A Progeny Press Study Guide Review

Giving a child a complete education is more than checking all the boxes and completing all the tasks.  What we are trying to do here - especially as homeschoolers - is to grow them!  Growth can come from a rigid schedule and all the right drills, but a deeper growth can come from a great conversation  with your family about something they've just read together.  It's easy and very tempting to get caught up in the concrete and quantitative, where we can see and testify that they 'learned' something today.  Slowing down to read something together and discuss things about it is sometimes hard, not because it is a complicated thing, but because we are so busy.  There's always more chores to do, errands to run and distractions to get hung up on.  My latest review highlights a beautiful process that has the potential to do more than just widen vocabulary and reading comprehension.  Today we're talking about The Long Way to a New Land Study Guide from Progeny Press.

What We Received:

We were given access to one digital file containing a 50 page document entitled The Long Way to a New Land Study Guide by Colleen Schreurs.  This document included activities like fill in the blank worksheets, short answer questions, definitions, crossword puzzle, family heritage activity suggestions, and a lot of discussion ideas pertaining to the students feelings if he were in the character's position.

How It Works:

A study guide is a document of exercises intended to aid the reader in pulling as much understanding out of the original text as possible.  How you use it is largely up to your discretion, but this study guide is divided up into before you read activities, activities based on each chapter and after you read activities.  In the Notes to the Instructor section, they recommend students reading the entire book first while doing some of the before you read activities and then reread each chapter as they go along in the study guide.  The exact order, while natural to go through sequentially, isn't vital for learning since all of the activities and subjects are related within the text.  This study is a great example of individualized education based on each student's pace and needs.  With 5 chapters and a host of pre and post reading activities, this study could be spread over several weeks if desired.  For most students this will require some parental involvement and some great discussions certainly enhance their learning.

What We Thought:

The most challenging part of this project was simply finding the book! Neither of the library systems we have access to had the book so we finally found a proper reading of it on the internet.  Everything past that was well-organized, straight-forward and value-added to the reading of the book.  My son is in 8 (almost 9) and all the activities seemed appropriately leveled including some easily done while others more challenging. For example, the vocabulary words were not a problem, but the pages that asked about the student's own feelings or how they would feel if certain things happened to them took a little more time.  Still, the empathy inducing questions were some of my favorites!  My kids struggle with appreciating how good they have it and tend to complain.  These types of discussions are important to keeping their perspective accurate rather than distorted by our culture's standards. 

According to their website, Progeny Press' mission is "To teach our children to think clearly, to understand literature, and to rely on the scripture for truth and values, and enjoy themselves while they do it!"  Based on this singular study guide, I can say that they are succeeding! From asking students to apply scriptures to characters actions to encouraging them to empathize with the characters, this study guide supports character building and alongside the initial reading comprehension! 

Follow Progeny Press on Social Media:

Facebook: facebook.com/progenypress
Twitter: twitter.com/progenypress
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The Homeschool Review Crew reviewed a variety of study guides spread over several age levels.  If you are interested in another age or simply looking for another perspective, go ahead and click below! 

Famous Inventors: A Techie Homeschool Mom Review

Since the internet and Youtube came on the scene, the possibilities in education have exploded.  When my son asks me about the difference between wasps and bees, I don't have to know for sure because I can just look up a description of both on the internet. Easy!  Online resources are such a huge part of our every day learning now that as parents and teachers, we must be willing and able to navigate them effectively.  My educational approach certainly features more offline work, but utilizing studies like this one are what you need to harmonize the two methods.  Today we are reviewing the Famous Inventors Online Unit Study from Techie Homeschool Mom where we learned about all different kinds of inventors and their inventions, while trying our hand at making our own.  

What We Received:
We received unlimited access (across any/all devices) to Techie Homeschool Mom's Famous Inventors Online Unit Study.  It is recommended for mid-elementary to middle school aged children that can read and navigate the internet, but younger students can participate with assistance.  As the title suggests, this study is all online and was built on the platform Teachable.  I have taken other courses on Teachable so the format was familiar with the self-paced approach.  Each slide and section is accessible at any time - much like a power point file, but it does allow you to track when you have completed a section and tracks a completion percentage.  It is super easy to use and stay organized within each study.  The study contains 10 sections, each section covering a single inventor.  Within each section, you will find text, videos, sometimes quizzes and various links that facilitate an exploration of the life and inventions of each inventor.  At the end of each section is a project for the kids to complete that relates to a particular inventor.  The inventors, along with the recommended project in this study covers include:

• Archimedes - Archimedes' Screw
• Galileo - Telescope
• Leonardo da Vinci - Parachute
• Alexander Graham Bell - Cup and String Phone
• James Watt - Model Steam Engine
• Charles Babbage - Binary Coding
• Nikola Tesla - Drawing Power Poles
• Johannes Gutenberg - Desktop Printing Press
• Wright Brothers - Paper Airplanes
• Steve Job - Computer Dissection 

How We Used It:

My son (8) and daughter (5) almost always want to see or try out whatever resource the other one is using so I had them both sit down and watch the videos together.  The quizzes were straightforward enough that they could do them together. The kids really enjoyed recognizing the first few inventors from other books and things they have learned other places.  We usually waited to do the projects until Mr. Butler got home because #1 he's really good at that kind of thing and #2 he loves that part of homeschooling!  

Project: Build a Telescope

Project: Computer Disection

What We Thought:

Everything was well-organized and easy to use.  The supplies and instructions for the projects were clear.  My kids LOVE doing projects with dad so they had a great time.  From an educational and lesson planning perspective, just knowing that Techie Homeschool Mom exists opens up some great options for the future.  We are always looking for a simpler way to introduce our students to content without it requiring even more work on the parents part.  While there is heavy involvement on the projects (namely because of my kids' young ages), everything else can be very hands-off.  Since a lot of the curriculum  and resources that we use require plenty of parent/teacher guidance, it is nice to supplement with a unit study like this where most of the preparation is already done.

Social Media Links: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/techiehomeschoolmom/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TechieHSmom
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/TechieHSmom/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGI-La5pBP4oFnd9DCRCdVg
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/techiehomeschoolmom/

We loved this program and could see all of Techie Homeschool Mom's studies being a great resource when planning your curriculum.  Click below and read what other families had to say about some of the other unit studies!

Paddington Bear: A Branch Out World Review

My son (age 7) always gets extra chatty at bedtime.  So much so that I had to limit him to 2 or 3 questions so good night didn't last 30 minutes.  Lately, his questions have been a lot of 'How is this made?' or "What makes that work?' and honestly I don't know the answers without googling it or asking their dad.  The result is we both learn a lot together.  As they state on their website, my latest review, Paddington Bear from Branch Out World is designed For Families That Love Learning Together.  It is so easy to get caught up in the typical school paradigm where a teacher teaches the information they have already learned, but sooner or later real homeschooling involves learning with each other and from each other.  Curiosity breeds new questions and new questions bring new perspectives to consider and before you know it your adventure is quite different than you expected.  I am not an expert in all subjects that my children will learn so some days we will all learn who invented baseball or what a hydrapult is together. 

Branch Out World is a company based in the UK that was started by a homeschool family looking to share great literature with other families.  Not having any experience with a UK company, this curriculum was enjoyable and educational.  There were a few differences in the language that I had to explain, but nothing hindered us in any way.  Paddington Bear is a literature-based unit study from the Picture Book Explorers series that Branch Out World puts out.   It comes in digital format and includes instructions for over 30 activities, with 45 pages of printables like notebook pages, flags, maps, and minibooks.   There are also extra resources listed that could complement the study like various books on Peru and Paddington videos.  With so many possible activities, the study includes a lot of different subjects, including:

• History & Geography
• Creative Writing
• Art
• Science (Migration!)
• Grammar & Vocabulary
• Architecture & Design
• Math

The significant thing about reading stories together is that often there are multiple layers and several details that go unnoticed at first.  Upon the first reading of Paddington, no one remembered that the country of Peru was even mentioned!  This was a great opportunity to dive into places (England & Peru) we weren't very familiar with.  The study is divided into 5 sections:

• Day 1 – Exploring the Setting (History and Geography)
• Day 2 – Exploring the Words (Grammar & Writing) 
• Day 3 – Exploring the Pictures 
• Day 4 – Exploring Science (Animals & Experiments)
• Day 5 – Exploring Maths, Crafts and More

All activities are left open to exploring further if you choose and also stand alone for when you want to pick and choose certain ones and not others.  You are encouraged to record notes on your adventure in some way, like making a lap book or keeping a journal. It's a very flexible plan with multiple variations possible.  The intended age for this study is 5-10 years old.

When everything a child is learning reinforces or connects back together in some way, it really does stick with them much longer.  Branch Out World has done for us what many of us dream about doing, but don't get around to - beautifully weave subjects and lessons together where everyone is learning.  One of my favorite topics brought out in this study was migration and push/pull factors.  It was a subject we hadn't discussed together yet and taught me a few things I had never considered before.

Branch Out World did a great job with this study and we found it to be a perfect change of pace that proved to be very fruitful!  Check out all they have to offer by following them on social media.

Follow Branch Out World: 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/BranchOutWorld    @BranchOutWorld
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/belzibow   @belzibow
Instagram: www.instagram.com/belzibow   @belzibow
Twitter: www.twitter.com/belzibow  @belzibow

Cooking Up History: A Homeschool Legacy Review

One of the things I love about Mr. Butler, especially when I ask him to, he loves getting in the kitchen and cooking something up.  The kids have certainly taken their cue from him and are always asking to help with whatever we are making.  Their enthusiasm in the kitchen made selecting Homeschool Legacy's Cooking Up History with the Founding Presidents for review something I knew they would enjoy.  Especially considering how much this year's presidential election has turned into a circus, I enjoyed discussing the lives of some of our original leaders in this country for a change.

Homeschool Legacy and their Once-a-Week Unit and Micro-Studies were born of a homeschooling family's love and success with a unit study approach in learning that they now share with others in hopes of enhancing not only educational benefits but also long-term spiritual and family relationships.  We found the unit studies to do just that!  Each lesson provided opportunities for everyone, including my 3 year old, to participate and gain from, but also the chance work together as a family.  

As you can see, our unit covered cooking and some of the favorite dishes of our founding presidents.  These pictures are of George Washington's favorite, Cherry Pie.  Each week's lesson included a dish  to cook, along with some background into the foods traditionally enjoyed during their time in the White House.  In addition to the main event of cooking, there would be interesting facts about their lives, wives, and presidential significance, with varying links and activities to be included.  For example, when studying George Washington, we learned to draw his face with the help of an online video.  Thomas Jefferson's lesson included looking up several words that he had coined, while James Madison allowed for learning about the War of 1812.  One of the things I found to be missing might be a simplified schedule or list including all the possible activities.  The information ultimately comes in paragraph form, but it wouldn't take much for me to make my own list, so perhaps I'm a little spoiled! ;)

 With my son only being in 1st grade, of course there is some information lost on him, but that is the beauty of a unit approach.  Some things will stick, the memories will build stronger bonds, and as they get older the value they get from it will shift as well.  One of the appealing things about unit studies is how flexible they are.  These are intended for once a week, but you absolutely could stretch it out over a week or add in as much complementary work as you desired.  Any approach still produces benefits in the family and education.

Is your family involved in Boy Scouts of America or American Heritage Girls?  Turns out Homeschool Legacy's Once-a-Week Unit Studies is the only curriculum that helps earn badge requirements while doing schoolwork!  There are many different studies available including a timely one for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.  With our politically correct society, our heritage sometimes gets pushed around a bit in the media.  Doing a study like the one below would help really solidify the history of Thanksgiving instead of letting the reactive media shape our understanding.

Social Media Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/homeschoollegacy/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/hslegacy/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/homeschoollegac

Check out what other reviewers had to say: