SpellQuizzer

If you are struggling to have spelling be a part of your routine or would like a new way to facilitate spelling practice then this program may be for you. Spellquizzer is an online program where you create your own spelling lists and make a sound recording of each word as you enter it in. The software corrects the misspelled words and also offers to retest the student the words on the ones they missed.

This program is a fun way to give spelling tests each week and can be an entertaining way to do spelling. It also frees up the parent to work with another child while the computer gives the list to your student.

This program is simple to execute and easy for the kids to use. You are able to choose different sound effects when your child gets a word wrong which can be a fun way to keeps things exciting and different. I also love that I can use the program tailored to what we are doing. Our spelling lists can be custom made to what we are studying right now such as science lessons or a book we are reading. That provides great reinforement for the comprehension of the material.

The program is available for $29.95 but Dan Hite has a try before you buy program. You can try it out for a 30 day trial and if it works for your family you can then purchase the software, which is downloadable.

Heads Up!

I love, love, love this company called Heads Up! and I would like to tell you about them. If you have a special needs kiddo with any need be it ADD, sensory processing, getting distracted easily, staying focused etc, this company may be for you. They have many learning tools to make learning an easier, more enjoyable experience for your child.

I received an envelope from them and in it was the reading frames that you see pictured above. I was a little confused about what they were for so I read the information that was sent along with them. They are great! I have two kids who get a little overwhelmed by too many things on one page and they spend time trying to find where they left off. These frames are perfect for them. You place the colored frame over the area you are working on and as you do your work you never lose your place. The frames are available in many colors. I was interested to find out the reason for all of the colors is that each person will see differently through various colors. I tried this out and it's true! I much rather would use the blue frame over the other colors.

Also in the envelope were these reading strips that you see below. They are also available in several colors as well as clear. I do believe that I love these the best. When I got them I wanted my son to try them out. It was then that he told me for the first time that reading has not been so enjoyable to him because he is always skipping lines and losing his place. He then has to start the passage over again. These readers are the perfect solution to that problem.

The last thing we received was this reader strip you see below. It is a color in the middle with two strips of grey, one on top and one below. This strip makes it very easy to keep your place while reading and works double time as a bookmark between reading sessions. At $1 each for the frames and reading strips they are all affordable and a great value.

Heads Up! has so many learning tools and their catalog is on my shelf as one of my favorites. Whatever learning challenges you may have, click no the link and see if Heads Up! might have something to help you overcome those challenges.

Critical Thinking

Have you noticed that in the times we live in today common sense seems to be disappearing? I attribute some of the loss to the amount of media we spend our time in front of. When things are fed to us we don't exercise the part of the brain that reasons and figures our for ourselves.

We were blessed to receive 2 different levels of books from The Critical Thinking Company. I have looked at their books for some time now but I had not made the investment yet. I am going to be very open and honest here. Two of my kids, our oldest twins, were born in Africa and an issue they have at times is critical thinking. This didn't come from huge amounts of media time for them. It more had to do with environment and malnurishment.

We were given Level 1 for grades 2-3 and Level 2 for grades 4-6. I am beyond impressed. The exercises on each page are short and easy to follow. They can read the instructions themselves and know what to do with very little help from me. Often times when I am not quite ready to start school yet, the twins have gone out to the school room and retrieved their critical thinking books to get started. At $29.99 they were a little on the high on the price side but when I actually got the books in my own hands I changed my tune. The books are very thick and will last my kids quite awhile making this a worthwhile investment.

I think they secretly like doing the activities and I am enjoying the increase in reasoning skills. The Critical Thinking Company has a large amount of activities, puzzles etc. I love looking at all they have to offer and after trying out these workbooks I will be investing in more of what they have to offer. Click on the links in this post to check them out for yourself.

Bible Songs

We have great memories of bible song CD's when we had 5 kiddos 6 years old and younger. We would play them in the car and then listen to them sing them over and over while playing. Very cute. As they are getting older the requests to listen to them has almost disappeared. Music is still very important in our home and we always have a radio or CD going in the car.

We were sent a new Bible Song CD from Bible Songs to try out. There are six double-length albums to choose from and we recieved The Bible CD. I put the CD on and immediately my 4, 6 and 8 year olds were drawn to the living room to listen. Plus it has been requested several times since. I love hearing the little tunes here and there during the day while they do different activities. Music is a great way to help with memorization and listening to this kind of a CD is a great way to hide the Word in their little hearts.

The songs are cute and fairly short making them easy to memorize, though lyrics are included. The CD is $9.99. I found the price very reasonable as the CD has 32 songs totalling close to an hour of listening. There are many other items available for purchase as well through Bible Songs. Check them out!

Knowledge Quest - Homeschooling ABC's

This is my first full year homeschooling all of my children. When given the opportunity to try out the Homeschooling ABC's class from Knowledge Quest starting last fall I was thrilled. The timing could not have been more perfect. It can be overwhelming when you first get started. What curriculum do I choose? How much is enough? How much is too little? Am I teaching everything that I should be? Where do I even start? All of these questions are normal and ones worth asking.

Terri Johnson at Knowledge Quest has created an online course called Homeschooling ABC's and it has 26 lessons. You receive an email once per week with a link to your lesson for the week for 6 months. At $10 per month you are only paying $2.30 per lesson. What a great deal! Really this has been a blessing to me as I try to figure out how schooling at home will look for us. It is really a step by step process, going through the basics of what you need to get started. There is even a lesson about what to do with your perschool and Kindergarten age children. This was very helpful to me as I have a busy 4 year old that I need to school around.

If you are person who is thinking about home educating, someone who has just begun or even someone who would like to get back to basics then this class is for you. I loved that I could take these lesson upstairs on my laptop and read them when my kids were in bed. Transitioning kids from public school to home educating can be difficult. They are used to a certain way of doing things and Terri walks you through helping you transition with your child. The classes address things such as buying and selling curriculum, discovering your child's learning style, staying organized, teaching multiple ages and much more.

I appreciated the advice and information that Terri provides in these lessons. There are very few things more important than your child's education. These lessons are a great way to set you and your children up for a successful homeschooling experience.

Write Shop StoryBuilders

Getting creative juices flowing where writing is concerned isn't always easy. Trying to get a learning child going and you can be looking at a struggle. We were given the opportunity to try out two different storybuilders from Write Shop, World of Sport and World of Animals.

At first I wasn't sure about the concept. They are e-books and so printing is required but after the initial figuring it out period, I am impressed. These are meant to be used as a warming up activity before a writing exercise. They originally had a program geared towards teens and parents but have recently introduced a program geared towards grades 1-3. This was perfect for us. There is nothing more important that learning how to write well. Most college courses require well written papers and I have been wanting to focus more on writing this year. This is a great icebreaker activity. It is also an activity that the student can do on their own while I am working with another one.

The storybuilder sets are available immediately by download. They are card decks meant to printed out and then used as a launching pad for writing projects. The process is meant to be fun and at $7.95 per set they are very affordable. With each deck comes instructions and ideas for how to use the cards. The card decks are split into four categories: characters, traits, setting and plot. You can combine sets if you wish or leave them seperate and give to more than one child at a time. There are so many ideas in each set, with almost 200 cards in each one, you will not be wanting for more choices.

I am loving this for my kids, particularly for my 6 year old. She is a beginning reader and emerging writer. She can choose a card from each category and write a story about what is on the cards. For instance her character would be a butterfly, the trait kindhearted, the setting behind a waterfall and the plot is learns to fly. This sets up the bones of a story that the child can now fill in with details. It is a great way to gently introduce your child to creative writing. I have a couple of older students that this works great for. Imaginative thinking is more of a challenge for them and little nudge goes a long way in getting them started.

Take a look at Write Shop to look at the sets available. I like this product very much and give it an A+ for content and value.

All About Homophones from All About Spelling

All About Spelling has done it again and I so impressed. The All About Homophones is a book available as either an e-book or a softcover version for those of you like me who like to have the book in your hands.

Homophones are those pesky words in the English language that sound alike, are spelled differently and mean very different things. Words like to, two and too or hey and hay. Teaching them also can be a bit tedious and the ordinary worksheet approach isn't always the most engaging. They are important to teach, however, and here is Marie Rippel to the rescue.

The book is 240 pages long and intended to creatively teach students grades 1-8. Wow! 240 pages. I do like that when I am ready for the next section I can just go to my computer and print out the pages I need. I also found the worksheets to be interesting but without too much fluff that would overwhelm a couple of my students. The book also includes crossword puzzles using the learned homophones. I particlurly like this feature as I have a few kids that love crossword puzzles.

The softcover book is $29.95 and the e-book is $27.95. Right now until next Monday, Feb 2, use the code FUN in the customer checkout to get $10 off. That would make the All About Homophones e-book just $17.95 or the softcover for $19.95. I think it's worth it and a great way to teach an important concept for a very good price. Check out the book at All About Homophones for more information.