Premium Subscription from LightSail for Homeschoolers: A TOS Crew Review

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew

Premium Subscription  from LightSail for Homeschoolers

Premium Subscription 

from LightSail for Homeschoolers is an online subscription to help build 

reading, writing, vocabulary, and fluency skills for grades PreK-12.

LightSail for Homeschoolers Library gives you access to over:

• 12,000 books - including 3,500 classics and many faith-based titles 

• Over 50,000 World Book Encyclopedia Articles with Maps, Atlases & Timelines

• Lerner Sports Encyclopedia

• Audio Books - over 13,000 titles including - standard audiobooks, audiobooks with text highlighting by word, and audiobooks with text highlighting by sentence

• 360 degree Images

• Videos

• Augmented Reality

• Livestreams 

It's truly a complete digital library that you can access anytime (with no overdue fees!) In addition, this program is designed specifically for homeschoolers with lessons in reading, writing, vocabulary, and fluency skills built in.

The ability to track reading minutes, use bookmarks, highlight quotations, and create memory lists are just a few more nifty features designed with homeschooling in mind.

Students are given an assessment as they begin to accurately determine their Lexile reading level.  This helps determine the books and assignments.  "Power Texts" are at the student's reading level, and are the tool for helping increase reading, writing, vocabulary, and fluency skills with educational features like fill-in-the-blank assessments to check reading comprehension, a full dictionary, read-aloud ability, related content while tracking reading minutes and offering incentives.

All student reading is overseen through the parental control features that let parents monitor and control content, assessments, media, features, chats, and more.

We are HUGE book lovers and were excited to see what LightSail has to offer.  With multiple children using this program, it was easy to find tons of great content, they can even read the same titles, and participate in a family chat or answer challenge questions.

Since we do love a good book with actual pages to turn, while cuddled up together, and my kiddos are all proficient readers - we focused mainly on all the great ways to use Lightsail, other than tracking reading minutes and building literacy skills, which this program is great at with an adaptive platform that customizes to your child's reading level! 

They have an entire library of interesting things to discover.  Like the World Book maps and timelines to go with our history studies.

The 360 degree images that really wowed us - visiting the Sistine Chapel or the inside of the airplane cockpit!

The Lightsail library is interconnected, so frequently related images, books, and articles are just a click away.

Their Video section is jam-packed too!  You can check out videos from a wide range of subjects, but our favorite has to be the Ted Ed talks...or maybe the Livestreams...

Who doesn't love a good Unit Study to spice things up?  Lightsail has over 150 to choose from - fully integrated with books, encyclopedia articles, videos, or any other multimedia content designed by homeschool moms, for homeschool moms.

The Library collections are impressive, you can pick from dozens of genres and thousands of titles.  Handy search features help you find books customized to your child's reading level as well.  I appreciate that they also have faith-based titles and an impressive collection of classics (especially after seeing some of the "Most Popular" reads... making me thankful for the ability to control the reading material options for my children!)

There is SO MUCH to this program, I feel like we will be unpacking all the treasures for a good time to come.  Best of all... it's easy to take on the go with you.  

Find LightSail for Homeschoolers on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LightSailEd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightsailed/

Hashtags: #hsreviews #homeschool #homeschooling #reading #ebooks #edtech #elearning

See what other members of the Crew thought here

                  

Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 2 from Creative Word Studio: A TOS Crew Review

 

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product through the Homeschool Review Crew

Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 2 from Creative Word Studio

Summer is a great time to sneak in some writing, and Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 2 from Creative Word Studio it the perfect way!

Creative Word Studio was created by homeschool parents with to help make teaching creative writing easier for you!  Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 1 for grades 5-6 and Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 2 designed for grade 7-8.

We have been exploring Sparkling Bits of Writing Book 2.  This book is spiral-bound with 75 creative writing lessons. Activities include; free writing, mini writing exercises, reading response, and revision practice.  I love the clean pages that have the simple black and white illustrations and plenty of writing space.

Here's a sampling of the lessons - 

First, Mini Writing Lessons.  These are the "fun" kind of writing lessons.   Assignments like a personal profile, making lists, writing a new ending to a cliche, or writing a letter to a company to show dissatisfaction.  These are all "out of the box" ideas designed to get their minds moving and their pen flowing!

Free Writing is my testers favorite!  Simply set a timer (8-10 minutes) and then write whatever comes to your mind.  If you get stuck, keep writing... "What shall I write next, what shall I write next..." until you get unstuck.  If you've never tried free writing, you might be surprised!

Reading Response is the third style of writing in this book. These help you analyze other people's writing.  All of the selections are designed to help develop critical thinking skills as well.  Selections come from a variety of wholesome classics.  Learning how to express what you think about in writing is the goal.

She always holds her pencil on her forehead when she's thinking...

Some assignments are designated as "Gold Pieces" - these are mean to be edited and polished to your best effort.  It's also a piece that teachers can grade, and a handy rubric is included to help.

I love the variety of writing exercises, and the creative prompts, there are even "Friends lessons" to share together.

This is an easy to use, and well thought out creative writing program.  It's designed to be used as a supplement.  I think it would make a great stand alone unit on creative writing, and I think it's the perfect summer writing plan!

See what other members of the Crew thought here

                     

Excellence in Literature Handbook for Writers from Everyday Education: A TOS Crew Review

 

Disclosure: I received this product free through the Homeschool Review Crew

Excellence in Literature Handbook for Writers from Everyday Education

Writing.  It's full of twists and turns that can be difficult to navigate. Our high school students need to know the correct path to help them write well now and into college.  We have discovered a must-have writing "GPS" the - Excellence in Literature Handbook for Writers from Everyday Education!
This 420 page reference manual is available in either downloadable PDF or print version.  Author, Janice Campbell has gotten permission from Mr. Ian Johnson, a college professor, to adapt a couple of his writing handbooks into this one comprehensive, easy-to-use volume. We have been long-time fans of Janice's Excellence in Literature series, and were excited to take a look at the Excellence in Literature Handbook for Writers.
This handbook is organized into 2 parts.  Part One offers models and instructions for writing persuasive essays and research papers.  Part Two is full of tips on style and usage on grammar and the mechanics of writing.
This is a resource you can use over and over again. I have three students currently in high school, and another three in college.  I decided to print out our downloadable ebook and put it into a binder, so we can all easily access it.  
With both of my high schoolers knee-deep in ACT and SAT exams, the sections on writing essays were of particular help to us.  Janice takes them step-by-step from setting up the argument, defining key terms, guidelines for a strong thesis, and how to organize paragraphs and essays. 
The section on Writing Arguments About Literary Works is one of our favorite "go-to" sections.  The instructions and samples are a great guide for how to write in this necessary, but unique style while evaluating stories, poems, Shakespeare and even performing arts events.

I have also referred back to this invaluable book over and over as I teach our Communications and Literature classes for our small co-op. Openings, defining a thesis, organizing arguments and acknowledging opposition have all been topics we used to build our speeches, and her examples were just what I needed to brush up and be ready myself. 

The second part contains hundreds of grammar and usage tips.  

This was a reference section we found ourselves reading just for fun (can you tell we're homeschoolers).  It's organized into numbered sections so you can pinpoint areas to focus on, or use as a tool when you evaluate your student's papers.
I thought it would be fun to start each day with a quick read of 2-3 tips from this section as a "warm up" as we get our day started,  it's been a great review and since we're all "word nerds" we have even enjoyed the discussion! 
The Handbook is well organized, and you can use the detailed (9 pages) Table of Contents to find exactly what you need.  This is a book that you can use over and over throughout the years - both for yourself and your students. This is a great writing road map for every high school (and college) student. 
 I highly recommend adding it to resource shelf!



Find Everyday Education on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/janicepcampbell & https://www.facebook.com/excellenceinlit/
Twitter: https://Twitter.com/EverydayEdu
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jcwords/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com.mx/janicecampbell/

Hashtags:  #hsreviews #excellenceinlit, #homeschool, #writing, #highschool, #writershandbook, #homeschooling, #essaywriting, #teachingwriting, #literaryanalysis, #grammar, #punctuation, #collegeprep

See what other members of the Crew thought here 

Structure and Style® for Students Year 1 Level C by Institute for Excellence in Writing®: A TOS Crew Review

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way

 

I have been a long-time fan of the Institute for Excellence in Writing®.  I've been teaching writing classes at our co-op for years using this method. (I need to add that one of my own graduates is now an English/Writing major in college - thank you IEW!)   For this review, I'm excited to introduce the newly revised Structure and Style® for Students Year 1 Level C by Institute for Excellence in Writing®!

This new revision replaces the previous edition of the Student Writing Intensive - Level C.  Let me start by telling you, this update is well worth your time and investment.

The Basic package contains everything you'll need for high school level writing instruction, all packaged together.

• Teacher’s Manual
• Student Binder with the Student Packet 
• Activation code for 24 streaming videos (you get lifetime access!)

Students set up their binders with 8 tabs, one for each section:

• Sources texts
• Outlines
• Work in Process
• Finished Compositions
• Stylistic Techniques
• Banned words
• Usage
• Documentation

The course is designed for your students to complete independently by watching the video instruction given by Andrew Pudewa, the founder and creator of this award-winning curriculum.  It is organized into 24 units designed to take approximately a week each.  

The units cover:

• Note Making and Outlines
• Writing From Notes
• Retelling Narrative Stories
• Summarizing a Reference
• Writing From Pictures
• Summarizing Multiple References
• Inventive Writing
• Formal Essay Models
• Formal Critique

Don't worry if you are not familiar with the IEW process, your student can begin with this level.  They have designed each level to repeat and expand on the same writing foundation.

The units do build their writing skills sequentially, so be sure to master one before moving ahead (and they have left plenty of time for your high school students to work at their own pace.)

So... what did I like about this update?  So many things!

First, Andrew Pudewa is one of my favorite "expert" teachers.  He teaches this course directly to the students, and the videos show him in action. They are recorded versions with a live class that your student watching at home can almost feel like they are taking part in. He has an engaging manner, using jokes and personal stories, that is easily relatable. I personally have learned how to become a better teacher by watching Mr. Pudewa in action. (I've spoken to him at homeschool conferences many times... he's exactly the same in person!)

Take a peek at this video to take a peek at a class:

I really like the updated notes and source material.  After teaching the program over and over, I have enjoyed having the new material.  The source texts are all very interesting and enjoyable topics - from Pirates to Classic Literature, they are great selections to practice the IEW writing models with.

The program is well-organized.  Weekly goals and suggested schedules are included for the student to follow along with. Optional grammar practice using Fix It? Grammar is also recommended (but not required). 

IEW has included the Model Charts that highlight the key points of each lesson, they keep them in their Student Binders for future reference.  Everything has been color coded, to make it easy to instantly recognize.

The Teacher Guide is a valuable tool for you to use.  Along with all the daily assignments, it includes Literature Selections you can add to round out your high school student's English credit.  We love that they are a variety of classics.  The Teacher Guide will show you how to adapt the schedule to use it for a 1, 2 - 3, or 4 - 5 day a week program - making it an ideal choice to use in a Co-op or home setting.

Another new feature is that the "Board Notes" are included in the Teacher Guide.  Mr. Pudewa utilizes the white board during the video lectures, and his notes have been reproduced in the Teacher Guide.  This is super helpful, especially for re-teaching or reviewing the material with your student.

"Paper Management" is another section that we greatly appreciate.  It directs the student exactly where to put things in their Student Binder to keep them organized.  This is not just a writing skill, but a valuable life skill!

I love that IEW has given us a vocabulary for writing.  It allows me to communicate precisely with my students, using a language we all understand.  Using a Checklist has taught my students how to build a solid structure to their writing, and the decorations and dress-ups they have learned have helped bring their unique style into their writing.

I really love the fresh update to a tried and true curriculum that we have used many times!  IEW has provided a solid base of strong writing skills that have prepared my students to excel at college.  

Be sure to check out the other levels the Crew has been reviewing as well - Structure and Style® for Students Year 1 Level A (Grades 3-5) & Structure and Style® for Students Year 1 Level B (grades 6-8).


Find Institute for Excellence in Writing® on Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/excellenceinwriting/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/iew
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iew/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/iew/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/iewtv/featured

Hashtags: #hsreviews #iewsss, #iewfreelessons

See what other members of the Crew thought here

College-Ready Writing Essentials™ from BetterRhetor: A TOS Crew Review

College-Ready Writing Essentials™ from BetterRhetor


Did you know that 50% of college freshman are not prepared for the rigors of college writing, and are required to take remedial courses?  You can avoid this costly path by preparing your student ahead of time with College-Ready Writing Essentials™ from BetterRhetor.

This online course is designed to equip your high school junior or senior with the writing skills they need for college level writing.  Students will write a research-based essay following clear, step-by-step guidance from author, founder and CEO, William Bryant, PhD, a 10 year Director of Writing Assessments with ACT.

Students work through this 25 lesson course independently, at their own pace.  The lessons detail the writing process with expert instruction in:

• Planning- 10 lessons
• Drafting- 8 lessons
• Revising - 4 lessons
• Finalizing - 2 lessons

The end result is a 3-5 page research-supported persuasive essay with support from at least 3 credible sources.  

The curriculum is contained in an easy-to-use online teaching platform, that is very similar to the platforms my college students use.  

The course offers lifetime access, and is available in two packages:  Full and Premium.  We have been using the Full package, with my high school students, and I working through the program together. The Premium package includes additional exercises and Dr. Bryant's personalized essay feedback for your student, and includes a  full Teacher's Guide PDF.

Lessons include detailed instruction written directly to the student. Each lesson is about a page of reading with links to real-life examples, as well as, downloadable exercises and worksheets for the student to complete.

Key terms and phrases are clearly explained, and a handy reference sheet is provided your student's future use.  A printable completion certificate is included in the program.

There's more, the course includes a Bonus - 8 Concepts for the Culture of College Academics article and a 30-day money back guarantee.

One of the things I really liked about this program is that you have lifetime access.  Each time my student is getting ready to write, she can return, read and refresh for her next writing assignment.

Completing this course on their own schedule, which can be quite varied, is another benefit to this well-designed course.  Students can take the time they need to think and write with the assistance of a expert college-level writing guide always available.

Each lesson is clear and concise, very easy to follow along.  My testers have been enjoying the flexibility this program offers them.

This is a valuable tool that every high school and college student should have access to.


Find BetterRhetor on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/collegereadywriting
Twitter: https://twitter.com/collreadywrite
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/collegereadywriting
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/collegereadywriting

Hashtags: #hsreviews #CollegeReadyWritingEssentials #studentsuccess #collegereadiness #academicwriting #BetterRhetor #writinggap

See what other members of the Crew thought here