a week of having the program, my 3 year old was chanting the conjugation of amo. I must admit, I find myself chanting along as well.

This review has been a difficult one because I worry that I won’t convey how pleased we are with the program. As finances allow, we will continue to use Latin for Children series and higher levels of Latin from Classical Academic Press.

I think this might capture my girls’ thoughts:

(I do not recommend clicking on any links following the above video.)

Still have questions? Head on over to the Crew! See what others are saying about Latin for Children, Song School,  and Latin Alive!

**Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Crew, I received a complimentary copy of this product. No compensation was made. The thoughts/opinions/experiences expressed in this post are my own.

Observing the Sabbath is a command from the Lord that we, as a body of believers, fail to give the obedience required. I began reading Sabbath prepared to be encouraged in observing the Sabbath, gaining a better understanding of the Sabbath and finding practical ideas/suggestions for the Sabbath.

I was sadly disappointed. Mr. Allender waxed philosophically with beautiful imagery and flowery words about the Sabbath. Many other authors were quoted sharing their thoughts of play, delight and joy on the Sabbath. We were warned not to be legalistic about the Sabbath and what it required.

Instead of an emphasis  on scripture dealing with the Sabbath, emphasis was placed on how we must find our joy and our delight on the Sabbath. That through our finding our joy and our delight, God would join us in that delight. As I read, I felt that Mr. Allender should have put more emphasis on our bringing joy, delight and glory to God on the Sabbath not ourselves.

I would not recommend Sabbath to anyone seeking to learn more about the Sabbath. I think under all the flowery words and quotes from other writing, that Mr. Allender wanted to express a  reverence for the Sabbath. Sadly, it was not accomplished.

**As a member of BookSneeze.com, I received a complimentary copy of this book for review. No other compensation was made. The opinions and thoughts expressed are my own.

KB Teachers is an online resource for teachers and parents; providing printable teaching tools and resources to enhance learning.

For your younger learners, KBTeachers offers worksheets to cover the basic skills; counting, shapes, colors, writing etc. They also offer the Alphabet Factory where you can design your own handwriting sheets; print and cursive.

Elementary ages have much available for them. Handwriting sheets can be created for them as well. One of the greatest resources from KB Teacher is the math resources. They have counting money worksheets, math worksheets with images and themed sheets for the seasons. They ones we used the most were they basic fact sheets. With a simple click of the “refresh” button, I could generate a new worksheet for my daughter.

KBTeachers also offers resources for middle to upper level learners. From science to grammar to history, there are worksheets, exams and activities. Answer keys are provided!

All the resources are easy to use. Select the worksheet you want, click print and you’re done!

KB Teacher  provides and updates some selections with the special season or holiday. Currently, they are providing resources for fall and Thanksgiving. Looking for some fun worksheets like mazes? Need some cute Thanksgiving invitations or posters? KB Teacher has them available!

Another great resource is the monthly webquests. Each month, KB Teacher worksheets or web adventures for special occasions such as “National Sandwich Day”. That was on November 3rd if you want to mark your calendar for next year. November 25th is Parfait Day. KB Teacher has a sheet with some basic information and then a few web links to learn more. A question sheet is provided for children to write about what they have learned. I have found that several of the web links are broken but hopefully will be updated soon!

Want to give KB Teacher a try? There is a selection of free resources. There is also a 10 day free trial you can sign up for but you need a PayPal account. If you choose to sign up with a credit card, there is a 30 day money back guarantee. The sign-up process could be improved as I don’t like giving account information for a  trial period.

If you are looking for printable resources for your learners, KB Teacher might be just what you are looking for!

Make sure you swing by the Crew and see what others have to say.

Our Land Publications takes an interesting approach to presenting history. There are several series to choose from with Our Land Publications; My California: The History of the Golden State was the series we were able to review.

What is so interesting about Our Land Publications approach? The information is presented through a “newspaper” geared toward upper elementary students. Yes, newspapers! I loved it. Each week the student gets a newspaper highlighting all the news from a time period in California state history. Information is presented chronologically. Your student may have an activity sheet to fill in the blanks to see what information she recalls from her newspaper or might fill out a map. The teacher is provided with discussion questions and answer keys.
Although this series is designed for upper elementary, it can easily be done with multiple ages. For the younger child, you can read the newspaper together. Older children can be challenged to research an article more in-depth. This series is also fabulous for independent study, as well. The possibilities are endless! This newspaper approach is great for someone who wants to spice up their textbook studies or one who needs a change of pace. My children were intrigued by the presentation and I look forward to seeing when our state series is available.
What does My California series provide?
*32 issues of newspapers
*Chronological presentation
*Geography study included
*Activities such as fill in the blank worksheets, crossword puzzles, etc.
*Mid-term and final exams
*Teacher manual with 350 pages of answers, discussion prompts, reference and more
My California Combination Pack is $65.00. This provides one student set and one comprehensive teacher’s manual. Additional student sets can be purchased for $19.90.
Our Land Publications also offer Our Land of Liberty Study and state studies on Illinois, Indiana and Texas!
These other products were reviewed by other crew members so make sure you head over and check them out!

**Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Homeschool Crew, I received a complimentary copy of this product for review. No compensation was made and the opinions express in this post are my own.

This phonics program uses a “computer game” format to engage all learning styles. Your child will encounter Vexor, a mischievous letter stealing virus. To successfully battle Vexor, your child must read, write and type to get the letters back. Each letter represents a “character” on the keyboard that has story to tell. If the letters are not recovered, then there is no story. So as your child recovers the letters, he is learning more phonics and has the ability to write more words; eventually reaching the point where he can write his own stories.

The program is broken into two parts. Levels 1-7, your child has the help of Lefty and Rightway to battle against Vexor the Virus. They are “talking hands” located near the onscreen keyboard.

In Levels 8-12, the child goes onto Vexor’s spaceship for the Spaceship Challenge where they will sharpen their skills.

Parents can track their child’s progress with a progress report that is provided; which allows you to see weak areas that need to be focused on.

Talking Fingers provides you with an opportunity to try Read, Write and Type out yourself! Just go here. A product tour is also available that breaks down the program and provides screen shots.

The Tribe’s Thoughts

I had my 7 year old beginning reader use this program. At first, they typing aspect of the program created a bit of stress for her. As I really wanted to utilize the program to reinforce her phonics and not typing, I told her not to worry about hand placement and just type the answers. She is still becoming familiar with the keyboard and can later work on proper hand placement.

At first she found the game entertaining and enjoyed playing. After that first week, however, she lost interest and did not want to play. I think a couple of factors came into play for her. There is a “delay” in the game. It will tell you to type “a”, “space”, “t”, space etc with a built in delay. Lydia would find a “typing rhythm” and type pretty fast. Although she was typing correctly, the game was slower to recognize her typing and would tell her she was wrong. She found it very frustrating.

The second factor is that she has not spent a lot of time on the computer. We are not a family that spends time playing online games or electronic games, etc. I don’t think for her that it was engaging or interesting. It just isn’t something that drew her interest.

I think it is a program that can really be a great tool for phonics reinforcement. It has built in aspects that will aid a child who hits a sound he isn’t succeeding with; give you several attempts, click on a picture to hear the sounds, etc. If my son had been the one in need of phonics help, he would have loved this program!

So make sure you go and try it out yourself! Also swing by the Homeschool Crew and see what other are saying about Read, Write and Type!

**Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Homeschool Review Crew, I received a complimentary copy of this product to review. No compensation was made and the thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.

Travel Kits: A Simple Way to Bless Others is an e-book from The Old Schoolhouse. It is a wonderful resource to have to help you share the love with your family and others.

Have you ever had a long road trip with a 3 year old? How about one with a 3 year old, a 5 year old, a toddler and a newborn? Oh, yes, you know what I’m talking about! Travel Kits will help make those long road trips a bit more fun for the family.

The idea of Travel Kits is to gather items, from coloring books to card games to funny glasses, wrap or package them in a fun way and give them to a family or your own when beginning a long trip. Or hey, even going to the doctor. Ever been in a waiting room long?

On the road trip every day the family, as a whole or individually, are given something to open and enjoy. If the road trip is shorter, you could have something to open every hour or at each stop. On a doctor’s visit, the “kits” maybe just be one or two things. A little something to help pass the time and keep hands busy and happy.

Travel Kits are not limited to your own family or even to children. You can prepare a travel kit for the college bound student who might need a little something each day as they adjust to being away from family, or maybe your sweet neighbor is going to be in the hospital for a bit. It could be your 6 year old is down with the flu. What a wonderful way to bless them with a “kit” to make these times a bit brighter.

Travel Kits is a thorough resource. Not only does it share the wonderful idea of these kits but it shares how and what to use. The e-book helps you to think about where the travel kit will be small car or big car? A family with older children or younger children? What to put into the kit for a girl or a boy?

It gives suggestion on presentation and packaging. This is one area I always need help in! There are so many ideas given on different items to include; edibles, books, recordings, games etc. Please note that many of the items mention can be pick up inexpensively at your local dollar store. Blessing others does not have to break the bank!

I found Travel Kits from The Old Schoolhouse to be a fabulous resource. I am thinking of so many ways to use this. I know my children would have a great time putting one together for others.

You can purchase the Travel Kits: A Simple Way to Bless Others  e-book from the The Old Schoolhouse Store and download it for only $12.45.