Tissue Paper Wreath!

Mikaela made this super easy, super cute tissue paper wreath this weekend! It was an idea that I saw on Pinterest and sent to her. It uses minimal supplies, took her around 2 hours total, and can be used for all sorts of decorating!

Supplies Needed:

• an old cardboard box or piece of cardboard {we used an Amazon box}
• tissue paper in any color {we chose turquoise and gold}
• hole puncher
• scissors

Step One:

Trace a large circle on your cardboard box. Next, trace a smaller circler inside the large circle. We used mixing bowls in two sizes. Use whatever size you want your wreath to be! {You don't want it too thick, or it will be hard to punch holes in the middle.}

Step Two:

Using a hole puncher, punch holes all over the cardboard wreath. Don't punch them too close together, as the tissue paper is really fluffy!

Step Three:

Cut your tissue paper into 5 inch squares. Take the middle of a square of tissue paper and twist, making a flower shape.

Step Four:

Poke the pointy end of the tissue paper through the holes in the wreath, alternating colors. Pull tightly so that tissue paper won't fall out.

Step Five:

Enjoy your beautiful wreath!

You could use pastels for a spring or Easter wreath to hang on your door! Mikaela is hanging her wreath in her bedroom. She enjoyed this simple project - all except the hole punching part! Punching holes in cardboard is not easy. Her hand was a little sore!

Linking up with Blogging Through the Alphabet!

Demme Learning: Math-U-See - Primer & Digital Pack {TOS Review}

I was super excited to review Demme Learning's Math-U-See Primer & Digital Pack with my 5 year old son, Silas. He shows many signs of dyslexia {although he has never been tested}, and letter and number recognition has been difficult for him. I have read that Math-U-See is one of the recommended math curricula for children with dyslexia, and I have been longing to try it with him.

What I Received:

I received the Primer Universal Set, which includes an Instruction Manual, Student Workbook, Instruction DVD, Integer Block Set, and 12 months of access to the Digital Pack. The Primer Universal set sells for $131.

The Primer Digital Pack includes the following:

• instruction videos
• instruction manual in pdf
• lesson solutions
• skip counting songs {mp3}
• songbook pdfs
• digital manipulatives
• practice worksheets

How We Used Math-U-See Primer:

Silas used this every day for the duration of the review, and we plan to continue using it every day! I let Silas watch the instruction video online {through the Digital Pack} before he started a lesson. We then worked through the practice pages in the student workbook. We used the integer blocks a few times a week to reinforce concepts.

I used the Digital Pack quite a bit. I have never even opened the DVD with the instruction videos! It is so much easier to pull up the instruction videos on my computer {and I do not normally like to utilize online learning}. I did not use any of the extra worksheets, because Silas has not needed any extra practice yet. They are nice to have, though, because I'm sure in the future he will need them. We have not listened to the skip counting songs, either, because he isn't skip counting yet. {We are still working on counting!}

The Digital Manipulatives are really neat. It's nice to use them sometimes in place of the actual blocks. This is a great alternative for parents who don't want to buy the Integer Block Set at $80.{I had a difficult time getting them to work on Internet Explorer, but when I opened them in my Chrome browser, they worked beautifully.}

Silas had a hard time navigating the digital manipulatives, so I would do it for him. He would "help" me pull them onto the board. He preferred the block set. Actually, he and his little brother, Titus, loved to "build" with the integer blocks!

How Do We Like Math-U-See?

I love Math-U-See, and I plan to continue the Primer level with him. I also plan to start the next level, Alpha, with him this fall. {I will also use the Primer with Titus this fall. I think he will do wonderfully with this gentle introduction to math.}

Silas loves Math-U-See, as well. He has really learned so much. I am very impressed with the hands-on approach to learning math and numbers. Silas really enjoyed using the Integer Blocks to learn two-digit numbers. For example, we played a game with two set of cards, each set numbered 0-9. He flipped over a card for the tens row and a card for the ones row. He then had to "build" the number with the tens and ones blocks. Finally, he had to say the number to me. This really helped him to understand two digit numbers.

The Digital Pack is pretty amazing. In fact, I can't imagine using Math-U-See without it! The instruction videos are so convenient! I also enjoyed playing around with the Digital Manipulatives and letting Silas tell me what number I built. Having extra practice worksheets at my fingertips to print out whenever I may need them is also very nice! I do not enjoy searching for extra worksheets, and these are just like the student workbook pages {of course, with different problems!}. It will be nice to have the consistency for Silas.

The skip counting songs are going to be a lot of fun when we start learning how to skip count! In fact, I may let my 8 year old, Mercie, listen to them. She could use the extra practice, and I love teaching through songs! I especially like that there is a version with Christian lyrics.

Math-U-See has been an asset to our homeschool, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to review this program. I think we have found what works for us! In fact, I am planning to use Math-U-See with all of my children next year.

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Week in Review {March 7-11}

We completed our third week of homeschool in North Carolina this week! The weather has been much nicer, so we have been outside quite a bit and {found and} visited the park several times.

Family Learning:
In history this week, we read about Jacob and Esau, Gilgamesh, and the Assyrians. The kids made notebook pages, did copy-work, and filled out their maps. We also talked about the 12 sons of Jacob and what their names mean. We are still *loving* BiblioPlan!

We started artist study this week, journeying more into Charlotte Mason's methods. We are reading about Claude Monet in these two books:

            

We are also doing copy-work with some of Monet's quotes from Homeschool Copywork {a crew review coming soon!}

We reviewed memory work- Matthew 6:5-15, the books of the Bible, continents and oceans. I hope to add a little more memory work to our Morning Meeting, including poetry!

I started reading "Grammar-Land" to Mercie and Eli. It's a living grammar! I was excited to find it for $5.99 on Amazon. The story goes through the Parts-of-Speech as they stand before Judge Grammar and defend their words. It's a cute story. I am having Mercie and Eli keep a spiral notebook with drawing and notes to help them.

Mikaela - 7th grade
Mikaela has been working in Principals of Mathematics for the past few months. This is a really solid pre-algebra math program that is Biblically based. It explains why we will need math in real life and uses real life scenarios for the math problems. She started Apologia's Writers in Residence this week {another review item} which will take the place of her grammar. In science, she has been reading through "It Couldn't Just Happen" and working in her Fun-Schooling Journal. She is always telling me interesting facts that she's learned. I love when my kids love what they are learning. She finished reading "Door in the Wall" and the literature guide from Memoria Press this week. This was a really good book! It was one she wasn't sure she would like, but ended up loving!

Eli - 5th grade
Eli has been reading through Life of Fred: Fractions, and is nearly finished. He will be using A+ Interactive Math {yet another review item} in a few weeks to review and solidify his knowledge of fractions and decimals. He has been reading "Robin Hood" and using a literature guide from Memoria Press. He is really enjoying the book!

Mercie - 2nd grade
Mercie has been reviewing Times Tales, a video that uses stories to teach the multiplication tables. She has already memorized Part 1, so next week, we will begin Part 2! She also completes a page in Singapore math each day. This week, she worked on counting and writing money. She also works in her cursive workbook and spelling journal each day.

Silas - Kindergarten
Silas has been learning how to write and read 2 digit numbers in Math U See. We are also learning to count by 10's, and he can count to 100 with help from me. He is also doing pretty well with Logic of English's Foundations A. He gets to play games and move around while learning phonograms, so that's always a good thing. He has copy-work each day from Homeschool Copywork - a simple phrase, such as "A is for Airplane" with a picture to color.

Life Skills & Handicrafts:

I hope to add this to each week in review! Some handicrafts we did this week were making these cool penny spinners, creating a mosaic with sticky shapes {Silas and Titus}, starting a needlepoint project {Mercie}, cooking lasagna {Mikaela}, making paracord bracelets {Eli}, and working on a stop-motion video {Eli and Mikaela}. The kids also did their chores, which include folding and putting away clothes and towels, washing dishes, cleaning up toys and making their beds.  

 

Habit Training:

We have been working on the habits of perfect execution and thoroughness. The kids are doing much better at writing neatly and organizing their notebook pages. I do have to remind them, but they have really started doing their best work. It shows in their school work!

 

Nature Study:

We haven't been doing formal nature since arriving in North Carolina. We plan to begin again next week. We did go to the park several times and look at the different trees there. We looked for birds, but there is a strange absence of them here! The kids ripped up some weeds and examined the roots, even finding the tap roots on some. We looked at clouds, watched it rain, and observed the wind. Hmm, I guess we did more nature study than I realized!

 

And...I won a giveaway this week! I was so excited, because I had forgotten that I had even entered. I won these wonderful living books:

Ordinary People Change the World by Brad Meltzer

 

I love adding beautiful living books to our ever-growing library!

 

How was your week?

 

 

 

 



Easy Peasy Penny Spinners!

This week, Mercie, Silas, and Titus made these Easy Peasy Penny Spinners. Seriously, it was one of the easiest projects we have ever made, and they have played with these non-stop! I consider this a "handicraft", because toy-making is a skill that will benefit your children all throughout their lives! Plus, we got to recycle a pancake-on-a-stick box.

 

Here is what you need:

 

an old cereal box or cardboard of similar weight

a cup and pencil for tracing

scissors for cutting

markers and stickers for decorating

a sharp knife

a penny {or nickel...or dime...or quarter...}

Step One - Trace around a cup with a pencil for the outline.

Step Two: Cut the circle out. It doesn't have to be perfect.

Step Three: Decorate your circle. My kids used markers and star stickers.

Step Four: Cut a small slit in the center of your circle. Push a penny through.

Step Five: Spin!!

My kids had a blast with these penny spinners.

 

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Blogging Through the Alphabet: S is Pencil {S}harpener

As I was trying to think of a good "S" word for this week's Blogging Through the Alphabet Link-Up, I kept thinking about pencil {s}harpener!

 

I received this pencil sharpener from Classroom Friendly Supplies to review. I was so excited, because we have been through a ton of pencil sharpeners! I have yet to find one that can withstand the use of 5 children daily, one of them being a destructive, I mean, curious 3 year old!

Well, I have finally found the perfect pencil sharpener, and I am not exaggerating!

{Aren't these colors just lovely?}

 

The first thing I noticed when I opened the box was how heavy this pencil sharpener is! It has a sturdy metal frame, painted in some awesome colors. This sharpener is also super simple to use. My 5 year old can operate it, no problem! The tray is also super easy to pull out and dump when it gets full.

 

One of things I love about this sharpener is how quiet it is! Much better than a noisy electric sharpener. It is very easy to operate, and it automatically stops when the pencil is sharp! That way your kids don't break the lead off inside the sharpener!

 

Another thing I love is how portable it is! We can tote it all over the house so we can sharpen a pencil wherever we are! If you don't want it portable, it can be mounted.

 

At $24.99, this is a great deal! I have spent more on electric pencil sharpeners that didn't do half as well as this one! I definitely recommend this to any homeschool family!

 

 

Check out their website for some more neat classroom friendly supplies!

Linking up with Meg and Cristi at Blogging Through the Alphabet:

 

 

 

Grapevine Studies: New Testament Overview Part 1{TOS Review}

I read many reviews last year from TOS Review Crew members about Grapevine Studies, and I was very interested in trying it out. You can imagine my excitement when I was given the opportunity to review Grapevine Studies' New Testament Overview, Part 1.

 

What is Grapevine Studies?

 Grapevine Studies is a Bible study method that incorporates hearing the Word of God, stick-figuring the passage, and discussing the scripture - Hear, Draw, Review. Your child will learn major events and people of the Bible, as well as memorize many verses. They also incorporate a timeline, which helps your child to see the "big picture". The older the child, the more they will learn, like Biblical geography and how to use study tools, like a Bible dictionary, concordance, and topical Bible. 

 What Did I Receive?
 

I received a digital copy of the Beginner's Level {and Traceable}, Level 1, Level 3, and Level 4 {all four levels included the Teacher's Manual.} The New Testament Overview, Part 1 for levels 1-4 covers the Birth of John to Jesus's Ministry. The NT Overview, Part 1 for Beginners covers the Birth of John to the Apostles. I will admit, I didn't realize that the Beginner's Level was not compatible with Levels 1-4. This was an oversight on my part, as it clearly states that on the website. I was a little disappointed, as my family does multi-age, family-integrated homeschool, and we wouldn't be able to use this all together. However, I decided to combine Mercie {my 2nd grader} with Silas {my Kindergartner} in the Beginner's Level, and Mikaela and Eli used Level 4 and Level 3, respectively.

{Level 4}
 

Level 3 and 4 have only one difference - Level 3 has a Student Review page, where Level 4 has a Quest page. The Quest page has your child use a Topical Bible, concordance, and Bible dictionary to look up words, events and people, and scriptures. Level 3 is recommended for ages 10-13, and Level 4 is recommended for ages 13 and up.

 

The Beginner Level is recommended for ages 3-5; however, my 8 year old did not find it too simple. She enjoyed the short Bible readings and the ability to answer the "easier" discussion questions.

{Beginner Level}

How Did We Use Grapevine Studies?
 

I would read the verses aloud and ask a few questions, and then the kids would draw the stick-figures on their worksheet. It is recommended to use a whiteboard and dry-erase markers to illustrate the stick-figures representing each passage of scripture, but I just let my kids look in the Teacher's Manual at the example and copy it. I let them use markers, which somehow added to the fun. Some days, we would have a timeline to complete; other days, we would have a Student Review page or Quest page.

This did not take us long each day at all! I would say it took around 10 minutes for the Beginner Level, and no more than 20 minutes for Levels 3 and 4.

Grapevine Studies Levels 1-4 can be used as 12 weekly lessons {for a Sunday School class or a co-op, maybe} or 45 daily lessons. We used it about 3-4 days a week, so it could last us 15 weeks possibly! If you used it 5 days a week, it would last 9 weeks.

 

The Beginner Level can be used as 11 weekly lessons or 22 daily lessons. We used it twice a week, so it will stretch to 11 weeks for us. If you used this 5 days a week, it would last a little over 4 weeks

What Did We Like About Grapevine Studies?

The timeline is very helpful for children who may not be familiar with the Bible. My kids are very familiar with the Bible, but they still enjoyed filling out the timeline. In fact, Eli said the timeline was his favorite part!

My children loved drawing the stick figures, and my 5 year old enjoyed the fact that he could draw almost as well as his 8 year old sister. The drawings are simple enough for a young child to copy without much help.

I also like the shorter readings for the Beginner Level. Sometimes, there was only 2 or 3 verses to read. This ensured that my 5 year old would pay attention without zoning out. He has a difficult time listening to long passages. I also liked the discussion questions and answers provided.

 My kids really enjoy Grapevine Studies; so much, in fact, that we will be using some Topical studies pretty soon. I will make sure that all the levels I order will be compatible this time! I will also be ordering the physical set instead of the digital set; with 5 kids, it was way too much printing for me and my little printer.

 Would You Like to Try Grapevine Studies?
 

If you're not sure where to start, or which Level you will need, there is a very helpful chart on their website.

 

 

 

It would be more cost-effective to buy the physical copies if your children are in different levels. The physical copy of the student  book is $12.50 and $10.00 for the e-book; the teacher's guide is $22.50 for a physical copy and $18.00 for the e-book. I would much prefer the physical copy myself!

Check out the other Bible studies Grapevine Studies has to offer on their website!

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Here to Help Learning {TOS Review}

 

I was excited to review Here to Help Learning, a Biblically-based homeschool writing program, with my three oldest children - Mikaela, grade 7; Eli, grade 5; and Mercie, grade 2. We have never used a formal writing program before, and I was curious to see how my children would enjoy it.

 

I received a free online membership to the Here to Help Learning website. Mercie used the Flight 1 Paragraph Writing level, and Eli and Mikaela used the Flight 1 Essay Writing level. {You can also buy the printed workbooks and DVD sets. I have more information on this at the bottom of this post.}

 

 

How does Here to Help Learning work?

 

Here to Help Learning is divided into two main levels: Paragraph Writing {grades 1-3} and Essay Writing {grades 4-6}. There are 3 "Flights" within each level, each one building upon the previous flights. Click on the picture below to take you to "Choosing a Skill Level & Flight".

 

 

Here to Help Learning uses a combination of methods to teach writing. There are filmed instructions, worksheets, scripted lessons for the parent/teacher, and meaningful writing projects. This can be used in a homeschool or co-op setting. Your child will complete 6 writing projects in a year. {There is a handy chart HERE if you would be interested in seeing what projects will be completed.}

 

Your child will first watch the video which is broken into 5 parts:

Pre-flight Checklist

Flight Check-In

Take-Off

Full Throttle

Flying Solo

 

The Pre-Flight Checklist is mainly for the parents, a reminder of the items and worksheets you will need for the lesson. The Flight Check-In only takes a few minutes. You will pass out worksheets and recite the memory verse - Colossians 3:17. Take Off is often a writing warm-up exercise. You child will look at a funny picture - it may be a cat dunking a basketball, or something similar - and they will have 7 minutes to write a story using the picture. My kids thought this was fun. My youngest felt pressured by the time limit, so I didn't time her. I did ask her to write quickly, though. Other times, the Take-Off is a writing process exercise or game. Full Throttle is the longest {and often funniest} part of the video. Your child will review the steps of the writing process and discuss the step they will be doing for that lesson. Flying Solo is when your child completes his or her assignment for the week. My children would sometimes do that assignment right away, and sometimes they would wait until the next day.

 

{Click to Enlarge} 

 

There is also a free, printable Quick Reference Language Charts - 26 pages of punctuation and grammar help! Your child can put this in the back of their binder to have as a handy tool.

 

 

The Writing Process is taught in a really fun way. There are quirky hand motions to help your child remember each step. She also reviews the writing process during each lesson, so your child gets a lot of exposure to it.

 

What did we like about Here to Help Learning?

During the Take-Off for Flight 1, Paragraph Writing, Mercie's favorite part was playing the game, "Sentence, No Sentence". I had to give her sentences and phrases, and she had to give a thumbs up for a sentence and thumbs down for a phrase. Next, she had to give me sentences and phrases, and I had to decided if it was a sentence or not. Finally, I would give her a phrase, and she had to make it into a sentence. This gentle grammar was perfect for Mercie, as she still has a little trouble distinguishing phrases from sentences.

 

 

My kids enjoyed the videos! Beth Mora is very funny and engaging. They often laughed their way through the videos! The writing warm-ups were fun for them, and they are still working on their final projects.

 

In the Flight 1, Essay Writing level, Mikaela and Eli were introduced to the Top Ten Literary Techniques. They often had to use a certain literary technique, like a simile, in their writing warm-up. This was a great introduction for my kids, as we have never discussed these in depth.

How did we use Here to Help Learning? Do we plan to continue?

We used Here to Help Learning once or twice a week, depending on whether the kids completed their assignments the same day or waited until the next day. Considering we have never had a formal writing program before, I think my children are doing well with their writing. They don't enjoy writing formally, though. My kids would much rather write creatively, without any rules or processes to follow. With Mercie being in 2nd grade, I don't think she needs any formal writing lessons. She isn't interested in completing her writing project, so I am not pushing it. We will continue to play "Sentence, No Sentence", as she enjoys it and it is helpful to her. I would like Eli and Mikaela to be exposed to the writing process and literary techniques, however. I am going to have them complete their writing project.

 

If you have any questions, click HERE for the FAQs page. They are answered very thoroughly.

The online membership is very reasonable at $6.99 a month per family {for access to all 6 years of writing lessons}. You will have to print worksheets and resources, and Beth has broken the cost down HERE. The physical set is $89.99 for six DVDs and one student workbook {a year of writing lessons}. Extra student workbooks are $19.99 each.

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