The Cat of Bubastes - A Homeschool Crew Review

In late August I was ecstatic to learn I'd been selected to be part of the Review Crew reviewing The Cat of Bubastes.



The Cat of Bubastes is the latest family audio drama produced by Heirloom Audio Productions.

I already knew my family loves productions by Heirloom. So far our family has been blessed to review:

• Under Drake's Flag;
• In Freedom's Cause;
• With Lee in Virginia; and
• The Dragon and the Raven.

Whenever my family learns a new Heirloom audio drama is coming up for review, we get excited and wait impatiently for the CD package to arrive. My adult daughter tried to again leave with the CDs before my review, and was only half joking. She gets to take them to listen when she next visits.

My son and I once again had a 90-minute drive scheduled for an orthodontist visit at University of Maryland School of Dentistry in Baltimore, so I saved the listening for this captive time. (My son is so busy it is hard for us to find time when we can listen together for such a long time, even for such a wonderful audio drama!)

The story takes place in an ancient era in the area of the Middle East to Africa. The king of Rebu is killed and the prince, Amuba, and his servant and protector, Jethro, are taken captive and made slaves in the region of Thebes, near Egypt. Amuba keeps his princely identity a secret, initially. As they are being transported, Amuba recognizes that he and Jethro will do better if they learn the Egyptian language of their captives. By the time they reach Egypt, Amuba is speaking and understanding Egyptian fairly well, and Jethro somewhat but less fluently.

A priest notes Amuba and Jethro and acquires them to be servants and companions to his son, Chebron.

The story takes many twists and turns. To make the story brief, the "holy" cat of Bubastes dies. Chebron's sister has a cat, which becomes heir intended for the title of The Cat of Bubastes. Then a hunting accident occurs, and Chebron inadvertently kills his sister's cat. Almost simultaneously the boys uncovers a plot of treachery, a plan of murder. They don't know who the target family is, nor the identity of the plotting villians.

The boys flee, as the death of the cat is discovered and their guilt is revealed. Chebron tries to flee to his brother's house only to learn his brother has been murdered. 

There is so much more, but I don't want to reveal the whole story. A famous ancient Bible hero makes a cameo appearance in the story, and my son reacted with, "*****! (Bible hero's name) No way!" It was the first puzzle piece to enable us to know where, time era-wise, to know the historical setting of the story. You're going to love it!

You're going to want to know about the bonus package that comes with the CD package! When you purchase The Cat of Bubastes you receive a link to a page where you can access a huge bonus package which includes:

• an MP3 file you can download to your computer of the adventure you receive on CD;
• an ebook of the full G.A. Henty version of The Cat of Bubastes;
• a video, A Day in the Life, of the recording of the adventure;
• an inspirational verse poster you can print out;
• a printable cast poster;
• a soundtrack MP3;
• a study guide for The Cat of Bubastes.

The Study Guide is an amazing tool, particularly for upper grammar to middle school aged children. It is 47 pages long and contains cast and crew credits, and an introduction describing how best to use the study guide to enhance your study of The Cat of Bubastes. There is biographical information about G.A. Henty, as well as the Biblical hero I mentioned above.

The study guide then breaks the story down track by track with helps to enable your students to get the most out of their listening experience. The guide has a page for delving deeper into your Egypt studies, and this is followed by a Bible study section. I don't know how they do it, but every Heirloom audio adventure seems better than the last!

So seriously, history and Henty lovers, you're going to love this one! 

Other members of the Homeschool Review Crew also reviewed The Cat of Bubastes. To read more reviews, click the button below.

Products We Are Currently Using in our Homeschool

The school year is waning. Time to evaluate our curriculum. What did we start with? What are we using now?
Bible: For our home, for the most part, we still thrive best with straight Bible reading. We are currently focused on Old Testament History in the book of Judges, with additional reading in the minor prophets and the New Testament.
Algebra 2: We started the year using Bob Jones Algebra 2 and are still using it. We've gotten help, at times, from CTC Math. We are also getting help from a tutor. It is going slowly -- we're not where we should be to finish mid-June. ::sigh::
Science: We started the year focused on Chemistry. We were using Fascinating Chemistry. I had access to Apologia Chemistry, tho, and switched to it so we could do the lab work, too. This worked for awhile, but we just weren't getting the lab work done. I decided we could skip the labs and just do the book work. But the student was struggling, so we switched back to Fascinating Chemistry. Then the student still got stuck, and stuck is where we remain.
Simultaneously, though, the student has also been studying Aeronautics in Civil Air Patrol (for over a year). I will be evaluating this to determine whether there has been enough work completed to count a science credit in Aeronautics. Or we might figure out how to finish Chemistry. Or we might not count a science credit this year.
Spanish 1: We began the year using Bob Jones Spanish 1. I purchased this complete program at the state Home Educator's vendor hall. I was assured by the saleswoman that, even though I don't speak Spanish, with the recordings I was purchasing we would be able to do this. She lied. Okay, maybe that's a little harsh. How about, "What was she thinking?" First, I thought I had purchased DVDs. They were CDs. Second, when I decided it wasn't working I tried to return everything and couldn't -- three month return policy. Our state home school "convention" is in mid- to late- April. By the end of September, when one knows something isn't working, it has been five months.
I didn't buy anything from Bob Jones last Saturday at the 2016 Home School Convention. ::sigh:: Anyone want to buy a barely used complete BJU Spanish 1?
We were able to transition to Middlebury Interactive Languages Spanish, but my son still just couldn't keep up. We decided to drop Spanish and revisit it next year.
English: We began the year doing literature and composition using Tapestry of Grace, with some grammar from IEW (Fix It Grammar). We've now added IEW Poetry memorization, which we will review soon.  We are also reviewing Memoria Press Traditional Logic.   I can't decide if this counts as its own credit or as part of English 10 (might depend on how much of it he completes, but I'm leaning toward part of English as it is a lower level course). My son will get credit for 10th grade English.
In addition, my son is almost done with ENGL 101 at the local community college, which will either count as one of his high school English courses or as an elective.
Social Studies: We began the year with Tapestry of Grace. We needed to finish Year 2 and do Year 3 (1800s). Took so long to finish year 2 that I opted to switch to a different curricula to try to do all of the 1800s in the time we had left. Still need to evaluate our status. Next year will be 20th Century studies regardless.
Fine Arts: Our state requires one credit in fine arts for high school graduation. My son will be receiving half credit in Art and half credit in Music Appreciation. We are currently reviewing two art products and a Music Appreciation product that you will see reviews of soon!

  

       PE/Health: My son will also receive 1/2 credit each for PE and Health this year.
Other exciting products I'll be using that you will soon see reviews about are:

IEW Deluxe Combo Teacher/Student Writing Package Level C - A TOS Homeschool Crew Review

In April I learned that Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) was letting the Schoolhouse Review Crew review some of their newly revised products.

I was amazed at the selection we were given to choose from, and I was delighted when I was selected to review the Deluxe Combo Teacher/Student Writing Package Level C. IEW was amazingly generous in what they were offering the Crew to review. I was also sent FIX-1 & 2,  PLUS A Word Write Now and Portable Walls. (Level C is for students doing 9th-12th grade level work.)

First, before anything else, I want to thank IEW for their generosity! I am still amazed at all that they gave me for this review! The contents of the Deluxe Combo Teacher/Student Writing Package Level C [FIX-1 & 2]  included:

• Teaching Writing: Structure & Style DVD set
• Seminar Workbook
• Student Writing Intensive DVDs Level C, including the Structure & Style Overview
• Student Notebook with handouts and lesson plans
• Fix-It! Grammar, Books 1 and 2 with downloadable student e-books
• A Word Write Now
• Portable Walls

The Deluxe Combo also includes a Premium Code to be used to download additional resources worth a value of $99 if you were to purchase them. (To me it looks like it is worth more than that.) There are many valuable and worthwhile MP3 downloads, as well as multiple PDF downloads to assist the user in implementing the program for years to come.

When the Deluxe Combo package first arrived, I felt overwhelmed. My feeling was a combination somewhere between the delight of piles of packages on Christmas morning and the sense of dread when a college student has just purchased books for the semester. Wow!

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I had had the opportunity previously to experience Teaching Writing: Structure and Style (TWSS) in its earlier format. I had purchased TWSS and SWI a few years ago.At that time I found the experience overwhelming. The original format was a one-week seminar where parents were taught, through a series of seminars over the course of a week, how to help their students begin, develop, and excel in their writing skills. However I came away from the experience feeling I could never remember it all It was wonderful, but I felt like a failure because I couldn't figure out how to implement it.

At that time I had purchased Student Writing Intensives (SWI), Level B, in the hopes that between TWSS and SWI I could figure out how to lead my son into becoming a quality writer. The Student Writing Intensives was set up the same way as the Teaching Writing with Structure and Style. It was filmed over the course of a week, where students sat in a classroom under the instruction of Andrew Pudewa, and over the course of a week Mr. Pudewa walked them through a process to help them succeed at writing. At that time my reaction was that: 1) I did not have a week where I could let my student focus on only writing to watch the series, and 2) I did not have the ability to break the program down on my own to spread it out over a school year.

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When I had previoiiusly purchased TWSS and SWI, I had given it a try and quit. However I learned, when this review was being offered that the program had been revised, and I wanted to give the program another chance.

All I can say now is, "WOW!" What IEW has done with this program is amazing! I have hope! I'm no longer a failure at teaching writing to my son!

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To start, I read the introductory material in both TWSS and SWI. Then I watched the first DVD in TWSS, which is teaching the parent how to teach. Next I reread the beginninig pages of SWI and  setup three notebooks: the Teaching Writing Workbook, the Student Notebook for Student Writing Intensives, and an additional notebook to hold student papers not yet needed, which get handed out as the course progresses. The SWI instructions to the parent said to watch the introductory DVD by myself, and then start watching the first course DVD in SWI with my student.

At this point I got briefly confused. I had already watched an introductory DVD (for TWSS), but I was now supposed to watch the introductory DVD for SWI. I missed that point, so my son's first experience was starting to watch the introductory SWI DVD with me that I was supposed to watch alone. He was very unhappy with it, and it didn't take me too long to realize that I had him watching the wrong DVD. Oops! So I let him go do other schoolwork, and I watched the SWI introductory DVD that day.

So, the next day we were actually able to start the program. (Our tight schedule the first day prohibited starting over that day.) So, my son was already starting out with an affected attitude about doing a program with me that we had tried before and failed at, a program that he had sat through a long session of DVD the day before that had been really boring to him. He was a good sport, though. It did take him several days to warm up to Mr. Pudewa, but soon he was right on board, willing each day to work on the program.

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So, let me explain why the program is better now. It is as if Mr. Pudewa read my mind and knew where I was struggling with these DVDs. The SWI program is set up now in a way that spreads the watching and the work out over a 36-week period. The TWSS is set up in a similar manner in that is now set up to be watched over a 36-week period. It is wonderful. The additional downloaded materials supplement the 36-week program, and the goal is that the teacher and student will learn how to use the program, and then continue to use the program for several additional years until the student is a confident, competent writer.

So, with the new program my student's writing began to bloom. The very first week he produced a fine writing assignment, and the weeks went on from there. I couldn't be happier. My son felt confident and wanted to watch the segments on his own and do the assignments, but that just didn't work. We need to watch together. There are times when the teacher needs to give the student the next reading/outlining/writing resource, and the information didn't get to me. Then my son would say, "I don't know what the assignment was." Clearly I was in the dark and could not help, so once again it is true, "Follow the Directions". The program is designed to be watched by the student AND the teacher, or the teacher can watch the student segment in advance, but the program is not designed to be done by the student independently.

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I have discussed TWSS and SWI. Now let me tell you about the additional products included with the Deluxe Combo. First, there is Fix-It! Grammar. I received physical copies of the Teacher's Manuals for The Nose Tree (Book 1) and Robin Hood (Book 2). I received digital copies of the Student Books for each of these. 

I had the opportunity to review Fix-It! Grammar, Level 3 last year, but unfortunately my son did not have an adequate foundation to start off at Level 3. I was thankful to have this opportunity to let my son establish a good foundation, since I received this time Levels 1 and 2. I started by setting up a notebook for his Fix-It! work, with sections for grammar, vocabulary, etc. as indicated in the directions.

Having already used Fix-It! , my son knew just what to do. He resisted the program in the same places (looking up definitions for the vocabulary). However, he found the required work smooth sailing, though, and this was a pleasant portion of our IEW review.

We also received A Word Write Now, which becomes your student's own thesaurus. It is a beautiful, spiral-bound book. It is not an exhaustive thesaurus, but for selected words gives the student options they might not have thought of.

I really like the way A Word Write Now is made, so nice and sturdy, and the internal format of the content, such that a word like "anger" has choices for noun, verb, adverb and adjective.

A similar tool, Portable Walls is a tool the student can keep in the inside pocket of their notebook to pull out and reference when they need to. It gives quick-helps for each unit as they work their way through SWI. It has "Dress-Ups", "Sentence Openers", "Decorations", "Triple Extensions", "'-ly' Adverbs", "'-ly' Imposters", "Prepositions", "Synonyms for 'Said'", "Strong Verbs", Unit 1-2: "Notes and Outlines", Unit 3: "Story Sequence Model", Unit 4: "Summarizing References", Unit 5: "Writing from Pictures", Unit 6: "Library Research", Unit 7: "Creative Writing", Unit 8: "Essay Model", and "Unit 9: "Critique Writing". That's a lot of content in a fold-out equivalent to three front-and-back pages!

We keep our Portable Walls in the Student Notebook where it can easily be pulled out anytime my student needs a little word help.

I can't say enough about how wonderful this Deluxe Combo is, what a blessing it will be for years to come. I now have confidence that when my son applies to college he will have a portfolio of solid writing assignments available for prospective college recruiters to look at when considering my son for a scholarship. We have only had the program a limited number of weeks thus far, but I am so thankful. I can't wait to continue to dig in deeper in the years to come, and I am enjoying watching my son's writing improve. I don't know if he will ever enjoy receiving a writing assignment, but I have confidence that he will be equipped to complete assignments when he gets to college.

Every year the Crew votes on their favorite products they reviewed over the course of the year. I have to tell you that by far this is my favorite product I've reviewed in a long time -- not just this year! So as you go to your Homeschool Conferences, be sure to stop by the IEW booth and check out the Deluxe Combo set, or just order it off of the IEW website.

IEW has Deluxe Combo sets for all age and grade levels. They also have special sets for Special Needs students. To read more reviews about IEW Deluxe Combo sets and Special Needs products, click on the link below to see other reviews by other members of the Crew.

 

World History Detective, Book 1 - A TOS Crew Review

I was recently offered the opportunity to receive World History Detective Book 1 to use with my son and review for The Critical Thinking Co.

World History Detective is a beautiful 362-page softcover consumable textbook for students in grades 6 - 12+. Completion of the book in one-year is sufficient to count as one World History or Ancient History credit for high school.

World History Detective contains 78 lessons that focus on ancient and medieval civilizations. Lessons contain an informative reading selection for the student followed by a section of multiple choice questions, a concept map, short essay questions, timelines, mapwork, vocabulary development, and methods to develop critical thinking in the students.

When I first expressed interest in reviewing the World History Detective book, my son and I were in the Middle Ages in our studies. I had thought we would locate the place in the book closest to what we were studying and jump in there. When the book actually arrived and I started looking at it, there was so much Ancient History material we had never covered that it was difficult to stick with my original plan. There was just so much good stuff!

The Table of Contents shows you all the wonderful lessons. The same link will show you some sample material if you scroll down. In addition to a section at the front explaining the material to the teacher, there is a section at the back of the book with answers to the questions. This was helpful to us, not only for me checking my son's work. There were a couple of times when neither my son nor I knew what the answer was supposed to be. [My student does not like to be featured in my blog's photos. ::sigh::]

During the review period, we (not ideal) hopped around in the curriculum to get a flavor of lessons on various time periods. Most of the lessons we did together, but the material is totally suitable for independent work at his level.  He is in 9th grade. It was very easy for him to understand what was expected of him. Lesson 2 is on "Prehistory to Neanderthal's". We believe the Bible teaches history differently than this, but it is a good idea discuss this alternate view with your students to prepare them to defend their perspective when they are outside the home, particularly when they leave to attend college.

I really liked the way the "Fertile Crescent" was covered. It gave me clarity. I also liked the way periodic pages displayed the timeline for the material being covered in the current lesson.

 

We want to thank The Critical Thinking Co. for permitting us to review World History Detective Book 1. My son, however, did not like the format. The method used, of answering multiple choice questions and then listing sentence(s) that support the answer, was not a method my son could work with well. It is not his learning style, and for him these assignments were tedious and painful. We've always tended toward the Charlotte Mason Method--this book was too different for us.

Other members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew also reviewed this World History Detective 1. It would be good for you to read their reviews as well to help you get a rounded view of this product. There were other Critical Thinking Co. products reviewed as well, ones suitable for younger students. See those reviews by clicking the button below.

You can follow The Critical Thinking Co. on Google Plus, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.

Mango Languages: Spanish

In January I was delighted to learn that we had been selected to review Mango Languages. We were given access to the Mango Homeschool Edition and had the amazing opportunity to select any of their 60 languages, and as many of them as we wanted to work on. Mango Languages are suitable for ages 6 and up, so this product was a great fit for our family! Mango Homeschool Edition is a new homeschool curriculum to help you teach your child a foreign language of choice.

Have you figured out how to homeschool your child in a language you do not speak? Have you considered using a program that would permit you to homeschool online for the foreign language your child chooses to pursue?

For many years my son has dabbled in French, Spanish and Latin. Earlier in this year we had been working primarily on French (which I am able to teach), and I thought we would be working on French in the Mango program as well. That is where Miner worked during our first week with Mango. Week 2 did not go as we had planned -- lots of snow, and sickness to boot. We got very little school work done, very little Mango. As we started Week 3, Miner decided to try Spanish instead, and he has parked there ever since. Now, many weeks later,

Homeschool Spanish Academy: A TOS Homeschool CREW Review

This summer I was delighted to be selected by the Schoolhouse Review Crew to review Homeschool Spanish Academy (HSA)! Last summer I tried to get my son to use the product. Last year's efforts to get my son to work with HSA were not real successful (because of my son's learning issues, his attitude, and his refusal to complete the classes), so I was very happy when I was given permission this year to review the Adult Program myself!

Learning in Spite of Labels - A Homeschool Crew Review

In April, I was delighted to be selected to receive a copy of Learning in Spite of Labels: Practical Teaching Tips And A Christian Perspective of Education , by Joyce Herzog, to review for the Old Schoolhouse Magazine Schoolhouse Review Crew.

I had heard of Joyce Herzog and some of her products, but I had not previously had the opportunity to actually read or use any of her materials.

Box of I.D.E.As. - SALT - A Homeschool Crew Review

In the month of September my son and I had the wonderful opportunity to test drive a unit study by Box of I.D.E.As. about Salt. Who knew there was so much to learn about salt? I certainly didn't have any idea...

The Salt Box of I.D.E.As arrived in our mailbox with each each section module of the unit study neatly packaged into its own sealing plastic bag. My box contained ten separately bagged modules, with lots of little items in the various bags such as games, vocabulary cards, maps, and lots of fun things. My box also contained a white board marker and a pencil.

Homeschool Legacy: Birds of a Feather - A Schoolhouse Crew Review

This month my son and I had the opportunity to use a unit study created by Homeschool Legacy, called "Birds of a Feather", by Sharon Gibson.

Birds of a Feather is an interesting combination of  Nature Study, Science, fun, and Heritage Girls/Boy Scout Badge work. This book is available from Homeschool Legacy for $15.95. It is a four-week study that works for grades 2 through 12. This is where I would normally tell you whether it is paperback or hardback (I think it is paperback), and how many pages it has in it. The reviewers actually received this as a PDF download (which you cannot buy), so I don't have firm information on the paperback or the number of pages. My download has 56 pages.

The activities in this unit study are designed so that they can be done with one child, or with many. These unit studies are designed to be a great diversion from the normal textbooks of the rest of your year.

Family Time Fitness - A Homeschool Crew Review

This summer my son and I had the opportunity to try out Family Time Fitness home fitness program for home schools.  I was delighted, because I always struggle to get that physical activity in, and I wanted some fresh ideas.

I received Family Time Fitness, Fitness 4 Home School, Core 1, as a download, and was immediately impressed with the volume of material I received.  

I perused the material and then printed out the first twenty lessons (Lesson Module 1) and put them into a 3-ring binder.  For a mere $57, you get 14 separate downloads (an Introduction and 13 separate modules of approximately 20 lessons each). Each Lesson module has two ways of viewing it: either as a two-page spread that is Internet-linked to videos of how to do every listed activity, or as a paper-saving, ink-saving one-page spread that you can print out and load into a notebook. 

Reading the Introduction has been really motivating. I knew I was not doing as much with my son as I wanted to, when it came to physical fitness, but the Introduction says my son should be getting physical activity for 45 to 60 minutes every day. I had not heard that before. The Introduction gives me confidence that following the FTF (Family Time Fitness) Program, I will be giving my son a systematic program that will improve his health, develop motor sensory skills, and eventually will improve his self-esteem and help him with self-awareness.

The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change - A Schoolhouse Crew Review

We first watched movies by Marshall Publishing when my son was very young. At that time he could not get enough of movies like Lots and Lots of Trains (when we could find it at our local library). Later we had the opportunity to review Lots and Lots of Firetrucks, but by that time he was older and didn't enjoy the movie, which seemed suited for kids younger than he was. But Marshall puts out an amazing variety of media. They have animal DVDs, comedy and game show DVDs, educational historical documentary-type DVDs, as well as their "Lots and Lots of" series that I mentioned before of Trains, Firetrucks, Monster Trucks, Jets and Planes, Motor Sports and RC Crafts, Rockets and Space, and Penguins.  Marshall Publishing has the goal of creating lots and lots of fun, amusing, amazing, entertaining, educating forms of media to the public, and they do a great job.

In our homeschool this year we will be wrapping up the 1800's, and studying the 1900's to present. I was very pleased, therefore, when I was given the opportunity to review a DVD by Marshall Publishing and Promotions, Inc. called The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change.  

I was waiting with anticipation, when the DVD arrived, and watched and waited for an opportunity to sit down and view it. Our week days were full, but Saturday afternoon rolled around, and there was time. I popped it in and sat down to watch.  

My son, who disdains anything that smells at all educational, promptly quipped, "Do we have to watch this?"  I told him he didn't have to watch it, but I was watching it.  My sister, my adult daughter (college grad, major of History), and my husband all sat watching it, enjoying the way it was put together. My son, insisting he wasn't watching or paying attention, still managed to pay attention and make comments about parts of it. At certain points during the viewing, he would surreptitiously appear from around the corner (where he was on the kitchen computer) and watch sections of the documentary.  

The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change is 60 minutes long. The DVD is broken into "Chapters" (not quite as easy as a book to switch between chapters, but helpful when targeting a specific section of the DVD).  This DVD targets 4th Grade through adult. Some younger might be interested, and some right in the target range (like my son) might not.

The website for The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change has, below the product information, a Study Guide to help in using the movie. Since my son really didn't enjoy this movie to sit down and watch it through, I will break it up next time and we will just view each  topic at the time we are studying it.  

Here are sections within the movie that we will use to just watch that section when we cover the material in our current studies of the 1800's:

• This week we will watch a small section that talks about the 1800's being the height of the Victorian Era. We read, on Friday, about Queen Victoria's being crowned at a young age, and her reign being called the Victorian Era, so this section will be an excellent supplement to add to our studies tomorrow. This section also covers the fashion of this decade.
• There is a section that talks about the great cattle drives of the 1880's, and how the once massive herds of buffalo were in danger of being wiped out. This will dove-tail well with the book we are reading, Little Britches: Father and I were Ranchers, and I will have him watch this when we get to the next book, Man of the Family, where Ralph starts herding cattle. (Even though it is a different time period, it will be a good fit.)
• Immigration, and unions forming to fight low wages. I'm not sure when we will be covering this, but when we do I will pull this section of the DVD out for us to view.
• Statistics and Information: I think we will view this section when we are leaving the 1880's and entering the 1890's in our studies.
• The time line will also be helpful. It mentions that in 1880 the Salvation Army was formed and Garfield became President. This helped me to realize that this is the year I want us to read the biography about the Booths, who founded the Salvation Army. Also, when we are covering Garfield we need to be quick, because he had a very short Presidency. (I don't remember right this second, but I think he was assassinated.)

I could continue, but you can see from the above how the Study Guide on the website is helping me plan out my use of this DVD.  I also own the Marshall Publishing DVD of George Washington Carver, which I will pull out for us to use soon when we read our biography of George Washington Carver.

The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change sells normally for $24.95, but is currently on sale for $19.95. In addition, there is currently a coupon code for free shipping!  TOS27

Most of my family really enjoyed this DVD. My son, the reluctant student, fights me at almost every turn, says he hated it. (I guess he would rather read some dry, dusty book. HA! -- No, he would rather be off at the creek trying to catch turtles or snakes.)   

The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change is a documentary. Documentaries have their place, and some hold my son's attention better than others. (He can watch animal documentaries better than he can watch historical documentaries.) The rest of my family (all adults) really enjoyed The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change (as we also enjoy most documentaries, historical or otherwise.)

 

DISCLAIMER:  As a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received the DVD The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change in exchange for my honest, uninfluenced review. The opinions expressed herein are my own. I was not told what to say.

 This has been a Schoolhouse Crew Review. 

 

To see more Schoolhouse Crew Reviews of The History of the 1880s – a Decade of Change and other DVDs by Marshall Publishing,  go to the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog page for this product.

Math911: A Schoolhouse Crew Review

I consider myself an accomplished Math person. I "get" Math. I like Math. I don't mind teaching Math. I'm not afraid of Math.

But we can all use a little help sometimes.  When my oldest arrived at Algebra I age, I found myself unable to teach her Algebra I. There was a combination of things going on to shipwreck my efforts. It wasn't enough that I had a two year old boy, at the time, who seemed bent upon preventing my efforts to homeschool. There was also this issue that my daughter was trying to understand what I was trying to teach her. I mean, what's up with that?

Lest you think I jest, let me explain a little further. To me, Math is like a challenge, a puzzle. You figure out how to do it. memorize what method or formula to use in various equation problems, and then you just do it. You don't ask questions; you just look for the next challenge. When multiplying sides of an equation with fractions, it's enough for me to know that you multiply both sides of the equation by the reciprocal if you need to move the fraction from one side of the equation to the other to isolate the variable. That wasn't enough for my daughter. She wanted to know why you multiply by the reciprocal. Two hours later, I had adequately explained why, but I knew I could never walk her through Algebra I on my own. We hired outside help.

That said, when daughter #2 hit Algebra age, she had a Learning Disability that was especially apparent in the area of Mathematics. I wasn't equipped to deal with it, and once again we got help from outside sources.

That "2-year-old boy" is now fast approaching Algebra I age, and this time I am actually going to teach it on my own. There are no preschoolers to distract us; he doesn't have a Learning Disability. As a matter of fact, he seems to be a bit of a Math whiz. So I'm starting to work on getting my ducks in a row so that I will be ready to instruct him in higher Mathematics.

This summer, the Schoolhouse Review Crew was offered the opportunity to review a Math program called Math911. I jumped at the opportunity, because it looked like a really good program.

Math911 was created by Professor Weissman of Staten Island, New York. 

I was selected to review Math911, and I was very pleased. I was given Math911 as a download. There is a version available for sale on the website in the form of a Flash Drive with 2 mg of storage, enough to store all the student's additional school work! The Flash Drive normally sells for $49.95 but is currently available at the amazing price of $9.95!

I downloaded the program in mid-summer.  I received an error message upon downloading, which seemed strange, so I wrote the message down and called the phone number given for Technical help.  Professor Weissman quickly called me back, walked me through the set-up, and made sure I had the program up and running on my computer before he hung up. Points for fast and effective customer service.

Initially I started doing the Math911 program that is available to YOU for FREE. It is so good I didn't even realize there was more for me to download. It took me three weeks or more before I realized it and downloaded the rest of the program. I started the program on my own so that I could be familiar with it before I introduced it to my son.  After working it awhile I realized that the program starts at Algebra level, not pre-Algebra, so my son really isn't ready for it yet. So I would work on it on my own.

As I opened up the program, it didn't seem to have any instructions. A problem was presented, and I answered it. "Correct!!!" flashed on the screen. Now what do I do? I sat looking at the screen, trying to figure it out. There is a series of buttons down the right side of the Math work space. One button said, "New Problem". Well that looked promising. I pressed it and along we went, it asking questions, me answering, it saying "Correct!!!", me pressing "New Problem". There don't seem to be step-by-step instructions, but it is pretty easy to figure out how to use the program.
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As I worked my way through the problems presented to me, I was surprised when  I got some answers wrong. What's up with that? (Okay, I finished Algebra in 1973... How could I forget absolute variables?)

Frustrated, I sat staring at the screen trying to figure out what to do next, not to mention why was my answer wrong.  Looking again at the buttons down the right side, there is a green button there that says, "See All Steps". Well, that looks promising! I clicked on it, and my error was explained. Voila! I had forgotten how to do absolute values.
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Working longer I again started getting answers wrong. I stared and stared. I clicked on the button that would explain, and I still didn't get it.
l-4l
answer
-4

Well, l-4l is supposed  to mean what is the absolute value of -4, which is 4. When I clicked the button asking for steps to show the answer, it showed this:
- l-4l = -4

But my starting screen was missing that first negative sign. Frustrated, I emailed Professor Weissman, who patiently directed my eyes to a line below the problem, which made the problem as a whole say:

l-4l

What is the opposite of this number?

That certainly explained why I was getting it wrong... 
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Math911 is ingenious! Deep, yet simple, it lures the student through learning painlessly, while easing new concepts into the brain almost unnoticed.  I will be continuing to work my way through this program to sharpen my math skills and prepare myself for teaching Algebra and additional higher math subjects to my son. When he is old enough, I will introduce this program to him as well.

The Math 911 Website includes, on its sidebar, free lesson downloads for educational packets of instruction on "Introduction to Whole Numbers", "Addition and Subtraction", "Multiplication Factors," "Division of Wholes," "Intro to the Integers", "Combine Integers", "Multiply/Divide Integers", and "Combine Like Terms". There is also a link to "Laugh With Math", which takes you to a web page where you can order a funny book of Math humor. If you click on the links, you can actually read your way through the book! Or if you prefer, you can click on the link to learn how to order a paper copy of the book. Looks pretty funny to me!
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So, to concisely sum up some features of this program, Professor Weissman offers:

• FREE:  The math911 Standard  Version, which contains a complete Introductory Algebra Course (Algebra 1) and can be downloaded from Math911.com. No credit card or rebate required.

• The Premier / Premier Password/ Network Password version, which comes as a bundle for $49.95 for all three (not $49.95 each), which also includes free upgrades and technical support, which you also get when you download the Introductory Algebra course:
  
• Intermediate Algebra Course (Algebra 2)
• PreCalculus topics
• Trigonometry topics
• Introductory Statistics Course

• Math911 has amazing customer service, even for the free program. Professor Weissman seems sincerely to be a genius of a man whose desire is to make himself available to do whatever he can to create future generations who succeed at higher-level mathematics.

Additional information from Professor Weissman:

• RE: Activation Codes for Premier, Premier Password, Network Password
  Upon purchase ($49.95) you should
  1. Click on Register button and email us the Registration Codes
  2. Identify yourself as a home schooler.
  3. You will receive a reply email with ALL Activation Codes for all versions
       listed below:
       a) Premier Version (one user no password)
       b) Premier Password (Multiusers with Passwords)
       c) Network Version (Multiusers with passwords)
  4.  Users can switch between versions by clicking the REGISTER button and
       entering the codes for the desired version.
  4. Passwords are generated by the software.
• If you sign up now for a low cost annual site license, I'll include free use with summer homework programs, free use with after school programs, free student home privileges, free keying to your textbook, and free bonus modules for Pre-calculus and Statistics. Call me now and enjoy the savings later. Professor Martin Weissman 1-347-528-7837 

New! Unique! “Algebra In A Flash” flash drive version; works great on school laptops and allows students to continue at home. Great for 1:1 classrooms.

$40 off student special. Regular $49.95 now only $9.95. Click on this link: www.AlgebraInAFlash.com

At Google checkout use promotion code:homeschool
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Special Back To School Free Offer. No Rebate Necessary. No Credit Card:

Complete Introductory Algebra Course. Click Here. Download, Install, Run. Free Tech Support: 347-528-7837 (Select SAVE then RUN)

After install look for the Math911 desktop icon.
Version 12.8.27
August 27, 2012 (XP, Vista, Windows 7 Compatible)

You may need to right click and 'Run As Administrator' if you have Vista or Windows 7.

My personal experiences:

• Fabulous math program. Sadly, it proved my Mathematics skills sadly inadequate, much to my chagrin. I had thought I was pretty good.
• Sometimes my answers would be marked "Wrong" if I spaced the answer differently than the program wanted. As an adult I could look at the explanation and understand, "Oh, my answer was right, I just put a space here", but a child might not see that and might get frustrated at times.
• This program does not have any bells and whistles. It is a basic program, no games. It will teach, but it might not easily hold the attention of a child with ADHD. 
• The Algebra I program is FREE! How can you lose? Download it and try it out. If it works for you, plan to invest in the rest of the levels, and you will be all set to home school your higher level math courses and get your students prepared for college mathematics. To me this seems like a no-brainer! Go to the site. Download the free program. Try it out.
  

DISCLAIMER:  As a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, I received a complete download of Math911,  Premier course, in exchange for my honest, uninfluenced review. The opinions expressed herein are my own. I was not told what to say.

 This has been a Schoolhouse Crew Review. 

 

To see more Schoolhouse Crew Reviews of Math911, go to the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog page for this product.