Build Your Home Library with Library and Educational Services LLC {Product Review}

If you are like me, you are always looking for inexpensive books to add to your home library collection. The challenge is finding high-quality material that still fits the budget. Today I'd love to share with you a new resource for your consideration--Library and Educational Services LLC--a fantastic company that offers seriously deep discounted books and materials covering a wide range of subjects and topics. The perfect match for any homeschool or book-loving family! Join me as I share our experience with a selection from their super-popular Who Was... series, The Misadventures of Tom Sawyer audiodrama from the Lifehouse Theater CD series, and a collection of books from their Reinforced Hardcover Library Binding Nonfiction books. 

About the Company and Products

Library and Educational Services LLC offers a wide range of fiction and non-fiction books over a large range of topics. Not only are these books the highest quality visually, but their information is also in-depth and provides an excellent source for common subjects, especially history. Offering material for K-12, there are books for any level of reader. But there aren’t just books! There are also audio dramas and resource books like dictionaries and the like. 

Time Travelers U.S. History Studies: A Unit Study of the Industrial Revolution thru the Great Depression {Product Review}

I'm always on the lookout for things that make history come alive. One of the ways to do this is to incorporate unit studies into the subject and one of the top makers of history unit studies is Home School in the Woods. Their Time Travelers U.S. History Studies include many in-depth explorations of key moments and people in US History not usually expanded on in other history courses. For the last several weeks, we have been reviewing the Time Travelers U.S. History Studies: The Industrial Revolution through the Great Depression and today I'm going to share our thoughts on this material.

About Home School in the Woods

Home School in The Woods is a multi-award winning company that is dedicated to providing materials to make history come ALIVE in your classroom! Steering clear of the typical history textbook, Home School in The Woods chooses to help your child make living and real connections with the men, women, places, and events they experience through their history experience, with hands-on materials. One of the ways they do this is through their Time

The Wars of the Jews from Memoria Press {Curriculum Review}

I have had the chance to work with Memoria Press materials several times over the last five years of reviewing. Their products are always a highlight to what we use, and we have incorporated several of them into our regular curriculum. One area that I have not had much experience in, however, is their high school level material, due to my children still being in elementary and middle school. I was able to explore one of their high school curricula when I was asked if I could look over and review The Wars of the Jews Set. Being that this is a historical event that I’ve had a growing curiosity about, I eagerly agreed to look it over myself. 

About the Product

Memoria Press is an award-winning classical Christian education publisher. They carry a full line of curriculum and

Pathway to Liberty's US History Curriculum {Curriculum Review}

I am always on the lookout for good history curriculums and I've been blessed to have been introduced to several through the Homeschool Review Crew. For the last several weeks, we have been reviewing a new (to me) history company, Pathway to Liberty Homeschool Curriculum, and have been working through the Pathway to Liberty's US History course from the Pathway to Liberty's History Curriculum collection. My hope for this curriculum was to discover another great American History curriculum which I could use for both boys at the same time, even with their different grade levels and learning styles. Join me today as I share our review on this curriculum and you can learn if this material fulfilled my requirements!

About the Company

The Pathway to Liberty's Homeschool Curriculum was created by founder Jayme MacCullough after she couldn't find what she was looking for in the homeschool material world. She wanted a strong

Exploring the Exciting Life of President Ronald Reagan with YWAM Publishing {A Unit Study Curriculum Review}

We have settled into the fact that our family definitely has a literature-based learning style. We love to read read read! History is one of the areas where literature based products are the most useful to get away from boring textbooks. YWAM Publishing has a GREAT line of historical biographies on men and women throughout history who have contributed to the Christian cause or were key parts of world history in general. We previously have worked through Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, Laura Ingalls Wilder, and Orville Wright (you can read the previous reviews of YWAM Publishing on my blog). I was surprised when my boys decided to have us review Heroes of History- Ronald Reagan from the Heroes of History series this time. Join me as I share our unit study of the 40th President of the USA!

About YWAM Publishing

YWAM Publishing is a company determined to produce quality biographies and unit studies on men and women who are considered heroes—either to the Christian Faith or to history itself. With that in mind, they have created two series, Christian Heroes: Then and Now and Heroes of History, offering an extensive collection of biographies of men and women throughout the ages, who need to be recognized for their accomplishments.

Here is a sampling of the titles included in each series:

Join Us in Ancient Rome in FOR THE TEMPLE from Heirloom Audio {Product Review}

Whenever there is a chance to review one of the amazing audiodramas from Heirloom Audio, I always beg like the child hopping up and down HOPING the teacher will notice and pick him. Our family LOVES these amazing audiodramas and we all were excited to be able to listen to the latest installment For the Temple!

About the Product

For the Temple the latest installment in the Heirloom Audio collection of award winning audiodramas. This 2 CD audiodrama, based on the book by G. A. Henty of the same name, focuses on the days and events leading up to the final destruction of the temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD. The story follow both Romans and Jews during this time period and incorporates many

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!

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 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

Exploring a Storybook Life with Laura Ingalls Wilder and YWAM Publishing {Curriculum Review}

We have settled into the fact that our family is a literature based learning school style. We love to read read read! History is one of the areas where literature based products are the most useful to get away from boring textbooks. YWAM Publishing has a GREAT line of historical biographies on men and women throughout history who have contributed to the Christian cause, or were key parts of world history in general. We previously have worked through Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, and Orville Wright (you can read the previous reviews of YWAM Publishing on my blog), but this time, we picked the Heroes of History- Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Storybook Life to review! My son was curious to see whether or not all those Little House on the Prairie stories were really true or not...

About YWAM Publishing

YWAM Publishing is a company determined to produce quality biographies and unit studies on men and women who are considered heroes—either to the Christian Faith, or to history itself. With that in mind, they have created two series Christian Heroes: Then and Now and Heroes of History offering an extensive collection of biographies of men and women throughout the ages, who need to be recognized for their accomplishments.

Here is a sampling of the titles included in each series:

File Folder Games: Hands-On History and Geography with Home School in the Woods {Product Review}

I love searching for ways to make learning fun. Some of the easiest are games. There are many games which incorporate things like the maths, but there aren't as many things which help teach other subjects. Especially history and geography. Enter File Folder Games. With just a bit of extra time, a file folder game can be created for nearly any subject thanks to the help of Home School in the Woods. Over the last several weeks, we have been reviewing two of their Á La Carte projects-- A Trip to Town and Name that State!--both file folder games.

About A Trip to Town and Name that State!

Home School in the Woods is one of the top producers of printable materials, lapbooks, and unit studies for homeschooling. They recently branched out and started offering some of the

Drive Thru History Adventures in Bible History {CurriculumReview}

The links on this blog and in the posts may be affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details and thank you for your support!
History. We love it. Video history. We love it. When we had the chance to review Drive Thru History Adventures--an online video history course--I hoped that it would be right up our alley and something the whole family would enjoy. We decided to explore their Bible History curriculum and learn more about the Gospels!

About Drive Thru History Adventures

Drive Thru History Adventures is an online homeschool video course designed to make history more relevant and fun through on location filming but also is Christ centered and fact filled.

Go West with Captain Bayley's Heir from Heirloom Audio Productions {Product Review}

There is one review product that we always look forward too--the audiodramas from Heirloom Audio Productions! We already were blessed to be able to review In the Reign of Terror earlier this year, but we've been blessed with yet another story to share--this time it's Captain Bayley's Heir, another in the line of Extraordinary Adventures of G.A. Henty!

About Captain Bayley's Heir

In this story from the grand storyteller G.A. Henty, you will journey from the shores of London to the wild wild west during the time of the California Gold rush. You will get to learn the mystery of Captain Bayley's Heir, as well as follow the story of young Frank who, after falsely being accused of theft at his prep school, escapes to America--sure that everyone he loves has turned their back on him. You will get to follow his

Educational and FUN Children's Books by Carole P. Roman {Product Review}

The links on this blog and in the posts may be affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details and thank you for your support!

We are a literature loving family--especially when it comes to picture books. I love it when I can use picture books to help expand our homeschool studies. I recently reviewed several books by Carole P. Roman including If You Were Me and Lived in... the Middle Ages, If You Were Me and Lived on... Mars, Rocket-Bye, and One to Ten: Squirrel's Bad Day. Each of these is not only very colorful and kid friendly, but they are very informative and teach a lesson about something.

About Carole P. Roman books

The If You Were Me and Lived In...Historical and Cultural Series books are designed to take your family on a travel through time to visit the cultures and civilizations around the world and throughout history. The newest books in her series are designed to introduce students to

Live the Adventure In The Reign of Terror {Product Review}

We have a thing for audiodramas that was started with the very first Heirloom Audio Productions product we ever received. Since then we have made it our goal to own as many of the Heirloom audiodramas as we can! We have quite a collection, but were eager to add In the Reign of Terror to our collection as part of our review this month!

About In The Reign of Terror

In the Reign of Terror is another fabulous audiodrama from Heirloom Audio Productions, based on the Extraordinary Adventures of GA Henty books.This story is set during the beginning stirrings of the French Revolution and takes place in France. You follow a young Englishman of about fifteen years old named Harry Sandwith as he journeys to France to work as companion/tutor for the Marquis de St Caux family. While he is there, he witnesses the terror that overtakes the country as the nobles are systematically rousted out and killed--just because of their noble birth. He vows to protect the St Caux children as they flee to safety. What follows next is a journey of courage, sadness, grief, bravery, miracles, and so much more. Throughout the experience, the family places their ultimate trust in God no matter what--and seek to find good that can come out of the bad.

In the Reign of Terror is available as a 2 disc CD set or a digital download. Also available with the audio drama is a digital (or downloadable) Study Guide which coordinates section by section with the story. You will be able to ask your children questions about what they heard, as well as guide them to explore the topic in more depth with some critical thinking questions.

You also should check out the BRAND NEW Live the Adventure Club! Membership to this new club not ONLY allows you to get new PHYSICAL copies of the Live the Adventure audiodramas shipped to your house three times a year, but you also have full access to their complete website! There are teaching guides and curriculum treasures, parent resources and daily information, and listen & Learn audio adventures that even come with the script for your child to follow along! Sign up for your free three month club trial today and receive their newest Audio Adventure, Captain Bayley’s Heir (2-CD set) for only $1.00! Plus, you also get instant access to the digital version!

What do you get for In the Reign of Terror in the Live the Adventures Club?
★Stream In the Reign of TERROR
★In The Reign Of Terror Original E-Book
★Official Soundtrack
★Printable Cast Poster
★Study Guide & Discussion Starter
★Inspirational Verse Poster
★Desktop Wallpaper Download
★Official Script Download

Definitely go check it out!

Our Thoughts on In The Reign of Terror

The #1 thing I liked the best about this audio drama this time, was that I had the study guide right there on my phone with the mp3 when it played. As soon as the section was done I could immediately go over the study guide, without having to have a second document or screen up. This is MAJOR plus in my book! So handy for listening to it on the go--I can simply hook up my phone to my car that has bluetooth capabilities! If I don't care about the study guide, I just use the physical CD's so they keep playing without me having to stop them.

This is the time of history that I am very fascinated with, so I greatly enjoyed learning more about the era. The French Revolution was such an incredibly bloody time period and I think we do not spend enough time studying it to realize what a reign of terror it truly was. We listened to this with friends while driving, and she and I both commented about how it made us want to go and rewatch Les Miserables again--and we both agreed that this audiodrama would be an asset when studying the French Revolution during history in our homeschool.

The boys favorite part was definitely the wolf attack! There was silence in the car when we got to this part of the story. After it was over, my oldest remarked that it reminded him of the gladiator/lion scene in one of the other audiodramas from Heirloom Audio.

One of the questions I would have is regarding the religion of the characters. I could never figure out if they practiced Catholicism (what would be most likely for France) or Christianity. It wasn't anything major, just a minor question that niggled me. I did appreciate the references to the American War for Independence because it can be hard to remember at times that it was recent history to the men and women of the time.

I would say this is just as excellent as the previous audiodramas we have listened to. I always enjoy having a spin-off discussion about this time period. We haven't really covered world history yet, but I know that I will be referencing In The Reign of Terror whenever we study the French Revolution for sure.

Want to Know More About In the Reign of Terror?

Over the last couple weeks, we have been enjoying listening to the latest Heirloom Audio Productions audiodrama In the Reign Of Terror. Please visit some of the other crew members to see what they thought about this latest release!

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As so many times before, we have fallen in love with this story set in such a brutal time of history. We are eager to get our hands on the next release from Heirloom Audio Productions...Captain Bailey's Heir!

Riding Through History with Rush Revere {A Review}

One of the books that first sent my oldest into his passion for history was from the Adventures of Rush Revere Book Series . Since then he has actively sought out every remaining book in the series. When we had the chance to review the Adventures of Rush Revere #1 New York Times Bestselling Book Series by Rush and Kathryn Adams Limbaugh, he asked me if he could read all of them again. I couldn't refuse and so we got the entire series at our disposal this time!

About Adventures of Rush Revere Book Series

The Adventures of Rush Revere Book Series allows your children to "time travel" back in time to meet the movers and shakers that founded our country. Beginning with journeying on a ship with the Pilgrims as they came to the New World, the book series continues through early American history to

Unit Study on Orville Wright, the Flyer from YWAM Publishing {Curriculum Review}

We are a family that loves books, especially ones with historical settings. We also love to use books as a stepping stone into many adventures with unit studies. Two years ago, we fell in love with a unit study on Daniel Boone and were excited to have another chance with David Crockett. Needless to say, when we were given yet another opportunity to review a unit study from the Heroes of History series of books from YWAM Publishing this year, my son eagerly picked Heroes of History- Orville Wright from the list. 

About YWAM Publishing and the Heroes of History

YWAM Publishing is a company determined to produce quality biographies and unit studies on men and women who are considered heroes—either to the Christian Faith, or to history itself. With that in mind, they have created two series Christian Heroes: Then and Now and Heroes of History and offer an extensive collection of biographies of men and women throughout the ages, who need to be recognized for their accomplishments.
Here is a sampling of the titles included in each series:

Fresh from the Bookshelf: Bessie's Pillow by Linda Bress Silbert {Book Review}

In the latest political discussions, there is a lot of talk relating to refugees and immigrants coming to America. One of the great ways to learn about the stories of many such people, is through reading books about the topic. I recently had the opportunity to do just that, when I was given the book Bessie's Pillow by Linda Bress Silbert (available through Strong Learning, Inc.) to review. This story is based on a true story, of a young girl--an immigrant from Lithuania desiring asylum in America during the early 1900's. 

About Bessie's Pillow

Bessie's Pillow by Linda Bress Silbert is based on a true story. The true story of the author's grandmother Basche Markham, a young Russian Jew from Lithuania, who due to the tenuous and combustible political situation in her home region ("the Pale") in 1906, was sent to America by her father (a former Rabbi turned salesman) to live with her half-sister. The immigration happens

Bringing Ancient Egypt History to Life with Home School In the Woods {Product Review}

History history history. Our family ADORES all things history. My oldest has had a fascination lately with more ancient history--especially civilizations mentioned in the Bible. We recently were given the opportunity to review HISTORY Through the Ages Project Passport World History Study: Ancient Egypt from Home School In the Woods. Because of our past success with this company (read my US Elections review) and our love of Unit Studies, I had high hopes that it would be everything we loved--and could feed my boys love of history.

Pirates or Privateers: You Decide A Once-a-week Micro Study from Homeschool Legacy {Curriculum Review}

One of the aspects of homeschooling I enjoy the most, is being able to do a unit study. Unit studies work well for us, because they allow me to teach both boys at once, incorporate multiple subjects into one lesson, and allow for a variety of activities to be done. A company well known for their best selling unit studies, is Homeschool Legacy. Over the past couple weeks, we have been reviewing their Once-A-Week Micro Study Pirates or Privateers: You Decide.

About Homeschool Legacy

Homeschool Legacy is devoted to providing high quality unit studies to the homeschool family. With unit studies covering a plethora of subjects from holiday traditions, to colonial cooking, to historical events, and more—there is a unit study topic for just about everything. They also offer shorter unit studies like their once a week unit studies, lasting just 4 weeks, instead of their 6-8 week studies.

Our review crew was allowed to choose from the following list of unit studies to use in our classroom:
Once-a-Week Unit Study:
*Christmas Comes to America 

Once-a-Week Micro-Studies:
*Pirates or Privateers: You Decide 
*Cooking up History with the Founding Presidents
*Victoria and Her World
*Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims   
*Many Nations

These unit studies incorporate language arts, history, geography, civics, life skills, and more!

We chose to do the Once-a-Week Micro-Study Pirates or Privateers: You Decide over the last couple weeks.

My Thoughts:

The #1 appeal of this unit study, is its length. A once a week (30 minutes) session is a great mini-unit length for us to work in. I can see that it would be a great way for someone to explore how the Homeschool Legacy unit studies work. Having experienced Homeschool Legacy before, I knew that the shorter length of the unit study, was in no way going to decrease the meatiness of what the study covered.

I was happy to see that I was right. Every week’s lesson gave in depth history on the subject, as well as a rich vocabulary relating to the topic. There were links for us to do maps and other activities—like labeling the Spanish Main or reading about and labeling the parts of a Spanish Galleon.

After learning about Sir Francis Drake, Little Britches was to write some facts about him—so I used the links and printed off a short biography. I had him record the information on some notebooking pages I had which were even themed Sir Francis Drake. My youngest drew the sailing route that Drake took, on a blank world map I found—great geography practice. We also had fun remembering the audiodrama Under Drake’s Flag which we reviewed last year, because it mentioned several of the same things we talked about in the unit study portion about Sir Frances Drake.

We are reading the suggested book Treasure Island, which we hadn’t ever read before. The boys were very eager to read it, because it has primarily male characters and is about pirates! We read it daily, even when the unit study is a once a week lesson.

An added bonus for our unit study, we went to a pirate themed mini-golf course on our recent trip to Panama City Beach, FL! Throughout the course—at every hole plus along the path, there was the tale of Blackbeard! It gave factual information about him as a man and pirate, and threw in extra bits of information relating to pirates and privateers. Talk about perfect timing!

one of the silly ditty gravestones

Daddy in stocks

Some suspicious characters apprehended!

The final aspect of our study is to dress like a pirate and watch one or two of the suggested old swashbuckling adventures. I appreciated that the unit study links them up to YouTube recordings—perfect since we have YouTube on our TV!

The boys have enjoyed learning about pirates and we had some great discussions about how a piece of paper granting you permission to rob others, doesn’t make it right in the sight of God. They now don’t think that being a pirate is something to want to be in a costume, because of what they really represent. This is something that I appreciated them learning all on their own—thanks to this unit study.

Would I Recommend This Product?

I definitely recommend Homeschool Legacy for anyone desiring to do focused studies on particular aspects of history—the units provide you all the information you need for the basic instruction and give you plenty of supplemental information to take it further. Their digital pdf’s are linked up to websites with activities, maps, movies, sound bites, and other very useful information, so you don’t have to find it yourself.

All in all, I think I actually prefer these mini-units of once a week studies, to the longer units, because I can easily fit them into what our schedule already contains. I will be checking out others in their mini-unit collection for sure after using this one.

Want To Know More About Homeschool Legacy?

Over the last couple weeks, we have been working on the Once-a-Week Micro Study Pirates or Privateers: You Decide from Homeschool Legacy. We've shared about our study, but make sure you check out the other studies the rest of the crew members picked!