My Access

There are many ways to learn about writing. There is much curriculum available and many programs to choose from. It is my opinion however, that the best way to learn to write is simply to write. That is one of the reasons I liked the My Access program. The point of the My Access Program is to write.
Here’s how it works.

You pay your $99 and you get one parent account and three or six student accounts. The parent begins by setting up the student accounts and inputting the grade level of the student. From there you can create your own topics for writing assignments or have your student choose a readymade topic. I created my own because my children are taking a writing class at our co op this year and they had specific topics they had to write about. When my children choose their own topics they don’t read a lesson, they just write into the provided space and then click on My Editor when done. Think of the My Editor button as you would the spell/grammar check in Word, except (and this is key) it not only gives you suggestions as to how to correct the problem, it tells you WHY it needs to be corrected. What grammar/spelling/usage rule you are breaking, and how to fix it.

I must admit we have not spent a great deal of time on the My Tutor portion of the My Access because my kids have been getting all their teaching at the co op class. However, coming up, they have some things to do outside of the co op English Class, and I am planning on having them use the Tutor portion of this program to help them with that project.

In all honesty, I believe this program is VERY MUCH worth the money. $99 for up to 6 accounts? That’s a deal!

There is one caveat however. As with most things in life, it’s never as simple as it seems. This program will not take away parental involvement. For instance; I have two prolific writers in my house. They write because they love to do it and they want to do it to the best of their abilities. My Access was a real treat for them. I even forgot to ask my Eve to write her essay for co op using My Access and she did it anyway because she really enjoyed it the last time. She thrives on the non-judgmental critique. You don’t tend to get as defensive when critiqued by the computer. She wants to do better and she sees this program as a way to help her write the best possible paper.

On the other side of the coin is my Bob. Bob is dyslexic and hates writing. He would write on the My Access website and then I’d come sit down next to him and we’d go over the corrections. He was simply not able to process all the program was telling him without someone there to walk through it with him. When I took the time to sit next to him and edit with him, he got much more out of it. The defensiveness was also gone there because I was helping him solve the problem, not the one pointing it out. So, while My Access was definitely a help for him as well, it was not necessarily a time saver.

The My Access site has MUCH information on its website. If you are interested in this program, I’d recommend taking some time and looking over the site. There are many video demos that can really give you a good understanding of what the My Access program is all about.

Happy Homeschooling!

Virginia Soaps and Scents

Being on the TOS Crew has many perks, mostly I get to try curriculum that I might not otherwise think to try. But every now and then, we get to try something non curriculum. Like Virginia Soaps and Scents! VSS sent us some homemade soaps, three to be exact, in Coconut Lemongrass, Fresh Orange, and Oatmeal, Milk and Honey scents. I loved them all, but the Fresh Orange was my favorite. I don't usually use soap, I like liquid soap better. I don't like the feel that is left on my skin from regular soap. I was pleasantly surprised that these soaps did not leave that sort of dry sticky feel. I thought I'd use them just enough to do the review then go back to my usually liquid soap, but I liked them so much I used them all up! I didn't even share with my girls.

We were also sent a Shampoo Bar. I had never heard of a shampoo bar before. I tried it for a week, but I just couldn't get it to work with my hair. I have heard of many of the others who like it alot. Honestly I think this depends on your hair type. I have thin, baby fine hair. It did not respond well to the shampoo bar. I left it kind of oily and heavy feeling. My hair is very temperamental and I only use one type of shampoo/conditioner and any time I try something new, I tend to end up with oily, lifeless hair.

The price on the Shampoo bar is $5.50 for a bar weighing 5.5 ounces or $10.00 for 2 bars. Honestly I wish this had worked on my hair, because it s so convenient and easy to travel with. It would have been GREAT for camping! I have stuck the rest of the bar in the RV to let the boys use.

The last thing we were sent was a laundry soap kit. I must admit here that I have not yet made the soap. I have been intrigued with the idea of making my own laundry soap for a while now. We have 6 people in this family and 5 of them are adult size. I do A LOT of laundry. My problem with this is that we live in a small house with a small kitchen and a small laundry area. The thought of making the big vat of laundry soap Duggar style, was just too overwhelming to me.

I like the idea of this kit because all the gathering work is done for me and it makes a manageable batch for me to work with in my kitchen and laundry area. Now for honesty...I've not done it yet. We've been passing around a cold here, (not the flu PTL!) and I've just not gotten to it. However, Kristen, on the Crew did it and she videoed it! Just watching her do it makes me feel like this is something I could do!

So next week, making the laundry soap is top of my list!

I know it seems a little odd to be reviewing soaps on a Homeschool Blog, but the family from VSS is a homeschooling family. Their account of how they came to be soap makers is heartwarming and I am all for supporting another homeschooling families business venture whenever I can.

You can go here to learn more about Virginia Soaps and Scents, read more about their family and find our their prices, and as always you can click on the icon below to see what others on The Crew had to say.

Happy Homeschooling!

Amazing Bible Timeline

I was sent the Amazing Bible Timeline to review. It came in this really cool long, triangular box. That really has nothing to do with the review other than it was a treat to get a log triangular box in the mail and the kids had hours of fun turning the box into many things before it finally went out with the trash.

Now to the timeline…



This is a really cool timeline. I do like the way it’s laid out. Before I received it in the mail, I had never seen one laid out in this circular way before. It really does make it easy to understand and ‘see’ history. I am a big fan of timelines, though we don’t use them as much as we should I’m sure, and we don’t keep one or make one as we go because well, eeewww, arts and crafts.

This is a big timeline…here is a photo from their website that shows the timeline laid out on a table. You can really get how big this is. It is made on heavy card stock paper. It’s not laminated but it’s sturdy.



There are a few negatives or things some might perceive negatively. I think it’s important to remember that while this is a Bible timeline, it is not, in fact, the inerrant word of God. It is not inspired. It’s man’s attempt to put Gods word into chronological perspective. There are also some references on the timeline that are not necessarily biblical, or more accurately, more historical than Biblical. There are also some Book of Mormon references on the timeline.

Honestly, this does not deter from the usefulness of the timeline for me. It is a timeline after all, not a bible study. It is a great timeline, one my family will use. However, I am careful to explain to my kids that it is not the Bible. It is a tool to perhaps help us to understand history from a more Biblical perspective, but it’s not a Bible Study. There is a difference.

I think this Timeline will find a place amongst my curriculum tools…now if I could just find a good place to display it where everyone can see it…

You can go here to check out the prices (included in the price for the timeline is a few free downloads, YIPPEE!) and as always, you can click on the icon below to see what others had to say about the Amazing Bible Timeline.


Happy Homeschooling!

Sarah’s Wish

When I was sent this book by Jim Baumgardner I was thrilled. It had several things going for it, in my opinion. First of all, Jim wrote this book for his grandchildren. He has 9 who are all homeschooled. I Love that. I have enjoyed getting to know Mr. Baumgardner through his emails. He has a wonderful sense of humor and an obvious love of history, and a nose for the type of quality literature he would want his own grandchildren to read. It makes me feel very safe letting my kids read books a man wrote with his own grandchildren in mind. Here is an excerpt of the email he sent out to those of us reviewing this book on the Crew.

The Sarah Books are authored by me for my grandchildren. I say that so that you will know these books do not have any sex, profanity, or anything that would be offensive to young readers. I would never subject my grandchildren to such writing.

The books have been referred to as Christian fiction. I prefer to describe them as Young Adult fiction written by a Christian author. Sarah’s faith is important to her and she lives by it, but the books do not try to convert the reader to anything. The stories do teach Christian principals of living a good life and treating others as you would have them treat you. I do not ignore the evil in the world and Sarah must confront it at times just as we all do.

Not all learning has to be from textbooks. Kids like to see history set in story form, and the Sarah books fulfill that quest for realism. The reader will learn pre-civil war history while enjoying a good read.

That is exactly what we found Sarah’s Wish to be; a delightful read, which was historically accurate, and good clean and fun.

My girls have asked for the rest of the books. I wish I could just go out and order them. I HATE saying no to my kids when they’re asking for books. Sadly money is tight right now so we’re not able to buy any extra’s. I have added these to the Christmas list though. We have a few relatives who send money down for Christmas gifts and I think that money will be spent on Sarah’s books!

There are a few things to me, that take these books over the top as far as appeal. One is the audio component. I have two dyslexic children so anytime I can get something on audio I do. It is such a good practice to have my dyslexic child follow along in the book while listening to the audio. When you buy the book, you get some numbers to type into some little boxes on a website (what a technical explanation!) and you can download the audio! I had my son use his magic and convert them to the right type of file and upload the book onto my daughter’s iPod. It is an ancient iPod (a 1st gen) and it all fit and worked like a charm.

Also, Mr. Baumgardner has a newsletter he sends out with fun facts, historical information pertaining to the book a question of the month and several other things pertaining to the stories.

Another little bonus for me was that Mr. Baumgardner is from Wichita, KS, my old stomping grounds and he volunteers at the Old Cowtown Museum which I visited as a child. I remember spending a day there in 1800’s garb (including my great grandmothers actual bonnet! Which I still have!) in the one room schoolhouse. I have very fond memories of Cowtown and can’t wait to take my kids there next time I’m in town visiting relatives. I may stop and introduce myself to Mr. Baumgardner!

This book, about the underground railroad in 1858 Kansas. It’s about a little girl, a great tragedy, and a big wish. This book gets an A+ from this Homeschooling mama!

You can go here to read more about Mr. Baumgardner and the Sarah books (including excerpts). And as always you can click on the icon below to see what others had to say about Sarah’s Wish.

Happy Homeschooling!

FREE Unit Study/Lapbook!

FREE STUFF FROM TOS MAGAZINE!!! Who does not *heart* free stuff!!! (here is the email I received and I was given permission to pass it on to you!



Here at The Old Schoolhouse Magazine®, we just love sharing with our friends. So when we have something new that we can give to you FREE to share with your friends, we just have to get it to you.

We want you to enjoy a completely free autumn unit study and lap book from Amanda Bennett and The Old Schoolhouse®. It is over 80 pages of activities and resources.

This free autumn unit study can be downloaded through our store at:

http://www.theoldschoolhousestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=145&products_id=12934

We also have an encouragement article, along with a special coupon code. It can be found at the following URL:
http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/Homeschooling/Are-You-Trained.htm

Enjoy this free learning resource and thank you!

Happy Homeschooling!

Guardian Angel Publishing

Guardian Angel Publishing sent me 4 E books to review. I am really trying to get used to the E-book. I want to like the E-book, I really do. I know it has its place, but I think I’ll always be partial to the print book. If you can swing it, buy the book with pages, if not go for the E version.

The books I was sent to review are…

Hamster Holidays: Noun and Adjective Adventures of The Pet Grammar Parade Series is a book that helps children learn about nouns and adjectives. The nouns are in blue and the adjectives in the story are in red. At the back of the book there are some ideas on how to teach them and some games and puzzles to play.

No Bones About It: The Sum of Our Parts Series was a very timely book for us to receive. My oldest son is taking an anatomy class at the community college and has to memorize the bones in the skeleton. I gave him this e book to help him and he was really glad to have it! When things rhyme, it makes it oh, so much easier to remember!

Earthquake is a lovely book with some really cool illustrations, factoids and charts and graphs. It would make a nice complement to an earthquake study. We down her in Texas don’t have many earthquakes so we don’t know a lot about them in this house. We found this book to be informative.

Andy and Spirit Go to the Fair This is a sweet 24 page story about a boy in a wheel chair and a horse named Spirit. The illustrations in this book are very nice and I liked the story.

One thing that made viewing the E book a little easier is to view the pages side by side. I did this by clicking on view, then page display and then two-up. Several of the books have illustrated pages on one side and the writing on the other side, so if you can view them side by side it is more enjoyable.

You can go to the Guardian Angel Publishing site to see what other books they have to offer. They have quite a variety of books, E, and print for you to choose from, and as always, you can click on the icon below to see what other Crew Members had to say.




Happy Homeschooling!

Five Minutes to Better Reading Skills from Bonnie Terry Learning

I have two dyslexic children. Both have been through the Scottish Rite Dyslexia Lab School. This is a two year program that uses a very phonetic based Orton-Gillingham style approach to dyslexia remediation. Unfortunately, not everyone lives in Texas to be able to take their child to Scottish Rite, and not all children with reading difficulties are dyslexic.

I was sent 5 minutes to Better Reading by Bonnie Terry Learning to review. This program is very similar to one of the things my children did at Scottish Rite called Rate. It is a very specific set of words that the children practice until they reach a certain level of fluency.

It’s not the most interesting thing in the world, but I can tell you, it works. Bonnie Terry has done a very good job if taking this idea and simplifying and streamlining it for the parent to be able to do at home. She has very specific instructions, easily laid out so that you can use this program, (in just 5 minutes a day!) to help your struggling reader gain fluency.

You can go here to read more about this specific program, and here to the Bonnie Terry site to see her various other programs for struggling learners.

As always, you can click on the icon below to see what other mothers had to say about Bonnie Terry Learning products.





Happy Homeschooling!

Nature Friends Magazine

I heard about Nature Friends Magazine about a year ago on a homeschooling website I frequent. At the time I was looking for a good gift idea for my daughter Eve who was turning 11. Her Grandma had asked for something she could get her that would be easy to ship. Well what’s easier than a Magazine subscription?

I was a little hesitant because let’s face it, science type magazines for kids are tricky. It seems either they are secular and have to be closely monitored, lest my children are taught we crawled out of the ocean, or they are Christian in nature and low budget with disappointing content. I wish it were not so, but in our experience it seems you get either/or.

I was pleasantly surprised. Eve liked these magazines so much that she has saved each and every one. The rest of the family has to practically check them out to get to see them. I have been meaning all year to do a post about them because we have enjoyed them so much, but did not get around to it.

Well, much to our sadness, her subscription expired in July and her grandma did not renew it. Sadly, money’s a little tight right now, so we didn’t either.

I was pleasantly surprised to find Nature Friends among the TOS Crew vendors this year! YIPPEE! The timing was perfect. We were able to get Aug and September’s magazine! And they’ve added a study guide to it!

I am so pleased with the study guide. I think, with the use of the study guide, you could use this mag as the basis for your science curriculum for the elementary years. At minimum it would be an excellent supplement to a textbook curriculum, if you’re a textbookie type.

You can go here to see some samples of the magazine online, or you can order a sample copy for $5.

I was surprised at the quality of the paper; it’s quite thick and easy for the little hands to turn the pages. All of the magazines we’ve gotten over the last year are still perfectly in tact with no rips or tears. Of course, like I mentioned, my daughter treats them with great reverence.

The photography in this publication is also noteworthy. They have a tab on their site just for the nature photography. The photos are amazing! I just recently found this and my kids have spent hours looking up various birds to see what the look like.


The prices for Nature Friends Magazine are as follows:

1 year subscription - $36.00
2 year subscription - $68.00
The Study guides are added on for $2 an issue.

Personally, I like what the study guides had to offer. If you’re going to use this as the basis for your science curriculum I think it a worthy investment, but if money is tight, the magazine is magnificent even without the study guide.

I give this magazine an A+! I am sad we’re going to miss a few issues, but I suspect this magazine will reappear at this house shortly after Christmas.

You can click on the icon below to see what others had to say about Nature Friends Magazine.






Happy Homeschooling!

College Prep Genius (2)

Remember College Prep Genius?

Well, we’ve been spending a bit more time with it the last little bit and let me just say…whoa! We’ve barely scratched the surface! There is SO MUCH in this curriculum. Honestly I wish I’d had it with Will before he took the SAT & ACT. He’s not really interested in taking them again. And really he does not need too for what he is after. He’s already on the college track for what he wants to be (Paramedic/Fireman though he is also considering Nursing School after he becomes a Paramedic).

I can see how very useful this will be when it’s time for Bob to start thinking about the SAT/ACT, which will actually be sooner than I would like to admit!

Here is an excerpt from the book…

College Prep Genius contains hidden secrets and little-known patterns found on the SAT and PSAT/NMSQT/NNSQT tests. By unraveling these concealed codes, students can score higher on these tests and in return receive up to full scholarships/full ride to colleges of their choice.

The book goes on to show you how, by using various acronyms and test taking strategies, you can really improve your score.

Yes, you must know the material. My guess is that a third grader could not take this course and get a great score on the tests, but, for those who are on grade level and ready to take the tests I believe that this course will help immensely.

If you go check out my first review on College Prep Genius, you can see the pricing structure and what others had to say about it.

Happy Homeschooling!