FamilyMint Money Management Program Review

I have often mentioned how important I think life skills are and how many kids grow up unprepared for life outside of their parent's home. But one of the most overlooked life skill is money management. Parents forget to teach their children smart money skills like how to budget or balance a checkbook. And I will admit, here at our house we haven't really done a lot of talking yet about managing money. We don't give allowance here, but the kids get money as gifts, earned from extra jobs and their fair prizes. They have savings accounts. We encourage them to really think about their purchases when they want something. But that is about all we've done so far. Until now. 

I was asked to use and review the FamilyMint Money Management Certification Program and when the workbook arrived I was pretty pleased with the first impression. It's a simple workbook- designed for kids ages 10 and up, though I used it with all 4 of my boys (ages 5-11)- and is meant to help teach kids key money management skills that they can carry with them the rest of their lives. But the workbook is only part of the program. They also include an online application that looks and feels just like the online banking systems we adults use all the time.  

They cover topics like keeping track of your money- in which the kids learn how to fill out checks, deposit slips and keep a register. My kids loved this- there is something about writing a check for millions of dollars that is exciting!

And they cover making SMART goals. It was at this chapter that I really could see the wheels turning for my oldest son. He's mentioned a few goals over the past few months and by using the online application he could really start to see that they were actually attainable if he used his money wisely. He spent a lot of time breaking down his goals into smaller pieces and seeing how much money he would need to save per week to get what he wanted. I also appreciated the 2 versions- junior and advanced- where he could work in more detail that his younger brothers. 

When we got to the budgeting chapter, I began to see some of the weaknesses of my younger kids. Even though some of it has to do with maturity, they tend to be more careless with their money. My oldest again took a long time creating his envelopes- putting in his goals and even a gift fund to make sure he would have enough to buy birthday and holiday gifts for his friends and family.

The bottom line? I would definitely recommend this program. It's a simple but effective way to teach the essential money skills we need as adults. Some of the best things about this program are:

• The workbook can be used by itself or with the online application. When we went over the chapters we used the book exclusively. But once we were done the kids logged on to their accounts to put what they learned into action. You don't have to use the computer at all to use this program.
• It's versatile. You can use this program in many ways as a tool to learn budgeting. You can use real money, and you can use it as a way to keep track of reward points for school work, good grades, chores, etc. The more the kids see and practice using these skills the better. 
• It's personal. The kids are tracking their money and making their goals. That alone makes it much more effective than a hypothetical situation from math or accounting class. 

If you are interested in trying out FamilyMint for yourself they have a couple different pricing options that will satisfy almost any budget. You can visit their pricing page to see those options.  I would highly recommend the introductory bundle which includes the workbook and a lifetime subscription to the online application. I think the pairing of both of these things together are really what make this product shine.

SMARTeacher's Prodigy Math Program Review

When I was contacted by SMARTeacher about reviewing their new game, Prodigy, I wanted to take a look at what they were all about and let the boys sample the game before committing to writing a review. I could tell within a few minutes that this game was going to be a big hit with my kids, and I was right.

So what is it? It's a math game. And a really good one at that. One that isn't cheesy or boring or too simple. The creators of this game must have really put a lot of effort into finding out what would really work, keep kids engaged and interested and have them learning all the time. 

If you are of my generation, most likely you are familiar with video game systems such as the original Nintendo, Super Nintendo or Sega- back when the graphics weren't 3-D like they are today. Growing up, Paul and I both loved playing Final Fantasy- we've actually downloaded the early versions of the games for our Wii and the boys love to play it too. My first thought when I saw Prodigy was that it definitely had a Final Fantasy feel to it. To start, you create your avatar, name it, and choose your grade (1st through 6th). The game has all the important video game aspects covered, such as experience points, hit points, magic and a store to buy items. 

Once you are ready you can start the fights. Where you and your pet face off with a monster, casting spells to win the battle. 

But then comes the math part. When you cast a spell, you are asked a question that you must answer correctly in order for your magic to do any damage on your opponent. The questions ranged from simple- months of the year and beginning addition for Lakin- to more complex- high level multiplication and pre-algebra  for Rylan. When the questions get hard, and the kids start to get a little frustrated, that is when a little hint box tends to pop up to help them along. And that is about it- the game continues, they get asked more and more questions moving up in level as they go along. The extras- like earning money to buy things- keep things interesting.

Does it work? I think so. I know holes in math are a big thing, and honestly I haven't come across any math program that covers everything. So games like this are a welcome addition to our homeschool. The boys are getting extra practice on the things they know, they are getting exposed to new things and a few of the gaps that have appeared along the way are getting filled. While watching all 4 of my boys play, I can see them learning. We've done impromptu math lessons on scrap paper in front of the computer- sketching obtuse angles and fraction pieces or lines of symmetry.

But I think one of the best things about this game is the fact that they want to play it. And I mean really want to play it. They have even given up Skylanders a few times to play this instead. Most other math-based games get tolerated. They are better than paper and pencil but that is about it. The creators of this game got it right- they focused on creating a complete game, with math being part of it, instead of creating a game around math as the focal point. The only thing my oldest said he wanted, since most of the material is review for him,  was for it to go to higher grades so he could keep playing!

Parents, or teachers, also have access to progress reports- and I will admit to not spending a lot of time here, but they are pretty detailed reports- and will let you know what types of problems they have been working on and what they understand and what they don't based on the percentages correct.

If you want to see how Prodigy works, their lite membership is completely free- your child can play for 15 minutes a day and access the free items in the game. After that they have various pricing options from monthly to lifetime memberships. There are also options for classroom subscriptions if you are a teacher. It's easy to download and works on both Mac and PC.

{Disclaimer: I received access to the entire game in order to write my review. All opinions are my own.}

Review: A+ TutorSoft Math Curriculum

It's almost time to start the new school year, and for many homeschooling parents that means it's time to re-evaluate curricula to see what is working and what needs to be changed. Over the past 6 years I have tried my fair share of math programs. Some worked well, some were not so good. Eventually we came to a place with Rylan where the current curriculum is really working, but Cohen and Cale are still searching for that math program that clicks with them.

Recently I was given the opportunity to try out A+ TutorSoft's Interactive Math Curriculum. I chose to try out the 4th grade program since Cale was currently in that level and Cohen was coming up on it fast. I received the Premium Edition of the 4th Grade Math Full Curriculum CD.

First off, here is a little bit about the A+ TutorSoft's Programs (according to their website):

• Multimedia Lessons that use all three learning modalities - Audio, Visuals and Text
• Interactive Quiz for each lesson with instant feedback and step-by-step instructions
• Lesson Plan
• Curriculum Book on CD
• Printable Worksheets and Exams
• Parental Guides - Solution Guides with step-by-step problem solving instruction 

Everything you need to teach is on the CD, from the textbook to the tests. They even include a simple lesson plan to follow. No prior knowledge is needed by the parent since answer keys are also included. I was excited to try out the program and see how it worked in our homeschool.

The program was very easy to install. Just put the CD in and follow the prompts. There is a short tutorial when you open the program, which  you can choose to listen to or just explore everything on  your own- I did the latter. The one downside I saw right off the bat was that the the CD-rom was only compatible with Windows, so using our iMac was out. Luckily we have a PC in the house as well, so it wasn't an issue. But I do believe it is something the company should look into changing.

The set up is simple and user-friendly. There are 16 chapters, each with multiple lessons. Each lesson has a lecture with example problems and a short, interactive quiz. These quizzes are multiple choice, and automatically graded. There is instant feedback and explanations if the question is answered incorrectly. If you feel more practice is needed there are optional worksheets to print out for each lesson. Each chapter has a test that can be printed out as well.


So what is my take on the program? To tell the truth, at first glance I wasn't too impressed, but upon further inspection and usage I can see many good things about A+ TutorSoft's Math Curriculum.

Here are my Pros:

• The explanations are thorough and I think the student would learn well from them
• For those who prefer mastery programs, this would be great. Each topic is covered thoroughly before moving on
• The immediate feed back on the quizzes is a definite plus. Understanding will happen much quicker than having to wait for the parent to grade the work
• Having everything in one place. I don't have to keep up with a text, a workbook, an answer key or a teacher's manual. It's all there on the CD
• All types of learners can benefit. You can listen to the lectures or read them in the text.
• The price is right. Compared to other CD or online based curricula, this is a steal 

And here are my Cons:

• As I mentioned, it is only compatible with Windows 
• There is no built in review. I do like a mastery approach, but there was no review at all. I would like to see some on the exams at least 
• I didn't like that all the problems were multiple choice- quizzes, worksheets and tests. 
• The lessons were a sometimes a little slow. I am- and my boys can be too- a little impatient. So when I know the answer to something I want to answer right then. We didn't like having to listen to all the multiple choice before clicking on the correct one. 

And the opinion of my 8 yr old? He didn't like the voice on the lectures. He thought it sounded too much like a computer talking as opposed to a real person.  He liked it, but not as much as the one we were taking a break from.

The Bottom Line?

Both of my boys- Cale, who is going into the 4th grade and Cohen, a rising 2nd grader, need extra help on their facts. Their current math program didn't spend enough time on the multiplication and division facts to provide mastery. I think A+ TutorSoft's program will be just what they need to get them back on track and sharpen their skills. For us, it wouldn't work as a stand alone program, but definitely works as a tutor on certain aspects of their math education.

Disclaimer: I received this product for free in exchange for my honest review.  I was not compensated for this review and all opinions are my own

Greek Day

Last week we got together with some friends to do some activities on Ancient Greece.

We started off with Metric Olympics. With activities like the straw javelin...


and the right hand marble grab

and the left hand (or in this case 2 hand) sponge squeeze


They made an estimate on how far they could throw, how many grams of marbles and how many mL they could squeeze and then measured the actual. This used lots of team work!


Once we were done with the Olympics we took a break for lunch- stuffed pitas and Greek honey cake- then the kids drew and wrote on "wax tablets" (aka vegetable shortening)

And made batik paintings.


We finished the day with paper mosaics:

On Math.....

I had a have a hard time picking out math curriculum/workbooks in general and even more so for Kindergarten. I don't necessarily believe that a 5 year old needs a math book. But I have gotten them for all my boys so far.

This time I had a harder time choosing. To feel a part of school last year Cohen would grab some of our old books off the shelf- ones Rylan and Cale had gone through but not done every page- and he would ask to do them. So he'd done a lot of K work already. But he's been begging for a math book. Cale is currently using MUS and I like it, but Cohen was too advanced for the Primer, yet not quite ready for Alpha. Rylan is using Mastering Mathematics, and Cohen's not at that level yet either.

At the beginning of Rylan's Kindergarten year I used Modern Curriculum Press K Math book. It was okay. The way they taught writing numbers annoyed me, but we just skipped those pages. He loved the money pages and did like much more than I asked of him. We did do most of the book- which took less than 3 months, then he got to addition and I went ahead and picked up Mastering Matematics- which he was young for, but more than ready.

With Cale, I used Singapore's Earlybird Math books. And I didn't like them. At all. We skipped around a lot and didn't nearly finish the book. We did a lot of hands on and manipulative work. Which was fine, and with Cale's personality and learning style it all worked out for the best.

So....Cohen's math. Obviously we haven't started yet- other than a couple pages- but I've looked it over and so far I like it.

I got McRuffy Math- both K and First Grade since he is somewhere in between levels. I like plain- and it is. I do not like zillions and zillions of pages on counting to 10 or adding with pictures- and this doesn't have it. I want it to progress past where he is when he started- and I think he will with this. And finally, it needed to not be expensive, it is only Kindergarten afterall- and this wasn't expensive.

The K book starts with some counting and moves pretty quick to picture addition. It's got the cut and paste aspect which my kids like, and doesn't require writing.

There are a couple different versions but the numbers are added to the problems and it flips back and forth using gluing or drawing your own pictures.

And by about page 25 they introduce standard facts- using a number line or other manipulatives if needed. I like how it starts small- the first page has 3 problems- written in a very large font. Then they go up to 6 and increase to 9 at the most.

Every few pages they work on other skills like skip counting by 10s or 5s, simple graphs, ordinals, time, number words, etc... And in the end of the book is subtraction.

The K book is short- only about 70 pgs.

I've flipped through the 1st grade book and it covers- multidigit addition and subtraction with no carrying or borrowing. More time, money, patterns and graphing. It ends with very simple multiplication (x2). It is a bit longer at 100 pgs.

Between the 2 I think it'll make up his whole year, especially since he's been a workbook kid for awhile and does multiple pages at once.

A couple things to note:
I purchase the older version- available under the name K Basic Math. They do have a newer, color version. Which is more indepth and more expensive. Math is only available through 3rd grade, and I fully intend to switch, probably after this year, to something new. But this was perfect for what I needed this year.

Also I didn't not purchase a teachers guide. I don't see the point for this level. So the workbook is just another tool to go along with our own manipulatives and activities.

We also own the McRuffy Pond Pals beginning readers (Vol 1 and 2) And they are about the only early readers that my boys- and I can stand. They have controlled vocabulary like all other readers but somehow doesn't sound as corny. And they are funny too.

Dinosaurs, Assignment 1

Make a list of at least 10 dinosaurs; half herbivores and half carnivores and find out how tall they were.


Create a graph of the heights. Label both axes.

Create a key for your graph.

Answer questions.

How tall was the tallest dinosaur? Shortest?
What type of dinosaur was the tallest? Shortest?
What was the average height of the herbivores? Carnivores?
Which group was taller on average?
etc....

I was very happy with how their projects turned out, and they were too. Cale complained his way through the initial list- until I let them watch a documentary on Allosaurus, then he finished very quickly. Today with the graphing part he didn't complain a bit. And they learned so much more than just the dinosaurs heights or how to read a graph. How to read a pronunciation guide, how to spell all these dinosaur's names, how to measure out a scale for the height axis so they were equally spaced and allowed enough room for the maximum height, how to find averages, how they really can write smaller and neater than they say they can and how writing so much really isn't so bad when you have a finished product you can be proud of...

On clocks and time....

Right now in the co-op class I am teaching we are finishing up telling time. Here's a couple things we've done in the past couple weeks to help the kids learn how to tell time....

We made the standard paper plate clock....They cut and glued all the pieces then we worked on setting the clocks for certain times. We manipulated a paper clock to see how the half and quarter hours cut the clock. The paper clock we used has helped them all tremendously. I printed it from Aussie Pumpkin Patch and they have all used it to help them get quicker at reading the time with out having to count by 5's all they way around each time.


We had a life sized game board set up around the room. I printed a bunch of blank clocks and drew the times I wanted. We were focusing on tell the time to 5-minutes and seeing that the hour hand doesn't point directly at the hour, that it moves closer and closer to the next hour as each minute passes. They kids really enjoyed throwing the oversized dice and walking the board. They did really well at the time-telling too.


These are the prizes for 'winning' or completing the game. White and milk chocolate clock faces.


We also played clock-face go fish. It can also be played as rummy or as memory/concentration. Since we were running out of time we did move from Go Fish! to just spreading and matching the digital time to the clock face. The times on these cards were to the minute.


We are making a lapbook in our class, so all of these pieces...the paper plate clock, the Go Fish cards, and a mini version of the clock-face game board will be included for them to play with at home too.

Math and Such

Here's a view of some of our math activities for the week:

Bean Bag Toss

We've used it 3 different way so far-
Cohen- tossing 1 bean bag and calling out the number it lands on
Cale- tossing 2 bean bags and adding the 2 together
Rylan- throwing 2 bean bags and multiplying them togther

It's also great for my not-so-good catchers to get practice in catching the bean bags when I throw them back.

This is Rylan's project from yesterday:

It is adapted from an activity in the book Family Math. Basically I gave him a bunch of 1 in squares and we talked about forming rectangles. Then he set to work making rectangles with a certain number of squares...starting with 1. He went up to 9. Then we discussed squares, odds/evens, and prime numbers. I am planning to have him work more on it so he can begin to see which numbers share factors.

Dot Paint Graphing:

This one was pretty simple, but Cale hasn't done much with graphing so it was good for him. I gave him a set of buttons and a had him make a dot for how many he had of each and answer the questions.

Money Combinations:

The top of the sheet says "This chocolate costs $0.65. Can you think of 4 different ways to pay for it?" I gave him 1 of each coin and crayons. So he made rubbings of the coins up to $0.65 in 4 different ways.

In other, picture-less news....

Rylan started double digit multiplication today- as in 34 x 21. After a quick explanation as to WHY there was a zero in the second row, he took off. His book is nice in that the first page uses graph paper and has the zero already printed. Then they slowly over the next 4-5 days wean him off to just the written problem. He wanted me to sit right with him at first...but after 2 we was ready on his own and came to me later saying that in a few weeks he'll learn how to multiply by a 4-digit number and that he thinks he knows how it will be done :)

Cohen has been begging for school so I have made a conscious effort to include him. So far this week he's done our tanagram book, creating bead color patterns on pipe cleaners, and his favorite is this new website I found- Reading Eggs - they give a 4 week free trial so I signed him up. He's enjoying it and if it helps him learn to read, why not?

Last week, I mistakenly told Rylan that I was done transplanting raspberries. I went down the entire fence row planting 45 and I was just going to dig up the rest. He didn't want that so he planted 37 more in the back side of our yard. The garden is free but I still have a few more that have popped up in the path between the beds.

Now I am off to re-learn precalculus. Paul is going back to school and is currently taking 2 independent study courses- Ag Econ and Finite Math- his advisor wanted him to take a lower math first based on previous test scores, but agreed since I would be able to help tutor him....but it's been 9 years since I've even looked at calculus....hopefully it'll come aback easily.

How.....

...does something start off so right and end so wrong???

The last one he did correctly- he did write 11, but we talked about it and he wrote the 2 and then I left to take Lakin to the doctor, telling Paul that Cale was finishing up his math and to check it when he was done. When I got home I asked if he had checked it....no. So we went to look and ??? If I ask him what is 3+2 he can answer me. But for some reason when looking at the facts- even if he has counters to use he just wants to combine the numbers ??

Wonderful Things

Here are a few items from our school week that we have been enjoying:

I love this series of books. They are by Brian P. Cleary, the series is Words Are Categorical. My boys have loved reading through them this week. We have started each day with a different one so far....we will read the book, brainstorm huge list of words and then their writing assignments are based on them. Monday we just wrote nouns, Tuesday simple sentences with a noun and verb. Today adjective and noun pairs. Tomorrow we will put them together into sentences a little more complex. I plan on getting a couple more from the library so we can continue. Plus...Cale loves making up the silliest sentences he can think of and Rylan, of course, is much more realistic.

Color. I love color. We've been reading the Magic School Bus Makes a Rainbow, Little Blue and Little Yellow (for Lakin and Cohen) and a book called A Color Sampler which has a lot of visuals and designs based on the color wheel. So we have been exploring with our oil pastels- which is one of my favorite mediums.

Learning new things. Rylan has been wanting to really learn multiplication. We took a break between where we stopped in his subtraction book to learn a little more about place value. I figured since he could subtract (and add ) 1,298,342,234 and 3,456,646,565 he should be able to read past the 1000s place. So now that he can read up in the trillions we started an intro to multiplication. I used the bead stairs I made a few months back and the multiplication exercises I printed online. (this site has them for add, sub, mult and div). We were going to do zero today, but he was so excited about how easy that rule was he wanted to do x1 too. And since that was so easy he wanted to do x2. He figured out the patten immediately and I love seeing him so excited. Cale is using the addition excercises this week to start on the road to memorizing his addition facts.

And of course we love and enjoy the friendly dragon that has been dancing around the house all week...

Proud Boy, Proud Mom

A few weeks ago Rylan started writing numbers. Not too suprising. In kindergarten he would write numbers on a whiteboard for hours (yes that is an exaggeration). He got to 230 before he ran out of room on the paper. Somewhere during this time I told him if he got to 1000 I'd give him a prize. (From our prize box that has a bunch of random items in it) Cale of course wanted to know what he could do to get a prize. I told him he could write to 100.

Today he (Cale) finished. It took him 3 days once he decided to actually take on the challenge. Once again my camera batteries are acting up, so no smiling face holding his paper- but he was oh so proud of it. And I am so proud of how focused he was. And how well he knew the numbers.

Backwards numbers and all.

Now if I can only get him to stop skipping 13 and 16 when he counts objects?

His prize: a little plastic man with a plastic parachute attached. He played with it for an hour- throwing it as high as he could. Then the parachute broke....:)

Meet Mr. Gallon and other schoolish happenings

Meet Mr. Gallon.... This week we have been talking about volume and today we worked on some conversions. So we made Mr. Gallon. All but the gallon jug are proportionally correct. First I asked Rylan if he remembered how many quarts are in a gallon (we did these conversions with water, jugs, jars and measuring cups on Monday) He correctly remembered 4 and I had them label the 4 quart pieces. Then gave them the other pieces for them to figure out how many pints in a quart, cups in a pint, cups in a gallon, pints in a gallon, etc... Then we started in on the contstruction with the overall construction being similar to our human structure. The quart being the upper arms and legs, the pints being the 2 bones in the forearm and the tibia/fibula of the leg and the cups being the fingers/toes (only 8 though). We also have had this book out of the library for a few weeks
It's a really cute book. So today we cut out words from magazines. Once we had a good stack we sorted them into piles: noun, verbs and other (I did tell them what they were preposition, adjective, adverb, etc... but we didn't seperate them completely or I would have lost Cale's attention). Then they set to work making sentences by picking a noun and a verb and adding from there.

Here's Cale's final product. His favorite was the top one: "Go wash the car with chocolate". Then for their writing they copied thier sentences. Rylan wrote all his. And Cale wrote the above sentence twice. The first one ended up looking like this: Gowashthe carwith choc olate. So I rewrote it again and he copied it again with proper spacing.

We've been having handwriting troubles with Cale and I think I have finally found something that has him showing much improvement. Ground, grass and sky paper. He was having a lot of trouble staying anywhere near the lines and his letters were all over the place his a's looked like q's since he would drop them so far, but it was amazing how neat he is writing just using this paper!

1000 eggs

When our chickens first started laying, the boys and I decided to keep track. We wanted to see how many we got a day, so we knew about when all of the chickens were laying. We've just kept going.....

When we got to the bottom of the page I was going to stop, but they didn't so we kept tallying on the back. We got our first egg on June 15....so about 2 mo and a week ago. Yesterday we hit 1000! Rylan says we should still count. To find out how many eggs we get in the whole year. He's already put out his estimate. I might just leave it soley up to him now though. But I think it is safe to say that they know how to read, write and count with tally marks now!