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:

Reading Kingdom: Online Reading Program Teaching Phonics-PLUS! {Product Review}

I have discovered that using online reading programs have helped boost my younger son's reading skills. We've used several different programs before, and have been using one we LOVE for almost a year now. When we were given the opportunity to review another reading program--one which is supposed to be more unique and better in its reading and writing instruction, I was eager to try Reading Kingdom and see what it was like. Would we like it even more than the beloved one we use now?

About Reading Kingdom

Reading Kingdom is an online K-3 grade reading program which uses the new Phonics-PLUS system, making it different from any other reading program out there! The art of reading consists of six skills: sequencing, writing, sounds, meaning, and comprehension. Teaching phonics in reading teaches just ONE of these skills. Most programs teach via phonics, but Reading Kingdom teaches with all six skills!

Strengthen Reading Skills with The Magic Stories! {Product Review}

We recently were given The Magic Stories to review with my youngest son (age 7). These stories were created to be a supplemental reading program to build confidence in reading and develop strong comprehension and writing skills. Although they are geared for a 2nd/3rd grade reading level, they are good for any child in the elementary years who would benefit from beautifully written stories with coordinating creative writing and comprehension exercises. Because this is just the type of supplemental reading program I desired for our classroom, I reviewed this product with high hopes!

About The Magic Stories

From Allsaid & Dunn, LLC, publishers of The Reading Game and authors of the Wordly Wise series, comes The Magic Stories! This supplemental reading program consists of six

Strengthen Reading Skills with Reading Eggs {Product Review}

If you have a child and have ever mentioned that your child struggles in reading, or that you would love a website to help boost reading skills, I'm sure that someone has mentioned Reading Eggs to you! This online learning resource is ranked high in the list of "must-have" reading programs--I had done the free trial when my youngest son was 6, but was curious to explore it more thoroughly. Over the past few weeks I have been able to review the full Reading Eggs website to see all the things they offer!

About Reading Eggs

Reading Eggs is an online reading resource designed to boost your child's skills in reading and reading comprehension. With the online reading games and activities, reading will be a FUN

Exploring The Bears On Hemlock Mountain with Progeny Press {Curriculum Review}

We incorporate a lot of literature into our schooling, and I love it when I can introduce the boys to classic literature. I also appreciate it when I can find an online resource that helps me take our reading further with a literature guide. One of the best selling publishers for literature curriculum, is Progeny Press. I have already had the blessing to review two of their E-Guides (Miss Rumphius and Mr. Popper's Penguins) with my boys, and was happy to review the The Bears on Hemlock Mountain E-Guide with my youngest son.

About Progeny Press

Progeny Press is known for their high quality literature study guides throughout the homeschool world. Their mission statement makes it clear why--they want to help children think clearly, to understand literature, to turn to the scriptures for truth and values...and to enjoy doing it!

2nd and 6th Grade Curriculum Choices for 2017-2018 School Year (5 Days of Back to School Blog Hop)

Welcome to the first day of our 2017 5 Days of Back to School Blog Hop! Today's topic is all about CURRICULUM! I can hardly believe I am saying this, but this year I will have a second grader and a...gulp...MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT! How did that happen? Sigh. These boys of mine. Just won't slow down! As I share our choices this year, I will make notes about why I picked each selection to briefly give you a clue as to why it works for us--or maybe why we are going to see if it will work. The main thing about my curriculum choices is that I reserve the right to THROW THEM OUT if at any time they no longer work for us. Don't forget that when you are making your OWN choices. These are a plan, but if the plan doesn't work, throw it out and try something else!

U.S.A Activity Bundle from The Crafty Classroom {Product Review}

I am always on the lookout for easy to use resources that will supplement what we are already learning in our classroom. Geography is one of the subjects that is the easiest to coordinate with something you are already learning. Especially when studying world or American history. I recently had the chance to review the USA Activity Bundle from The Crafty Classroom and I knew from my first glance at it that it would probably be just the type of resource I enjoy the most. 

About The Crafty Classroom

The Crafty Classroom provides digital resources to help you as a parent/teacher save time in your schooling. Whether looking for supplemental resources, crafts, or curriculum, The Crafty Classroom has designed products to save you time and money! 

Elementary Language Arts with Eclectic Foundations: Level B ~ {Curriculum Review}

My six year old son started wrapping his last Language Arts program at the beginning of this year, and I was beginning to wonder what we should move into next. His reading skills were definitely at the 1st/2nd grade level, and he was asking for cursive work. I knew he liked poetry, and was ready to start learning the parts of grammar--he's been hearing and helping his older brother do his for a few months now. I wasn't sure if I could find something that would fit the needs of my son--and if possible, be an all-in-one program. When I heard about the chance to review Eclectic Foundations Language Arts Level B program for elementary from the company Eclectic Foundations, I hoped that it would be just what we needed.

About Eclectic Foundations

Eclectic Foundations is a curriculum company determined to offer biblical worldview options for language arts. At the center of their program are the classic The McGuffey Readers--part of the Eclectic Education Series. This series of textbooks were widely used in public school from 1836 up until about 1960. Containing biblical morality teachings in their text, they were a way for teachers to

Supercharged Science (a curriculum review)

If you have been one of my blog readers since the beginning of the year (at the very least) you have already learned that Science is the subject I dislike the most to teach in our homeschool classroom. I enjoy trying out new curriculum in the effort to find one that is AMAZING and perfect for our family, so I was tickled to receive a 6 month trial of an e-Science Learning Program from Supercharged Science for our family.

What is Supercharged Science?

Supercharged Science is an e-Science online science curriculum created to generate a LOVE of science in your children. There are NO textbooks. No boring long ridiculous information about the cosmos. Instead you get fun videos taught by a REAL scientist Aurora Lipper who created this program to spark life back into what she felt could be a dreary field of study. Aurora's passion for science oozes from every part of the curriculum. This program is a COMPLETE science curriculum for ages K-12 and covers the full range of sciences from Astrophysics to Life Science. 
The e-Science Premium Membership is available for $57 per month and grants you access to grades K-12. You get unlimited access to over 900 science activities, experiments and projects. Don't forget the in depth lesson plans, videos, and more! Every video is of real scientists performing real experiments. Something you aren't going to get anywhere else!

How Did We Use the Program?

It was easy to get logged in to the website. Once you pick your log-in names you can start exploring...it's that easy! It is EASY to get overwhelmed though because there is just SO MUCH STUFF! I figured out the best thing to do was to start with the "Getting Started" tab as it helps guide you towards what you might need. I watched the video and it helped me learn how to navigate the site much more fluently.
One of the things I learned right away is that you can navigate the curriculum by either topics or grade levels. You can get a crash course on deciding which way to go by clicking the top right corner of the website that says User Guide. 

You will be very happy you did as it explains how to use use the curriculum whether by topics or by grade level.
The topics are set up as units of study. 

(I had access to all 20 Units)

So you can choose your lessons based on topics you want to discover. Once you pick a topic you are taken to an overview page which sets up the unit. There is some reading about the topic, a video and then on the right side bar you see the layout for the unit. You can see there is everything from the downloadable material to your unit experiment shopping list! 
The second way you can explore the site is by grade levels. 

It is set up to start from a Pre-K level thru 8th grade. There is also a portion marked Advanced Topics which is for High School students or advanced 5-8th graders. Each grade level is also marked with a summary of the topics within the grade level. 
After looking at both the topics and the grade levels, I decided to go the grade level route and got started by checking out the second grade level.

Second Grade was set up into three scientific concepts: Chemistry, Life Science and Earth Science. From here I can pick which direction I want to explore. Once you choose on of the three primary concepts you are then taken to a page where you have a list of experiments/lessons you can choose from. It's easy to just click through them to see what is involved (even gives a supplies list) before you determine which you want to use. Some of them are more complicated than others, but all are connected to a broader lesson that has it's own readings, experiments & videos, and exercises. You can see this on the right side bar of each lesson. 

By clicking on this you discover more relating to the topic you are investigating...so when doing a broccoli experiment--the topic connects with plants, and you can check out more related lessons or experiments. It's a great way to go with a rabbit trail if your child is really interested in what you are covering.
After exploring second grade for awhile, I jumped over into first grade. I discovered there were several crossover experiments that were the same for each grade. I also discovered that there were a lot of great experiments that actually matched what our "normal" science curriculum would have had us do. So in the end I ended up pulling units and experiments from both grades for us to do.
I really spent the first two days just trying to find my feet on the program. It was hard to figure out where I really wanted to start. My saving grace came in the form of emails. Aurora Lipper--the founder and primary teacher (she's a rocket scientist!!) of the e-Science Program regularly sends out emails. Nearly all of them have miniature experiments that you can try. One of the first such emails came with a pdf called Homeschool Science Activity and Video Series and a Science Experiment Guide. Both of these were full of simple experiments on a few main topics and had the first pdf even had little videos to show HOW to do the experiments included in it. 
This was exactly what I needed to get this ball rolling. Over the first week, we tried out different experiments between the two documents. I think the favorite experiment were the "weird" airplanes out of index cards and straws and when we made helicopters from an index card and popsicle sticks.

This brought a great amount of fun for BOTH boys. I liked that each experiment also came with parent guided simple lesson and questions relating to it.

After we explored these mini experiments we tackled some of the bigger ones. When I was ready to get a lesson set up, I just followed these simple steps: 1. Find the experiment I wanted to do.  2. Look at the list of supplies and get them together 3. Set up the video for Little Britches to watch. Nearly every experiment comes with one. The lesson is touched on, and then the experiment is performed so they can see what will be done. 4. Go for it!
Once the experiment is completed, there are usually questions included with the experiment that I was able to run through with Little Britches. Some experiments had printable forms with tables or charts that could be filled out. 
Let me give you an example of one of the fun experiments we did...
We studied the concept of vibrations and frequency found in the First Grade Physics unit. To start with I opened up the experiment "What is Frequency?" In the right side bar I found the lesson materials for further learning. So I clicked the "Vibration Introduction" which opens up a lesson video. Little Britches watched this as his introduction to the subject. The teacher (Aurora!) gave an excellent breakdown on what makes vibrations and what frequency was. She even gave them time to go try out what she was teaching them--for instance, I had to turn on the radio as loud as we could handle so he could FEEL the vibration of the sound. He paused his video, came in and had me do what "my teacher says", then he went back and continued his video--until it told him to try something again. Once the video was over he had a great beginning lesson on the subject we were covering.
Next up is a reading portion--it is available as a printout which I loved because I could read thru it in advance to determine what he would or wouldn't get and make revisions to "simpler" language. There is a LOT included in the readings which makes it great for multi-level students and why it can be included in more than one grade level.
After the reading, we move on to the experiments/videos. Here we have access to ALL the experiments relating to the subject...this time Vibrations. Scrolling down I can view all of them in one spot and decide what I'm going to choose. I chose a simple experiment (Mystery Pitch) and then a more detailed one "What is Frequency?".
Every experiment is explained very simply. And with the videos to match, you can see EXACTLY what you have to do--even though they give detailed numbered directions to read. This was highly beneficial as during this experiment I wasn't quite getting the results expected based on the directions. I watched the video and *viola* easily discovered where I was doing it wrong.
In this experiment we were learning about hertz using a simple pendulum and counting it's swings. Adjusting the length of our string changed the hertz. 
Once the experiment was finished, we discussed what we had learned. Once I had done whatever experiments I wanted to do with Little Britches within the unit, and after we had finished the reading of the lesson, we could move on to the exercises. These are simply questions about what you learned (a total of 18). They can be printed out to keep in a science notebook, or done orally. We opted to do them orally. The best part? The answers are included right below for easy reference!
This method of use of the e-Science Learning Program can then be used for each and every lesson that is done. It's easy to see how one lesson can span the course of a week. We wanted to explore different things, so we jumped around a LOT.
One other benefit of having a membership, is that you get an email whenever Aurora is going to have a LIVE webinar class! We were able to do two of the three that occurred during our review weeks. They were very easy to participate in. You simply registered right of the link included in the email, and they gave you a link that could be used on the day of the webinar. They also sent you a reminder email. Then simply click the link the day of and you are set! We were able to enjoy one on renewable energy and one on astronomy. Each one was an hour long and gave excellent information about the topic. There was also a place on the webinar screen where you could write in with questions that she would address at the end of the session. These were highly enjoyable by both boys and myself. Little Britches is a visual and auditory learner so these webinars really stick with him.

An extra aspect to the curriculum is that there is also a space on the website called Scientific Journal. Here Aurora explains why a journal is so important to a scientist and gives many ideas on what to put in it. She also shares how you can turn it into a form you could hand in if your state has Science requirements. In this section she also shares detailed instructions on how to write a Science Journal Report--this is all incredibly valuable information and things that will stick with them far beyond their years in homeschool science! We did not use this, but it is something I will use in the future.
Here are some more photos of some of the fun we had with Supercharged Science...

What Did Little Britches Think?

I asked him and he said "It is awesome! I really liked it. I can't tell you why, except that I love that it's hands-on." When asked what he thought about the video portions, he said "They were really easy to understand and they did it in a fun way. And I could see what the experiment was going to do before we did it so I didn't screw it up."
And last but none the least--"Oh and I LOVED burning leaves. THAT was the best experiment ever!" I admit...this was one of my favorites too. It was called "Fire and Optic" and part of the Unit 6 Astrophysics/Lesson 7 Astronomy area--I sort of stumbled onto it. I don't think it was even included in the first or second grade areas. He learned how to start fires with a magnifying glass--which lead to HOURS of experimentation for the next two days. And yes, there may have been several random bugs who lost their lives. Oh and the dog MIGHT have gotten burned on the nose. LOL!

What Are My Thoughts on the Curriculum?

Pros: *Easy to navigate *Easy to use with multiple ages *Parent Friendly *Complete science curriculum covering the full spectrum of sciences from chemistry to life science to astrophysics *Videos for instruction that are fun and kid-friendly *Videos that lay-out the experiments step-by-step *Printable lesson materials including supply lists, readings, and exercises

I can print out all the information in advance to plan!

*Experiments galore! Perfect for the hands-on science lover! *Experiment supplies include a lot of items you have around the house *Unit Supply Lists *Free LIVE webinars *Regular emails from Supercharged Science with extra experiments to try
Cons: *Prep work:  The parent DOES have to do quite a bit of the prep work--especially for the younger grade levels. You need to make sure you have all the supplies that are needed. Have anything printed out chart or table wise. Younger children need a lot of help with actually performing the experiments as many require cutting, burning, or other things that they aren't able to do on their own.
*Supplies:  While a LOT of the supplies I did have on hand, for some of the bigger experiments, I DIDN'T have them on hand, nor do I have access to them anywhere in my small town. This was especially true for various hardware or chemical compounds. Remember that I'm almost 30 miles even from the closest Wal*Mart. It's one of those cons of living so far out in the country. That being said, I will add that if I KNEW I needed something far enough in advance, I could probably find a way to pick it up or have my husband pick it up on his way home from work each week when he comes home. But again--that is a something that goes with the first con I had--the prep work involved.
*Online Curriculum:  I admit it honestly. I am a fan of PAPER curriculum and there are only a few times when I would prefer an online curriculum. In the case of science I REALLY like having something in my hands to reference without having to be tied to the computer, if I have to be involved as a parent. I was VERY thankful that there were so many printables available, because this gave me something I could carry with me to reference. But again--that goes back to con #1 regarding prep work. You have to go online, find what you need, make sure you can print it out and do it. So you need to make sure you printer is working, you have the paper and the ink.
*Price: Let's keep it real. Most of us don't have $57/month just for one subject of curriculum. There is also a $37/month for the grade range of K-8. This may work much better into your budget if you have children this age. But you know, that price might be out of your price range too...especially if you are going with FRUGAL choices. I know that this program would usually be out of my range financially (regardless of which version I purchased) if I hadn't been blessed with this review. But let's say you have 3+ kids. You need a curriculum that is a "one size fits all"? This will do it. You could teach ALL of them with one curriculum. If you take that into consideration, the pricing isn't (as) painful. You have one curriculum that you can do with all of them regardless of where they are in their grade level/learning level! But for one student? Or even 2 students? No. I don't think it's feasible unless you REALLY have a science lover. Then it might be worth it to you to give them something like this.
In summary, I loved so much about this program. The lessons were all extremely well done. I learned almost as much as my son did. My Little Britches just ate everything up. The experiments were varied and awesome. But I frankly DREADED prepping for it each week. I literally had to FORCE myself to do it. I really think that had it been split between videos and a paper curriculum I would have liked it more, because I would have only needed to use the computer for the videos. It is promoted by the company that you can give your children the supplies and they can make the experiment happen by watching the video---well, maybe in the higher grade levels. But not really with the elementary...at least not with us. Not to mention there were several times when the parent had to DO the experiment because of the chemicals or other materials that were being used. I had to be there every step of the way (except for the video watching) to get the experiments completed. I don't mind if this is the case for some of them...but the whole program is pretty much like this. 

Would I Recommend Supercharged Science to Others?

I absolutely would recommend Supercharged Science to others...but with the disclaimer about the prep-work and of course the price. I know there are a lot of homeschool moms like me, who don't have a lot of time to prep for science (including tracking down the supplies) who would probably respond the way that I did. But in the long run, the prep work WAS worth it because of the smile on Little Britches face as the experiment was being done or the results were revealed. And really, once we did the experiments I was ALWAYS glad that I had done it.  I KNOW this is the kind of curriculum he needs...so I need to figure out how to make it work for us (ie. me!) I think that using this in the future, I will go with choosing based on topics rather than grade levels, as I think that will be easier for me to do. It's an excellent program and one that I think is well worth the cost--IF you have more than one or two students needing a science curriculum. If money is an issue, then no...this isn't the curriculum for you.
If you are looking for an excellent science curriculum that includes the full spectrum of science courses, you really should check out the e-Science Learning Program from Supercharged Science! If you are still curious, make sure you sign-up to receive a FREE copy of the Science Activity Video Series and Guidebook. It's what helped me kick off my discovery in this great curriculum.
As a SUPER SPECIAL deal, Supercharged Science is allowing us to offer you a chance to have access to their e-Science Program for just $1.00. Yes, you read that right--for just ONE DOLLAR you will get access to the same curriculum as what I reviewed for one month! Please take advantage of this deal--you own't regret it! 
Here is one last video for you to enjoy...
Yes, that's silly old me. What can I say, we BOTH enjoyed that experiment and I just had to join in! Just wish I'd put the camera at a different angle! LOL!
You can find Supercharged Science on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and also on their blog. I hope you will go learn more about them...and if you want to hear some other opinions, why not check out what my fellow Schoolhouse Review Crew members have to say about it?!

Thanks for stopping by!

Homeschool Photo Journal of Second Grade and PreK

I owe all my readers a LOT of posts about how our homeschooling has been going this year. Unfortunately, I do not have the time to catch it all up with words. I did decide that I could give you a photo journal about what we've been doing...everyone loves pictures, right?!

So bear with me...this is going to be photo heavy!

I did try to separate it by subject to help you get a balance of what we've done throughout the year!

English

Cursive work (Little Britches)

Little Britches will be finishing up the Pentime Transition 2 book this week and moving into his Pentime Cursive Level 3 book. His cursive is very well done and he has enjoyed learning how to write the letters.

Matching Letters for Words

 I had all these letters from an old curriculum a friend gave me. I laminated them and we use them to help Baby Britches build words. I copy down words and names that he knows and then he hunts for the letters to match. He sometimes needs a little help, but doesn't most of it on his own.

English (Little Britches)

 This is part of our First Language Lessons of a Well-Trained Mind Level 2 curriculum. He was building sentences using linking verbs with his nouns and adjectives.

ABC's (Baby Britches)

We've been working through the ABC's with Baby Britches. We aren't as consistent as I'd like to be with him, but I just maximize the learning time when he gives me his attention. I like to use worksheets from education.com for the alphabet.

ABC's Baby Britches

 He's finding all the G's that are in the words on his page...

ABC's (Baby Britches)

Here is the "B is for Bus" from the Royal Baloo Zoomin' Moving ABC's set. We love this set and it's our primary choice for worksheets for Baby Britches. Here he is stamping letters onto the bus.

History

History (Little Britches)

 Filling out his notebook page on Columbus for his history binder from My Father's World Second Grade.

Building wigwams

The boys enjoyed the study on Native Americans--especially building a wigwam. LOTS of glue. Make sure you use LOTS of glue. LOL!

Science

Floating Boats

As part of our exploration of the pilgrims, the boys had to attempt to float some foil boats with straw masts.

Seeing how the water and air work together to keep a piece of paper from getting wet and all the water inside a cup.

Exploring water and salt. Will salt water float an egg?

By changing the shape of a piece of paper we can change how quickly it moves in the wind...and what better way to test that theory by having a race??

Hot air rises...and so it can make a paper snake wiggle if you get it in an updraft. He's as close as I'd let him get on his own...and thanks to the ceiling fan overhead, "my 'nake wiggle, Mommy!"

Art

He is playing with all the colors on his palate

Thanksgiving

Decorating his Native American (bag) vest with stencils

Decorating his vest with his markers

 Adding leaf foam stickers to his woven placemat

 Weaving a placemat

A Foam Kit Turkey (found at the $1 store!)

Exploration

Loves working with the corn and noodle box

Working with the Guidecraft 3D Feel and Find World Icons and Shapes. He loves matching these up and it's great for recognition skills.

I hope you enjoyed this little photo journal of things we have been working on! I plan on doing another one very soon as I just scratched the surface of our studies!