Spanish for You! a review for You!

We received an e-book package from Spanish for You! to review in our homeschool and share with our readers.
We received Estaciones which translates to Seasons. You can check out the sample pages
What is Spanish for You! Estaciones ? This program is a topic specific program designed for multi-age groups with mastery in mind.
What comes with the program? A soft cover book or e-book , 24-30 week lesson guide for the grades you need  (PDF download), self-checking worksheets (PDF download), audio files of entire book in native speaker as well as traditional non-native speaker (MP3 download), and flashcard / activity pictures (PDF download)
What about lesson plans? those are purchased separately.
How much does the program cost?  Products start at $9.99, the package we received as it was a complete package with all grades retails for $64.95
How did we use the program? 
We started out using the program with our 2nd grader and 4th grader. We realized it was a good fit for the 2nd grader yet, since it is really designed for 3rd grade and up, so we let him work on other things during the times we were working on this. As we continued with the program, Cameron found too many struggles with the style and the audio recordings and asked to set it aside for a while. We used the program for 3 weeks and then set it aside for 2 weeks and then returned to it in shorted sessions. He is struggling with adding a language right now with so many variables. He has found that rather than a textbook program of study for Spanish, he is actually learning better through play with some of the neighbor kids. His afternoon playmate and himself have made friends with the hispanic children next door to the playmate where the young boy they play with has decided to teach them Spanish. Cameron comes home and we verify the words in our lessons and a couple of Spanish kids' dictionaries.  He is slowly feeling like we can add more table time to our Spanish lessons. 
While the program didn't work as planned , I can report that it has inspired Cameron to learn Spanish and it is becoming our go to for Spanish activities, especially the flashcard/ activity cards. We have been working on game ideas to go along with the cards and are considering laminating them with contact paper for longevity.
I have also been enjoying their blog full of ideas and inspiration for teacher and student (since I don't remember much of the Spanish I learned as a tutor in jr. high). I especially enjoyed a post about using comics strips to practice Spanish, I added that as an activity to come for the boys. There are more reviews to read from the crew, just click the button below.

Speekee TV agrega música a la escuela española #hsreviews

We have been looking for a Spanish program that the boys would enjoy for the last couple of years. We take a very relaxed approach to foreign languages right now, but still want them to be comfortable with the language. When we first heard about Speekee TV we thought it looked like fun, an immersion style program with lots of children and fun puppets.  The approach is relaxed in that it moves around changing locations with each video but maintains the immersion style teaching by only speaking Spanish.  The videos also show the English translation under each phrase helping the children make the connection. 

Speekee is full of colorful scenes and catchy tunes while teaching families basic Spanish.

Speekee TV is a series of 10 video episodes containing more than 2 hours of Spanish videos for the children and family to watch. The videos show Spanish children in various locations through out Spain and includes activity sheets and fun downloadable curriculum to reinforce the learning. 

We have enjoyed the videos, the boys like to watch the videos standing around the computer so they can move with the music. Not only does this help them remember what they are learning, they are using more of their scenes to gain more from each lesson. 

I really liked the weekly Fast Track emails giving me an idea of what was in this week's lessons. This helped incorporate the program into our school schedule without a lot of extra work for Mom. Both my boys enjoy the program without a lot of tweaking. The program is geared toward Elementary Ages, but younger children would also enjoy the fun puppet characters including Speekee. 

I appreciate the extras with Speekee including flashcards. One thing to consider, this is European Spanish and since it is based on Spain, the English translations are the Queen's English not American English. My oldest noticed a couple of words that didn't look right to him, that led to a wonderful conversation about how the English Language has been changed over the years.

Speekee TV is a subscription based program and sells for $7.50 a month that can be paid using PayPal or $60 for a full year. If you are interested in trying the program they offer a 2 week free trial, which will give you the opportunity to try it with your kids and see if it is a good fit. 

Check out what the rest of the Crew thought by clicking the button above
disclaimer: We received a subscription to Speekee TV as members of the SchoolhouseReview Crew in exchange for our honest review of the program.

Why do we speak English? #hsreviews #homeschool #education

A History of the Language We Speak and Why We Should be Glad we Do: King Alfred's English

I majored in English and Business Management in college, but was never able to work a language history class into my schedule. Now that I review books and curricula for my blog I get to take the "classes" I missed through wonderful books and from wonderful authors like Laurie J. White.

This isn't a book for my boys yet, but when they are a little older I will be presenting this material to them.
Mrs. White is a homeschool Mom and like so many homeschool Moms she says homeschooling is a learning experience for her as well. Researching topics the kids are going to study leads to more knowledge for the teacher as well as the kids; that is what lead to her writing this book.



I was humbled and blessed while reading this book on my e-reader. Her writing style is so friendly and welcoming. I feel like she is writing a conversation with students and parents rather than a textbook.

King Alfred’s English: A History of the Language We Speak and Why We Should Be Glad We Do explores the growth of the English language explaining how the language grew and simplified over time. 
Not only are you getting an English lesson but also a History lesson. If you need to count credits you could count this book and the wonderful supplemental materials from the publisher as a semester or English or split the credit between the History and English subjects. 

While I am still reading the book (I'm studying the whole book in between homeschooling and harvesting), I am engrossed in the book. I love learning and although I am only on chapter 11 I have gained so much understanding for this crazy little language of ours. I am loving how the books shows where various consonant blends originated from and mysteries related the spellings over the years.

 Mrs. White's website  The Shorterword.com has Teacher and Student material to go along with the book There is also a Facebook page with links to related articles as well as conversations about the book . I am looking forward to continuing my study with this book over the next month or so (as I find bits of time to study).  If you are interested in the why's of the English language or are looking for something a bit different for your high school student's English credit this is a must read. You can buy the print copy for under $20.00 depending on which site you purchase it from, or under $10 in e-book format making this an excellent value.


Check out what the rest of the crew thought of this amazing book by clicking on the button below
 

disclaimer: As a member of the Schoolhouse review crew I received a copy of this e-book for free in exchange for my review of the book.

Hola, Great Commission Spanish Introduced at Unvl #homeschool #hsreviews

The boys weren't sure what to think when I told them we would be learning Spanish this year.
I wasn't sure what I was saying either since I only had 3 weeks of Spanish in junior high.  That all changed when we were selected to review The Great Commission Languages  The Easy Spanish Jr. Edition for Grades K-3,
I love how the program is friendly and fun for the kids.  This program is a Christian program and the publisher has a wonderful Statement of Faith 
From the very first day we started using the program the boys had fun. We made flash cards using the words from each lesson. Although , note to self for future programs make sure the boys are willing to use the same font so Mom doesn't have to make 2 sets of cards (Cameron is transitioning to cursive so I made him a cursive set of cards).
The coloring and activity sheets included with the program gave the boys something to do while we listened to each lesson.


We even went so far as to get Nathan's stuffed dog out and have a mascot, just like Chichi to add a little more fun to the days the boys were struggling.

The Great Commission Spanish Programs include CDs with the books for audio lessons and print materials.
The program we reviewed  ¡El Español Fácil!, Junior Level ,  retails for $69.00 which is a value to me (if you have read my reviews you know I am very tight when it comes to the money recommendations)
There are enough lessons to last a full year or more and can easily be used again if you start with a Kindergartner or 1st grader, I could easily see coming back to it the next year for a good review.
They even have a discount if you want to order multiple copies for a homeschool co-op.  Looking over their other Spanish products, I am looking at the Spanish Children's Song CD  which retails for $19.99 as a great addition to the program.

Check out what the rest of the Crew has to say about Great Commission Languages HERE


We received a copy of The Easy Spanish jr edition as a member of the Old SchoolHouse Homeschool Crew in exchange for our honest review.

Review: @VisualLatin #hsreviews, have you done your Latin today?

I have always wanted to learn Latin and I want my boys to have the foundation for learning languages so when Visual Latin came up on the Homeschool Crew I immediately applied. I received my DVD with lessons 1-10 in the mail and was very excited to get started.
The DVD includes .pdf files of the worksheets to go with the various lesson as well as the videos to watch the lessons.  I put the DVD in the computer printed out the first lesson's worksheets and tried the program for myself. (I try and preview the programs before I introduce them to the boys.)

Nathan noticed I was watching something and of course wanted to watch it too. (I had not intended to introduce Latin to my 6 year old). He thought the program looked pretty cool, but got bored pretty quickly (he is only 6 so I didn't figure it would be a good fit). As he was leaving he told me the teacher sounded like a fun teacher, so I guess that says something.

I decided Cameron was still a little young for the worksheets (he is almost 9) but I wanted him to at least watch the videos with me.  Nathan continued to "watch" some of it with us when we watched the videos.
Cameron thought the teacher was fun and a little goofy. (coming from Cameron that is a compliment).
Since we scaled back a bit this year with the variety of subjects, I am definately going to come back and watch the DVD and do the worksheets again with Cameron later in the year as I feel strongly about adding language to our curriculum.

So what do you get with Visual Latin?
Each DVD has 10 lessons complete with worksheets. The program is also available as a download.
We reviewed the DVD Latin1 which retails for $30.00
The downloadable version retails for $25.00 and the complete DVD collection 1-3 retails for $90.00 but as I am writing this it appears the complete DVD collection is on sale for $80.00.

 One thing that I really liked about the program is the classroom feel. I know as a homeschooler people assume I am against the classroom environment but sometimes the subject matter calls for the formality of the classroom.  The setting of the videos is clean and uncluttered leaving the student to focus on the teacher.

The website says it best really.

Add that to Dwane’s ability to address your children directly and your kids have their own personal Latin tutor right in your home.  They will smile, chuckle and even laugh at him as he teaches, whether it’s making a pun or making a mistake.

That’s right – we let the camera roll so every now and then Dwane slips up and corrects himself. It happens in a real class, right?  And kids make mistakes themselves, right?  This is something kids can relate to that builds great rapport. Furthermore, it relaxes them.

Overall there is a good combination of structure and the relaxed comfort of a personal tutor. 

Check out what my crew mates think of the program HERE 

I received the DVD copy of Visual Latin 1 as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew to review and give honest feedback here on my blog. All opinions unless noted are my own.