The Power of Thank You!

     Exploramania was created by Carrie Scheiner, who, as a parent was concerned about too much non-educational TV, and not enough exercise. Her passion for education and healthy lifestyle, commitment to her children's well being, and desire for more options for parents and educators grew into development of several multi-sensory learning products. You can read more about her story and inspiration here.

     For review, I received the first Exploracise Gymathtics DVD. It is a 30 minute workout teaching math and healthy lifestyle concepts while performing a complete exercise routine. The math facts target 2nd through 5th grades, but the exercise program is great for all ages.

   The complete Program (copied from the DVD cover) includes:

*Shape Stretches Warm Up - stretch your mind and body with line, circle, and polygon stretches

*Counting Calisthenics- Aerobic movements work your heart as fun counting concepts work your brain

*Pattern Power- Growing and repeating pattern exercise combinations challenge minds and strengthens muscles.

*Well Being Wind Down- Relaxing stretches cool down the body and open the mind to think about healthy lifestyle choices including the Nice Wave Stretch and BIG DREAM Stretch.

     You can see more detail of math concepts and actual photos of parts of the program here.

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So how did my family like this?

     As you can imagine, my girls ( 9 and almost 13) groaned when I explained we would be watching a math/exercise program. I think they might have envisioned Sesame Street counting with the big purple dinosaur singing cheesy songs. "Just give it a fair shake," I told them.

As I began, we noticed the music was upbeat and motivational, not annoying as they had imagined. But math facts?? Well, the inclusion of educational content on the side of the screen where the folks are performing the routine are well organized and easy to follow. The screen is colorful and well organized, and the voice of the exercise instructor is pleasant and energetic. All three kids thought it was a fun and upbeat video and exercise routine, but definitely geared for the younger set (elementary).

We don't even have a TV in our home, so too much screen time really isn't a problem. My girls spend a majority of their spare time outside riding horses or exploring our caliche cliffs, so exercise isn't much of a problem either. My three year old goes non-stop as well, although I was quite disappointed for a time last year when he became seemingly addicted to sitting watching cartoons at the babysitter's house. I can certainly say I understand Carrie's concern for too much tv and not enough exercise in our youth. While I'm so thankful our family has had the opportunity to provide our kids with 30 acres and a ranch full of critters to tend to in exchange for tv time, I know this is certainly not the norm in today's society. I love the idea behind Exploramania's mission as an alternative and healthy addition to families commited to their children's well being.

You can purchase this DVD for $24.99 by visiting the Exploramania  website. While you're there, be sure to check out some of the other neat products they have, including GyMathtics 2.0 dvd. In a personal message, Carrie stated that several new products will be rolling in over the next few months, so be sure to keep a watch for some fun and educational additions to your children's learning experience.

Visit the TOS Homeschool Crew blog to read more reviews of this and other great homeschool products!

Chris

I received this DVD for review as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew. No other compensation was received, and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

"AVKO is a non-profit membership organization that focuses on the development and production of materials and especially techniques to teach reading and spelling, handwriting and keyboarding. AVKO is dedicated to teaching everyone how to read and spell, regardless of their mild to moderate learning disablities, dyslexia, poverty or opportunity. "

For review, I received a complimentary one year membership to the AVKO website. Upon visiting the website, I soon learned that the founder Don McCabe specializes in teaching dyslexics reading, spelling, writing, and keyboarding. He is the creator of Sequential Spelling which I had heard of before as a popular spelling program.

     I noticed many free and helpful materials on the website itself. But after logging in as a member, I began to look around at the many free e-books, articles, audio downloads, games, worksheets, and more that the $25.00 per year membership has to offer:

Benefits of AVKO Basic Membership

• Discounts on AVKO printed materials
• Hundreds of dollars worth of FREE e-books(PDF)
  • The Patterns of English Spelling (All 10 Volumes) with Word Families in Sentence Context
  • To Teach a Dyslexic
  • Starting at Square One
  • The Teaching of Reading & Spelling: a Continuum from Kindergarten through College.
  • The Reading Teacher's List of Over 5,500 Basic Spelling Words
• Access to the Member Only section
• AVKO Newsletter with freebies, discounts, resources, and promotions
• Access to Don McCabe's most popular workshop recordings in MP3 format.
• Supplemental Curriculum Materials including word games, worksheets, activities, and more!
• Access to Pretests and Placement Tests
• Access to the Answer Keys for the Unscramblers and Family Reunion exercises of the Engaging Language Kits

The intended purpose is to " improve the well-being, health, and development of children by enabling the establishment and expansion of high quality programs providing voluntary home visitation for families with young children and families expecting children."

"Health and safety inspectors are to be given unprecedented access to family homes to ensure that parents are protecting their children from household accidents.

New guidance drawn up at the request of the Department of Health urges councils and other public sector bodies to “collect data” on properties where children are thought to be at “greatest risk of unintentional injury”.

Council staff will then be tasked with overseeing the installation of safety devices in homes, including smoke alarms, stair gates, hot water temperature restrictors, oven guards and window and door locks.

The draft guidance by a committee at the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) has been criticised as intrusive and further evidence of the “creeping nanny state”.

Where are the safety devices for the "creeping nanny" who keeps sticking her nose into our personal lives?

Why homeschoolers support this bill or President Obama is beyond my understanding.

-Spunky

Cross-posted, with permission, from SpunkyHomeSchool

Since my children were very small, I have tried to be very deliberate about establishing and keeping family traditions.  Many came from my own childhood, and were "imported" to my new home once I was married.  I still carry so many fond memories of the Thanksgivings of my youth back in Michigan, waking up to the wonderful sounds and smells of my mother's early Thanksgiving morning cooking routine.  I was determined that my children would awaken to the same things, and they do!

The onset of the winter holidays here in the USA lets me know that time is about to really FLY for the next 2 months.  It is easy to get overwhelmed, between holiday preparations, houseguests, shopping, and the rapidly approaching end of the semester.  I think that the high school years are unique in that there isn't always room in the schedule for too many interruptions, no matter how  wonderful the interruptions may be.  Gone are the years when we could take an entire month to study pilgrims, make model Mayflower ships out of popsicle sticks, or read nothing but books about Thanksgiving.  Our schedule is particularly heavy this year...so how can we put an old-fashioned "focus" onto Thanksgiving in the midst of Algebra 2, C++ Programming, Chemistry, American Government and Economics, English Composition, Foreign Language, Logic and Rhetoric, and CLEP prep? 

We enjoy turning to the Psalms in the evenings, seeking passages dealing with being thankful in the midst of tumultuous times.  Aren't we in the midst of a tumultuous time?  Do you think things are going to get even more tumultuous in the coming months and years?  I sure do!  What a wonderful habit for ALL of us to be in: giving thanks in all things!  And what a wonderful habit to instill in our young adults who, should Christ's return be yet a ways off, will have to live out their lives in a world far different from the one we grew up in. 

Our copy of William Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation" finds its way to the dinner table as well, and we enjoy reading it out loud.  There is nothing better than going directly to the source when the desire is to know the truth of an historic event.  Today's commentators and writers, whether secular or Christian, were not present in Plymouth with the pilgrims...but William Bradford was.  To read his words is such a treasure!  I pray that every Christian high school homeschooler (and every homeschooler, period, for that matter) would have the joy and privilege of reading Bradford's account of the entire journey, from start to finish!  It was translated from Elizabethan English into "modern English" in 1909, but it is still a challenging read to get into...at first.  By the end of the first chapter, especially if reading aloud, I found my brain and my tongue pretty well adapted to the style, and no longer had to read and re-read every other sentence to have it make sense!  It is well worth the effort. 

(An aside here...if American History is yet in the future for you and your students, strongly consider obtaining a copy of this book, and have your students begin it early, perhaps over the summer.  You will have a source of original "American truth," and can then use it as the standard by which you judge the material your purchased curriculum offers.)

Another fun, relaxed, and entertaining way to enjoy and focus on this special season of giving thanks is through a unique and free resource called "Homeschool Radio Shows."  Homeschool dad and entrepreneur, Jim Erskine, from Canmer, Kentucky, has long had a passion for old-time radio shows.  He's collected and catalogued hundreds (thousands?) of them, and makes them available at no charge to those who join his mailing list.  Right now, he has a couple of Thanksgiving-themed shows available for downloading.  You will receive links to a new show every week, and will, from time to time, be offered a collection of stories for a small price.  But they always maintain a wonderful weekly offering of free shows.  I have been a member of Jim's mailing list for many years now, and I've purchased a few of his marvelous collections.  The mp3 files can be burned to CD's, and we've enjoyed doing this in order to have wholesome listening entertainment during road-trips, or vacation days.  We love to gather around the CD/mp3 player during the colder months with a crackling fire, a sketch book or some hand-work, listening and laughing together.

May God bless you and your homeschool this week!

Lori

Lori Havens has been married to Kevin for 24 years.  They live in Illinois with their two sons, Bryan (17) and Nathan (16), and dog Sunny (9).  Lori enjoys writing, gardening, reading, and the outdoors.  She is the author of "Should I Be A Nurse? A Journey of Self-Exploration for Those Considering a Career in Nursing" and  "7 Essential Questions Every Future Nurse Must Ask."     You can find her blogging at both Homeschool Blogger and Homestead Blogger  .