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Latin For Children, Primer A (Review)

3/30/2011

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     The study of Latin is not normally something you can just pick up a book and begin teaching your children.

     At least, not me.

        It's a complex language, one that dives deep into grammar and other concepts that 95% of Americans never studied when they were in school, including myself. Most Latin textbooks are designed for the teacher who is already an expert at Latin. I'm not an expert - I only began learning Latin with my children and other students about 18 months ago. I have chosen to use a Latin curriculum which has been designed for the teacher who does not already know Latin.

     I've been leading a weekly Latin class for homeschoolers in my home for the last two school years. While the curriculum we've been using has been very thorough, I've struggled to keep it fun, relevant, and ALIVE! I spend a few hours each week preparing for this class to provide a cultural view of ancient Rome, a snack which would have fit into the Roman culture, notetaking pages for each DVD lesson, and other review activities. I still feel like I don't provide enough daily student work for the chapters.

     While we like what we are using, I was very interested in reviewing Classical Academic Press' Latin for Children ~ Primer A.

     This review of Latin for Children ~ Primer A isn't going to be one of my shortest reviews. I'm sorry! If you would prefer a shorter review of Latin for Children, you can go to the TOS Crew's review page for more reviews of this product, and surely, someone there will have written a shorter review than mine!!! I'm also writing from the perspective of one who has taught Latin in the past and is comparing this program with what I'm currently using.

   Classical Academic Press has designed this Latin program to be used with upper elementary students, although in my opinion, it could also be used with students in junior high school, even though it may be a little bit childish for them.

       There are a number of important and helpful components to Latin for Children - Primer A. I'd like to describe for you some of the physical pieces of the program and show you as many samples as I can, so you may understand more how this program works.

     Classical Academic Press' primary goal for Latin instruction is as follows:

The ultimate goal of any truly effective Latin program must be to construe (translate) original Latin texts.

     For the lower elementary students, Classical Academic Press provides Song School Latin. Once students are into the upper elementary grades, starting as young as 3rd grade, they are ready for Latin for Children, Primer A.

Each year of the Latin for Children (LFC ) series includes the following components:

Primer—Student text and workbook, the foundation of the curriculum Answer Key—Features the actual text with answers in bold print
DVD & Chant CD Set—DVDs offer chapter-by-chapter training by the author with 2 students; chant CD contains all 240 vocabulary words chanted and sung in both the classical and ecclesiastical pronunciations
History Reader—Latin stories from history that are geared toward the grammar and vocabulary being learned in each Primer
Activity Book—Games and puzzles that help students master the Latin vocabulary and grammar from each Primer

Here's an explanation of the work in Latin for Children, Primer A:

Below is a description of the various pieces of the Latin for Children curriculum:

Latin for Children, Primers A, B, and C
The Primers are the heart of the LFC program. Each workbook is engaging, incremental, creative, and filled with clear grammatical explanations written expressly for the student. Exercises, tests, and a sizable and useful reference section are also included. Lessons include a plethora of mnemonic aids (songs, chants) that enable students to learn vocabulary and grammar with ease and delight. Beginning with Primer A, each book is to be taught in succession, 1 book per school year.

Workbook format, 32 chapters (proposed teaching time line: 1 chapter per week)/Integrated with Shurley Grammar
Classical and ecclesiastical pronunciation provided in all 3 texts
Integrated and clear explanations of grammar in every chapter, written at the student’s level
240 high-frequency Latin words in each text
Yearly revision of each text based on critical feedback

Here's a sample of Primer A.

Latin for Children Answer Keys
Answer Keys are available for each of the Latin for Children Primers. They
feature the actual, full-size worksheets from the corresponding Primers, with
answers to quizzes, exercises, and worksheets in bold print.

Latin for Children DVD & Chant CD Sets
With these DVD & Chant CD Sets, your students will be receiving a one-on-one learning experience. Pronunciation will become a breeze, and don’t be surprised to hear even your youngest children picking up the catchy chants and songs. Each lesson (average twenty minutes per lesson) corresponds to the weekly chapter in the Primer, and feature the chanting and singing of vocabulary and paradigms along with clear grammatical explanations by Dr. Perrin. The LFC Primer A DVD & Chant CD Set is recorded and filmed in both classical and ecclesiastical pronunciation.

Latin for Children History Readers
Now young Latin students can begin to translate and read a selection of simple Latin stories written at their own level. The stories correspond with the Veritas Press History Card series, and are integrated with the grammar and vocabulary of Latin for Children, Primers A, B, and C. Each chapter contains definitions for new words, and a full glossary is provided at the end of each book. While these readers are keyed to Latin for Children, Primers A, B, and C, they are an excellent supplementary text for students using other Latin curricula as well.

Latin for Children Activity Book
Each workbook contains over 100 puzzles and games that follow chapter-by-chapter with the LFC Primers to supplement and enhance students’ practice of vocabulary and grammar.

TheLatin for Children Mastery Bundle includes all of the materials for the selected primer: the Primer (textbook), Answer Key, DVD & Chant CD Set, History Reader, and Activity Book!

Extra Resources
that may be purchased ~

I didn't receive any of the following:

Latin for Children A Extras Bundle This includes:

Latin for Children Primer A Clash Cards
Latin for Children Primer A Test Packet PDF
Latin Word Quest Poster
Latin Bingo 2 Go
Latin Crossword Book
Veni Emmanuel Ancient and Traditional Latin Christmas Carols CD

Latin Clash Cards:
Clash Cards are designed to be helpful, easy-to-use flash cards, but that’s just the
beginning. Clash Cards are also a card game that makes reinforcing vocabulary words fun and exciting. Students test their knowledge as they play a challenging game of rivalry between the four seasons. As word skills and wild weather collide, who will emerge victorious? The words used in the Level 1 deck match with the vocabulary used in Latin for Children, Primer A and the words used in the Level 2 deck match with the vocabulary used in Latin for Children, Primer B. However, the cards can be used by any student wishing to practice the most common Latin words, regardless of curriculum or course of study.

Latin for Children, Primer A Test Packet (PDF) ~ the price on this varies depending on how many students will be using it during the school year.

Latin Word Quest Poster: Make Latin vocab practice into a game!
Have a visual learner for a Latin student? This colorful 2x3-foot poster features all of the Latin for Children, Primer A vocabulary words along with fun corresponding images. Translate each word, then search the picture and label it with the word’s number...similar to "Where's Waldo?" of the 1990s.

Latin Bingo 2 Go: Includes 4 unique playing cards that are crayon wipe-'n-eraseable, each bingo game has levels for both advanced students and beginners. One side is all Latin and the other includes pictures with English translations for beginners and younger students.

Latin Crosswords (optional)
Here's a sample!

Veni Emmanuel Ancient and Traditional Latin Christmas Carols CD

Free Latin Resources on Classical Academic Press' website:

91 Extra Practice Pages

Free Printable Flash Cards

Free online songs and chants for grammar forms:

Free online Latin/English
diglot weaves/stories:

Free online vocabulary practice and games, and
"Chart Challenge" practice of grammar forms at
www.HeadventureLand.com

     So, now that you've had a peek at all of the required materials for Latin for Children, Primer A, as well as the optional resources that can be purchased and the free resources available on their website, here's the question of the day...

    What did we think of Latin for Children, Primer A?

     Here are my comments about the actual products we received for review purposes, as well as some of the free online resources:

Latin for Children, Primer A DVD Lessons: This is the heart of the Latin for Children program. They started out with a review/recitation led by children which covered vocabulary, a Latin maxim, and any grammar forms that had been learned. The girls and I, as well as my Latin class, didn't think these were very professionally done, but we liked the way that the vocabulary words could be "acted out" slightly to make it easier for the kinesthetic learner to take part. This is a multi-sensory product that would work well for my children, despite their views of the children leading the recitation.

     The adult-led lessons following the recitation were more professional, and they were easy to understand. Because we are currently using another Latin curriculum in a class format, we couldn't fully dive into Latin for Children as deeply as we would have if we weren't using anything else. However, after watching several lessons, none of us had any complaints about the teacher. Except...the only thing that I'd mention here is that his handwriting on the white board is not as easy to read or follow as I would have expected. We all, including my students in my Latin classes, felt like the grammer forms and work on the white board should have been done with PowerPoint or using a digital white board that could project charts with which he could have worked.

     The little "How the West was Unus" dramas using plastic figurines were totally unprofessional, but we loved 'em! They were silly and goofy, but they helped us to laugh and review Latin vocabulary at the same time.

     Primer A Student Workbook: I really like how the student text contains enough of the teaching material to help students review what was being shown in their weekly lesson on the DVD without having to go back and view the DVD lesson again. There were three activities for each week in this book alone! My girls thought they were fun, and my Latin class was impressed with the layout, graphics, and activities.

     Chant CD: I was a little bit disappointed with the chant CD, but most CDs from other companies have the same problem. The pronunciation was excellent, but their chant recitations tend to follow the same format: using the same musical phrase or vocal phrase or tune over and over again regardless of the material that is being memorized. I'd prefer to see each grammar form chanted or recited with a new rhythm or musical tone instead of the same tone repeated for each one. It would be a more distinct memory tool than what is currently available. This takes more creativity to produce, but it would be a nice addition to their Chant CD.

      History Reader: This is a handy little resource that encourages students to begin the translation process from the beginning. We liked it!

     The Activity Book also has additional games and activities to help review concepts and vocabulary taught on the weekly DVD lesson. We all thought these were a great way to review the material.

    On the free online resources, the girls and my other Latin students all were very pleased with the free practice and review activities online at www.HeadventureLand.com . These are wonderful! From a teacher perspective, the ability to have enough to keep the students busy with daily review, both online and in their student workbooks, is like a dream come true...and it's fun for the students, as well. I'm very impressed with the activities.

     We are praying about using this curriculum in our home this next school year. My Latin group that has already had two well-designed years of Latin instruction is ready to move on, but not quite to the high school level of material. Latin for Children, Primer A would move too slowly for them, so we may do several lessons a week with Primer A and then dive into Primer B shortly thereafter, and possibly even start Primer C this next spring, one year from now. We haven't decided yet.

     I've already decided, however, that if I have new students for Latin, I will begin them in this "new to us" program. The instruction is very solid, and yet the activities and review work are a lot of fun. What a great combination! I look forward to using this in the future with new students.

      Thank you, Classical Academic Press, for providing me with such a great opportunity to use and review your products. We have learned a lot while going through this curriculum, and it will be enjoyable to see how the students learn and keep up with their vocabulary next year.

Disclaimer: I received one copy of Primer A workbook, DVD and CD set, Activity Book, History Reader, and Answer Key, for the purpose of using and reviewing this material here for you. No other compensation was provided.

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Big I.Q. Kids - online educational fun for kids!

3/24/2011

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     Online, independent learning can be a fun way to change up your homeschooling program in the middle of the winter when everyone's feeling "blah," or is stuck inside due to poor weather outside.

     As members of the TOS Crew, we received two independent memberships for my girls to give BigIQkids.com a try!

     According to the BigIQkids.com website, BigIQkids is designed for students in grades K-8, to promote spelling efficiency, vocabulary building, math fact mastery, and U.S. geography knowledge via multimedia reinforcement and independent learning.

     The girls decided to give BigIQkids a try. They logged in with the log-in names and passwords with which we were provided. They found it fairly easy to navigate around the website. It is very colorful, which is wonderful if color and artwork stimulate your children to work harder and spend more time on a subject. For students who are visually impaired or highly distractible, this might not be the best website for them, as BigIQkids.com is a very graphic-rich site.

     BigIQkids.com contains characters throughout the program who provide directions and guidance using computer-generated voices. While they do sound a bit robotic, my girls didn't seem to mind that very much, unless a spelling word was difficult to discern. It's nice that the character who is speaking and providing directions can have their speech halted or repeated, depending on what action is needed.

Parents are able to change the skill levels for their children, from "Pre-K" through "4th grade and above". Parents also receive emails about their children's progress, which is nice.

Children are encouraged to do one small lesson in each of the four subjects every day. As new lessons are completed, a coin is earned. Children can use these coins for making changes to their BigIQ Buddy, or for playing games. Children can earn 1 game coin AFTER completing a lesson, or the coins can be saved for WEEKEND USE ONLY, or the game page can NEVER be shown, depending on what the parent prefers in regard to the online games.

There are four main subjects found on BigIQkids.com: Spelling, Math, Vocabulary, and U.S. States. Math and spelling can be set to as low as a 1st grade level; however, vocabulary cannot.

Spelling:

With an over 40,000 word dictionary, SpellingTime comes pre-loaded with 40 lessons for K-8th grade appropriate word lists. Or, as a parent or teacher, you can easily enter your own word lists, and SpellingTime will automatically create a week’s worth of lessons, quizzes and tests around your own list with the goal of achieving 100% on the Friday spelling test. Here's how:

Kelsi and Brittany are excellent spellers, so we were surprised to see that only at the adult level were the spelling words available as tests where the actual word was hidden from the screen. At the lower levels, the spelling word was clearly seen on the screen, so it was simple to copy it.

For their new "World Spelling Bowl" feature, we did notice that some of the words aren't pronounced correctly. For example, the word "beautious" was pronounced "hideous", but when hideous was typed in, it was incorrect. It's my understanding from talking with other TOS Crew members, however, that when errors have been found, BigIQkids has been quick to make corrections.

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.

Multiple-digit addition and subtraction, multiplication, and division levels provide an online digital pad to write out and show work. The student can choose various pen colors to use for this; you may have your child choose one of the colors that is most pleasing to him or her.

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.

Geography: U.S. States

Every elementary student will be confronted with the need to know their U.S. 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.

My girls worked and worked on the levels in BigStatesTime, but apparently they couldn't get beyond the beginning levels because the program continued to keep them at the lower levels even when they were receiving 100% over and over again. BigStatesTime continued to show them where the state was; it was far too easy for my daughters even though we had moved the level up to the "4th grade and beyond" level. The problem wasn't that my girls knew the locations of all of the U.S. states. They don't. The problem was that the answers were on the screen for them to see. We couldn't figure out how to get to a level that wouldn't show the answer on each screen.

Free eBooks for students:

      BigIQkids.com also offeres free EBooks on their website which are also available on Kindle or the "Kindle for PC" types of applications.

     I have to admit that I wasn't crazy about the one eBook I read. As a teacher and as a parent, I've seen over and over again how children's language and patterns of thinking usually morph into what they've been reading and viewing. I only read through one eBook on this website, but it contained quite a bit of sarcasm, mocking other students in a classroom or school, disrespect to those in authority, and potty talk, the kinds of things that I prefer not to bring into our home.

     Here are some examples so you'll know what I'm talking about. If you are fine with this, then you will enjoy the eBooks. If you prefer not to have language like this spoken in your home, then you may want to avoid their eBooks, or at least preview them before having your children read them.

"Okay, I know it's weird for a kid to love school...but I really do LOVE school. People think I'm CRAZY."
"As soon as my mom gets wind of that stupid challenge"(a school project)...
"That guy spends more time eating glue than Shelly Simpson spends looking in the mirror."
"Usually all the suck-up kids plead and beg to be her helper."
"...but on the inside she's a huge blabbermouth...little Miss Tattletale and her perfect family" (a neighbor girl and classmate)
"Next to cleanliness, that woman is a freak about grades"...(the child's mother)
"She's lucky I didn't kick her in the butt." (a classmate)
"Immediately shift the discussion away from why you are there" (at the principal's office so that you don't get into trouble)
"When asked to do something you don't want to do, you have the right to say no. However, you can do so in a polite and respectful manner." (not in my household, and not ever in my classroom!)
The story frequently made fun of other children in the classroom or the school.
"Bianca once told me Oprah said everyone should exam their poop. Bianca was convinced if your poop changes color you need to go to the nurse's office immediately. She even charts the shape, size, and color of her poop. Can you think of anything more disgusting?"
"How the heck do bookstores stay in business?"
"I know I'm deceitful. You could say dishonest. But it felt awesome!"

Some positive aspects of this particular eBook:

It did encourage children to not search Google without a parent supervising their searches
the main character, a rude child, was told by the principal to apologize to her class and her teacher for her behavior

The primary differences between the BigIQkids FREE and PREMIUM programs are the ability of the PREMIUM to monitor the progress of the student and advance that student only when mastery of the subject matter has been achieved.

Additionally, PREMIUM members have their:

progress tracked and saved
problem areas identified
Data reported via email to parents and/or teachers.
customized buddies
full game page access
the ability to save game coins and gaming high scores
very LIMITED advertisement, andno ads are displayed during lesson interaction.

     There is a 7-Day free trial to all subjects on BigIQkids, if you'd like to give it a try.

     BigIQkids.com costs $19.99 per month for all four subjects bundled together, per individual student account, or $99 per year for bundled subjects per student account.

     So, what did the girls and I think of this program? Well, the girls liked it enough to not complain very much about spending time on it. However, they both wished that the spelling words and states weren't plastered onto the screen so it can just be copied. I thought that this program can have some benefit, if monitored and previewed by the parent, especially with the eBooks. This would be a great site to use if Mom has just had a baby, or there is illness in the family, or something else that would greatly disrupt regular educational instruction to the family.

Editor's Choice Award: SpellingTime.com is proud to be awarded the
"Editor's Choice" award
from Children's Technology Review Magazine.

If you'd like to learn more about BigIQkids.com, you may visit their website.

To find out what my fellow TOS Crewmembers thought of BigIQkids.com, check out their reviews!

Disclaimer: I was provided with two 2-year individual student subscriptions for BigIQkids.com, in exchange for my honest opinion of this product. No other compensation was provided.

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God's Blessings to you on St. Patrick's Day!

3/16/2011

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     Every day, I feel blessed.

I'm married to the greatest guy on the face of the planet...or at least my state...

...I have the sweetest children in the world...or at least in our town...

...I love my parents, brother, and sister deeply,

...and God continues to fill me with His JOY, even when sometimes, circumstances aren't what I hope they would be.

     And every day, I am so thankful to Jesus Christ for giving up everything He had, just for me. If I had been the only person on the planet, He would have given up His life for me.

     How can I do anything else but be grateful to Him?

     It's my prayer that today, on Saint Patrick's Day, you'll wake up feeling blessed by the Lord. That you'll be feeling so much gratefulness to God that it will change your attitudes about your relationships with your family members, your boss, and friends (and enemies). I pray you'll be so grateful for who God has made you to be that you will look to Him for each decision in your life, large or small.

     Regardless of which church you attend, or even if you attend church or not, I pray that your heart will be open to the work of Jesus Christ in all things in your life.

     May God bless you this Saint Patrick's Day!

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"Who Is God?" ~ Apologetics for children, by Apologia

3/15/2011

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This page contains affiliate links.

     Running through the backyard, swinging from the trapeze bar on the swingset, and pretending to be monkeys in a jungle, I suddenly hear the question,

                                                "Mommy, who is God?"

     I don't remember my girls asking me that question while they were pretending to be monkeys in a jungle, but they have asked me many questions about God and the Christian faith - and often, those questions just

                 pop

                                            out of nowhere.

     I'm thinking about meal planning for next week...

...or I'm remembering that I need to write a thank you card to a relative

...or I'm jotting down some notes about a new curriculum that I just heard about

...and precious little ones in my care are wanting to know more about God and the basic elements of the Christian faith.

     Elmer and I have made it TOP PRIORITY to share our faith in Jesus Christ with our children. We haven't used scare tactics to try to "scare" the girls into assuming what we believe. We haven't brainwashed them - they're fully aware of what lots of other people in our world believe about life, God, and life after death (or that some people don't believe in any of that). We expose them to all kinds of beliefs and thoughts, even if they're not what we believe.

     But since Kelsi and Brittany have both chosen, at this stage of their lives, to follow our Christian heritage and faith, we have spent time together as a family, about 4-6 times per week in the evening before bedtime, to talk about the Bible, what we believe, and why.

     That's why I was excited to receive this new children's book on Christian apologetics: Who Is God? And Can I Really Know Him?

     Apologetics? Huh? What in the world is THAT?

     Well, instead of being asked questions about my faith in Jesus Christ, and not having an answer for the questioner, I should be able to present a logical, biblical answer to that person about why I believe what I believe.

                                                              That's apologetics.

     And why should children ages 8-14 be reading books like this, with their parents? I mean, come on! Isn't that a bit, well, too tough for children to understand what we believe and why?

     I love what Apologia says about this new series for children ages 8-14:

    "Our children are bombarded on a daily basis with competing messages. Every song, movie, book, TV show, blog, and game is full of ideas—ideas about truth, morality, beauty, identity, faith, and more. Not all of these ideas are true. Some are wrong, some are deceptive, and some are outright destructive. It is more important than ever that young children be equipped to discern among competing ideas and stand in the truth. This is why Apologia has teamed with Summit Ministries to bring you the "What We Believe" Series. The "What We Believe" Series is an outstanding way to teach your child the essential beliefs of the Christian faith, but it’s so much more! With this student-directed, Bible-based curriculum, your children will learn how to use Scripture as a lens through which to view the world around them—to see everything the way God sees it—and know the truth. " (Apologia website)

    Who is God? is a beautifully printed, full color hardbound book to be used by children ages 8-14. Youth on the upper end of that spectrum, ages 13-14, could easily use this book by themselves as a Bible devotional. Children from ages 8-12 would find that this book would best be used as a family, together, although Kelsi (age 13) has enjoyed reading this together with us.

Foundational truths of a biblical worldview are laid in this first volume:

What is a worldview?
What is a biblical worldview?
How does God reveal truth to people?
How do we know that God's truth is all truth?
What is the Trinity?
Who created this world on which we live?
What is my purpose on earth?
What have I been designed to do?
How can I get my needs met?
What keeps me away from God?
What is the only way to approaching God?

     These are such key issues to teach our children! How will our children know these truths if they aren't taught? Especially if everyone else around them, at school and sometimes even at church, is sending them a different message?

     We have enjoyed working through the lessons of Who is God? Brittany enjoys the little stories and vignettes that tie in to the key concept in each lesson. Kelsi has enjoyed the questions at the end of each lesson or section. They both have enjoyed asking me lots of other questions, beyond what is being addressed in this book.

     I love using biblical books and materials like this in our home, especially if it leads to deeper discussions and question/answer times. My girls enjoy this, too!

     Not only is this book useful for using with your children, it would also be a great idea for an upper elementary/middle school Sunday school class. The books would need to stay at church so they wouldn't be lost or left at home, but this is very solid biblical curriculum that makes sense to be used with children.

     Here is a 17-page sample of Lesson 1.

     When people purchase curriculum and books from Apologia, there are additional resources like notebooking pages, lapbooking pages, links, and more for most of the books. For the notebooking pages referenced in the introduction of Who is God? you will want to go to the Apologia Book Extras page here:

http://www.apologiaonline.com/bookextras/

What do the online book extras consist of?

     The book extras are free with the purchase of the curriculum. These include Teacher Helps for each lesson, supplemental Notebooking pages for each lesson, printable "House of Truth" graphics for use in teaching or as a notebooking component, and links to Internet sites that you may find useful in your Christian worldview studies.

     This spring, Apologia will also have some new products to be used to accompany Who Is God? including a notebooking journal, a coloring book, and an MP3 audio. Not all of these products may be available currently, but will be soon.

Who is God? book - $39.00
Audio MP3 CD: $15
Notebooking Journal: $24
Coloring Book: $8

     What are my final thoughts about using Apologia's Who Is God? The girls found this book interesting and occasionally, entertaining, without insulting their intelligence. I found that our daily readings encouraged further discussion as a family. While it doesn't contain hands-on projects and activities, it is written well enough to clearly demonstrate why we believe what we believe. This is just what I was looking for in apologetics materials and books.

     Who Is God? also comes with a written schedule for parents or teachers to follow, but we decided to simply read until the girls' interest was no longer being held. Kelsi could have enjoyed reading the entire book in a few days, but Brittany's learning works better if things like this are in 20-30 minute chunks of time, so that's what we chose to do. We haven't finished reading through this 252-page book and its ten lessons, but we plan on using this several times each week together in the mornings, before we officially start our school day.

     By the time we finish using Who Is God?, the girls should be able to answer many tough questions that adults sometimes struggle to answer. We'll use this book as a resource for years to come...and next year, we'll probably purchase book 2 in this series (Who Am I? And Why Am I Here?). This is a great introduction to apologetics of the Christian faith, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to you!

    Read what my fellow TOS Crewmates are saying about Who Is God!

Disclaimer: Apologia provided me with a free copy of Who Is God? for the exchange of my review of this book on my website. No other compensation was provided.

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Family Time at the Beach!

3/12/2011

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     "How many days 'til we leave, Mom?"

     "When can we start packing?"

     "I can't wait to see our aunts and uncles!"

     I can't tell you how many times I heard words like those in the last few weeks. 20 times? 50 times? I don't know!

     The girls were very excited about our annual trip to the beach that we take sometime in the winter or early spring. We've stayed in the same beach house four times now out of the last six years or so. While Brittany would much rather stay in a different beach house every year - "for the adventure of it, Mom," she says - we usually stay in the same 1920s remodeled beach cottage on the Oregon coast.

For the past six years or so, our family has joined my parents on the Oregon coast for a few days of rest and relaxation. Because money doesn't grow on trees (though we sometimes wish it did!), we choose days on the calendar when it is least expensive to stay at the coast. We forego the sun of spring and early summer so we can save money and afford to do this each year. We plan ahead all year for this little trip, so that it is as inexpensive as possible.

We share the beach house with my parents. This cuts the cost of the house in half for each of us. Since it has five bedrooms plus a large loft area, as well as two bathrooms, a large kitchen, and a very large "great room" (living room), we don't find ourselves squished into two small motel rooms. Even though the house doesn't have a hot tub, and it hasn't recently been remodeled with the most updated looks and style, we don't mind. It's a bit on the rustic side, but at the same time, we aren't sacrificing comfort at all. After all, it's overlooking the ocean, with a private walkway down to the beach! What more could we want?

We had a mix of weather this year: one warm, sunny day, one very stormy day, and a couple of days with showers off and on. Thankfully, we had one full day of beautiful weather to play on the beach, wade in the ocean, build a log fort in the sand, and go geocaching.

Elmer finds a very special geocache treasure, which I'll tell you about in a few days!

     The best part about being at the beach is that my mom's sisters and brother (and their spouses) join us, too! For the last few years, they've rented the beach house next door.

     During the day, everyone "does their own thing" - walks on the beach, shopping at the mall, visiting the cheese factory or the air museum, playing on the beach, geocaching, visiting other museums, touring the aquarium, or visiting the glass blowing factories or art stores. Sometimes, we go on our own and don't see our relatives most of the day until evening. Other times, we'll hang out together in smaller groups.

     At night, though, we all look forward to preparing and eating a meal together.

Each couple or family takes turns helping to prepare one of our dinners together at the beach. We've enjoyed Mexican food, roasted chicken and baked potatoes, homemade meatloaf, giant green salads, and all kinds of delicious dinners together. The evenings are filled with laughter and retellings of tales from the past. Kelsi and Brittany love to hear all of the old stories from their grandparents, aunts, and uncles being told each evening. It's one of our favorite parts of the week!

By eating most of our meals at the beach house, we save a lot of money that would have gone to ordering out plus tips. It's also much easier to visit with each other in one of the two houses all evening, instead of being spread out in a restaurant where it's difficult to hear everyone speaking because of needing to talk quietly.

     On the last evening of the week, we do go out to dinner so that we won't have so many leftovers on the morning that we leave to go home. And my family might eat out for one lunch, depending on where we are during the day and what we're doing together. Other than that, we plan our meals frugally so that we eat well on a budget. This year, our breakfasts were homemade cinnamon rolls, eggs, and waffles. Yum! For lunches, we keep it simple: sandwiches or wraps. On our way to the beach house, we stop at the grocery store and buy some of the food we'll need during the week so we don't have to pack quite as much into the car.

    This year, because my family had already done most of the "tourist-y" types of things in the town where we stayed, we hardly spent any money at all during the week. Nice! We spent a full day on the beach and geocaching. We spent a couple of hours playing mini-golf on the day that it poured. And the girls and I visited Angie and her sons for a couple of hours, too. Angie's a friend of mine with whom I've worked on the TOS Crew (The Old Schoolhouse magazine), and we were able to meet her in person this last week!

     All in all, it was a frugal and fun week together with relatives and friends! This is generally our only vacation away from home each year, so we treasure the days spent here on the coast.

     Our vacation ended abruptly, about 9 hours before we would have normally left to come home...but that's another posting for another day!

     How do you plan vacations with frugality in mind? Do you set aside money each month for your vacations during the year, or are you more "spur of the moment?"

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Did your babies laugh like this?

3/4/2011

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Our girls laughed and giggled a lot like this, when they were babies. We didn't own a video camcorder, so we weren't able to record the fun times we had with them. But their psyche seems to still be intact, so I think we're okay. :)

Anyway, if you're in need of a good laugh today, I hope you'll enjoy this! I did. Baby is laughing at his daddy ripping up a job rejection letter. I suppose that helped him to cope with not having it be a job acceptance letter. You gotta just love babies!

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It all began with an iPhone...

3/3/2011

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An email sent to me by my husband, while he was at work this afternoon. Some of the other guys were too chicken to forward this to their wives. I just laughed!

It all began with an iPhone...

March was when my son celebrated his 15th birthday, and I got him an iPhone. He just loved it. Who wouldn't?

I celebrated my birthday in July, and my wife made me very happy when she bought me an iPad.

My daughter's birthday was in August so I got her an
iPod Touch.

My wife celebrated her birthday in September,
so I got here an iRon.

     It was around then that the fight started......

     What my wife failed to recognize is that the iRon can be integrated into the home network with the iWash, iCook and iClean.

      This inevitably activates the iNag reminder service.

I should be out of the hospital by Monday.

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Spelling Bee Girls: Winners Whether or Not They WIN!

3/3/2011

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Kelsi

     Nail-biting, hair-raising, thumb-sucking (just kidding!) times took over last week in our family.

     Kelsi and Brittany competed in the local homeschooling spelling bee this last week.

     It was Brittany's first year to officially compete, although she joined in the fun last year as an unofficial competitor and won second place! This was Kelsi's third year to compete in our local homeschooling spelling bee.

     When the spelling list was released in November, I believe, Kelsi informed me that she didn't want to compete this year. While I do provide the girls with some freedom and choices for extra-curricular activities, I decided that the spelling bee was something in which they were going to participate, whether they wanted to - or not.

     Now, that may seem a bit unkind. Come on, Mom, if they don't want to face the crowds and mess up in front of everyone, why should I force them to?

     Here were the reasons that I provided for both girls:

God has given them strengths in language, writing, and spelling. The Bee will enable them to develop these skills further, without a lot of pain.
We have already figured out a technique that helps the girls study their words on their own, without having to ask another adult to help them out.
The vocabulary they learn from this activity is INCREDIBLE!
The spelling bee is a challenge, and it stretches them. This is good.
The spelling bee practice sessions and participating in the Bee would be used as their spelling and vocabulary curriculum for this school year.
Standing up in front of an audience, feeling nervous and excited, is great practice for job and scholarship interviews, participating in plays and dramas, and lots of other activities that will be in their future.

As the winter continued, both girls began to become a bit more excited about the possibility of winning the local homeschool spelling bee and being able to advance to the county level to compete with all of the schools in our county.

Brittany

     Brittany seemed pretty nervous going into the competition. She kept her composure, however, and appeared to be confident after the first few words spelled correctly. Kelsi didn't seem nervous at all, just cautious. She's been in front of people so often that she doesn't find it disturbing anymore.

     Well, what were the results?

     There were around 8 competitors; I didn't recognize all of them this year. They all seemed ready for the competition!

Sorry for the blur on Brittany (far right); I couldn't figure out how to make two focal points on one photo...

     Four girls, all friends with each other, came in 1st through 4th place.

     Kelsi took first place this year, with one of her closest friends coming in second place. Brittany came in 4th place. She was disappointed, since she performed better last year without much studying or effort! Elmer and I are very pleased with her efforts, though. She has nothing to be embarrassed about!

     Now, Kelsi will advance to our local county spelling bee, which will include spelling bee winners from each of the participating public and private schools in our county. This does make Kelsi feel a bit more nervous than other events.

     After all, she'd love to win a brand new laptop computer!

     During her first year of spelling bee competition, she was selected to participate in the county spelling bee, and she came in 2nd place. We could hardly believe it!

     Last year, she was also able to participate in the county level, and she came in 8th place, I believe? (I think that's right. I'm sure I'll be corrected if I've made a mistake.)

      This year, she'll compete in the county spelling bee in mid-April. We're excited to see her advance to the county level, and she'll be working on learning techniques for spelling Latin-based and Greek-based words, and other words in the weeks to come.

     Regardless of whether the local homeschool spelling bee competitors won, or not, they are all winners in my eye! They all learned valuable tools in spelling and vocabulary; they all gained more experience in speaking and being in front of others in a stressful situation. This isn't a bad thing! This will help them in the long run.

     And no matter what happens, at least we know that they won't be spelling like this sign, below:

Congratulations, Kelsi, Brittany, and all of the other children who put forth a lot of effort to learn a 500-word list of spelling words!

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Hi! I'm Julieanne!
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​​Hi! I'm Julieanne!You'll find me in the kitchen​trying new Trim Healthy Mama recipes, loving God, and carrying out that love as I bless my husband and teen daughters. ​

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Extra Resources
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I didn't receive any of the following:

Free online Latin/English
diglot weaves/stories:

Free online vocabulary practice and games, and
"Chart Challenge" practice of grammar forms at
www.HeadventureLand.com

Hi! I'm Julieanne!
You'll find me in the kitchen
trying new Trim Healthy Mama recipes, loving God, and carrying out that love as I bless my husband and teen daughters.

Find
Joy In Our Journey on:

Search
Joy In Our Journey