Live the Adventure of the Courageous Huguenots in St. Bartholomew's Eve from Heirloom Audio {Product Review}

Once again, I am thrilled to be able to review another amazing audiodrama from Heirloom Audio! This story brought to life a time in history I know every little about and it made me eager to search our more information about the time period. Unlike some of the other Heirloom Audio productions, the theme of this particular story really stuck with me and applied to my life right away. So I encourage you to stick around and read more about the latest release based on a novel by G.A. Henty...St. Bartholomew's Eve!

CashCrunch Careers: Helping You Explore the Possibilities {Product Review}

Although my oldest son is only twelve years old, it’s not too early to help him think about the things that he might like to do when he gets older. He has a lot of strengths and things he enjoys doing, and I’d like to show him how he can use those when picking a career for the future. We were recently given CashCrunch Careers from CashCrunch Games to review. My son and I both explored what this program has to offer and I’d like to share our review with you today.

Books of the Bible At-a-Glance~ Summary Sheets for Every Book in the Bible {Product Review}

I’m always looking for resources to assist in my personal Bible study, and for our school Bible lessons. We’ve recently been able to review the Book-By-Book Bible Printables from Teach Sunday School, and I’d like to take some time today to share our thoughts on this Bible resource.

About The Product

Book-By-Book Bible Printables from Teach Sunday School are a resource designed to help you understand the Bible better. They are as the company describes “One- page cheat sheets for

Forensic Faith for Kids {Product Review}

For the last several weeks, my son has been working through the book Forensic Faith for Kids from David C Cook and Case Makers Academy. This book is designed to help your children learn how to defend their Christian faith based on evidence. Because this is something that I believe is very important for any Christian to be able to do, I was curious about the book and today am sharing my review.

Strengthen Math Skills with I Know It {Product Review}

Whether you are wanting to have your children practice new math skills for mastery, review old skills, or have something to keep the skills strong during the school breaks or summertime, finding a math program that ISN'T a workbook can be challenging. We recently were introduced to I Know It and have been reviewing the program with both of my boys for the last several weeks. Today I'd like to share with you why this online math program has been working well for us!

About I Know It

I Know It is the latest offering from the creators of the award winning website Super Teacher Worksheets. (Read my review of THAT website too!) I Know It is an interactive math practice site for elementary aged children. Not only are their interactive lessons, but you are able to assign lessons for your children to do. The program also provides progress reports so you can check on how your child is doing. 

An Introduction to Latin Vocabulary with Picta Dicta Natural World from Roman Roads Media {Product Review}

We recently had the chance to review the Picta Dicta Natural World, a beginning Latin program from Roman Roads Media. The program is designed to be an introduction to Latin that is interactive. It is ideal for elementary-age students. We have had some experience with different Latin programs in the past and I was curious to see how this one compared, and to give my youngest son a chance to try his hand at foreign language for the first time.

About the Product

Picta Dicta Natural World is one of the Latin instruction products from Roman Roads Media. Designed to be an interactive introduction to Latin, it is ideal for elementary-age students. It focuses on vocabulary specific to the natural world. The students will learn the Latin (and

GrammarPlanet~ A Comprehensive Online Grammar Program...for Free! {a review}

Have you been looking for an in depth ONLINE Grammar curriculum that really gives a comprehensive curriculum? How about one that is free? For the last several weeks we have been reviewing GrammarPlanet, a program designed to help your child (or you!) master the mechanics of English. Let me share our review of this brand new program from the makers of the award winning Analytical Grammar!

About GrammarPlanet

GrammarPlanet is aimed for students aged 10-99+! It’s a free online curriculum designed to help anyone who desires to improve their English. Whether used by students in school, home, adults individually, or in a group, GrammarPlanet is sure to get them mastering the mechanics of English.

Take Reading Skills to New Heights with Workbooks from Reading Eggs {Curriculum Review}

My #1 recommended reading resource for elementary aged children is Reading Eggs. This online reading program well deserves their multiple awards and it's hard to think that you could improve on the program--until I discovered the 200 Essential Reading Skills workbooks created by Reading Eggs to expand their reading curriculum. For the last several weeks, we have been reviewing 200 Essential Reading Skills for Third Grade, a 36-week comprehensive curriculum and I'm eager to share my review with you.
About the Product
200 Essential Reading Skills for Third Grade is based on the multi-award winning reading program Reading Eggspress (geared for grades 2-5). With 200 pages of assignments based on comprehension, spelling, and grammar, it’s like getting three books in one! This is a comprehensive 36-week curriculum geared to build the key skills students need to succeed in reading. When combined with the online Reading Eggspress lessons, this program is an incredibly strong boost to language skills! In fact, with Reading Eggspress, your student can improve reading skills in just 15 minutes a day!

Upcoming Reviews for September/October 2018: What Are We Working On?

By now I’m sure that a lot of you have kicked off your new school year. Here at the farm our new year isn’t going to start for a bit longer, because we are still in the middle of hay harvest season when all hands are on deck. We are still, however, working through some review products which help keep us prepared for when we do start our official school year. I forgot to share our reviews for all of August, so make sure you check our my reviews of an Old Testament Activity-Pak, a Paddington Bear unit study, and the book Godschooling! Here are the products that we have in house right now for September and October 2018 reviews!

UPCOMING REVIEWS FOR SEPTEMBER 2018

God Schooling by Julie Polanco {Book Review}

When it comes to being homeschool parents, you can never learn too much. Just as our children increase in knowledge, we as homeschool teachers chase after it too. We desire to present the best education we can to our children. As a Christian homeschooler, I desire to create the best GOD-centered education that I can. I recently was given a copy of the book God Schooling: How God Intended Children to Learn by Julie Polanco to review and hoped that it would be a great encouraging resource about how to bring God more into our homeschool experience!

About the Author

Julie Polanco is an author, educator, and homeschooler. She and her husband have homeschooled their four children from the beginning, with their first graduating in 2016. She is passionate about homeschooling and Christian living. She is the author of several other non-fiction books and works as ghostwriter as well. She maintains a blog at www.juliepolancobooks.com where she focuses on homeschooling, Christian living, and the writer life.

Her latest book God Schooling: How God Intended Children to Learn is designed to be a guide for homeschool parents who are asking the

Exploring Paddington with Branch Out World {Product Review}

Do you love the stories of Paddington as much as I do? There is just something about that darling bear which warms my heart. We were recently asked to review a unit study of Paddington Bear from Branch Out World, a British company.

About Branch Out World

Branch Out World is a British company producing educational resources like the Picture Book Explorers series. These are a collection of literature based unit studies created around beautifully illustrated picture books with links to the British Isles. These are all downloadable units that incorporate reading aloud with a variety of coordinating fun and educational activities.

Creating an Old Testament Activity-Pak with Home School In the Woods {Product Review}

I have written many times about unit studies and lapbooks and why our family enjoys them. One of the favorite companies for us is Home School in the Woods. We have reviewed several of their products over the last few years with great success. We recently had another chance to review on of their great products and have been enjoying putting together another one of the Hands-on History Activity-Paks, this time working through The Old Testament.   

About The Old Testament Hands-on History Activity-Pak

The Old Testament is just one of the many products in the Hands-on History Activity-Paks series from Home School in the Woods. Other products in the series include: Make-A-State, The New Testament, Artists, and Composers. Each of the Activity-Paks includes projects on the topic that together create an entire lapbook. Providing a hands-on experience for gaining and demonstrating knowledge on a subject. Home School in the Woods prides themselves on being a hands-on history company with multiple product lines. 
Every Activity-Pak includes step-by-step directions for each project, directions and photos for all the aspects of the lap book assembly, and all the printable pages needed to complete each activity. They can be used to accompany any text you are using--curriculum, unit studies, or just books in general! Another option is to use the lap book as a guide for your studies, simply add the reading and research each project as you do it! (Scripture references accompany the New and Old Testament projects.)
The Old Testament Activity-Pak includes 15 different lapbook covering different parts of the Old Testament including:

Learning About Science Collection, Level 3 from WriteBonnieRose {Product Review}

There are times when at the early elementary levels, you want a science program that is more of an introduction to a subject over rigorous study. But perhaps you desire something that allows you to fill it with loads of library books, Netflix programs, and other resources. Let me introduce you to WriteBonnieRose and her Learning About Science Collection, Level 3 (Cursive), where your children can explore life science, physical science, and earth science in a gentler more relaxed method.

About the Learning About Science Collection

The Learning About Science Collection, Level 3 from WriteBonnieRose contains seven books of science study. Included in the collection are:

Smart Kidz Radio~ Enjoyable Family-Friendly Entertainment {Product Review}

Do you ever get disheartened with the music that is geared for kids these days? It can be very hard to find something for your children to listen to that is actually age appropriate, positive, full of strong morals, and encouraging…especially something available in a streaming style with a Christian based message. Enter my review of Smart Kidz Radio from Smart Kidz Media.

About Smart Kidz Radio

Smart Kidz Radio is the newest venture by Smart Kidz Media to offer family friendly and enjoyable entertainment to even the youngest of listeners. Smart Kidz Radio was designed to help children learn valuable life skills and empower them with positive self-esteem, something seriously lacking in modern entertainment. The station also seeks to promote strong moral values and encouraging positive character traits in the young listeners. It is unusual for internet radio in that it features hundreds of original songs and stories all promoting values!

Upcoming Reviews for July/August 2018: What Are We Working On?

Happy July! I cannot believe it is already the middle of July, can you? I was shocked to see the Back-to-School supplies rapidly filling the stores too. I am still in the middle of enjoying my summer vacation and am not even THINKING about going back to school--even if we ARE doing a piddly amount of school for our reviews this summer. Since my last check in, I've added our reviews for The Master and His Apprentice (an art history curriculum), Bible Study Guide for All Ages, Math Refresher for Adults, Hake Grammar & Writing 3, and Unit Studies from Silverdale Press, ARTistic Pursuits, a CSI themed workbook from Critical Thinking Co., and a cursive workbook from Memoria Press. Have you checked those out yet? In house we have an elementary science curriculum, an Old Testament lapbook unit study, an elementary literature unit study, and a streaming kids radio program! Let's take a sneak peak at these four very different review products we are working on!

Math Refresher for Adults {Product Review}

Scenario #1: Child brings home math homework and needs help. You look at it, and for the life of you can't remember the math rules for fractions!

Scenario #2: You are homeschooling your child, but aren't strong in math and worry about being able to teach it and help them with it.

Scenario #3: You are returning to college, and will have to take a math placement test.

In each of these scenarios, it would be awfully nice if there was a way to give yourself a crash course review on the main math concepts! Well fear not! I have been reviewing Math Refresher for Adults from Math Essentials and I can say without hesitation that if you can identify with any of these scenarios, you NEED to read my review of this book!

Bible Study Guide for All Ages {Product Review}

We are a Bible loving family. I am always on the lookout for ways to bring bible stories to life for my children and I'm rather picky about the type of curriculum I like to use. It is sometimes hard to teach both of my boys at the same time using the same curriculum or program. Enter our review of Bible Study Guide for All Ages. Could our review of the Advanced (5th & 6th grade) and Intermediate (3rd & 4th grade) student guide pages be just what I was looking for?

About Bible Study Guide for All Ages

The Bible Study Guide for All Ages is a bible curriculum that takes the whole family (all ages) through the bible at the same time. Every year, some of the Old Testament and some of the New Testament is studied. Not only will the students learn the big picture of the bible, but they will also be able to memorize key points from the bible stories as well as practice applying the lessons to their own lives. There is different material available for the different age groups. If you are studying as a mixed aged class or as a family, getting the Unit Teacher's Guide would be the best bet. If however, you want to hone in on different age groups, you can check out the student study guide pages for the following ages:

The Master and His Apprentices: Art History from a Christian Perspective {Curriculum Review}

Art History. This is a subject that can be rather...well scandalous when it comes to the art included in most curriculum. My mother-in-law is an art history major and she HATED that aspect of it. I don't know about you, but as a mom, I'd really like something more, well GODLY when it comes to studying art throughout history for my children (and myself for that matter!). But does such a thing exist? Let me introduce you to The Master and His Apprentices, an alternative to the traditional approach for art history. I recently reviewed The Master and His Apprentices: Art History from a Christian Perspective and am happy to share this high school level curriculum with you today.

About The Master and His Apprentices

The Master and His Apprentices is a Christian perspective of art throughout the ages. Unlike 99% of the other art history material out there, this curriculum contains NO nudity or other objectionable material! Instead, it has just scholarly material in a reader-friendly format. Throughout the course, the

Exploring Hake/Saxon Grammar and Writing 3 {Curriculum Review}

I have already picked out the Language Arts materials that I have planned to use with my soon-to-be third grader for the new school year. We are planning on going with some much beloved material—but I’m always willing to give other products a try. We were recently asked to review the new Hake/Saxon Grammar and Writing 3 from Hake Publishing. I have always tended to stay away from the workbook heavy Saxon curriculum in the past, but had never actually used it. Would this curriculum be good enough to convince me to switch gears for this fall?

About Hake/Saxon Grammar and Writing

Hake/Saxon Grammar and Writing is a well known language arts curriculum used in private schools and homeschools. This rigorous program (available for grades 3-8) focuses on

Learning More About White House Holidays with Unit Studies from Silverdale Press LLC {Product Review}

We recently were given the White House Holidays Unit Studies from Silverdale Press LLC to review. We are big fans of unit studies, so I was curious to see if these were a style that we could use in our home to learn more about some holidays we haven't spent as much time going over.

About Silverdale Press

Silverdale Press LLC provides homeschool unit studies and curriculum on history, social studies, and writing. They currently carry the following