Archives for February 2010

We are in our 8th year of homeschooling, so I wasn’t expecting much from The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. I picked it up & started reading it just to give you homeschooling newbies an honest review. To my surprise, I was taking notes by page 18!

Debra Bell is a homeschool veteran and actually published this book several years ago. (I wish I would have read it 8 years ago!) This is the revised & updated edition. The book is divided into ten parts:

• 1 – Homeschooling: Is it for you?
• 2 – Choosing a Curriculum
• 3 – Organization & Planning
• 4 – Preventing Burnout
• 5 – What to Teach – When and How
• 6 – HomeschoolingTeens
• 7 – Computers in the Homeschool
• 8 – Creative Solutions
• 9 – Measuring Your Success
• 10 – Resource Guide

You can view the Table of Contents and a Sample Chapter.

Here are a few things you might want to know when considering this book:

~ This book is most definitely from a Christian perspective. There are many wonderful resources & tips included for any type of homeschooler, but it is specifically written for people who rely on God to guide their education decisions.

~ The Bells are what I like to call one of “those” families. You know, the ones who make the rest of us look bad. LOL Her children are very self-motivated, high achievers, world travelers and always looking for a challenge. My kids, on the other hand, would spend all day playing the Wii and eating cheetos if given the choice. Thankfully, Debra does not imply that my kids need to be like hers. She is simply sharing their experience.

~ Co-op played a big role in the Bell’s education. Co-ops can be a wonderful part of homeschool – we’ve been part of one before. Just keep in mind that the co-ops highlighted in the book appear to be comprised of “those” families that I referred to above. A co-op can be much simpler, and cheaper, than depicted in the book. (And I think you can be happy homeschoolers without ever stepping foot into a co-op or group, so don’t feel discouraged if these are not an option for you.)

~ The Choosing a Curriculum section covers many different styles of teaching, but discourages using a boxed curriculum.  She encourages you to work with your child’s strengths and interests, and think outside of the box.This was one of my favorite sections, and I agree with her wholeheartedly.

The Nitty Gritty:

• $20 paperback, 500+ pages

Value: I highly recommend this for every Christian homeschooler, newbies & veterans alike!

See what my TOS Crew Mates have to say about The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling!

I received a free copy of this book for the purpose of providing an honest review. No other compensation was given.

We received two DVDs from Math Tutor DVD:

Young Minds Numbers & Counting will be a favorite in our house for years to come. I turned it on for my 5 year old to view and my 16-month old just happened to be in the room. She was riveted! They both enjoy the classical music and beautiful images. I love the child’s voice that narrates – it reminds me of Linus from the Peanuts cartoons. 🙂

Here are some things your child will learn:

– Recognize the numbers 1-10.
– Associate the number with physical objects.
– Count from 1-10.
– Animal names and sounds.
– Fruits and Vegetables.
– Names of colors.
– Names of machines such as cars, airplanes, etc.

There is one photo of a group of people in bathing suits. It wasn’t anything very revealing, but I know it might be an issue for some of my readers – just wanted to let you know.

The Basic Math Word Problem Tutor DVD is 8 hours of instruction for grades 1-7. Each word problem is worked out step-by-step by a knowledgeable instructor.

Here is the info found on the two discs:

Disc 1
Section 1: Adding Whole Numbers
Section 2: Subtracting Whole Numbers
Section 3: Multiplying Whole Numbers
Section 4: Dividing Whole Numbers
Section 5: Adding Decimals
Section 6: Subtracting Decimals
Section 7: Multiplying Decimals
Section 8: Dividing Decimals

Disc 2
Section 9: Adding Fractions
Section 10: Subtracting Fractions
Section 11: Multiplying Fractions
Section 12: Dividing Fractions
Section 13: Percents, Part 1
Section 14: Percents, Part 2
Section 15: Ratio and Proportion

The instructor has a very calm, gentle way of teaching (although we all agreed it was sometimes too wordy). He takes your students through each little step of the word problem and shows them how to solve it. This is also a great tool for you as a teacher. You can watch the lesson and learn how to teach your child to work out the problem.

The Nitty Gritty:

• Young Minds Numbers & Counting $24.99
• Basic Math Word Problem Tutor  $26.99

Value: These products are worth their cost considering the many years of use you can get out of them.

See what my TOS Crew Mates have to say about Math Tutor DVDs!

I received two free DVDs for the purpose of writing an honest review. No other compensation was given.