TOS Crew Review: Eagles Wings: Considering God's Creation

The Product:
Today I get the wonderful opportunity to share with you my opinions on the science curricula Considering God's Creation. It is an in-depth encounter with natural science from a biblical perspective. It is unique in that it is easily adaptable for grades 2 through 7th and includes a 272 page student notebook and teacher's manual with music CD. At $29.95 it is a complete and very inexpensive investment for science!

Here is a list of what materials are covered:
Creation

Universe Stars Solar System Earth Light Sound Wind Weather Clouds Rocks Plants

Insects Mammals Reptiles Birds Fish Amphibians Food Chains Reproduction and Genetics Human Animal Anatomy Physiology

Included at the back of the Teacher's Manual are suggested resources such as books, videos, games and computer programs that parents can take advantage of to enhance what is being learned in each lesson.

McMama's Experience:
First of all I have to say that I just love a company that truly has their customer's best in mind. I just LOVE that Eagle's Wings allows parents to copy the pages in the student's book so that one book can be used for multiple children! Very cost effective. 


Having said that...and having copied some material from the student book for my children I believe with all my heart that it is easier and more time efficient to purchase another manual. I actually ended up doing that. It has been so nice having the extra sheets all ready to be torn out of the books. The option of copying is always available if needed but I have to say that I have preferred having a book for each child.


Okay, my opinions. I've enjoyed this curriculum and so have my children. You can make it as in depth or as light as you see fit. Gotta love that flexibility!!


For our review we focused on the God Made Me portion since that is what we have been studying.


Here is a picture of what our human bodies are turning out like. They include the circulatory, respiratory and skeletal systems.

The kids had a blast making these and they have been great for review! I do have to say that they are missing their large intestine because Littlest has pulled them off. Ah, life with  a 2.5 year old! :)

I have benefited from the good layout of each lesson we've gone through. Each lesson is laid out as follows:

Preparation - This section lets me know what I need to get ready in order to begin the lesson. 

Vocabulary - we just went over some of the words but I didn't have the kids memorize any of the meanings just yet. You could have your children memorize them, use them as spelling words and learn the Latin and Greek roots. 

Introduction - this is what I used to basically help me give an overview of what we were getting ready to study. I read it ahead of time and then paraphrased for my own kids what the main ideas were. 

Song or Poem - this was a neat addition but honestly some of the songs are a little odd. My kids do enjoy them and did learn the Skeletal System for example thanks to the song but they, to me, were just a little odd. 

Activity - this is always fun. For the skeletal system the kids had fun wrapping each other's arms in a sling as if they had broken a bone. (I have pictures somewhere!!)

Bible Reading - this included in all lessons and for me was the most important as we try to bring everything we teach our kids back to it's Biblical foundation. I took this in bite size pieces and we read some of the verses each time we met for Science. (The authors use MANY verses and that is great!!) 

Notebook - this is a favorite part for sure! This is where the huge student manual comes in and the kids do a great worksheet, such as what is pictured above, to enhance learning and bring it home. Since my kids love worksheets, cutting, pasting and coloring this portion couldn't have been more perfect of a fit for them! I love how interactive this part has been and what a treasure and keepsake these will be! 

Evolution Stumpers - This is awesome and I love how this helps me to teach my kids the evolution is wrong because "this" is how God created it and "this" is what the Bible says to prove it. 

Review - is next and included are questions to go over with your children to make sure that they are learning and not just mindlessly working. There is also a reminder to have the student explain his notebook page to another person.

Digging Deeper - for older or more advanced children in the family. This portion includes reading from a recommended book, summarizing a certain topic, research and more.

All in all this is going to be one item that we will use consistently in our homeschool. It has been a great fit for us and for our learning style.

The Breakdown:

• Considering God's Creation w/audio CD - $29.95
• Additional workbook - $13.95
• Great for keeping the family learning together!
• Easily adaptable for youngers and olders; although the littlest ones will need help with the cutting.
• Biblically sound.
• See samples here.

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.** 

Lovin' Learnin'

TOS Crew Review: Kregel Publications

The Product:
Kregel Publications is a company that I had never heard of before this review came along.


My review is on the book you see above, Andi's Scary School Days from the Circle C Beginnings series by Susan K. Marlow. This book is a soft-back Christian Fiction chapter book aimed at children ages 6-8.
Mrs. Marlow also wrote the Circle C Adventure books, when Andrea (Andi) Carter, then 12 enters the lives your older readers.


From the website; "Written for reading levels 2.0–2.8, the Circle C Beginnings series combines fun illustrations and six-year-old Andi’s signature curiosity.

In book four, Andi didn’t think she was afraid of anything—until now. School means being away from the ranch, away from her family, and away from Taffy. And tting next to a boy who throws things at her. Having to stand in the corner for something that wasn’t even her fault is the last straw."

Watch the trailer for the book:

McMama's Opinion:

We LOVE this little book!!

We read it the first week we received it and the girls completed the beautiful activity sheets that you can download from the website. This was a super product and if you have young girls ages 5 - 10 maybe this would be a great series to invest in! Read an excerpt if you'd like.

I do have to say however that some of the attitude that Andi shows surprised me somewhat. Andi has to go to school and really doesn't want to, doesn't like all of the rules, her teacher or just plain doing what she is suppose to do. However I went ahead and continued reading and took advantage of the opportunity for teaching my girls about what was wrong with the way Andi responds at times and what would be the response that Christ desires from us. Really, who naturally likes rules? Andi's responses were, in my opinion, similar to some of the way we react at times too. I spoke very candidly about God's instilling rules and authority to be a blessing and we honestly had some great conversations! This little book was a benefit for sure!

The Breakdown:

• Currently retails for $4.99; available online at www.kregel.com or at local bookstores nationwide.
• Other titles in the series are : Andi's Fair Surprise, Andi's Indian Summer and Andi's Pony Trouble and more.
• Extra printable activities are available online-these are great!
• From April 1 through August 31, 2011 you can save 30% off of your order using the code HOME11 during checkout. That brings the cost of these books down to $3.49 each! Mmmm, I like the sound of that!

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.**

Lovin' Learnin'

TOS Crew Review: Yesterday's Classics

Do you love books as I do? Do you lack space as I do? Do you wonder what to do about those dilemmas a I did? Enter Yesterday's Classics, your one-stop destination for tons of great classics that take up no floor space at all. (Can you hear the angels singing already?!) Sound too good to be true? Well read on!


Yesterday's Classics is a company dedicated to making the beautiful, rich stories of yesteryear available to the families of today. They have been busily reprinting hundreds of classics so that we can benefit from the same literary beauty that educated many years ago.


Yesterday's Classics has put together an awesome 225 title ebook package to make storing and accessing these treasures much easier! These are many of the same titles that you will find on the reading lists of curriculum developers such as Ambleside Online, Heart of Dakota, Living Books Curriculum and Tapestry of Grace.


When you purchase this 225 title ebook package you get immediate access to the books either in EPUB or Kindle format. Don't have an ereader? Don't fret! I didn't either, but both formats are supported by PC computers! That's right, you can download the free Adobe Digital Editions, Nook for PC, Kindle for PC, Calibre and others.


I used Nook for PC and Adobe. I prefer the Nook for PC personally. However if you are new to all of this YC has information and comparison charts on the most popular ereaders available for you once you order!! It's very informative by the way!!


So what makes Yesterday's Classics so much different than the other versions out there? Well, the ebooks from YC are just beautiful! They have pictures (if the original had pictures), they have a table of contents that makes it easier to navigate to the exact chapter or page that you want. With the Nook for PC I was able to book mark, change font size and easily store the books in an organized fashion.


There are 22 different genres that are covered in this package such as World History, Poetry, Children of the World, Britain, Shakespeare, Kindergarten, Literature, Christmas Stories, American History and more!

I do have to say however that there are some genres that we, being very conservative in nature, won't be persuing. It would be nice if there were some package deals available. I know that there are a few books that I am not going to be using with my children and would personally love something like a pick and choose option. Maybe 'x' amount of books for 'x' dollars for package A and 'x' amount of books for 'x' dollars for package B etc. I'm not sure how complicating that would get for Yesterday's Classics though. The deal that they have now is a great one, this is just my little suggestion based on the dynamics of our family.

Here are some of the titles we have enjoyed:

And there are more to get to!! Oh so much more!!! I'm so glad I don't have to find shelf space for all of these!!!
I can tell you that these books look great. They are well formatted and the picture quality is very nice. These Yesterday Classics versions are much easier on the eyes...and much more appealing...than most of the free versions that I have seen and downloaded but NEVER made myself use because they were just too hard to read!

So, if you are wanting some great literature, I'd urge you to check this package deal out! Honestly, I know it's pricey but when you think about the amount of books you are getting and the amount of money you are saving on storage space I think that you would find yourself saving in the long run! 

To do the math for you: 

225ebooks @ $99 =  44 cents per book!! 

Can you believe it?!!

Here's the deal:

Buy anytime between now and May 31st and you get all 225 ebooks in Kindle or Epub versions for $99.95!!!

Read all the details here!

Find out how my other Crew Mates loved this deal by clicking on the banner below.


**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.**

Lovin' Learnin'

TOS Crew Review: Growing Healthy Homes

The Product:
Today I am reviewing something very different from my other reviews. Today's review is a nutrition and health curriculum for the entire family. The company, Growing Healthy Homes, is a family-owned company started in 2007 by a mom, her oldest daughter and daughter-in-law. Isn't that great?! The birth of this book came about from a desire to do better for their families and offer a way to teach their children in a way not offered before.


Nutrition 101-Choose Life 448 page book is available as a hard copy book, a CD-ROM or as a combination of  CD-ROM (to print out certain pages) and hard copy book. (I would prefer the hard copy but that's just me.)

Why would you need both? The CD-ROM and book contain the same information, so the value of having both is the flexibility to use the CD-ROM to reprint individual copies of the recipes, shopping lists, charts and any other relevant pages and still have a bound book to enjoy. 


Thinking about using this in a co-op setting? Great idea! Check out their FAQ for co-ops here.


This book is written for elementary ages as well as secondary students. Check out a 27 page sample!!


McMama's Opinion:
This review opportunity came up at a great time! We have been studying the human body in science so the lessons in Nutrition 101 have meshed wonderfully. I am thoroughly impressed with the amount of material and quality of information available here. I tell ya, these ladies know their stuff!! Each lesson is jam packed with information, facts, pictures, activity ideas and great recipes. They all tie together to make for a memorable experience.

Checking her pulse during our study on the heart.

For example, when working through the lesson about the digestive system not only was the material that we had learned from our regular science program reinforced but it was enhanced and we all (yes, myself included) learned how to better care for your digestive system and even tried a recipe that promotes a healthy and smooth operating system. Just think, fruit salad, green apple bean salad, quinoa vegetable risotto and spice cookies. Not only is this a health course but its cooking class as well!! The digestive system unit talks about acid/alkaline balance, water, enzyme supplementation and the importance of fiber, cleansing and probiotic supplementation. And after you complete the recipe there are more activities that relate directly to it. For the Fruit Salad recipe Elementary students have the option of choosing a fruit used and find out how it grows, looking up the word antioxidant, finding out what organic means and preparing an oral or written report about one of the fruits used. There is more than enough here to keep everyone busy for years to come!

Her play dough model of a heart.

Each chapter ends with discussion questions such as, "What Scriptures support the information we have learned about digestion?" "How many times do you chew each bite?" "How can you help your family to remember to chew slowly?" Activities follow with options such as tracing your child's body and butcher paper and drawing and labeling the parts of the digestive system, testing taste buds with different types of flavors, and finding out how much food your stomach can hold. (It's 1 liter by the way, just over a quarter of a US gallon.) There are also more options for secondary age students. Yes, this is a "hey, let's get the family together and learn at the same time" kind of a program. It fits across the board.


Honestly, I had to paraphrase quite a bit simply because some of the information was a bit heavy for my young children but it did not change the effectiveness or fun of this program. And because the authors have reading, comprehension questions, activities and recipes I think that Nutrition 101 would suit any type of learner!


Here's a sample suggested weekly schedule:

• Monday-Read over chapter and discussion questions, choose activity.
• Tuesday-Review the chapter highlights and pick up items for power recipes.
• Wednesday-Prepare the recipe for a snack or meal.
• Thursday-Choose activities related to the power recipes.
• Friday-Discuss what has been learned throughout the week during a family meal time.

A sample of the first page of chapter 1.

The Breakdown:

• Available as a CD-ROM, a hard copy book or in combination with the CD-ROM.
• Current price as of the time of this review is: CD-ROM: $79.95, Printed book: $99.95 or the combo: $129.95
• Great to use as a family health/science/cooking course. But be prepared to do some paraphrasing for the younger set. Mom will have to look at the material ahead of time.
• Plenty of extra activities and questions. Great pictures.
• Fun!!
• Here is a 15% off code: TOScrew11. This is the same discount you would receive at a Homeschool Convention.

If ya want to read what my Crew Mates thought of Nutrition 101 click on the banner and read away!!

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.**

Lovin' Learnin'

TOS Review: Science Weekly

The Product:
Science Weekly is a science newsletter for kids. You can subscribe via snail mail (which I LOVED) but they also have a new online interactive area where you can access the newspapers from your computer.


The creators of Science Weekly understand the importance of science in the academic career of our little citizens so they have created a fun and age appropriate newspaper for kids grades K-6th.

Included with each newspaper bundle is the all important Teacher's Guide. This guide includes notes on all levels along with helpful information. Think, already completed lesson plans!! Let the angels sing!!! :)


The pricing for Science Weekly is as follows:

• Classroom Rate is $4.95 per student for a duration of 15 issues.     
• The individual rate (or families) is $19.95 per student for a duration of 15 issues. 
• Each has a minimum order of 20.

So this sounds pricey for homeschoolers right? I mean I have 3 that I could use this with. At $19.95 each that would be $60! Yikes!! However, upon checking out (and according to the email I received in response to this question)  I noticed that at the classroom rate, as long as I have a minimum of 20 orders then I can choose from any grade levels. Say you go and ask some other homeschooling (or non-homeschooling) friends and they become interested and they pass it along etc. As long as you have at least 20 different levels being purchased you get the classroom rate. THAT makes it MUCH better!!!


Here are some of the topics that they have covered so far:

• Composting
• Cats
• Glass
• Poisonous animals
• Caves
• Fractions and much more!!

And in the months to come:

• Teeth
• Deserts
• Green Buildings
• The Moon

See a sample for all levels and Teacher's Guide on Coral Reefs here. (Please note that the interactive newspapers may not reflect exactly what you would get in your physical newspapers...I think there's more available in the interactive papers.)

McMama's Opinion:
We received the issue on Influenza and it came at a great time because we were just getting over the flu here at our house!


I really like these newsletters! I love the convenience of having all the information on a particular subject ready and organized. I love that with Science Weekly you can sit down with all of your children and study the same topic but have grade level material for each child ready and waiting to be poured over. The Teacher's Guide is wonderful! It gives background information, initiating questions and follow-up questions. The Guide also has notes for each individual level. 


For example, Pre-Level A (the Kindergarten level) has vocabulary which is just tracing letters in the words, weekly labs, math-counting 30 seconds while washing hands, storytelling-the child has the opportunity to talk about a time that he had the flu, and a challenge section-putting pictures in order. Doing one section a day makes this quick and fun!!


My children loved the colorful pictures and the experiments and enjoyed being able to work together. This was a nice change from our regular routine and would be welcomed sprinkled in throughout the year.


The only complaint that I have is the cost. I mean, don't get me wrong, paying $4.95 per student is great but having to gather up 20 orders for homeschoolers isn't always easy. I could easily come up with about 10 but not 20. It would be great if they could lower the minimum number of required purchases for homeschoolers. Yes, there are some who are involved in large co-ops and can easily get 20 orders but there are those of us who would have a harder time with it. It is just my personal opinion on how Science Weekly could be made more homeschool friendly. Also, from what I understand, only 1 Teacher's Notes is sent with every 25 orders (according to their order page.) Great for classrooms but not beneficial for multiple homeschooling families purchasing at one time in order to reach the minimum 20, which wouldn't even qualify for the Teaching Notes as it's not 25.  Maybe contacting them before ordering would change this?


The Breakdown:

• I really like these newsletters! I think that they are beneficial to homeschoolers in many ways, and at $4.95 (as of the time of this review) per student they are affordable, very affordable!!
• I think they give a pretty good overview of the topic at hand.
• If they would maybe work on a more homeschool-friendly minimum for orders many would jump at the chance to purchase these!!

To read the reviews on this Newsletter and other topics from my Crew Mates click here.

**Any opinions expressed in this review are mine alone. I was not compensated in anyway for doing this review other than receiving a set of Newsletters to complete the review. I want to express my gratitude to the makers of for Science Weekly allowing me to review their product!!**

Lovin' Learnin'

TOS Review:Kinderbach

The Product:
Kinderbach. Ever heard of it? Of course you have, who hasn't? I remember about 3 years ago I had looked into it for my oldest but never did get beyond the free trial. Well, this was my chance. But now my oldest is 9 and she wasn't interested in this "easy stuff." So, I focused on using this with Brother, 5 and completely clueless when it comes to music and rhythm.

Kinderbach is an online or DVD program that is child-paced curriculum so you are free to go as slowly or as quickly as your child needs in order to truly own the material. Kinderbach that teaches note reading, rhythm, singing and music composition. The basics necessary to move on to any instrument of choice. KB consists of 6 levels that each have 10 lessons. Each lesson requires an activity book (downloadable or hard copy) and utilizes songs, demonstrations by Miss. Karri, and active work at the piano to bring the learning home.

In the first lesson, the children are introduced to Dodi, a lonely donkey who lives on the D key. His house is the two black keys that surround D. Other cute characters, including Dodi’s friend Frisco and others are introduced to help children remember the names of the keys. My girls loved Dodi and his friends!There are lessons to watch online but there are also worksheets that are to be printed out ahead of time so that the child can actively complete them along with Miss. Karri during the lessons.

The videos used in Kinderbach are not overwhelming or flashy but very appropriate for the age range. The creating of adorable characters makes it easy for the child to fall in love with this program and retain what is taught.

McMama's Opinion:
Honestly we did not get as far into the program as I had originally intended. Due to a few difficult life circumstances things got out of control for a while personally. I do however think that the parts that we have done with Brother and those that I've gone through on my own are excellent. Even Littlest goes to the piano as says, "This Dodi house Mama." Just last night she was trying to clap in rhythm with Miss Karri while her and Biggest were watching a lesson.


I think musically this is a great, gentle and fun way to introduce music and its theory to young children. I think that, when used consistently and going at the child's own pace Kinderbach can be very effective on creating a long lasting relationship with music.

Both of my bigger girls are already taking music lessons of their own however Brother is not. Kinderbach is something that I am going to try and budget in for him and Littlest for the upcoming school year. I think it's a good way to expose them to music at younger ages without having to pay the big price of two more private music lessons.


If you have been wanting your child to start on the road to learning about music then I would highly suggest taking a long look at Kinderbach. I regret not purchasing it years ago! Please don't make that same mistake yourself.


The Breakdown:

• Created for ages 3 - 7 years.
• Online and DVD versions available
• Online version is $95.88 per year (billed yearly) or $19.95 per month.
• Find info on the DVD package here.
• I would recommend this for someone who lacks the confidence to teach their young child themselves, desires a fun, non-traditional way of exposing littles to music, or someone who (like us) has a larger sized family and doesn't have the budget to accomodate more private music lessons. This gets them learning and building a relationship with music but at a less expensive cost.
• Not sure, sign up for the free trial!

Click on the banner below to see how my other Crew Mates faired with Kinderbach!

**Any opinions expressed in this review are mine alone. I was not compensated in anyway for doing this review other than receiving access to kinderbach.com to complete the review. I want to express my gratitude to the makers of Kinderbach for allowing me to review their product!!** 

Lovin' Learnin'

GoGo Kabongo-TOS Review

The Product:

Isn't it nice to find something that makes learning fun? I'll be the first to admit that online learning is not my first choice but GoGoKabongo does bring some fun to learning. GoGo Kabongo is an online world of color, fun, and education wrapped up in one. GoGo Kabongo claims to develop cognitive skills that are essential to reading such as: attention and focus, memory skills, processing, planning, visualization and comprehension. GoGo Kabongo uses games and quirkly alien/monster type creatures to engage the children in practicing these important skills while having fun. The site has three habitats, or lands, and each has 3 games. There are six levels to each game and the difficulty slowly increases with each level. The child moves up to the next level at his or her own pace.

Learning Skills Chart

Okay, so this is just another "online gaming world created to zap the few remaining cells my poor little baby has left due to the high volume of electronics and entertainment available these days" you say? Well read this quote from the website:
"Proven effective. GoGo Kabongo games have been rigorously evaluated by cognitive psychologists in a controlled environment, as well as being field tested by kids and teachers in classrooms across the country. For more information, see The George Mason University Study"


So maybe you can rest a little easier knowing that this website has been evaluated by people who know what they're doing and understand that we, as parents, just don't want anymore mindless electronic games available for our children.


You can meet the Characters of GoGo Kabongo and read about each different Habitat if you'd like.

McMama's Opinion:

So this little website has some great aspects to it. I for one LOVE the details available to the parents at each child's personal progress report page. I can quickly and easily see what skills my children are learning at each level and how things have slowly gotten more difficult. The funny thing to me is that the levels that each of my children excel at are the same strengths that I see in their everyday academics and vice versa. I think there might be something to this place!

I like how, if I want Brother who is learning his letter sounds to work more on Phonics I can instruct him to spend more time in Galaxy Gardens playing Rocket Racer where he needs to identify letters while maneuvering his avatar through space or I can direct him to the Twister Top habitat to play Desert Dash where he has to associate the letters with their sounds. He has tons of fun meanwhile I know that he's
 not just playing some mindless games but working on some important skills.

Honestly my kids LOVE this site! I wasn't too thrilled with another online site "claiming" to help my children while they play but I've been pretty satisfied with what the kiddos are doing on GoGo Kabongo. I do however limit how much time that they are allowed to spend on the computer. We do about 15 to 20 minutes 3 times a week. With that I feel comfortable and I know (as I've stated) that their little brains are being worked.



When I asked them what they thought about this website a couple of weeks after we began using it Biggest said, "Oh it's fun Mommy and we're learning stuff too." Her own words. So, if they can tell that they are learning and not mind because it's fun then I'm willing to let them go at it!

I don't really care for the language used by the characters on GoGo Kabongo however. Think California surfer. :)...hope I don't offend anyone!! (I'm from Cali by the way). I thought some of the "lingo" was a bit silly to be honest with you. It's not something that I want my children to start copying.

Also, since the site is currently in its Beta stage (preparing for release but not there yet) there were a few glitches to it. Completely understandable. When emailed customer service was quick to respond saying "Well get right on it." Admittedly we did not have as many troubles as some of my other Crew Mates.

The Breakdown:

• Although I'm seriously not a fan of online games this one I think we can allow a little more often simply because I see benefits in using it.
• Most of this site is FREE but you can get two more habitats - Galaxy Gardens and Twister Top by purchasing them for $4.95 each. BUT here is a special offer that is good at the time of this review: Sign up now and you get the galaxy gardens and habitat FREE!! So, you'd pay about 5 bucks for the last two habitats and would be ableto enjoy this place fully.
• Great emails letting parents know what their children are learning and doing!
• Extra activity ideas to enhance the skills the games focus on.
• GoGoKabongo was created for children ages 4-7 (although my 9 year old enjoyed it quite a bit) but they are also testing a website designed to boost reading skills for children ages 7-10. To sign up go to www.skatekids.com. (I know nothing about this particular website but thought I'd throw that out there.)
• Recommended system requirements:

• Broadband internet connection
• Processor speed of 1.5 GHz or faster
• Screen resolution of 1024x768
• Adobe® Flash® Player, version 9
• Internet Explorer (IE) version 6 or higher, or Firefox version 2.0 or higher
• 
  
• Click on the banner below to read what my other Crew Mates have to say about GoGoKabongo!
• 
• **Any opinions expressed in this review are mine alone. I was not compensated in anyway for doing this review other than receiving access to GoGoKabongo.com to complete the review. I want to express my gratitude to the makers of GoGoKabongo for allowing me to review their product!!**
• Lovin' Learnin'

Big IQ Kids-TOS Review

The Product:
BigIQkids.com is a web based program that focuses on math, spelling, vocabulary and state facts for grades K-8. This program is FREE but there is also a paid Premium Membership (that I am reviewing today) that is available. You can compare the two options here.


BigIQkids.com uses customizable lessons and rewards for passing those lessons as a way to teach children good study habits and hard work ethics. When used each day for around 10-15 minutes per lesson, BigIQkids.com guarantees that improvement in the child's academic grades will appear.

This is where parents or teachers can modify a spelling lesson to reflect the words in your current curriculum.

BigIQkids.com is unique in the fact that the student can use this program independently. Here's a quote from the website:  "BigIQkids.com provides true, self-learning applications without the need for parental oversight. All our material and instructions (each word and sentence) are delivered to the young learner by interactive characters with phonetically correct lips so even children with limited reading skills can utilize our e-learning applications."


Read more about BigIQkids.com here and learn about how it works here.


McMama's Opinions:


Can I say that I LOVE the Premium spelling portion of this website?!! Before this review came up I was really feeling bogged down with schooling two girls on different levels in math, spelling, reading and writing. I was earnestly seeking a way to "tweak" things so that some of my time could be freed up so that we could accomplish all that we needed to each day.

Enter BigIQkids.com. My worries began to ease!! Because the program allows you to either use the preprogrammed lists or input your own I was easily able to add our words to their spelling lessons and they would then get their lessons in on the computer. I still met with them each day to review rules, words and sounds and do some dictation but the meat of their lessons were done on BigIQkids. They loved it and so did I!!! 

What made it even greater is that with the Premium membership I was sent automatic progress emails which told me the score on their tests and if any words were spelled incorrectly how the girls spelled them. Isn't that great?!!! I could see what we needed to practice one on one because the program kept "tabs" for me!! In the life of a busy homeschooler/wife/mother/cook and everything else having help in one little area makes a huge difference!


My girls loved their lessons on BigIQkids and I think that much of that had to do with the fact that each lesson is different. Sometimes they practiced with word scrambles or robot lesson. Other days they would have a spelling bee. There was also a review and pop quiz and finally a test. All I have to do each week is input the words into their word lists and viola! Done!! The girls still get good spelling practice and I am given a few more minutes each day to get some other lessons done. Love it! They also love that they earn a game coin for successfully completing a lesson. Most days they were allowed 1 or 2 games but we did keep a limit on that. My girls mostly enjoyed the games where they could dress up someone or change up their Big IQ Buddy. (That's their avatar...well, I guess that's the word for it. I'm not up to date with all that lingo).

I focused on the spelling portion for our review because that's what we enjoyed and used the most but there are other areas available. Here is some quick information on them:


Math: You can set up a child's lesson to mirror what they are doing in their current curriculum. For example, if the child is on double digit addition and single digit multiplication, the program can focus on just these two areas providing invaluable practice and reinforcement that is certain to provide them with the tools to ace their next test. Or, BigMathTime can automatically generate grade specific and subject specific lessons as per your requirements.

Start menu for math with a neat little scratch pad to the right. You can see Big Sis' "avatar" on the bottom right...she always goes through wardrobe changes! On the bottom left is the green modify lesson book that the parent clicks on to personalize the lesson to each child. The teacher at the top left talks the child through lessons with encouragement and direction.

I liked the math portion ok. It was a little confusing to set up at first. You use percentages to determine how much of what kind of problems you want your kids to focus on. I would also always get emails saying that the girls mastered this or that but it never showed up on their lessons.


Vocabulary: With an extensive library of elementary through SAT prep words, BigVocabTime comes pre-loaded with word lists OR, as a parent or teacher, you can easily enter your own word lists and the program will automatically create a week’s worth of lessons, quizzes and tests around your own list with the goal of achieving 100% on the week’s vocabulary test.

After reading the definition, synonym and antonym the child is then prompted to spell the word. This is lesson 1, step 1.

I had meant to input our own words from our science program but never did. I think that this is a great aspect of the program however it starts at the 3rd grade level (although you can customize). Even with that the words were difficult for my learners at that level.


U.S. States: Every elementary student will be confronted with the need to know their US State facts to mastery. BigStatesTime is the ultimate tool in learning the state's location, capital, spelling, abbreviations and general state facts. The program allows parents/teachers to add additional facts which will be included in the child's lessons and the program culminates in a “State Mastery Exam” that, if passed with 100% mastery, awards the child a State Master 
Certificate.

This is the Intro. lesson to States. Student clicks on any state to learn more about it.

My girls are funny. Honestly they never seemed to do well on the state parts but they LOVED the lessons anyway. I guess that means we need to work on comprehension a little more? The computerized teacher, Jake, tells them some information on a particular state and then they are to answer questions about what they learned. Yeah, need to work on that comprehension. I appreciated this portion of the program because the girls were able to be exposed to material that I just wouldn't have the time to cover right now.


The Breakdown:

• I love this!
• Premium Memberships can be purchased for each individual subject:
• Spelling - $7.99/month or $39.99/year
• Math - $9.99/month or $49.99/year 
• US States - $39.99/month
• Vocabulary - $9.99/month or $59.99/year
• All four programs - $19.99/month or $99.99/year
• Most of the sites can be accessed for free (however for us the premium membership for spelling would be worth it!) Check out the difference between the two.
• Can be used with those in grades 1 on up. Everything is told to you by the computerized teachers so no extra reading is needed.
• Can be used independently by the student.

Click on the banner below to read what other Crew Members experienced with BigIQKids.com.

**Any opinions expressed in this review are mine alone. I was not compensated in anyway for doing this review other than receiving access to BigIQKids.com premium membership to complete the review. I want to express my gratitude to the makers of BigIQKids for allowing me to review their product!!**

Lovin' Learnin'