Menu Monday for 7/30/18

Here are this week's meal plans:

Saturday: Tacos, Tostitos
Sunday: Chicken Caesar Salad, rolls
Monday: Spaghetti, meat balls, salad, Texas Toast
Tuesday: Salmon, yams, green beans
Wednesday: Wings, french fries, celery sticks
Thursday: Pork chops, buttered noodles, mixed vegetables
Friday: Date night - dinner out

Smart Kidz Radio - A TOS Homeschool Crew Review

Today I get to tell you about a new product by Smart Kidz Media.

Their new product is called Smart Kidz Radio. 
Smart Kidz Radio is an on-line dedicated radio "station" that is chock-full of original content and designed just for kids 2-10 years old. The material it provides is educational, entertaining, and up-lifting. There is no other Internet radio station like it.

Smart Kidz Radio is free! When you click on the link, you will be prompted to set up a free account. Once you are done setting up your account, you will have access to a steady stream of encouraging, commercial-free, up-beat music geared towards your young kids. 

In addition to the live-stream music, you will have access yo dramatized classic stories such as Alice in Wonderland and Hansel and Gretel. These stories are well-created, with different voices for the different characters. (For example, in Alice in Wonderland, the White Rabbit sounds older, and very different than the young girl voice of Alice.)

If you do not see an option for a drop-down menu, once you have set up your account, you may have an ad blocker that you need to turn off in order to use Smart Kidz Radio. Your screen should look like this:

The center of the screen gives you access to listen to the live-stream dedicated children's music.

Just push the blue arrow.

The "DM" in the upper right is my initials and is taken from my log-in information. You are looking for the "Menu" button on the lower-left of the screen.

If you don't see that, turn off your ad-blocker software. Once you click on the "Menu" option, this is what you see:

Under "Player apps" there is a button for weather, a button for traffic, a button for song requests (which gives you the opportunity to let Smart Kidz know of particular songs you would like them to play), and the "?" gives answers to frequently asked questions.

Under "Streams" you have a button for "Send player to mobile phone" (which I haven't tried yet), a button for "recently played" (I'm not sure how this one works - I clicked on it but did not receive a list of things I recently played OR things the Kidz Radio recently played...) and the last very important button is for "Podcasts", which gives you the fairy tales.

When you click on the Podcasts button it gives  you the list of available fairy tale dramatizations.

It has a slider bar so you can see all the titles. You can select just the story you want, or you can start on one story and leave it playing - it will roll to the next story each time it reaches the end of a story.

Smart Kids Media has intentions of offering additional premium content...

However this additional content is not yet available. The above picture indicates the Bookstore will offer free books, apps, and educational resources, but when you click on the button it does not open -- it times out with an error message.

Smart Kidz Radio is planning to offer premium content of on-demand radio programs that you can subscribe to. Like I said, though, the premium content is not available yet, so I cannot comment on it here.

Smart Kidz Radio is such a fantastic concept! It is still developing, but as the month has progressed I have seen so many ways it could one day be used:

• It could be "tapped" into on televisions with Internet access, so that it can be playing softly in the background for everyone to listen to while the older kids are doing their home school work.
• It could be "tapped" into by cell phone app (or other device). When I was at church doing nursery duty, I could have opened the app on my cell phone to play fun music for the two-year-olds in the class to listen to and enjoy.
• The kids can be listening to the Smart Kidz Radio app in the car with ear buds while I am listening to my news radio (or not -- okay, while I am listening to my classical music...).
• Smart Kidz Radio can be playing in the background on any child's laptop while they are using the computer to do other school work, like on line Math programs, or writing assignments.

This product has a lot of potential. If you are concerned about what your children might be listening to on their computer with those ear buds in, I strongly recommend you consider giving Smart Kidz Radio a try. Get your kids hooked on listening to wholesome content while they are listening, so they won't be looking for alternative, less-acceptable content. Give it a try.

Other members of the Old Schoolhouse Home School Review Crew also tried out Smart Kidz Radio and wrote reviews. To read more reviews of Smart Kidz Radio, please click on the button below. Also, comments are always welcome!

Great Waters Press - A TOS Homeschool Crew Review

This summer I have been listening to an audiobook by Great Waters Press.

I was pleased to be selected to review Love, Honor, and Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality. 
I requested the audiobook because my son is not much of a reader (and I am hoping he will listen to the audiobook). For this review, we the parents were asked to read (listen to) the book. We were not required to have our son(s) read (listen to) the book.

I really appreciate that Great Water Press asked us to do the reviews this way. This book contains very sensitive material. While I hope my son listens to this audiobook, I would never be able to discuss any of this material in a way that references my son personally. That would not be appropriate and it would violate his privacy.

Love, Honor, and Virtue is written to the young man in your life, but I certainly advise mom or dad (or both) read/listen first. Some sons may be ready for some (or all) of the content at age 9 or 10. Other young men will not. There is also the possibility of introducing certain sections at certain times.

There are so many ideas going through my head right now. With a younger son, a dad can take a year where one Saturday each month he and his son have a special get-away to read and discuss one section of the book. This would not need to be a whole chapter each time -- some of the chapters are quite long. 

Another family might have dad and son take a weekend (or two) where they have a special retreat to enjoy time together with a prime assignment of reading and discussing the book, but with other special time built in as well. This could be a camping trip, a hotel, a beach weekend, or whatever the two agree upon.

In my own family dad and son took a special weekend of this type when our young man was 13 and discussed similar material. Now our young man is leaving for college (next month). I am happy I have the audiobook I can give him and ask him to consider listening to it sometime soon.

The full title of the book (Love, Honor, and Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality) gives a fairly complete hint of the content. The young man reading the book is walked through the biblical design for marriage and God's plan for the man and woman in relationship leading up to and continuing after marriage.

Sensitive topics are discussed, that I hesitate even to write the words in this post, but I will give hints. Topics are discussed of temptations young men face with the new power of raging hormones and changing body parts. The topic is also discussed of temptation young men encounter in print, media and Internet exposure (that my generation would only be exposed to by stealing an uncle's magazine). 

I really liked the way the authors explained the term "lust". I had always thought of the definition slightly differently (like "I am lusting after a hot fudge sundae"), but the authors reserve the term "lust" to refer to desiring something that is clearly a sin (as in a man doesn't "lust" after his wife, because being together with her is not sin). I also like the way the authors explained to the young man what is the appropriate response to desires, when he is tempted, and recommended ways for the young man to flee from situations where he is being tempted.

Love, Honor and Virtue is a God-glorifying book that I highly recommend to parents and their sons. It will be particularly welcome to young men who have committed in their hearts to pursue purity. This book is also one that can be offered to young men who can honestly admit that they are not sure what they think about purity and abstinence before marriage. And in my situation, it is a great book to give to my son as he is starting college, to give him the opportunity (and respect) to work his way through the material on his own as he heads off into this new adventure in his life.

While I am glad I received the audiobook for review, I see many reasons why I would have preferred the printed book personally. (Remember, I asked for the audiobook because it is the one I believe my son is most likely to get through.) I wanted to mention that although the book is supposed to be written to the young man, when I was listening to the Introduction I kept thinking that the Introduction sounded more like it was written to an adult. If I had received the printed book, I would have reviewed several sections. Frankly, if the copy were for me (and not my son) I would have read the book and highlighted certain sections, while also taking notes down on my own notebook. (And some young men might want to do the same thing.) For this review I would have said more about how many chapters are in the book, titles of chapters, and number of pages in the book.

So when considering whether you want the printed book or the audio book, consider the young man you are buying it for and get what will serve him best. And for families with more than one young man, I recommend one book per lad. This book is written for a target audience of ages 12-20, with wiggle room on each end.
 
Other members of the Homeschool Review Crew also reviewed Love, Honor, and Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality or No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope. To read other reviews of these books by Great Waters Press, please click on the button below.

For Sale: Studies of the 1800's - World and US History and Literature

I am done home schooling and it is time to clear my shelves. Here is my third list of books for sale. These are broken down into four sections (I did Tapestry of Grace, and these were Year 3 four Units).

My prices are totally negotiable - I'd rather they go to a home schooler than to Wonderbooks. I will accept check or Paypal (buyer pays additional fee). I will mail and buyer will pay actual postage. I hope you will buy my books! Please, don't be put off by my (low, low) prices -- make a lower offer if you need to. Thank you for contributing to my son's college book fund.

Please email interest to dmalament2 @ gmail . com

Here's my list:

Year 3 Books:

·         America: A Patriotic Primer by Lynne Cheney - $1.00

·         America Votes – How Our President is Elected by Linda Granfield - $1.00

·         Scholastic Encyclopedia of Presidents by David Rubel - $2.00

·         United States History for Christian Schools (BJUP) - $1.00

·         Western Civilization I by Jackson Spielvogel - $4.00

·         World History for Christian Schools (BJUP) - $1.00

Unit 1:

·         Abraham Lincoln’s World by Genevieve Foster ($45 on Amazon) - $5.00

·         A History of US: The New Nation – 1789-1850 - $3.00

·         Crossing the Panther's Path, Elizabeth Adler - $1,00

·         John Adams (Encyclopedia of Presidents) by Marlene Targ Brill - $3.00

·         The Star-Spangled Banner Illustrated by Peter Spier - $1.00

·         The Story of the Monitor and the Merrimac (War of 1812) by Conrad Stein (Cornerstones of Freedom) - $2.00

·         The Story of the Star-Spangled Banner by Natalie Miller - $1.00

·         The War of 1812 by Alden R. Carter - $2.00

Unit 2:

·         Australia (National Geographic) (Week 14-R) - $1.00

·         Australia in Brief (wk 14)  ($6.95 on Amazon) - $2.00

·         Amazing Animals of Australia (Nat. Geo.) (Wk 14-LG) - $1.00

·         Behind the Blue and Gray: The Soldier’s Life in the Civil War by Delia Ray - $1.00

·         The Cherokees by Eileen Lucas - $4.00

·         If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine (wk 10) - $0.50

·         The Mexican War (America at War) by Bronwyn Mills - $2.00

·         Pre-Columbian Peoples of North America - $1.00

·         The Story of the Underground Railroad by R. Conrad Stein - $1.00

·         Ultimate Field Trip 4: A Week in the 1800s by Susan E. Goodman - $1.00

Unit 3

·         Abe Lincoln Grows Up by Carl Sandburg - $1.00

·         Africa (Cultural Atlas for Young People by Dr. Jocelyn Murray - $2.00 (Wk 27)

·         A History of US: War, Terrible War – 1860-1865, by Joy Hakim - $6.00

·         A History of US: Reconstruction and Reform – 1865–1896 - $6.00

·         Americ in the Time of Sitting Bull – The Story of Our Nation from Coast to Coast, from 1840 to 1890 by Sally Senzell Isaacs - $4.00

·         Cadets at War – The True Story of Teenage Heroism at the Battle of New Market by Susan Provost Beller (Week 21 UG-alt) - $1.00

·         China: the land by Bobbie Kalman - $1.00

·         The Coming of the Civil War by Robert Goldston - $1.00

·         Civil War (Thematic Unit) by Teacher Created Materials, Inc. - $ 0.50

·         The Civil War by Fletcher Pratt - $1.00

·         Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun (Japan) by Rhoda Blumberg - $1.00

For Sale: Explorers, Dark Ages, Renaissance, Vikings, Early America materials

I am done home schooling and it is time to clear my shelves. Here is my second list of books for sale. These are broken down into four sections (I did Tapestry of Grace, and these were Year 2 four Units).

My prices are totally negotiable - I'd rather they go to a home schooler than to Wonderbooks. I will accept check or Paypal (buyer pays additional fee). I will mail and buyer will pay actual postage. I hope you will buy my books! Please, don't be put off by my (low, low) prices -- make a lower offer if you need to. Thank you for contributing to my son's college book fund.

 

Please email me at dmalament @ gmail . com with interest.

Here's my list:

Fall of Rome, Vikings, Middle Ages, Knights and Castles:

·         Castle by David Macauley - $3.00

·         Great Medieval Projects You Can Build Yourself by Kris Bordessa – brand new, $7.00

·         In the Time of Knights – The real-life story of history’s greatest knight by Shelley Tanaka - $2.00

·         Life in Medieval Times by Marjorie Rowling - $1.00

·         The Middle Ages by Trevor Cairns  - $1.00

·         The Song of Roland translated by Patricia Terry  - $1.00

·         Story of the Vikings (Dover Coloring Book) by A.G. Smith  - $1.00

·         Usborne Cut-Out Models: Make This Model Castle - $2.00

·         Usborne Illustrated Guide to Norse Myths and Legends by Cheryl Evans and Ann Millard  - $1.00

·         Usborne World History – Medieval World by Jane Bingham  - $1.00

Rennaisance and Reformation, Aztecs & Incas, Exploration, Shakespeare:

·         Around the World in a Hundred Years: From Henry the Navigator to Magellan by Jean Fritz - $6

·         Atlas of Past Times by John Hayward - $1.50

·         The Aztec News: The Greatest Newspaper in Civilization (A.D. 1100 – A.D. 1521) by Philip Steele - $2.00

·         The Bible Smuggler by Louise Vernon (William Tyndale) - $2.00

·         Cathedral by David Macauley - $3.00

·         Colonial Living by Edwin Tunis - $9.00 (new)

·         Columbus & The Renaissance Explorers by Colin Hynson  - $1.00

·         I, Columbus: My Journal (1492-1493) Edited by Peter and Connie Roop  - $1.00

·         Dr. Faustus by Christopher Marlowe  - $1.00

·         Lost Temple of the Aztecs by Shelley Tanaka - $1.00

·         The Map Corner by Arnold B. Cheyney and Donald L. Capone - $2.00

·         Montezuma and the Aztecs by Mathilde Helly and Remi Courgeon - $1.00

·         Paris 1789 (A Guide to Paris on the Eve of the Revolution) by Rachel Wright - $1.00

·         The Renaissance – A Bellerophon Coloring Book - $3.00

·         Usborne World History – The Last 500 Years, by Jane Bingham, Fiona Chandler and Sam Taplin - $2.00

·         The World of Columbus and Sons by Genevieve Foster - $5.00

13 Colonies, founding documents; English Civil War:

·         Colonial Kids, by Laurie Carlson - $2.00

·         Kids’ America, by Steven Caney - $2.00

·         Western Civilization, Vol. 1 (Jackson Spielvogel) - $10.00 ($29.95 on Amazon)

·         The World of Capt. John Smith by Genevieve Foster - $5.00

French and Indian War; Revolutionary War; Constitution; Presidents Washington & Adams; French Revolution:

• America’s Paul Revere by Esther Forbes - $2.00

For Sale: Materials for Studies of Ancient Civilizations

I am done home schooling and it is time to clear my shelves. I have the following books for sale on ancient history topics (Egypt, China, Greece, Rome, etc.). Some titles are religious in content - this will be indicated. 

My prices are totally negotiable - I'd rather they go to a home schooler than to Wonderbooks. I will accept check or Paypal (buyer pays additional fee). I will mail and buyer will pay actual postage. I hope you will buy my books! Please, don't be put off by my (low, low) prices -- make a lower offer if you need to. 

Email me at dmalament2 @ gmail . com

Here's my list:

Multiple Topics:

·         The Usborne Book of World History - $1.00

·         The Usborne Time Traveller Books – Four Usborne books in one – Pharaohs & Pyramids, Rome & Romans, Viking Raiders and Knights & Castles - $6.00

·         Usborne World History: Ancient World - $3.00

Creation, Egypt, Babylon, Isrealites:

·         Building the Great Pyramid by Kevin Jackson and Jonathan Stamp - $1.00

·         Dry Bones and Other Fossils by Gary E. and Mary M. Parker - $1.00

·         How the Bible Came to Us – The Story of the Book that Changed the World, by Meryl Doney - $3.00

·         The Egyptian Echo (Usborne) - $1.00

·         Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Egypt, by Cynthia A Shearer - $1.00

·         King Tut Coloring Book (Dover Coloring Book) - $2.00

·         Mummies & Their Mysteries, by Charlotte Wilcox - $1.00

·         Tales of a Dead King, by Walter Dean Myers - $1.00

·         Understanding Jewish Holidays and Customs, Historical and Contemporary by Sol Scharfstein - $5.00

·         The Usborne Young Scientist: ARCHAEOLOGY - $1.00

Ancient India, Ancient China, Ancient Americas, Ancient Greece, More Isrealites:

·         Ancient India, written by Virginia Schomp (Scholastic) - $2.00

·         Life in the Great Ice Age by Michael & Beverly Oard - $3.00

·         Why the Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky by Elphinstone Dayrell - $1.00

Greece:

·         A Coloring Book of Ancient Greece - $1.00

·         A Coloring Book of the Trojan War, Iliad, Vol. 1 (Bellerophon) – $3.00

·         Famous Men of Ancient Greece and Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Greece by Cynthia Shearer and Robert Shearer – Set of 2 for $5.00

·         The Greeks (Milliken Publishing – History of Civilization) - $2.00

·         Life in Ancient Greece Coloring Book by John Green - $1.00

·         The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Greece - $3.00

·         Sophocles, the complete plays Translated by Paul Roche - $1.00

·         Stories of the Old World by Rev. J. Church - $1.00

Rome:

·         The Ancient Romans by Chester G. Starr - $1.00

·         City: A Story of Roman Planning and Construction by David Macauley - $3.00

·         The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff - $1.00

·         Life of a Roman Slave by Don Nardo - $3.00 

• by G.M. Georgiou - $2.00

·         My Ancient Roman Coloring Book - $1.00

·         The Roman Record (Usborne) - $1.00

·         The Romans (Milliken “History of Civilization”, Grades 7 – 12) - $2.00

·         The Roman News (Scholastic) - $1.00

·         Usborne History of Britain: Roman Britain by Ruth Brocklehurst - $5.00

·         Usborne Young Readers: Gladiators by Minna Lacey & Susanna Davidson - $1.00