Sunday scripture 7/14

16 | II Corinthians 13:14 (to 1^st .)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all.

17 | Psalms 95:6, 7 (to ;)

O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker. For he is our God; 

Geography, History, and Art oh my

 We received for review a complete Geography I program from Memoria Press for review in our homeschool. Since Geography wasn't something we had focused on other than location of the continents and oceans I thought this would be a good thing to add in. We are currently studying the ancients and Geography I covers the Middle East , North Africa, and Europe which is a perfect fit of the Ancients.
We started our with just reading the Student Text and talking about the worksheet. I would ask the boys to point out certain areas on the map in the text instead of writing it to begin with, then I had Cameron start writing in the Workbook. Cameron isn't a fan of workbooks, so I decided to add some extra fun to studying about ancient Israel, Ancient Iraq, and Ancient Syria.
I incorporated our history studies, a couple of Bible stories, some sidewalk chalk, and a small group of Playmobil characters and horses (might have had a cow as well) for outside school.

This collection of elements worked together with 2 little boys for a fun school day. We traveled with Abram and Sarai from Ur to Canaan after we drew and colored the map on the back patio. 

Something as simple as the maps included in Geography I inspired a cross curricular activity that was fun and kept my boys engaged for 45 minutes. What a simple thing. 

The complete set costs $48.00 and includes the text, the workbook, the teacher's guide, and the United States Review set (student book and teacher's book) for grades 4-8. Due to copyright rules for this book, if you have more than 1 student using the program,  you will need to purchase an additional student workbook which retails for $11.95 for each student. 

The program is easy to follow and integrates well with a variety of programs and learning styles. I was able to easy incorporate the program into our current Classic approach to history but can also see how it would work into a unit study as well as hands on learning with the workbook as reinforcement. 

We will continue to work the program into our current Classical History Model over the summer and into the fall as we work through the Middle East and North Africa and arriving in Europe sometime around January. It may seem like a long journey but my boys seem to be embracing the classical history with activities to help them remember the geography and events that help form the modern world we live in. 

The schoolhouse review crew reviewed this product as well as Prima Latina a program I am looking forward to reading reviews on as I am wanting to add Latin in the fall for the boys. 

 

I love Memoria Press' motto, "Saving Western Civilization One Student at a Time", in our case it is two students but still , it really is that easy to save history by teaching the true history to our children. I gratefully support companies that are willing to go that extra mile in the education of our children. 

Sunday Scripture 5/26

Jeremiah 32:40a
And I will make an everlasting covenant with them , that I will not turn away from them , to do them good;

Sunday Scripture

Psalms 9: 2-3
... I will sing praise to thy name,  O. Thou most high. When mine enemies are turned back they shall fall and perish at thy presence.

This passage stuck with me this week as we struggled with thoughts and worked to stay strong in our understanding that we are created in God's image and should work to reflect that in our daily activities.

Stories of Long Ago with Salem Ridge Press

Reading historical fiction has always been one of my favorites, so I thought I could instill that love of history through reading to my boys. Reading stories of the past somehow makes studying the historical timeline more interesting, or at least that is my thought. We were given the opportunity to review a book from Salem Ridge Press, we selected The Magic Runes  , by Emma Leslie.

Salem Ridge Press is working to bring back children's book written in the 1800's and early 1900's to create a library of living books for the next generation.  Since we are eclectic homeschoolers I love the idea of living history, making history come alive through great stories, although these books really fit into many styles and methods of homeschooling.
I love the story behind the company found on their website, finding companies that are run by homeschoolers or homeschool graduates is so inspiring to me as a homeschool mom.

The Magic Runes by Emma Leslie is a wonderful story of the early church under the rule of Charlemagne and is recommended for readers 10 and up.  The soft cover retails for $10.95 , a hardcover is also available for $20.95. We received the softcover which is perfect for young hands to hold on to.
The story starts in 782 A.D in  France and Saxony. A young girl Adalinda comes across Godrith and his family hiding in the woods near her home. The family is in need of help but leery of the help because Adalinda and her family are Christians. Godrith doesn't trust her help as the Christian army of Charlemagne is responsible for burning Godrith's village in Saxony.
The story continues and leads to a glimpse into the early Christians.
Cameron struggled reading this book due to the old english style writing. We haven't quite finished the book yet (although I quickly skimmed the end of the book and no I'm not giving it away). Since Cameron is a delayed readers this book was actually above his level of reading which caused him to struggle with comprehension and retention for the story. We ended up doing much of it as a read a loud with Mommy reading and average of 1 page a day so he could retain the story.  Personally I really enjoy the old world style writing and will be bringing the story out again as we reach Charlemagne in history. I did work hard to make sure Cameron got one of the points I felt stood out. As Christians we are to love our neighbors no matter what, and we need to show that love to them in a way that reflects God's love for us.  (even when it seems hard!)
You can even read the first chapter of the book from the website


Looking through the list of books published by Salem Ridge Press, I have created a wishlist of wonderful books to add to our collection of history stories. The Junior Church History Set , a set of 5  church history books is a nice starter set and the 12 Book Church History Set includes books on the early church as well as   the medieval church.  I love the variety on levels and historical periods covered by Salem Ridge Press, oh to have an unlimited budget and space to store all these wonderful titles.

Other members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew reviewed a variety of books from  Salem Ridge Press, their thoughts can be found HERE

Journey through God's Great Covenant Old Testament Volume 2

Last year we reviewed Classical Academic Press'  God's Great Covenant New Testament and enjoyed working through the program, so when we were given the opportunity to review another selection from the program I was happy to jump in to it with Cameron.  It actually worked out perfectly as we have finished up the Exodus and are moving forward with Bible history so to incorporate God's Great Covenant, Old Testament Book 2: an elementary grades Bible program.

We decided to spend a little more time than suggested on  each lesson, reading and listening to the MP3 lesson from the book , but also reading the stories directly from the Bible, and reading the stories in various other Bible Story books we have.

The Teacher's Edition , has lots of ideas to help your student learn as you read the lessons together with some wonderful thoughts. The one thing that I had to get use to, the teacher's edition  was printed landscape instead of portrait.  Made it easier to pick up when the 2 books (teacher vs. student) were on the shelf together. Thankfully it just fit on the shelf of my bookcase , still not sure how I feel about the manual printed landscape, but it isn't anything that changes our opinion of the program, just something to get use. 

Cameron worked in the Student book while Nathan listened and answered questions.  We both really like how the review pages are set up to easily match the lesson. Not only did Cameron work on his listening skills for retention, but he also learned how  to skim a page if he needed to go back to find an answer. I love when a program ends up being cross curricula. We have been focusing on Samuel not only in several Bible studies, but also historically so the first lesson got a lot more attention then the others. 
I love the MP3 audio files that are available as a downloads, it gives us a chance to listen to someone other than Mommy reading the lessons. We can listen to the lesson at home or via the laptop on the road or at the park. As we continue with this program the rest of the year, we will be using the MP3 audios more and more and is a value at only $9.95.
I thought about if I couldn't afford it would it make sense to only buy the student book for $22.95, the more I thought about it the $44.95 bundle price for both books is really a value and I don't think I would be able to teach the program as well without the teacher's manual.  If I had the budget I would add the Timeline and Map set that covers all three books in the series for only $36.95, especially if you are planning on using the entire series.

The Schoolhouse Review is reviewing the Old Testament books as well as the Song School Spanish program. Click to read more reviews from the Schoolhouse Review Crew

disclosure: I received a free copy of this product through the Schoolhouse Review Crew in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations.

Theme of the week: Love

This week our Lesson theme for church is love so I decided to incorporate it into some fun crafts as Valentine's Day is coming up. We stopped at Walmart and picked up a package of foam hearts that link together. A package of 30 hearts was less than $5.00. I picked up a couple extra fine tip Sharpie markers to write of the hearts.

I had the boys look up the Bible verses in several translations of the Bible.

Cameron used his Deep Blue Kids' Bible in the Common English Translation and copied 2 verses on to the hearts alternating white and red.

Nathan used the Children's NIV to look up verses and write on his hearts.

He wasn't happy with me, but showed me his hearts anyway. (gotta love that face)

My crazy guy showing his hearts (he kept moving them)

We will continue the hearts this week and next and then display them across the dinning room windows.

A sneak peek, God's Great Covenant

We received our first review product for the Tos Crew, God's Great Covenant  Old Testament volume 2. We will be using is for Bible as well as part of our History reading.
I am excited to start using this with the boys, listening to the book on cd as well as the student study guide.
Stay tuned for our complete review.

Sunday Scripture 1/13

This week as a I was sitting in church I heard the same lesson I had been reading all week, but today this verse stood out more than it had before.

Psalms 119:1, 2

 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.

 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.

I pray we all have a blessed week

Scripture Sunday 1/6/13

Psalm 66:19

Amplified Bible (AMP)

¹⁹ But certainly God has heard me; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.

Psalm 66:19

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁹ But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer.

From 

Science and Health with Key to the Scripture by Mary Baker Eddy

pg 15:14-18

 In order to pray aright, we must enter into the1515 closet and shut the door. We must close the lips andEffectual invocationsilence the material senses. In the quietsanctuary of earnest longings, we must1818 deny sin and plead God’s allness.

My goal for this year is to post a  Bible scripture and a piece from Science and Health with Key to the Scripture by Mary Baker Eddy the textbooks used in our weekly service. I will pull from a copy of our weekly Bible Lesson and share my own personal thoughts as well.

Prayer is a powerful thing. I have read several books about prayers in the last couple years, but one things always seems to be left out, God hears my prayers even before I speak them. It is that voice, that God give voice that he hears. 

I am so grateful that he hears my cries even when I can't put them into words. 

Sunday Scripture January 6, 2013

Deuteronomy 4:39

Amplified Bible (AMP)

³⁹ Know, recognize, and understand therefore this day and turn your [mind and] heart to it that the Lord is God in the heavens above and upon the earth beneath; there is no other.

I am also sharing a passage from the textbook we use in church Science and Health with Key to the Scripture by Mary Baker Eddy

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Question. — What is God?

9Answer. — God is incorporeal, divine, supreme, infiniteMind, Spirit, Soul, Principle, Life, Truth, Love.

Question. — Are these terms synonymous?

12Answer. — They are. They refer to one absolute God.They are also intended to express the nature, essence, andwholeness of Deity. The attributes of God are justice,15mercy, wisdom, goodness, and so on.

Both of the above passages were part of the weekly Bible Lesson read during services this morning. 

This year my goal is to post a verse and a passage from Science and Health with Key to the Scripture by Mary Baker Eddy along with my own thoughts each week.

Teaching the boys to understand that God is more than we need, He is everything and everywhere is in in our current society. Thankfully I know that God is Love and that as cliche' as it sounds Love is all we need. It is not our place to judge but to Love even when it is hard to Love. Even as Mom I struggle with that idea, but if I pause I can correct my thought and remember God is all I need to focus on. 

Scripture Sunday

I  felt like sharing this one from our weekly lesson

Matthew 10:8

King James Version (KJV) from Biblegateway.com

⁸ Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.



Have a blessed week

Scripture Sunday 12/30/2012

This is the last Sunday of the year and what a year it has been.

This week the Golden Text for the weekly bible lesson was simply beautiful. 

2 Corinthians 9:15

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁵ Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.



Have a blessed New Year.

Hanukkak, Christmas, Fruit of the Spirit Peace

Today's focus is Peace.

Again I am using the King Jame's Version of the Bible unless noted along with citations from the Christian Science textbook Science and Health with Keys to the Scripture by Mary Baker Eddy.

Feel free to share your thoughts on Peace and the Prince of Peace as we love to hear from readers.

Section II

Peace

The Bible

Isaiah 54:13

¹³ And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

II Thessilonians 3:6

⁶ Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.

I Corinthians 1:3

³ Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 14:33

³³ For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

Isaiah 9:6,7

⁶ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 52:7

⁷ How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!

Section II

Science & Health

45:16

Glory be to God, and peace to the struggling hearts!

Christ hath rolled away the stone from the door of hu‐
18 man hope and faith, and through the reve‐
lation and demonstration of life in God, hath
elevated them to possible at-one-ment with the spiritual
21idea of man and his divine Principle, Love.

506: 8-14

Genesis i. 8. And God called the firmament Heaven.

9   And the evening and the morning were the second day.

Through divine Science, Spirit, God, unites under‐
standing to eternal harmony.

The calm and exalted
12 thought or spiritual apprehension is at peace.

Thus the dawn of ideas goes on, forming each
successive stage of progress.

52:13

Despised and rejected of men," was Isaiah's
graphic word concerning the coming Prince of Peace.

15

Herod and Pilate laid aside old feuds in order to unite
in putting to shame and death the best man that ever
trod the globe.

To-day, as of old, error and evil again
18make common cause against the exponents of truth.

The "man of sorrows" best understood the nothing‐
ness of material life and intelligence and the mighty ac‐

21  tuality of all-inclusive God, good.

These were the two cardinal points of Mind-healing, or
Christian Science, which armed him with Love. The high‐
24  est earthly representative of God, speaking of human
ability to reflect divine power, prophetically said to his
disciples, speaking not for their day only but for all time:
27"He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do
also;" and "These signs shall follow them that believe."

59:11

Fulfilling the
12different demands of their united spheres, their sympa‐
thies should blend in sweet confidence and cheer, each
partner sustaining the other, — thus hallowing the union
15of interests and affections, in which the heart finds peace
and home.

another note to readers: all citations from Science and Health are copied with formatting as they are seen in our weekly lesson and in the book.

I hope you have a blessed week as we continue our journey. 

Scripture Sunday November 18th

1 Corinthians 2:12,13

¹² Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

¹³ Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

This one stood out for me in reading last week's lesson. 

So did this one:

1 Corinthians 6:20

²⁰ For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

Hope you have a blessed week of gratitude.

Getting Deep into the WORD with DEEP BLUE kids BIBLE #hsreviews

A kids' study Bible seemed a little over the top but I am trying to get the boys into their Bible Study so I am willing to give it a try.
Once we received the Deep Blue kids Bible, we were hooked and I do mean 'we'.
With any new to me translation I always pick a couple of key verses and look them up to get a feel for the translation.  I started out with 1 John 3:1-3

1.See what kind of love the Father has give to us in that we should be called God's children, and that is what we  are! Because the world didn't  recognize him, it doesn't recognize us. 

2. Dear friends, now we are God's children  and it hasn't yet appeared what we will be. We know that we he appears we will be like him because we'll see him as he is. 3. And everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself even as he is pure.

With a clearer view we dove into the study aspects of the Deep Blue Bible knowing the translation wasn't going to change our understanding of the words but only clarify it. 

The front of the Bible layed out that various in-text notes that we would find. Cameron immediately liked the sailing theme as our school mascot is the Sailors. The front of the Bible also had a nice variety of tools including an Abbreviations list that opened up a lot of conversation about the history of the Bible in print, a Measures list that explained the various measurements  used in Biblical times and mentioned in the Bible, and finally the Preface that talked about the translation and a little bit about the King James Version which again led to conversation and connections as we had recently studied Bible translations in a different unit.

Joining the Deep Blue Crew are Asia, Kat, and Edgar. Cameron enjoyed the characters and really got excited to find the characters throughout the Bible, especially with the God's Thought / My Thoughts sections. This past week the boys were working on Psalm 23 in Sunday School and when we looked it up in the Deep Blue Bible Cameron found a "Life Preserver" under the scripture that talked about why Psalm 23 is so popular and reaffirmed what the teacher had been talking about God is always with us and protects us. 

In the back of the Bible there are even more wonderful study tools referred to as Exploration Tools and include a Dictionary, a section of I wonder what to do when I'm ... full of verses to refer to when you are in various situations or moods, and a list of Deep Blue Notes by topic, and a Bet you can reading challenge where various passages are assigned times. Cameron isn't a fast reader so it took a little longer to read most of those passages but the challenge is there for him either way. Finally the last several pages are Bible maps giving the kids a visual way to connect some of the dots in various stories.

I want the boys to be able to find the answers they are looking for and to that end I have made sure they have a variety of translations available to them when studying , thankfully this one is more than just an other translation, it is full of tools and resources to really help them Get DEEP into the WORD.

Deep Blue Kids Bible has Resources online as well. This Bible is available at a variety of online retailers and in a variety of covers and also offers Teacher and Class resources. I am very grateful for the opportunity to review this particular Bible with Cameron at this season of our journey.

Don't just take my word for it, check out what the rest of the crew thought of this Bible. 

disclaimer: as a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew I received a softcover copy of the above mentioned Bible to review and share on our blog. No monetary compensation was received.

The Pilgrim Story online school style #hsreviews

Usually the story of the pilgrim journey is glossed over so much that students don't really learn the truth and the details that are critical to understanding. Not true with The Pilgrim Story from Dayspring Christian Academy.  Dayspring is a Christian Academy that uses the Principal Approach to education, meaning their foundation is the Bible and Biblical principles in all areas and teaching to restore American heritage.  The more I read and understand the Principle approach the more I want to include it in our homeschool. Thankfully, we received a subscription to this class and easily incorporated it into our home. While there was more writing then Cameron liked. We found the slide show style presentations made it easy to watch and pause for discussions or answer questions that might come up.

The graphics that are incorporated into the slideshow are very straightforward and connected well throughout the unit.  The various worksheets and activities to reinforce the messages are again well connected with matching graphics and style with a good variety of activities. I especially liked the notebooking approach of the program where everything once finished moves to the notebook for future reference  making the unit study a lifetime learning project.
With the vocabulary we were able to learn not only new words but their meanings and the possible uses even though for the most part many of the words won't necessarily make it into everyday conversation. (hey, a mom can hope that they will , but really...)
Since the program is mostly online, it was nice to have Cameron work by himself with only as little interaction from Mom or Dad away from the distraction of his brother or the rest of the house.
The Biblical foundation of the program gives me confidence in having him work on the program without the worry of content or conflict.
The Pilgrim Story is geared toward 3rd- 6th graders so was a perfect fit for our 4th grader and retails for $99.00. The price is higher than I would normally pay for a unit study, but for the whole program is realistic especially if you have multiple children in that age range. This would be a great program for a family to do together.
Below is an introduction video about the program.


Being a self-paced program allows for flexible incorporation into your school week, since there isn't an assigned time to log on to view the presentations. That to me is a huge benefit to this particular program. With so many programs I have looked at , meetings where only at certain times making it hard to work it into our day.
The course comes to its end with a virtual field trip , which is a surprise for Cameron as I haven't told him about it yet.
The course also fit perfectly into a class he is taking within our local co-op about symbols of America. Understanding the foundations of this country is more important now then ever before and having the Biblical foundation to accompany it is vital.
Of course you don't have to take just my word for it, the Schoolhouse Review Crew members share their thoughts as well.

disclaimer: As a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew we received a subscription to the above mentioned program in exchange for our honest opinion of the program.

A Cry From Egypt: a read aloud review #hsreviews

As we are studying Old Testament Bible History this year, I was very eager to have Cameron read A Cry From Egypt as a read aloud. 

A Cry From Egypt is written by Hope Auer a recent homeschool graduate and published by Great Waters Press. Hope began writing the story as a school assignment at age 13 when her family was studying Ancient Egypt. 

A couple of things I really liked about the book, while the story takes place during the 7 plagues in Egypt, Miss Auer isn't retelling the story, she is following a family on the outside of the story as they come to know Yahweh as a family in this amazing time. 

I'm leaving most of the review up to Cameron as he has been the one really reading it, but as a parent of a reluctant reader I was so happy I could share this book with him.  Showing him this book written by a young person who was homeschooled gave him a sense of hope in his education and a hope that his struggles with reading could become something bigger as he grows. 

You can purchase advanced readers copy for $12.50 online . You can also follow the author's Facebook Page for fun insights into her writing and upcoming information about the book.

Cameron reading a book (not sure which one)

Cameron's thoughts on the book:

I thought the book was hard to read at first but once I got use to the new names I really enjoyed the story. Mommy read with me so I didn't have to read it all by myself. I also liked learning about the different names of God, that was something new for me, it made me want to read more in my Bible to find out more about his names.

I liked reading the story because it was about children and their story how they came to know God.

I don't really like reading that much so sitting down and reading the book out loud was hard but I'm glad I did it.  Reading it out loud made the story come to life. I know the story of Moses and the seven plagues , but I never thought about the other people and how it really made them feel. 

I don't want to give away the story and I haven't quiet finished the book so if you comment please don't tell me the end.  I'm a slow reader but that is ok, if I keep reading I will get better.

I was so glad Cameron agreed to share his thoughts on reading this book on the blog. He didn't want to write it himself, so I asked him to narrate to me and I would type it. This book is recommended for ages 8 and up and but also makes a good read aloud for the whole family if you are studying Ancient Egypt from a Biblical perspective. 

The Schoolhouse Crew reviewed several books from Great Waters Press, be sure to stop by and check them out. 

disclaimer: as a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew we received a copy of the above book to review and share our thoughts with you our readers. 

The British Hymn Makers? Check out Mr. Pipes from Christian Liberty Press #hsreviews #music #homeschool

Have you ever wondered about where the Hymns we sing came from?  If you have then you are ready to begin this journey.  Take a trip with 2 teens on vacation in England as they befriend Mr. Pipes and learn about the Hymns we sing and the power in the praise and worship music we sing today.
While the suggested grade level for Mr. Pipes and the British Hymn Makers is 7th grade and up, I really enjoyed sharing this story with my boys (2nd and 4th grade) as a read aloud. This is the first book in a series from Christian Liberty Press by Douglas Bond a Pacific Northwest author and English teacher.


Sometimes my boys don't always understand the hymns from church and using this book as an introduction to the idea of Hymn Makers (they really liked that term) has helped them see the bigger picture when it comes to the hymns of praise and worship and the messages in the hymns.  I know that many hymns it is easy to see as they are based on scripture verses making it really easy to introduce the boys to those hymns first. But, getting to know the writers from a different perspective has been not only a learning experience but has also brought us closer to the WORD and helped encourage them to give a little more credit to the hymns we sing. It is about more than words and notes on a page. The message is so much bigger than that.

The boys have so much enjoyed the story time together (partially I think because of the setting and timing it with the recent Olympic games) that I am adding the rest of the series to our school wish list, especially as we move through Ancient History this year and toward the Middle Ages and the Reformation. I love being able to find connections with various subjects and this is looking to be one of those wonderful connections (history, Bible, Music, etc...)

See what the rest of the crew thought of this book

disclaimer: I received an e-book copy of this book free as a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew in exchange for my honest review of the book.