TOS Review: IXL

Being sick while you are homeschooling is TOUGH!  Because of this, I was really happy to get a chance to review IXL.com.  Having an online resource to assist in teaching my children over the last couple months has been a God-send.  You may have heard of IXL before, in fact we have reviewed IXL in the past.  That's how I knew I wanted to try it again!


IXL offers a unique program that has drills in math and now language arts, too!  In Math, it starts with Pre-K and goes all the way up to Algebra 2.  They plan to add Pre-Calculus soon.  In the Kindergarten area alone, there are over 120 skills to be practiced.

Here is a screen shot of what you see when you are working on a kindergarten math problem.  This is under my parent profile.

The problem reads 'How many dots are there?'  If your child can't read, they can click the green button next to the question and it will read it to them.  They put their answer in the box and then hit submit.  

On the right hand side you can see problems attempted, amount of time they have been practicing for, and then their average score of correct answers compared with the number they tried.  

Here is a look at the awards screen.  You can see that Mini Cooper has won 3 medals, answered 50 questions, practiced for 19 minutes, mastered 3 skills and earned 3 prizes.  She needs to practice 11 minutes, 50 questions, and 2 skills to get another prize.  Her prizes so far have been a book, car, and slide.

Here is a look at the skill page for Mustang.  The ones that have green bars next to them are ones she has tried.  Ones with medals are ones she has mastered.  If you could scroll down the page, you would see that there are many more skills she has been practicing.

The .1 of each skill is the easiest, so I asked her to go through all the .1's and then go on to the .2's.

For the parent, there are many nice reports to view how your student is progressing through the program.  You can look at their individual profiles, but it is nice to see them in a report-this is just one of 4 views you can see.  You can also allow for emails so that you are updated right away when your child hits an achievement.

Brand new this year are language arts lessons.  I was a little hesitant to have Mustang try them, but she did much better then I thought.  We still have a lot to learn!  Language arts lessons are available for 2-4th grades, with more to be added in the future.

So what did we think of IXL?

Overall we really enjoyed it-and are continuing to.  It has been very nice to have the kids spend 30 minutes or so every couple days practicing without my help (extra nice when you are feeling awful!).  And, they seem to enjoy this work as it's a bit different from the other options that they have.

Mini Cooper really didn't like it at all.  She didn't enjoy having to press the button to hear her question, and it just wasn't fast paced enough to keep her attention, so while it has pre-K skills, I wouldn't recommend it for the little ones.  Charger is 5 and does very well with it-but he CAN read the questions.  It might be different if he could not.  Mustang and Charger are the ones who have really used the program since they both enjoyed it.

Now, one thing to keep in mind is that this is not a learning web-page.  What I mean by that is, that while there are excellent little tutorials if you get a question incorrect, this page is to quiz your child on what they already know. So, I can't use this to teach my kids instead of teaching them myself.  I can only use this to be sure they are understanding, practicing, and mastering their skills.

The price is very affordable!  It starts at just $9.95/month with just $2.00 for each additional child (homeschool family pricing).  They also offer yearly pricing of just $79/year ($20 each additional child).

Overall, we loved it.  But, be sure to check out the crew blog to see what other families thought of IXL.com, too.  Just checkout the crew blog.

If You Were Me Culture Box Books from Carole P. Roman {TOS Review}

When we were asked if we would like to review this set of books, I jumped at the chance!  We received the four books you see in the photo.  These are the first four in a series of books by Carole P Roman entitled 'If You Were Me and Live In...'  The four titles are for France, South Korea, Norway, and Mexico.

The layout of these books is really sweet. There is a young boy and girl in each book that introduce you to their country.  After showing you the country outline and telling you what continent it is on, we get a few fun facts about each of the countries, a long with a colorful illustration.

Here we are eating in Mexico.

Sightseeing in France :).  I normally wouldn't post a sideways photo, but it is upright on my computer and won't load right.  But, it was the favorite part of the books for 2 of my children and I hate to leave it out.  

Checking out the Northern Lights in Norway.

Celebrating a new year in South Korea.

Each book gives us a little peek into traditional culture, food, language, special holidays, and everyday life.  It is the same information given in each book just about a different country, so they are excellent for comparing and contrasting between the countries.

I intend to put each of these books in the correct continent box, but for this review we read all four books at one time.  Afterwards, I asked my children to draw a picture of their favorite country and why.

Here they are all around the world :).

Mustang is flying her flag at the Eiffel Tower.

Mini Cooper is staying at the snow motel and watching the Northern Lights.  I don't think she realizes how cold it is there, lol!

Charger is at the Eiffel Tower...that looks a lot like a ski lift, lol!!  He said it's a specialized elevator (always over thinking the mechanical side, that's his calling).

We REALLY enjoyed the If You Were Me books.  They are not too long, each has about 28 pages, and they are just the right size for little hands.  The illustrations are bright, colorful, and keep the children's attention.  There is just enough information to be interesting without being overwhelming.  But, overall, we actually learned something!

If You Were Me Books are written and illustrated by Carole P Roman with Away With Me Media.  They sell for $8.99 paperback and $.99 Kindle edition.  The Norway books are $11.99 paperback and $1.99 Kindle Edition.  I believe that Ms. Roman intends to publish more and we are eagerly awaiting them!

These books are PERFECT for Montessori Culture studies and I would highly recommend them for that. The publisher recommends ages pre-K through age 8, and I can certainly say that all my children ages 2-8 liked them.  I probably wouldn't have purchased them for my 8 year old, but she did enjoy reading them as part of the group. You can see what others had to say by checking out the crew blog.

TOS Review: Barbour Publishing

Over the last few weeks we have been reviewing a fun book called the Diary of a Real Payne Book 1: True Story, by Annie Tipton, from Barbour Publishing.  I say we, but really it has been Mustang.  I decided to use this as one of her first 'required' reading books, and believe it or not, it was hard to get my book worm to read anything 'required.'  Normally, she chooses her own books and is very excited, but it was a little harder to assign her something.  But, once she finally started reading, she just couldn't put it down!

Here is Mustang's info about the book:  The story is about a girl named Emma Jean who they call 'E.J.'  She just started forth grade and has a mean teacher named Mrs. Pickerington.  She won't even let them have designs on their notebooks (soo mean, lol).  E.J. has a friend named Macy Russell.  They play together at school, during recess and more and really enjoy pretending to be things they aren't.  They use their imaginations to do things-like what you can see on the cover-they were in space-EJ was the astronaut and Macy was the captain.  Of course the teacher wasn't so pleased with her choice to walk (eyes closed) on the top of the monkey bars.

At another chapter, EJ was spending at the night at her elderly neighbor's house, Mrs. Winkle's.  While there, she read a book Aristocrazy Through the Ages.  One of the stories in the book was about Nebuchadnezzar the Wild-Animal King.  It told the story of how King N went crazy and became and animal.  It also tells the story of Queen Esther-and of course EJ happily put herself in Esther's place and became the Queen.

Did you like the book:

Yes.  Because it is funny! 

What was your favorite part?

 She has a brother named Issac that said a joke-a knock knock joke:

Issac:  knock, knock

Me:  who's there?

Issac: Noah

Me:  Noah who?

Issac:  Noah  good joke?

Who is your favorite character?

E.J.

Do you think other kids would like this book?

Yes, people that like Junie B Jones books would like this one.  It's very funny just like them.

MY thoughts on the book:

Diary of a Real Payne True Story book 1 is 188 pages long and has 15 chapters.  At the beginning of each chapter, there is a diary entry by E.J., after which we follow her around her daily life and adventures.  The diary dates from July to December, so we only see a small time of her life.  The humor and layout really is a lot like the Junie B Jones books, I was interested that Mustang noticed that.  But, it is a much longer book and aimed at a bit older reader.  

Mustang is a 2nd grader, but reads at about a 4th grade level.  I would recommend this for probably 3rd and up unless you have a strong reader on your hands.  The publisher says ages 8-12.

I was very pleased that she liked the book and there have been many days she has asked if she could read instead of other school subjects-which I let her do :).  

Diary of a Real Payne True Story Book One, by Annie Tipton, published by Barbour Publishing is a softcover and sells for just $5.99 and is on SALE for $4.49 at this time!!  It would make a great gift for a child on your list (or a great addition to your church library!).

To see what others in the crew thought, check out the crew blog!

TOS Review: Chess House

For the last few weeks we have been reviewing one of or very favorite review products of the year!  We received a Starter Chess Learning Kit from ChessHouse.com and we are LOVING it!!

In our Starter Chess Learning Kit, we received:

• A chess board that is made out of a vinyl foam and rolls all up
• A full chess set made out of sturdy plastic, and they have green felt on the bottoms
• Elliot's Chess School Pawn Level DVD
• A large carrying case that has compartments for the board, pieces, and DVD

This set retails for $49.95 if you buy each item individually, but for the set is just $39.99.

As soon as our Chess Learning Kit arrived, my children started begging to try it!  It was really hard to not try and start playing the game immediately, but I held them back so we could watch Elliot's Chess School DVD first.  My kids had never played Chess and I didn't want them to get confused, so I was very firm that the would watch the DVD first!

So, they patiently watched the DVD.  The LOVED it.  All four sat with their eyes glued to Elliott.  The DVD runs 49 minutes, and they were a bit frustrated when I wouldn't let them watch it all at one time.  But, as soon as they watched the first couple episodes they were happily setting up the chess board and telling me all that they had learned.  

The second day, I let them finish watching the DVD.  As soon as it was over, they were off.  I was very impressed at how well they had picked up the information.  They weren't world class chess champions or anything, but they DID know what all the pieces could do and how they moved across the board.

The way that Elliot presents the chess game in his DVD is to first, introduce the board.  Then he introduces each individual piece.  He explains the name, value, and capabilities of each piece.  The DVD is broken down into chapters, so you can watch it all at once or break it up like we did.

Since then, there as been many a chess game being played at our house.  We have the slight challenge that Charger isn't as old as Mustang, and currently that means he is not as good as she is.  So, she almost always wins, but he is getting better.

When my parents came for a visit, my dad was more then happy to play against the kids.  He also continued to give chess instruction to Charger-helping him to learn more strategy.  

My brother is, ironically, a chess champion-literally.  He was a member of our school's first place state championship chess team.  It's ironic because he was also the school homecoming King, lol.  But, chess has always been a part of my family growing up.  I knew that young children could learn (my brother learned when he was 4), but I had no CLUE how to teach them!!  I am extremely grateful for Elliot's DVD helping me with something I couldn't do!

Overall I would recommend this product hands down!  We loved every part of it.  The DVD, especially was a hit.  But the board was really nice, too.  Granted, you can go to any store and pick up a random set, but this one is a step above.  I loved the way the board is labeled with the letters and numbers of each row-very nice for new learners. 

 And, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the way that it all wraps up and goes into the carrying case-it will be super nice to take along for Christmas chess games at Grandpas!

If you already have a chess set, Elliot's Chess School DVD's are sold separately.  But, I would recommend the whole set.  The Chess Starter Kit is designed for ages 4 and up, and while I would probably up that to about 5 1/2, I agree that pretty much any child, teen, or adult will enjoy this!  It would make a great Christmas gift for lots of people on your list!

To see what others on our crew thought of the Chess Starter Kit, check out the crew blog.  

Thanks for stopping by!

God Bless,

Lisa

TOS Review: Seed Sowers

We have recently been reviewing a wonderful book on missions, Seed Sowers, by Gwen Tolliver.  And, I am very excited to get to tell you about it!  Why?  Well, when I was a little girl, I was blessed to attend a church that had a huge heart for missionaries.  Not just the heart that gave money (which IS a good thing), but also a heart to get to know who these amazing people were, what they were doing, and how God was using them.

Once a year, our church would host a missions conference.  The would invite any of the missionaries who were able to come to the conference.  They would ask each of these missionaries to set up a little 'station' about their mission work and then we would 'travel' around the world-stopping at each of their countries to see what they did.  We would travel to Papua New Guinea, Japan, Romania, the US, and many other countries.

This little yearly conference left a huge impression on my life.  Knowing from a young age about real people who went and told others about Jesus had me telling people I would grow up to be a missionary.  Now, I only ended up going on a short-term missions trip, but I know that missionaries are all Christians and God uses them even in their homes.

Gwen's book, Seed Sowers, has a very similar mission:  to introduce people of all ages to the amazing people God has chosen to work as overseas missionaries.  It also allows them to see how God has worked in their lives in some very challenging situations. 

Gwen, a fellow homeschool mom AND blogger-she writes at ToliversToTexas-wanted to put together this book about real missionaries and some of the real ways God has provided for them on the mission field.  She and her husband serve with Wycliff Bible Translators, and so she was able to contact many missionaries throughout a 2 year period and interview them for this book.  

Gwen interviewed 21 different missionaries and complied their stories into one book, Seed Sowers Gospel Planting Adventures.  And, let me tell you, adventures they are!  From one missionary almost drowning, another almost getting eaten by an ocelot, a third facing the terror of being beheaded, and there are MANY more.

The best part of each story, is that the missionaries always share how God took these crazy situations and allowed His power and provision to be shown through them.  He shows how either the missionary learned a big lesson about trusting God, or a person (or entire tribe) ended up coming to know the Lord all from one scary, strange, disgusting, or challenging-but important, event.

I had intended to read the book with my children, but felt like I should read it myself first.  I don't really know why, but I did just that.  Each morning, for my quiet time, I have grabbed my Kindle and entered a land I have never been to, and live a crazy moment in time along with the missionary of that day.  It has really allowed me to appreciate the current mission field I have been given!

There are actually days I question my mission field.  Yes, when I am changing dirty diapers, cleaning up toys, folding laundry, cooking dinner, or one of the many daily tasks on my plate, I feel quite mundane and unexciting.  It's easy to look at those serving in a mountain tribe in South America and say-hey THOSE people are serving God.  And, wow, what a COOL way to serve God.  I think back to my 3 weeks in Ghana, Africa, and wonder if I should have tried to go back.  I mean, God could have used me SO MUCH MORE if I were in a hut, right?

Reading Seed Sowers has really pointed out one major thing to me, God will put you where He wants you.  He will provide for you the things He knows you need.  And, if you allow Him control of each situation, He will be glorified, and you will be doing EXACTLY the mission work he wants for you to do!!  Yes, as a matter of fact, I got all that from reading about witch doctors and missionaries!

The more I read, the more I am excited to share it with my children.  I would like to gather a map and maybe other things to help them get an idea of where these missionaries live.  I love the photos that are on the Seed Sower's web-site to help you get an idea of who they are, too.  I will update you more when we do!

I would highly recommend Seed Sowers!  I reviewed the Kindle version, which costs just $3.99.  You can also purchase a  softcover book for $12.50.   You can read an excerpt of the book on Seed Sower's Website, and also find out more about the book, Gwen Tolliver, and the missionaries in the book.

Many of the other crew members also reviewed Seed Sowers.  To see what they thought, be sure to check out the crew blog.

TOS Review: Logic of English

Over the last month we have been reviewing Rhythm of Handwriting from Logic of English.  We have been trying out the cursive handwriting book.

I will be honest, before we received it, I was a little unsure what we would think.  I wasn't quite *sure* I was ready for Mustang to start learning cursive handwriting.  But, I figured that it was as good as any to give it a try!  Boy, am I glad we did!

We were sent The Logic of English Cursive Handwriting by Denise Eide, which was just renamed The Rhythm of Handwriting.  We also received The Rhythm of Handwriting Cursive Chart.

Each school day, I requested that Mustang try the handwriting book (after the review period it will be added to her work plan and she can choose if she wants to work on it or not).  She was willing to try it out, and actually was very excited about it.  This curriculum is super duper easy to use!

Presentation of a letter was very simple.  We would read the letter description at the top of each page together.

Then, we would take turns tracing out the letter on the sample lines.  I DO really wish we would have had a set of tactile/sandpaper letters to work with.  I am going to have to get some very soon.  This presentation took all of about 10 minutes.  Afterwards, Mustang would go and work on her handwriting for about 20 minutes.

Different from other curricula I remember as a child, there are no tracer lines.  Simply, there are three lines.  The first sets are small, and the sets get wider as you go down the page.  Mustang remarked that the smaller letters are much easier to write.

The book is separated into lowercase and then uppercase letters.

The lowercase are then divided into:

• swing letters
• curve letters
• loop letters
• bump letters

The uppercase letters are divided into

• roll letters
• loop letters
• circle letters
• slash letters
• miscellaneous letters

There are also sections where the letters are combined to make words, showing how the letters flow together.

At the beginning of each letter lesson, there is a description on how to form that letter.  The descriptions are short, easy to understand, and they work!  But, what if you want to go back to a letter you already wrote and don't feel like turning all the pages in the book?  Well that is what the cursive chart is for!

The chart is a thick, glossy card stock. Very sturdy and the colors are very eye catching.  The helpful letter descriptions all in one place!

We have chosen to do one or two letters at a time-usually Mustang tires after one.  At that rate, we will likely be working on this book for quite some time!  But, I can certainly see that she is learning from The Logic of English!

I had read many times that Maria Montessori felt children should learn cursive before manuscript.  She gave all these reasons why, but I had a hard time accepting this one of her ideas!  After all, I learned manuscript first and came out just fine.  But, after seeing the cursive lessons in motion, I am having a change of heart!

I really enjoyed reading over an article on the Logic of English website called Why Teach Cursive First.  The article gives many great reasons why to bypass manuscript and go straight to cursive.

What I really enjoyed is that this curriculum is so easy, that I will be able to implement it with any age that I want to.  I am very likely to go ahead and start Mini Cooper on her cursive letters rather then manuscript.

The Rhythm of Handwriting retails for just $15.00 and the Cursive Chart retails for $10.00.  If you check out the product page, there are a number of sample downloads to view if you would like to try before you buy.  Also, the company JUST changed the cover of the book, so be sure to look for the one above rather then the one we tried out.

Overall, I think The Rhythm of Handwriting is a good product!  It is easy to use, affordable, and it works!  Other members of the crew tried out this program, and others tried some of the other products from The Logic of English.  Be sure to check out the crew blog and see what they thought!

Thanks for stopping by!
God Bless,
Lisa

TOS Review: Greene Bark Press

As I had mentioned in my safety day post we were recently sent a cute little book for review,  Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again, written by Ginger Pate, published by Greene Bark Press.  

In this story,  Wally Waddlewater (shown on the cover) sets out to mail a letter to his grandma.  In the process, he nearly gets run over by the busy traffic!!  So, he and his mom go through town to the mail box.  At each road, they use the phrase 'look left, look right, look left again.'  By the end of the story, Wally has learned how to cross the street alone and even yells the instructions to a friend who is about to run into traffic.

This cute little book is a brightly colored, board book that measures about 7 inches by 7 inches.  The story line is simple, but very cute.  Author Ginger Pate does a great job of putting in onomatopoeias to help the story come alive.  The dialog between mom and Wally is just right, too.  This really was a fun story to read aloud, and it kept the attention of all four of my children-ages 1 to 7.  During our safety day we read other books, but this was the only one that they all sat quietly for, waiting to see what would happen to Wally, and looking forward to the next time they could help him say 'look left, look right, look left again.'

I can't count how many times I've come across Mustang saying 'look left, look right, look left again' just randomly on her own.  Apparently the phrase is very catchy to her and she likes to say it.  Many games have been played with our cars and little people that they have had to 'look left, look right, look left again.'

  

We crossed the street in town last week, and all the kids were quick to tell each other to 'look left, look right, look left again'.  They even made sure to do it when crossing our little dirt road to the mailbox.

Since we live in the middle of nowhere, it isn't often we get to practice learning about busy roads.  I am very glad we got a chance to read this book, because it gave my children a chance to 'see' how busy roads can be, even from the end of a dirt road.  And, because of it, they are learning how to be safe when they DO go to a busy road.

The content, pictures, and quality of Look Left, Look Right, Look Left Again by Ginger Pate is certainly worth the $8.50 price tag in my opinion.  It would make a great gift for any little person on your list!  

You can see what the rest of the crew thought by checking out the Schoolhouse Crew blog.

TOS Review: The Family Hope Center

Over the last few weeks, we have been reviewing one of the more unique products that I had ever been sent!  It is a DVD made by The Family Hope Center called Understanding Child Brain Development.

The Family Hope Center, based in Norristown, Pennsylvania, was founded by husband and wife team Matt and Carol Newell.  The Family Hope Center is dedicated to helping special needs kids and their families.  Their mission is to 'empower parents to heal their children.'

In today's world we there are many, many children who have been diagnosed with some sort of 'disorder.'  These disorders {ADD, ADHD, Dylexia, ODD...I could go on for a long time} are all a bit of a mystery to our medical staff-at least it seems that way to me.  No one is sure what is causing them, and because of that, doctors just seem to treat the symptoms with medication and hope that it fixes the problem.  

So, what if there was another view on things?  What if there really was something causing the problems, and that something was treatable.  Not just the symptoms, but the actual problem?  This is where The Family Hope Center comes in!

The Family Hope Center believes that the problems are stemming from poor brain health!  Whether the child was born with poor brain development, or something caused a problem in the brain after the child was born, the child is now living with at least one underdeveloped portion of their brain.  And, if that portion of the brain can be identified, a treatment plan can be established and the child has a real chance at recovering from their brain injury!

Now, that is my take (in a very SMALL nutshell) of what the Family Hope Center does.  And, no, we did not get a child diagnosed and treated in the last month.  But, they have been helpful to my family over that time.

Here's how:  Andrew Pudewa, the founder and director of Institute for Excellence in Writing, used to work with the Newells years ago.  Now that he is a founder of a curriculum company, he receives questions from homeschooling parents to which he believes the Newell's have answers, and so he wanted to partner with the Family Hope Center to share what the Family Hope Center can do for families and their children.

Remember my nutshell explanation?  Well, it's really HARD to explain what the Family Hope Center does in a nutshell.  In fact, it has taken them about an hour and a half to really explain what they do.  That is the heart of what this DVD is.  Explaining what the Family Hope Center can do for families.

But, this DVD is two-fold.  While the DVD was created to help families understand what they can do for their noticeably brain injured child {anywhere from paralysis and blindness, to ADD and Dyslexia}, it also seems to do a good job-in my opinion-of giving parents a good feel for who might be a good candidate for their program.  

Mr. Newell goes on to explain ways that you can improve brain health right away.  This was probably my favorite part.  I really appreciated that, while it is true they would like to see the viewing of this DVD lead to families calling to become clients of theirs, they still gave plenty of information without having to come to their seminars or anything further.  

The information I received at the end of the DVD I felt was a kin to what doctors tell you to prevent going to the doctor.  You know the-eat right and exercise and you won't get sick. Or the don't eat sugar and brush you teeth and you won't need the dentist.  Well do these things {on the DVD} and you can improve your brain health and help the little things that aren't worth a trip to Pennsylvania to find out :).  Honestly, some of the information seemed so simple, but yet I had NEVER heard of it before.  

Not only does he give a lot of ways to improve brain health {most of which were free!}, but Mr. Newell does an amazing job explaining the brain function in a very basic way.  The brain is so complex and hard to understand, but after I watched this DVD I felt so much smarter, lol!  

Certainly, there are MANY families who would benefit from the full services that The Family Hope Center provide.  But, I feel that ALL families would benefit from the enormous amount of information on this Understanding Child Brain Development DVD.

I had actually wanted to review this product because my FIL has Parkinson's.  I even contacted Mr. Newell to find out if their organization could help him as an adult.  He certainly thinks they could.  Of course, my FIL is a little skeptical (one of the many challenges of Parkinson's for him) so we will see if we he will pursue the Family Hope Center any further.  But, our family has certainly been a buzz about how the things we learned from the DVD can help him and everyone else in the family, too.

You can order Understanding Child Brain Development by calling The Family Hope Center at (610) 397-1737.  Or, it can also be purchased from the IEW website.  The cost is $19.00 plus shipping.

I have really enjoyed reading some of the other crew reviews for this product!  It seems that each family got a little different benefit from the DVD and it is just neat to hear their stories.  Be sure to check out the crew blog to read them for yourself!

Thanks for stopping by!

God Bless,

Lisa

TOS Review: Notgrass Company

I always enjoy finding homeschooling materials that are written by veteran homeschoolers.  I appreciate materials that are well thought out, easy to introduce, appealing to my children, and affordable.  The Notgrass Company seems to understand what I am looking for.

The Notgrass Company is a family owned and operated business. They have been homeschooling since 1990!  In 1999, they decided to start producing homeschool materials.  It started with just mom and dad, but has grown to include their son, daughter, son-in-law and daughter-in-law.  So, there are also homeschooled adults producing homeschooling materials. Yep, love that!

So what did they send us?  We received their line of Draw to Learn products.  This includes Draw to Learn Acts, Proverbs, Psalms, the Letters of Paul, and the Life of Jesus.  We received all of these in e-book form and also a physical copy of Draw to Learn Proverbs.

The Draw to Learn products provide a unique way to learn about the Bible.  The entire goal behind the Draw to Learn series is to encourage students to READ, THINK, DRAW.  For each lesson, a Bible passage is read.  The work page then repeats part of the story, and provides a detailed idea for you to consider.  After reading the further thoughts, the lesson then asks you to draw what you just read about.

Some of the ideas are easy to think of-such as draw the three gifts the Magi brought, but none of the lessons just say 'draw a picture.' Each lesson wants you to think a little more about the passage.  For example, in the photo below Mustang is drawing an angel visiting Mary.  The instructions say 'Mary was troubled when the angel spoke to her, and she wondered about his words.  Make a drawing of Mary with a wondering expression.'

 

Of the books we were sent, I decided to focus our review period on Draw to Learn the Life of Jesus.  I thought this would be the easiest of the 5 for my young children to understand.  And, because we were sent the e-book version, I was able to print off copies for all of my children.  The copyright of the physical books does not allow for any copying, but the e-book allows you to print for your own family.  That was a huge savings with 3 children!

I was very impressed at how easily the children understood what to do, and jumped right in to draw.  Even my 3 year old was able to add her version of Mary and the Angel.

I really enjoyed the depth of this product, as the idea of encouraging journaling of the Bible through art beginning at such a young age will really stick with them!  I loved that I could draw right along with them and we could study and remember the Bible together with just a few pieces of paper and some crayons.  The Draw to Learn books have also been a great way to encourage my Mustang, especially, to think further about what she is reading during the Bible lessons.

Each of the Draw to Learn books contains 150 lessons!  They retail for $14.95 for the physical book and $9.95 for the e-book.  While I raved about the e-book because I could used it for all my children, I really think the physical book is wonderful, too.  It is spiral bound, and is very pretty.  I like the idea that when finished, you would have a great representation of not only your art, but also of your Bible studies!  I do intend to allow Mustang to use it when she is finished with The Life of Jesus.

The ages for the Draw to Learn books are 'all ages' and I would certainly agree.  My Mini Cooper at just 3 was able to participate, and even Explorer-who is one-enjoyed having her own page to scribble on.  But, that will soon turn into purposeful drawing. Even I found this to be an enjoyable way to study the Bible.  So, I have to say that the Draw to Learn books would make a perfect to your family worship time.

To see what other families on the crew thought of the Notgrass Company, be sure to check out the crew blog!  Some reviewed the Draw to Learn books, and some reviewed a very popular history set, America the Beautiful.

Thanks for stopping by!

God Bless,
Lisa