Review: Everyday Education, LLC - Perfect Reading, Beautiful Handwriting (TOS Review) #hsreviews #copywork

For this review we used Perfect Reading & Beautiful Handwriting by Everyday Education, LLC.

This book teaches italicized writing, while also teaching reading.  I wish I could say we loved this program, I think it is a good program, it was just not a good match for my kids.  Writing is something they really struggle with (I have boys, not sure if it’s a universal boy thing, but my boys have always struggled with it).  My 7 year old also struggles a bit with reading, so I thought this would be a win/win.  However, it was not.  I also tried this with my almost 6 year old, and it didn’t work out well their either.   

With my 6 year old, I started with the ABC pages, and my 7 year old dove straight into the sentences (maybe that was part of the problem).  Their biggest struggle was the thin writing lines, which were also different from what they have been using.  They found it intimidating and frustrating, and it became a tear fest.  No fun!  I think if this had been their first introduction to writing, it might have gone over better, but the fact it was quite different from what they were use to, caused them stress over it.

I don’t want to discredit this program though, because I think it could be a really great program for someone else.  The italicized writing it uses, is very flowing.  I enjoyed doing some of the copy work myself, and this book could be a great tool for older students to focus on improving on their handwriting.  For my 7 year old, we just skipped the writing and used the reading aspect.

Here is the little bit of writing he did do (with my help).

You can see how the lines are different, he is use to writing on the line with the middle dotted line, but for this program you write in the space between those dotted lines.  Hard to get use to. Or goal was to do once sentence a day.

Here is a sample of my writing:

I skipped several chapters ahead, since I wasn’t learning to read with the program. 

I think the hardest part for my 6 year old, is that they space to write is quite small.  He just isn’t there yet in the fine motor department. So this was a hindrance.

I received the ebook version of this program, so I just printed the pages to use.

The book is recommended for kids as young as 4 or 5, to teach writing and reading, and while I am sure that some kids are ready for this at that age, my kids definitely are not.  Though I could see my daughter being ready in another year or 2 (she is 3).  It is definitely a case by case, every child is different thing to consider.

If your child is ready for the smaller space writing (had great fine motor skills and pencil control), this is definitely a great way to ‘kill two birds with one stone’ so to speak.  It incorporates a hands on aspect to learning to read, and teaches nice handwriting at the same time. 

It is available in a printed format, as an ebook (as mentioned) or you can purchase the printed and ebook format together.

The entire first chapter of the book is for the parent, teaching you how to use the book.  Chapter 2 is ABCs, and Chapter 3 dives right into reading sentences!  Before each page of sentence copywork is a word list.  Words are introduced in a teaching fashion, starting with short a words (as pictured above). 

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Review: Spencer Learning, Ultimate Phonics Reading Program (TOS Review) #hsreviews #phonics #phonicsapp #dyslexia #strugglingreader

For this review we used The Ultimate Phonics Reading Program by Spencer Learning.  I used it with my beginner reader, who is almost 6 years old and in Kindergarten. 

This program was simple for my 5 year old to use on his own, though it was a bit dull. This is not a flashy program, it’s words and sounds, and the voiceover for the program is a bit robotic sounding. He didn’t really mind it though, and enjoyed doing it.

The program is geared towards struggling readers of all ages, and I tried to have my almost 8 year old use it, but he wasn’t interested in it.  I will try again with him though, his opinion of things change from day to day.  (If you have been here before, I’m sure you have heard me mention him).  It can be used for beginning readers, however.

The lessons are fairly short, which was great for my little ones attention span!

The program is downloadable, which is great because you do not need the internet to use it.  It is also not a subscription, so it’s a one time purchase!  It can be used with multiple students, though it does not have separate log ins, nor does it keep track of lessons or any type of scoring.  You would just have to know what lesson you were on and go to it. 

It has a search feature, so if your child needs help with certain letter combinations, or certain words, you can find the lesson that includes them and go straight to that lesson. 

There are free placement tests online, though we did not use them, because my son is a beginner, so we just started with lesson 1.

The first lesson starts out with letters and their sounds, then the 2nd lesson goes right into words!  For the words, they have letter tiles that go sound by sound, and then you can hear the entire word pronounced by hovering the mouse over the each tile and then the full word. 

They also have sentences for the words, and each word is pronounced when you hover over it.

The lessons could be supplemented to make them more hands on, by using letter tiles or something similar, to build the words, as well as see and hear them in the program.  It would be nice if there was a feature in the program that allowed you to move tiles and spell words, but it can easily be added in outside of the program.

You can download and try the program for free for 2 weeks, at which point you would need to make a purchase to receive the license code to activate the program past the trial period. 

The program is pretty straight forward, and not hard to figure out or learn how to use.  Here is a great demo video on the program (which is also available for viewing on the website).

You can see in the video demo that there are also a few tricks with right clicking that can further the program (though young children would most likely need assistance in that regard).

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Twitter:  http://twitter.com/spencerlearning @spencerlearning

Review: jollyliteracy.com–Can Do Cubes (TOS Review) #hsreviews #literacy #reading #phonics #interactivelearning

My youngest two really enjoyed using Can Do Cubes by jollyliteracy.com (just2ducks LLC) for this review. 

If you read my Jolly Phonics review you probably saw that I mentioned the Can Do Cubes!   Here is the review I promised on those!

Can Do Cubes are wooden blocks, about 1 cubic inch in size.  The blocks have a different letter on each side.  They come in sets and are labeled with small numbers as well.

Cube 1 has letters s, a, t, i, p, n
Cube 2 has letters c, k, ck, e, h, r
Cube 3 has m, d, g, o, u, l
Cube 4 has f, b, ai, j, oa, ie

etc…..

We only used the first 4 sets for this review.  There are 8 sets (27 blocks) in Stage One, and Stage Two includes 32 blocks, but the setup is different than Stage One. 

We used the Can Do Cubes with Jolly Phonics.  I had my son sound out the letters for the words on the pages, he would slide the blocks closer together with each sound to visualize blending the sounds together.

The set comes with a booklet for each Stage of blocks, it also comes with an instruction DVD that shows you how to implement the blocks.  This was very helpful! There is a sound pronunciation guide in the booklet, and also on the DVD, a good tool to have!

Additionally, it comes with a CD with printable materials and a teacher’s guide. My youngest (almost 3 yo) has wanted to use the blocks every time she has seen my 5 yo use them!  The printable materials CD had some pages that were more her speed!  She was so happy to use them!

The printable sheets we used had a picture of an object, and a square with a letter in it (the starting letter of the name of that object), they then matched the block with the square and said the letter name and sound, they would also say the name of the picture.  There is a space to write the letter as well (we aren’t there yet). 

These cubes are really great for hands on learning, especially for those kinesthetic/tactile learners!   They are recommended for use by the Dyslexia Action Institute. 

You could make games with them, roll some blocks and then see what words you could make!  You can say words, and have them find the letters to build the word. Use them for spelling tests or other activities in place of writing or in addition to writing… build it first, then write it!  They would work great with these Read, Write and Build Mats from Homeschool Creations.

I love that they also use letter combinations, not just individual letters.  This helps them learn the sounds that letters make when they are together!  It includes combinations like ck, or, ai, ie, nk, ng, th, qu, etc…

There is a sound pronunciation guide in the booklet, and also on the DVD, which is helpful! 

Your imagination is your only limitation for these blocks! 

These blocks are $95 plus tax (shipping is included).  They even have grammar cubes available (at the same cost). 

I would highly recommend them for the tactile learner in your family! 

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Review: jollyliteracy.com–Jolly Phonics and Jolly Grammar (TOS Review) #hsreviews #literacy #reading #phonics #interactivelearning

For this review we used Jolly Phonics and Jolly Grammar by jollyliteracy.com and just2ducks LLC.

We received the following items:

Jolly Phonics Teacher's Book in print letters

Jolly Phonics Student Book 1, 2 and 3

Jolly Grammar 1 Teacher's Book in print letters

Jolly Grammar 1 Student Book

Jolly Songs in print letters

We used mostly the Jolly Phonics Student Book 1, Jolly Songs, and the Jolly Phonics Teacher’s Book.  I used this program with my 5 year old/Kindergartener. 

He really enjoyed the Phonics book, however, he found it difficult to print in lowercase letters, as his writing is not on par with those skills as of yet.  I would have liked to have seen the early books in capital letters, since those are easier letters to form.  Due to this issue, we did the program mostly verbally, using Can Do Cubes (review to follow).  The Jolly Songs were a fun little addition to help him remember the sounds the letters make.  All my children enjoyed listening to this CD in the car, and guessing which letters the songs went to.  Each Jolly Phonics page (in book 1) has a new letter sound, and review letter sounds.  It has a color picture and action to go with the letter sound to help remember it (this also corresponds with the song).  There are writing lines for the new letter and the review letters.  There are color pictures to pick the pictures that start with the sound of the letter, and there are 4 words that contain that letter sound.  The words have dots under each sound made by the letters, to guide in sounding out and blending the sounds.  By the end of the book your child is writing and recognizing words. 

I have a hard time with phonics books that require writing to read, my boys have always been advanced readers but not as advanced in writing.  I have always improvised with programs, using stamps, magnets, etc… The Can Do Cubes were great in this aspect (more on them later).  I have found that capital letters were a lot easier for their early writing stages, but many early writing books start with lower case, as does this book.

I do LOVE that they did not introduce the letters in ABC order, but in sound frequency order, so that they are learning to sound out words by the third page.  In that same concept, letter s is the first letter, and was a VERY frustrating one for him to write, my 7 year old still struggles with S, so that was hard from the beginning.

Jolly Phonics book 2 introduces capital letters, it is more word based, as opposed to just letter sounds and combinations. Book 3 introduces bigger words and more writing, including sentences.

Jolly Grammar book 1 introduces a lot more dictation, focusing on spelling, as well as grammatical concepts, such as nouns, verbs and adjectives. 

All the books include color pictures, to keep your child’s attention.  There are multiple activities for each concept to include all types of learners. 

I really wanted my 7 year old to try this books, but alas he is stubborn and was not interested (this is a constant struggle).  I will definitely try again, however. 

All in all, as far as a reading/phonics program goes, I think this is a solid program.  The writing aspect will vary from child to child.  If you have a child that is able to write at the same time they are ready to start reading, this is a perfect match!  If you have kids like mine, who are ahead in one area, and not the other… it makes a program like this one difficult to implement exactly as it was designed. 

The multi-sensory aspects of this program are definitely a strong point!  I love that there are hand motions, and songs for each letter/letter combo.  The writing (if your child is able) is also a great way to absorb it.  I love that they are ‘reading’ by the 2nd page, which really helps build a child’s self esteem and confidence, which in turn encourages them to continue with the program and keep learning/reading!

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Review: Star Toaster - Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree (TOS Review) #hsreviews #readingsupplement #readingapp #readinggame

For this review we used the app Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree by Star Toaster on the iPad. 

This is our second review of a Star Toaster product.  This product was different, in that it is designed as an application for iPad and it was geared towards younger children (a lower reading level than the other product). 

I used this product with my 7 year old.  He loved it!  Unfortunately, he is not reading at the level this program required, so he was not able to use the product on his own.  (It would be great if the app read to you!).  His comprehension is on par, so I read the story to him and I read the questions and answer choices….he answered them.  If there was a vocal option, we would have loved this app even more!

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree is a story about a flying squirrel named Abba.  The nearby town has been flooded when a dam broke and she is searching for her friends and family.

The story has highlighted words as you go along, which can be clicked on and that is where the lessons are given.  As you read through the chapters, you can perform jobs to earn items that are needed to take care of the orphans that Abba finds as she searches for her family and friends. 

We found it a tad distracting and that it broke up the story to click on each highlighted word, instead at the end of each chapter, we would click on the star at the bottom and then do the ‘training’ for the jobs before doing the jobs.  (If you clicked on the words during the story, the training would show as already completed, so either way works).

The pictures for the training and jobs match, so you know which training to do before which jobs.  The jobs consist of multiple choice questions, and points are earned.  You need a certain number of points to earn each necessary item.  Pictured above you need 20 points to earn the water barrel.  Items vary, and so do required points.

These are the types of items you earn to take care of the orphs (orphans)

At the end of each chapter you click on the star at the bottom and you are taken to a Stumptown, you can tell if their are jobs available by the numbers above the houses.

You do not need to complete jobs after each chapter, but my son liked to do it that way.  They just add up over time, some chapters end with more jobs than others. 

Some of the job trainings are audio/video based, but most are reading.  Again, an audio option would be awesome!  That’s the only thing missing from this!

The jobs cover a wide range of subjects, from science to language arts and more!

You can assign more than one user to the program too, which is great.  My 10 year old also has an account on the program, and while he found it interesting, I think he found it a bit simple for him.  He enjoyed the program we reviewed last time better, it was a higher level.

This type of program is perfect for my 7 year old, because he is one that digs his heels in when it comes to ‘school work’.  In this program he is learning and having fun and has no idea it’s ‘work’. 

The app is only $1.99, and is made for iPad or iPhone.  Parents are able to see their child’s work report too!  It’s designed for ages 9-11, but my 7 year old was able to do all of the jobs without a problem (minus the independent reading).  It’s a cute story and it’s filled with humor, which make it even more fun! 

We are huge fans of Star Toaster here!

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Review: ABeCeDarian Company: ABeCeDarian Interactive A Workbook (TOS Review) #hsreviews #reading #phonics #readingprogram

For this review I used AbeCeDarian Interactive A Workbook from the ABeCeDarian Company with my 5 year old (kindergartener).  We used the program an average of 3 days a week, and used it mostly on the iPad (iPad 2 version, with Google Chrome).  We also received a digital version of the Teacher Manual to use with this program.

Overall this is a neat program.  It’s a bit confusing to get started at first, you definitely need the teacher manual, as it explains bit by bit how to work this program, including a dialogue to follow, and pictures of what the pages should look like.  Start with the teacher manual, or you will be completely lost as to what to do!  It is laid out very easily though in the manual!

The program itself is very slow to load initially.  Be patient.  I also had issues logging in, there is a CAPTCHA, those things can be such a challenge!  I’m not sure the purpose of it, there has to be an easier way! 

Each time you go to the page, it starts at the beginning, you click through the directions and then the table of contents page comes up and you click which lesson you want to go to (it would be really nice if it had a place holder instead!).

I discovered that the way the pages look in the manual are not the same as in the digital program.  If using a tablet browser, it’s best to have it in portrait position, and if you click on the lesson title in the bottom right corner you can scroll through the missing parts of the page (as it’s listed in the manual).  I did not discover this until much later, and honestly portrait position makes the letters appear a little squished, I preferred to use it in landscape with my son.  I was told they would be making a NEW manual specifically for this program soon.  After having these issues, I pulled it up on the laptop and feel that the viewing of it is much better there, but if you don’t have a touch screen, the writing portions could be difficult this way.

The writing portion of the program is a bit finicky, I was told they are working on this problem.  It’s not smooth to write, and if my child rested his hand at any point while writing, it would shoot a line across the screen.  It was a tad frustrating for him.  We did find using a stylus helped a lot with the writing portion.

You navigate from page to page by clicking the upper right corner, this also is a bit finicky but I discovered that it works best if you click precisely in the corner where the white screen meets the blue border. 

So, as you can see there a few ‘bugs’ with the program, but over all, I found the concept of the program easy to use, I really liked the pull down tiles for spelling words in each lesson, that was probably my son’s favorite part.

Here is a screen shot from one of our lessons

I also found this great YouTube video from ABeCeDarian that really lays out how to use the program, I found it super helpful and wanted to share.

Part 1

Part 2

Overall I think there is some room for improvements in this program, I actually think it would work better as an actual app, as opposed to in the web browser, but I think the concept and lesson layouts are great. 

The subscription is $14.95 for a year and you can add additional years for $4.95 each year.   The teacher manual is $9.95 for a printed version, the digital version is available for free.  I read the manual from my iPad, while my child worked on another device. 

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Review: MaxScholar (TOS Review) #hsreviews #dyslexia #learningdisabilities #ortongillingham #phonics

For this review we used MaxGuru, MaxScholar Reading Intervention Programs from MaxScholar.  MaxGuru includes grades K-12. The MaxScholar program has several components.  These consist of MaxPhonics, MaxReading (the two main components), MaxWords, MaxMusic, MaxVocab, MaxPlaces and MaxBios.

My two oldest children, ages 10 and 7, used this program. 

My 10 year old mostly used the MaxMusic section.  This was his favorite part, though I insist he try all the choices, he came back to music every time.  MaxMusic takes modern music and turns it into a grammar lesson, they highlight parts of speech throughout the lyrics of the song in one game.  In another game they replace the missing words, and another time they repeat back the notes that are played.   The only problem with this program is that he wanted to spend all day doing it!  I caught him a few times logging in on a Saturday, just for fun.  While I wish he had been a little  more rounded in his use of the program, I am happy he enjoyed this, and I feel like it helped him in grammar as well.

He wrote the notes down to play one song, and I’m going to have him actually write the music out on a staff for it.  So this lesson was extended into his actual piano learning, which was great!  I guess technically this could count as music for reporting purposes too! 

He also enjoyed the guitar game in the MaxMusic

My 7 year old started out with MaxPhonics, but found that it was too young for him.  MaxPhonics, focuses on letter sounds, writing letters, all pre reading stuff.  My 7 year old still struggles in reading, but he is beyond the basics.  I think this program would be more suited for my 5 year old.  He then went on to MaxReading, he enjoyed this section; however, it had audio for the stories (which was nice since he isn’t fully reading yet), but after that there was no audio.  I helped him with the highlighting, read him the questions and answers at the end.  He could not have done the program on his own.  It was a great test of his listening comprehension though.  I feel like there really wasn’t anything for the “in between” stage of reading, where my son currently sits.  Unless I’m missing something.  When we first logged in, he went to take a placement test, but the test was set to the highest level, I contacted them, and they immediately changed it…but that test was for MaxReading, there was not initially a test for MaxPhonics.  I see there is one now (pictured below), and so I had my son take it.  It was a lengthy test, he kept asking if he was done yet, and it seemed to just ask the same questions over and over again, and when all was said and done, he still started at the beginning, which was too easy for him.  So I’m not sure about the test. 

There is also a parent section where you can see your child’s progress.  However, it doesn’t seem to be accurate, and I didn’t find it all that helpful, I have no idea what it means really.  I can’t tell what they are lacking in, what they actually did or anything like that.

10 yo:

The only available information under the detailed report for this child was under the MaxMusic section, which lists the songs he has done.

7 yo:

There was no information under the detailed report for this child.

We used this program 3-5 times a week (depending on the week), sometimes my oldest would do one lesson, sometimes he would do more.  My 7 year old and I would work through one story on MaxReading each sitting. 

My 7 year old (the picky one) didn’t mind this program, it frustrated him that he couldn’t do it on his own, but I do think he liked listening to the stories.  He really wanted to get 100% on the highlighting though, and even with my help, I think the best we got was 86%  He is a perfectionist.

As previously mentioned the 10 year old spent all his time at MaxMusic.  It would be nice if there was some way to make assignments, or they had to do one Reading lesson before spending time elsewhere.  A more detailed parent report would be nice too. 

Overall, I do think this is a fun program, it has a lot of potential.  I don’t get the highlighting, my kids didn’t either, that is frustrating.  The other learning games are a great way to learn and have fun.  This would work well for those with learning disabilities that need a different approach to learning.  There are a lot of features that my son didn’t really utilize that I looked at that I thought were great!  You can register for a free trial to check it out and see if it is something that would work for your child before purchasing.

Part of the issues I had may be solved in an individual license, we were given our trial as a school license, so we did not have ‘teacher’ access, only parent.

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    Facebook: MaxScholar, https://www.facebook.com/MaxScholarLLC/?fref=nf
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