We have been long-time users, and HUGE fans, of Math-U-See. The younger half of my testers have been blessed by this program, my olders all wonder why I didn't discover it sooner!
My tester for the Gamma Digital Packis eight years old and in 2nd grade. She has been working in this level since the beginning of the year. One wonderful part of the digital pack - you can start anywhere in the level, just select the lesson you are on. So, if you are already using Math-U-See, you don't need to wait until the next level to start using the Digital Pack - you can start now! ;-)
Gamma Digital Pack includes:
12-month access to Gamma streaming instruction videos
Instruction Manual PDF
Lesson solutions
Skip Count Songs
MP3s & Songbook PDFs
Worksheet generator
Online drill
Record Keeping sheets
Digital Manipulatives
One of the things I like most about Math-U-See is their unique manipulative based approach. By using hands-on colored blocks to learn math concepts from place value to advanced algebra, my students have been able to SEE math. This has revolutionized teaching math to them. If you aren't familiar with how Math-U-See works - check them out here.
For this review, we got a chance to use the brand new Digital Pack for Gamma level. Math-U-See follows a mastery based model, instead of grade levels. Basically, I get all the teaching videos, answers & solutions and teacher resources available at my fingertips online at my Demme Learning Account instead of using the DVD's and printed Teacher Manuals PLUS lots of fun online goodies too!
My tester was delighted to get to watch Mr. Demme (her FAVORITE) math teacher on the computer - all the recorded lessons are available online, easily arranged by lesson. She is definitely a product of the digital age, she prefers any subject she can do online over those at her desk!
The Worksheet generator was a great way to add more math fact practice for us. The Worksheet generator so easy to use - all you need to do is choose your level, choose your lesson and and it will create a printable worksheet and answer key Simply choose the operation (add, subtract, multiply, divide) and facts you want to target and let them at it! It's a quick way to work in eeffective, short bursts of practice to their lesson.
Skip Counting Songbook PDF is another fun bonus of the Digital Pack. You can print out the song pages with the words, and a picture that they can color as they listen along to the MP3s. My tester has memorized all her facts to the Skip counting music.
Record Keeping sheets give you a handy place to record their progress all in one place. Simply download the PDF and print for your records.
Check out the Kindertown Educational app finder tool on the Digital pack page too. You can search for educational apps by age, device and price.
Our favorite Digital Pack goodie has to be the Digital manipulatives! It works on Safari and Chrome browers. My student could use the iPad instead of the blocks (and anything on the computer is automatically more fun around here!) Click and move the blocks on the screen (no more lost blocks!!) I think this is a great addition to Math-U-See's lineup. Having the digital manipulatives makes it much easier to take our lesson with us on the go.
The only thing missing from this is your student book, purchase that separately.
I am having a blast revisting all of my old favorites...
This week we read The Story of Ping by by Marjorie Flack
For our craft time, which they LOVE the best, we made our own version of Ping. We used our handprints to make the body. (I love having memories of their adorable hands!)
We added a construction paper head, beak, and feet.
We read one of my all-time favorites for my Co-op literature class... The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. I still vividly remember reading it in elementary school.
For our crafts, we made our very own bulls. Except for one student...she cut off the horns and made hers a "cow" ;-) Crayola had a great template you can print out. Cut out the head and legs, glue them on some leftover cardboard to keep them stiff, and then attach them to one of those toilet paper tubes you have been obsessively collecting (no judgement here... I do it too!)
Of course, we couldn't read about a bull who would rather sniff flowers all day and NOT make paper flowers!
We did coffee filter flowers. First, flatten it out and use a washable marker to draw on it.
Then, for the real fun - squirt water on your filter and see what happens to your colors! (part science lesson too...)
When we got home, we put our flowers in a vase... they look great! And, they don't wilt!
Grapevine Studies are Bible study curriculum where your child draws stick figures, even your non-artistic types can do this, to document and interact with the Bible as they study God's Word.
I love how they describe their program: "Grapevine Studies teaches the Bible as if it were a puzzle, doing the frame first. Once the framework is in place then individual pieces (Bible passages, characters, and events) are much easier to place and understand in the context of the "whole puzzle" (the whole counsel of the Word of God)."
.
Multiple ages can work together in different levels of the same study. This is truly a unique Bible curriculum that you can use with the entire family. My testers were ages 6 & 8 for the Resurrection: Beginner level.
This study includes 22 lessons for 11 weeks of study. I received a downloadable version, which is handy, just print what you want to use - and it's licensed for family use, so you can use it with multiple students. This level included:
37 page Teacher Manual
33 page Beginner Student Book
33 page Traceable Student Book , designed for ages 3-6.
To complete this study you will need a Bible - you can choose the version you like best, colored pencils, markers, access to a Bible dictionary, and atlas or map.
The topics covered in The Resurrection study are:
The Last Supper
Gethsemane
The Religious Trials
The Civil Trials
The Crucifixion
The Death and Burial of Jesus
The Resurrection
The Witnesses
Jesus Went to Heaven
Final Review
The lessons are short - just 15-20 minutes, and begin by "completeing the frame of the puzzle". That is reading & drawing the section of Scripture they are studying with stick fiqures. This is wonderful for my 8 year old that struggles more with the process of writing.
Each lesson ends with comprehension questions (the what, when, how...) and application questions you can discuss with your child.
Every lesson is clearly outlined in the must-have Teacher's Manual with the goal, key points, and memory verse. I like that it gets my testers using their own Bible to look up the passages. A description of what to draw is illustrated for you, and you don't need ANY artistic talent to do this!
The Student Lesson begins with Jesus' Last Supper and continues through His Ascension. The main section of the lesson is drawing stick figures to illustrate the Bible passage. You can either print the Student pages (that have notebooking style sections for them to draw in) or simply use blank paper to create your own. You'll know which one works best for your family!
Each lesson includes review questions for you to discuss. These questions made my testers really think about the passage and notice the details. It's a great way to get them truly interacting with the Word. Each lesson wraps up with a "drawing review" where your child draws their favorite part of what they have just studied.
The Traceable pages have the stick figures drawn in (light grey) so your child can follow along, and simply trace the figures. My younger testers liked this - it let them focus on what we were reading. It's a very easy to use, and affordable way to study God's Word together. I think this would make an excellent study to do together during the Easter season as well.
Other studies and levels are available, be sure to check out some of them our Review Crew has been testing!
So, what is a Flight? A Flight is one year of writing instruction with 32 lessons. We started with Paragraph Writing - which is ideal for students in 1st-3rd grade. You can also select Essay Writing for older students in grades 4-6. There are 3 Flights for each level, a total of 6 full years. Flights can be done in any order, although - they do recommend completing at least one Essay Flight before advancing to Flight 3 Essay Writing - a year long six chapter novel!
We had online access to all the teaching and PDFs of printable lessons. This is a great program for families with more than one student in a level (or for Co-op teachers). All of the instruction is on video and stars Ms. Mora - a homeschool veteran mom of eight!
The lessons are fun and meaningful and taught with a Biblical worldview. 2 days a week are recommended.
Day 1: Watch the 15-20 minute teaching time. It's broken into a couple of sections. First, we watched the "Pre-Flight Checklist" which is a short segment covering supplies needed. The "Flight Check-in" is is next, with a welcome and "discovery tickets" are discussed. "Take Off" is game time, a writing warm up and reciting the writing process. Finally, "Full Throttle" covers the main lesson and any hands-on crafts.
Day 2: Students complete their writing assignment.
My testers really enjoyed the antics of Ms. Mora. She has several different personas - a flight attendant, a game show host, as well as the teacher in a small group of students (your own writing co-op). She is very engaging and a bit goofy. my testers LOVED her!
One downside is the printing. You need to print everything your student needs, including a 36-page Language Helps workbook (full color!). However, you can use this with multiple children, so it all comes out more economical, I think. You just need to spend the time up front - printing and collecting the worksheets for their own writing binder. Or, just choose to purchase them and have them delivered. :-)
The lessons are clearly laid out for you. This is a very teacher friendly way to teach writing!
My testers really liked "writing warm ups". It's early in each lesson. A picture - for instance a dog on a skateboard, is given and they have 3 minutes to come up with as many words for the word box as they can think of. Then, they get 7 minutes to use the words and write their own story. This is where it is really nice to work with multiple students!
Ms. Mora has put the writing process into hand motions that make it easy to remember. This is a great way for my child that struggles with reading to really interact. It's multi-sensory.
Some of the writing projects we completed included making lists, completing webs to help organize our paragraph into beginning, middle, end, and writing our paragraphs.
I am very impressed with this program, and my testers were extremely enthusiastic about writing. Here to Help Learning makes it so easy!
The Bentz Test Laboratory LOVED this! This is our fourth audio adventure - The Dragon and the Raven from Heirloom Audio Productions. We think they keep getting better and better! Heirloom Audio Productions have taken the historical novels of GA Henty (one of our favorite authors!) and produced fully dramatized audios to introduce you and your family to some of history's finest! The four dramas available are :
Under Drake’s Flag - the story of Sir Francis Drake
In Freedom’s Cause - William Wallace and Robert the Bruce in their fight for Scottish independence
With Lee in Virginia - the American Civil War
The Dragon and the Raven - , and now the Viking invasions of England
More audio dramas are in production... we've heard The Cat of Bubastes is coming soon!
We love to listen to these in the van. Why not use all those hours productively? And, you already have a "captive" audience... The intended age range is for 6 and up, but I promise - you can listen with all ages.
This story takes you on an adventure back to early England and the Vikings (Danes). The 2 1/2 hour story is action packed and suspense filled. The audio production quality is top notch! It features many well-known actors like - John Rhys-Davies, Sylvester McCoy, Helen George, and Brian Blessed to name a few.
I don't want to give away the details of the story (trust me...you need to listen for yourself!) But, I do want to highlight that this story is much more than just a good adventure tale. GA Henty is a masterful writer, and has woven his Christian worldview into all his tales. This is a story that teaches as well as entertains. The lessons of forgiveness and loving your enemies are embedded in this unforgettable story.
We received a set of two CD’s and whole list of bonuses as part of our review. These bonuses include:
MP3 download
The Dragon and the Raven E-book by G.A. Henty
Printable cast poster
Printable poster with "King Alfred's Hope" “The horse is prepared for the way of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31
48 page PDF Study Guide
The official MP3 soundtrack.
The Study Guide is a great way to take this story and turn it into some learning time as well. There are sections that correspond to each track on the CD:
"Defining Words" - vocabulary
"Listening Well" questions to use to help them remember what they heard
"Thinking Further" questions to challenge them to think on what they heard, or even to dig a little deeper and research more.
In addition, there are three short Bible Studies that complement the themes in the story - God's Law for the Nations, Loving your Enemy, and Literacy. This guide also offers brief biographies of GA Henty and King Alfred, as well as, historical background information too.
These are the perfect complement to your history studies, or just purely for entertainment!
This graduation thing is getting REAL around here! Check out a sneak peek of the graduation pictures...
And... this too, Co-op yearbook pictures in the cap & gown. It's too much! But, I love the sun rays on this, kinda like God smiling down on us. :-) I'm not sure I'm going to make it... sniff, sniff!
