Spears Art Studio is a really neat art curriculum. I have found some really neat ideas. Deidra really enjoys art and she is happy to have this program to go along with her drawing materials she already has.
Now this program is written with lesson plans for home schooling and private schools, for kindergarten through high school. But I did not use the lesson plans, which proves you can make the program work for you in your needs.
Now I feel it important to mention the mission statement from Spears Art Studio. I don’t usually copy and paste, but I felt it important to do this one time.
Spears Art Studio MISSION STATEMENT
1. to recognize the hand of God in everything and to give Him glory;
2. to reconnect the Lord as the Supreme Artist to the process and excitement of
learning for both children and educators through the study and activity of art;
3. to provide resources for the Christian educator that:
a. help students make connections between the Creator, creativity, and personal
maturity;
b. are organized for natural learning progression;
c. provide experiences for higher order thinking skills;
d. "stretch" academic and manipulative skills;
e. introduce students to famous artists and artworks incorporated into a seasonal
and/or art elements/principles arrangement of art and craft production.
The company is an affiliate of Dick Blick art materials. This make me feel more comfortable about Spears. As I have ordered painting supplies from Dick Blick in the past for Deidra and am was very pleased with the customer service I received.
Some of the things I like, and I am sure most of you will also, is the scriptural references that go along with the lesson and art project. Included in the lessons are contemporary art, landscaping, life, abstracts, and reproductions.
They cover lots of learning aspects such as hand eye coordination, patterns, asymmetry, symmetry, and a variety of other concepts.
Please enjoy our slide show. One of the projects we did was a fruit bowl. The original plan was to use old scraps of wall paper. Since we are not wall paper people and we have tons of fabric scraps, we used fabric instead. That was an easy change we made.
And for Thanksgiving, we did some projects with the children. We made Indian head dresses and warrior shields with the pictographs from the lesson plans in November. We easily modified the projects to fit our needs. And it was nice to have the children learn something with out even knowing it and they had so much fun drawing "indian language"(thats what they called it) on their shields!
Salem Ridge Press is a family owned business. They republish books from the 1800's and early 1900's in soft cover and hard cover. The books have had some minor editing to be compatible with the company’s moral purity and modesty values.
Some things I liked about the books I like the vocabulary words at the bottom of the pages. The books were centered on God and religion. There were also Bible references on the bottom of the pages in Glaucia the Greek Slave. And I like the ease of picking the right book for the age or your child. There are age’s listed on the books and in the description of the book on the web pages.
I like that my children are learning history as well as moral values and obedience from the characters.
Also if you visit their website, they have categories you can look through to find the right book for you and your children. I love the looks of the books, they are excellent quality and are very sturdy. You can also read a chapter of a book to see if its what you are looking for.
I am looking for books for Christmas. Are you thinking about books for Christmas presents? They are having a special deal right now. Read below to learn more about it.
Thinking About Christmas?
Create a Christmas Wish List on our website and be entered to win five books of your choice absolutely free in time for Christmas!
Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving. Hope you thanked God for all your blessings, good or bad.
Now the fun is over. Kiki had a fever, tummy issues, and headache last night and I did not feel much better either. We were out alot so we must have picked something up at a store. I am going to start carrying the hand sanitizer with me again. I hate the thought of having some one else's germs near my body, how gross.
So we are having another day off school to recover and rest. So my entry is not going to be very exciting.
I am working on a slide show from Thanksgiving but you will have to read my review on Spears Art Studio to see the pictures. As we did a few activities from them. It was alot of fun, and most the kids were interested.
Do any of you think this blog has turned into an "all reviews" blog?
I sure feel that way at the momment. As I am so blessed to review all these cool products for free, I am a bit overwelmed. I feel like I dont have much time to write anything else.
That is why I am writing this. To let you know why. I am not complaining, I love that I get to try out so many products and share my thoughts of them with you.
December is a big month as I have a big number of reviews to write. I am trying to get them done earlier since we will be moving also. So December is a big month for us all around.
I want to tell you about a special event. It will save you some money, or a lot of money if you find lots of things to buy!!
The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine is having an amazing sale on subscriptions during their annual Black Friday Sale November 26 – 30. For those 5 days only, they are drastically reducing their one-year subscription price to $7.95! That's the price you would usually pay for just one issue at a bookstore!
This is their lowest price ever on the magazine and they want all of you to take advantage of this offer and share the info with your friends.
Please don't miss out. Your one-year subscription will pay for itself time and time again as you receive practical tips and Biblical encouragement to keep going strong in your commitment to homeschooling and to the Lord. Since it's a quarterly magazine, they even have a monthly subscriber's only E-Newsletter called Teacher's Toolbox that will give you seasonal teaching ideas and a free E-Book download! It's like joining a unit study of the month club! The free E-Books alone are valued at almost $250/year. It's really perfect for people who are homeschooling on a shoestring or just wanting to add in some little extras to your teaching.
Plus during the Black Friday Sale, they have all kind of bonus gifts when you spend $50, $75, $100, or $150. Some are electronic downloads that you can download immediately, while other are physical products mailed from various vendors directly to your home.
AND, their Win Big contest is going on so if you just happen to be customer 67,000, you will receive a prize package valued at almost $500 which includes a $150 gift certificate to the Schoolhouse Store! Who couldn't use that? And you can qualify to win it no matter how much or how little you spend!
Mark your calendars for November 26 - 30th and do a little shopping from your seat, not your feet at the Schoolhouse Store's Black Friday Sale!
When you look at a map of the United States of America, do you see a little man? After looking over this next product, I will never look at a map the same way. Now when I look at a map, the little man in the map, Mim is his name, looks right at me.
Schoolside Press has a really cool and fun way to learn were all the states are on a map.
I always wondered how a meteorologist remembered all the states. I mean I can name most but since I don’t use that everyday in my life I will forget. But after this book I don’t think I will be forgetting any time soon.
As a child I would on occasion try to use symbols or pictures to help me remember certain things. And this book does that. It also uses little rhymes. Each state represents an object and they all fit together like a puzzle.
Through the whole book, Mim, the little man in the map, is teaching your children. He is lots of fun. There are a few “magical” references. I don’t usually let my girls do or watch or read magical things to a certain extent. This is not one of those things I would exclude. Its not as if Mim is off casting spells. He comes alive out of the map. Above all, this product makes it easy and fun to learn the states. Especially for the child who struggles. Or the adult who struggles. It uses your imagination, and imagination is what helps a child learn most of the time.
This product is definitely one of those products that I am glad I received to review. I don’t think I could live with out it as a supplement. I love maps. I have them hanging all over my school walls. Little ones and big ones. This will also be one of the books I show case in the Library section. The only complaint I have is they should have sent the wall map for me to review! (Hint Hint!)
They also have a download for some extra fun!
Product Costs:
The book is a good price at $19.95
The wall map is priced at $21.95
The combo price, both items, is $35.00
They are well worth the price in my humble opinion!
Some mentionables:
Finalist in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards
Foreword Magazines Book of the Year Award Finalist
ndependent Publisher Book Awards
So you know this book is good!
A word from the reader Dede age 11:
“I am looking forward to using this book when we start doing our geography studies in the new year. Can you write one about Asia? I love Asia, it would be cool to learn were all the countries are in Asia.”
I have been enjoying some free time with Time 4 Learning. This is an online website based curriculum. I will be reviewing it over the next few weeks. This is the first installment and there will be one or two more so make sure to come back.
Here is how it works. The girls have their own log in page; parents have their own log in too. Once they log in they have a Student Launch pad were all the subjects are listed. Those would include, for Kiana’s lower level grade; Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, and LA Extensions.For Deidra, she has the option to log in to the playground area, which she has not done so this will be in the next review.
There is an option for assignments. But to be honest I have yet to figure this out. But its not been an issue for us because we keep a daily planner and I put in the planner what pages they need to be doing. Some days we only do Language Arts. Other days we will do Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies.
Soap Box moment:
I know some of you strictly teach creation. This program is from a secular view and so the theory of evolution is the bases for the science program. I do not have a problem with this, but some might. If that is the case I would suggest skipping the science portion or just preview it before you let your child to see if it’s appropriate for your family.I on the other hand do not shy away from evolution. There is a portion of the science that talks about dinosaurs. As Deidra was doing this lesson, she tells me “Mom, dinosaurs were not alive millions of years ago”. She knows that as a creationist, we believe the bible as the true word of God. And that means the earth is just 6000 years old and in the bible it talks about dinosaurs, in its own words, and how they did live with people. But I do think your child would need to be mature enough to be able to know the difference between the THEORY of Evolution and the TRUTH of the Bible.
I think it’s important to know both sides when it comes to defending your faith on a scientific level. So I do not shy away from the theory of evolution.
Also, keep in mind, if your child is going to go to college, he or she will have to know the theory of evolution. It is what the colleges thrive on. And if your child does not have a good foundation in science, they will be eaten alive by professors who believe that evolution is truth and not theory.
End Soap Box moment.
This program is a lot of fun. There are lots of animations. The girls are addicted to it. They want to continue to do the program for the rest of the school year.And I am seriously considering it.
I can keep track of their progress reports in either 1 week, 1 month, or by date range. I can assign what I want them to do (as soon as I figure it out). I can see test’s they have done.I can set time limits, which is very important. But with the girls, they want to be on it all day long. It’s like a game to them. They are learning and having fun.
I will keep you posted on how things are going. We will see if they ever get bored. I was considering another program similar to this, but I think the price per year for all the subjects is comparable. The other program did have bible and it is creation science.The other program you buy upfront software CD’s. With this program you pay monthly and it is all online. This way you don’t have to pay for a whole year curriculum up front. Which means if things change in your family situation, and you don’t want to use the rest, you can cancel? So I do like this aspect better.
You get all this for just $19.95 a month for the first child and $14.95 for the second child.
But I will post again so stay tuned! I hope this is not too long for you. I have lots to say. As I write my reviews from the heart.
If you want to check out the demo please do so and FAST! I promise you will like it.
Ok, lots going on here. We put an offer in on a house. If everything goes ok over the next few weeks with the financing, we should be moving in December.
I will post pics of the house tomorrow night as we are going over tomorrow to measure for drapes and furniture placements. I will grab pics and put up a slideshow or something.
So please pray I make it through all the insanity. I have a lot of reviews coming due in December plus with Christmas and moving. And some big surprise we have to worry about (not one of those things we can put off). We are going to be very very busy. I am overwelmed with everything. Add in schooling and I dont know when I will have time to do anything. Maybe some magical elves will show up and pack and move for us, and then unpack for us. HAHA!
Ok, thats all for now as I have not much time for doing anything extra. I have to go check my busy planner now!!
Hi, We are Niki, Deidra, and Kiana!
We are here to share our experiences with others. One of our big projects is reviewing home school products. We are excited to do this for The Old schoolhouse Magazine. As you read my reviews, keep in mind that when I write I do it from my heart. That is how I like to read reviews. I want to know someone's true heart on a product or service, not just all the technical stuff. I want you to feel how excited I am about a product.
There is also another project in the works. I will post about later.
So Have Fun! Leave a Comment! And Stay Close To Jesus! God Bless You All!
