TOS Crew Review - Travel Kits E-book

Just picture it, traveling down the interstate  with a handful of  screaming kids..with the incessant  'Are we there yet??? ' coming from the back row......have you had a car trip that resembled this tale?? I know that we have!!!

Travel Kits, A Simple Way to Bless Others an E-Book by TOS is here to save the day...

As part of the Homeschool Crew we were given a free copy of Travel Kits E-book in exchange for our honest opinion.

Donna Rees the author of Travel Kits challenges you to demonstrate a little love, a little ingenuity, and a little organization: by making a travel kit—a simple way to bless others.

So what is a Travel Kit you ask ~ it is a collection of gifts that you can create for your family, or as a gift for a family you know who is about to set sail, that are designed to entertain and/or delight the recipient.  I should note here, that Travel Kits are not just for young children. While that was my example, and yes, little ones need lots of things to keep them entertained. Everyone, any age, love to be thought of, and Travel Kits are a wonderful way to help them feel loved and cared for!  Even grown ups!

Within the pages of Travel Kits,  Donna Rees takes  you step by step on how you can create your own Travel Kits.

At the foundation, you are ministering to the family you are blessing. Whether it is your own family or a family you know the principle is the same. In the bible we are instructed in Luke 6:31, ' And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.'   In Phil 2:3 it says '...let each esteem other better than themselves'.

Keeping these biblical principles in mind, Donna has you look at who your recipients are, how long will they be traveling, and what are some of their interests. Once you have done that, you will be able to create a Travel Kit that will bless those who receive it.

Donna will then show you how you can gather items for each member of the family. How to wrap them, assemble them and even how to disperse gifts throughout the trip.

Donna really makes the process fool proof! No expertise needed, only a loving heart, and a desire to bless!

As I read this book, not only did I think of many ways that I could use travel kits for my own family, as well as, families I know. But, I also thought of several ideas that I could use for many occasions, using the same principles.

I challenge you to stop by the The Schoolhouse Store and purchase your copy of Travel Kits, (available for $12.45)  and start blessing those around you! And better yet, come up with even more ideas to bless those around you, using the ideas you learned using Travel Kits, and then come back here and post about them!

Take a moment to visit the Crew Blog to see what my crew mates have to say about Travel Kits!

May you all be blessed as you bless those you love!

TOS Crew Review - Schoolhouse Planner Module June 2010

The 3rd Voyage of the TOS Homeschool Crew has set sail, and our first review item has boarded! We were given a free copy of  The June 2010 Module Travel the World, for the Schoolhouse Planner for free for the purpose of review.

Now, I should tell you before we go any farther, I have always loved the Schoolhouse Planner and the modules! So, I was looking forward to reviewing this one!

So many times when you get one of these  'E-books', they really are geared for the younger set. While Travel the World, does have plenty of information and activities for that age group, (coloring pages, word finds, lapbook beginnings, etc..). What impressed me was that they have gone the extra mile to include a high school section. Now that I have 4 high school students, this is a very important aspect for me.

This is not simply an E-book that you can print out and use, which you can do, by the way. However, it is chock full of interactive links throughout the module. Links are included in both the younger section, as well as, the high school section.

The links consists of additional information, as well as games that your child can use to help cement the information into their brains.

Another blessing of this module, is the fact that it is from a Christian Worldview.  God and His Word are throughout the unit. And not just as an afterthought. Each passage included is relevant to the point of study.

While clearly not a year long course, for $7.95 this is an awesome supplement that will help your child, no matter the age, either become familiar with the geography of the world, or for the older students, help concrete knowledge they may have already been exposed to.

I highly recommend Travel the World to any homeschooler!

Visit the Schoolhouse store to find Travel Around the World and other Planner Modules!

As always, please visit the crew blog to see what my crew mates are saying!

Happy Traveling!

SALE: Math Galaxy

Below you will find my original review for Galaxy of Education, for Math Galaxy.  While looking through my reviews, trying to find one to place  in our local homeschool group newlsetter, I discovered that Math Galaxy is having a huge sale for a limited time!!! It appears that their prices are 50% off. For a limited time!

If you need a math supplement, please take a moment to visit their website to see if it is a good fit for your family!!!

Our next stop on our TOS Homeschool Crew Voyage is with the fine people at Galaxy of Education. As Crew Mates we were given free access to their Math Galaxy Programs and E-books in exchange for our honest opinions.

If you have followed my voyage for any amount of time, you know that math is not my favorite subject. So anytime I stumble across a program or tool that will help me teach my children math skills, this intrigues me. Will it indeed be a program that will help us?

First, let's look at what they have available. There are several Java-based programs covering the topics of;

~Math Galaxy Whole Numbers Fun
~Math Galaxy Word Problems Fun
~Math Galaxy Fractions Fun
~Math Galaxy Decimals, Proportions and Percents Fun
~Math Galaxy Pre-Algebra Fun
~Math Galaxy Algebra Fun

There is also something available called The Riddler Worksheet  Generator. It is available in the following titles;

~Whole Numbers
~Fractions
~Decimal Proportions Percents
~Algebra

Math Galaxy also offers several E-books they call Riddles Books. They are

~Fraction Riddles E-book
~Algebra Riddles E-book
~Whole Numbers Riddles E-book
~Decimal Riddles E-book

I have seen pros and cons with these programs. The PROS: my son enjoyed using them! That is half the battle right there, isn't it? He would sit down and work about 45 minutes on his math. Secondly, it really was helping him The way the program works is when you click into a subject, say... 'Area' off of the screen below...

You are then taken to a screen that gives you a couple of options. One of those options is 'review'. When you click on that area, it is a tutorial. Your child will click through a series of screens learning the skill he will be using in that section. Once he completes that  he can move onto the doing the practice problems. You can choose to have them do 'step by step' or 'final answer only'. We always chose 'step by step'.  These programs have helped to move him along quicker than he was working through his math previously. That is a plus!

Now, what are the con's? First, your child needs to be a reader! If you have a struggling reader, then this program is not going to be a good fit. They have to read through the tutorials and problems.  We have several dyslexics in my home, so this was an issue for some of my children.  The second would be that, when the child does his work he earns robots, that allow him to play some games that are included with the program. Which is a great incentive. However, you must be aware that the robots do not carry over for future use. So you need to work that reward time, into the time you have allowed them to use Math Galaxy.  And the final con, is that it is not a tool that you can use, and see really how your children are doing. There are no reports offered to show they have mastered a skill, or even what kinds of problems they have been doing. Having this feature would really enhance this product.

However, even with the cons that I listed, I really did like this program. We learned how to work the program to best serve our family and it really has been a blessing.

You can order any of the Java Based Programs and the Riddlers Worksheet Generators for $24.95 each. The  E-books are available for $12.95. You can order all of these products  by visiting Math Galaxy.

Please take a moment to cruise on over to the crew blog to see what my crew mates have to say about these products.

Sarah's Wish

**Note: if you are reading this on facebook, please scroll to the bottom and click "original post".

I was so very fortunate to receive a complimentary and autographed copy of Sarah's Wish, by Jim Baumgardner to review, as a member of The Homeschool Crew. Sarah's Wish is the first book in a Christian Historical Fiction Series.

Before I tell you about the book, I want to share with you my thoughts about the author Jim Baumgardner. During the review process, we as the crew, often will receive a few emails from the publisher/author/creator of what we are reviewing. Mr. Baumgardner has been a joy! In fact he has been a hoot! LOL!
The emails that he sent us have actually had me giggling right out loud! And the good thing about that, is that his wit is sprinkled throughout the story Sarah's Wish.

Here is how Mr. Baumgardner introduced himself to the crew:

"I am a 62-year-old grandfather of nine grandchildren, all homeschooled by my two daughters and one daughter-in-law. The Sarah Books are authored by me for my grandchildren.  I say that so that you will know these books do n ot have any sex, profanity, or anything that would be offensive to young readers. I would never subject my grandchildren to such writing. "

I have to tell you, I just loved this book!

I'll be honest with you, when I began reading the book, I did not read the back of the book, I just opened it up and read it. At least, that is how I started reading it... you'll have to keep reading to see how I finished the book!  Anyhow, I loved reading the book only knowing the setting, and not the premise. The only bit of information I had  was that it was set in 1858, Ohio.

As I read the book, it reminded me of a Stephen Spielberg film. Think Indiana Jones... when you sit down to watch one of the Indy movies, within the first five minutes of the film, some major action scene unfolds and you are totally immersed in the story.

That is exactly how Sarah's Wish begins. And before you know it, you have a hard time putting the book down, you want to know what is going to happen to sweet Sarah next.  And because I did not read the "sleeve" information, I was reading in anticipation of  what I thought would come next. And I loved that!  However, I feel that it would be a bit of an injustice to not share some of what I found in the story with you.

***Spoiler Alert***
Don't read this section if you do not want to know about the story. Scroll down to the next set of ****.

As I mentioned earlier, the story takes place in 1858, Ohio. Just prior to The Civil War. Sarah is orphaned and left with the

responsibility of delivering 'the packages' that had just arrived at their home. Her mother had always told her that they must not tell anyone about 'the packages'. It must be kept secret. What are these packages??

We quickly learn that 'packages' were runaway slaves traveling along the Underground Railroad. They used this name as to not tip off the slave catchers.

Sarah's Wish is indeed about Sarah's Wish, however this is historical fiction. So, the setting of the Underground  Railroad, and Sarah's heart to help these dear souls to find freedom are throughout the story. Along with the adventures of Sarah and the people in her life.

End of Spoiler!!!************

The characters in the story are vivid indeed, especially Granny Evans. She speaks with sayings that I have heard, or remind me of something that my grandfather from Georgia would say! And I love those colloquialisms. Doc Baum, the town doctor is the great, great grandfather of the author,  Jim Baumgardner. Talk about having a connection.

An aspect that I really like about this book is that it is unabashedly Christian. When you are reading it you know where each of the characters stand.    As Sarah is on her journey, praying for her wish, each time she is feeling low, a butterfly flitters by and lifts her spirits. Reminding her to keep her faith!

This book as been a hit in my house! I now have a wish of my own! The rest of the books in the Sarah series have been placed on my "wish-list"! As I told you at the beginning of this review. I started out reading this book. However, I quickly discovered that my book was not only autographed to me... there is also a link to download an audio version of the book!!! Wahoo!! So I ended up listening to the whole thing ( listened to the parts I already read) on my computer! I was drawn in to the story! It was amazing. Very similar to the old time radio shows! (As mentioned in the beginning of the book!)

As many of you know, I have several special needs in my house. So it is such a blessing to have quality Christian Historical Fiction in audio form, in order to help my struggling readers enjoy this amazing story!

Because this is historical fiction, there are phrases and words that are no longer in our vernacular, so Mr. Baumgardner has included a glossary of terms. While there are terms that are included in this story, that are offensive, we must look at the time frame of our history that we are discussing. And I have to tell you that it was handled very well. I commend Mr. Baumgardner for painting what I think is a good picture of that time period. ( considering I was not alive then )

Sarah's Wish is available at www.sarahbooks.net for $9.99. You, too, can have your copy autographed! You will also find the other books in the Sarah Series available for individual purchase or bundles.

There is also a free monthly email newsletter available called "Sarah's Web Newsletter. You will find history facts, a question of the month among other fun tidbits. You can sign up for that on Sarah's Website.

When you visit the website, read the books, and look at the newsletter, you can see that the Sarah Series is a labor of love. I would like to thank Mr. Baumgardner for introducing us to Sarah!

If you would like to see what the rest of the crew has to say, please visit the crew blog!

******This just in******

We have a special offer for the readers of our blogs. If you are interested in the Sarah Series, Mr. Baumgardner has offered you a special. Here it is:

Mail Order Only:

Sarah’s Wish – 126 pages $8.50 retail: $10.99 save $2.49

Sarah’s Promise – 245 pages $10.50 retail: $14.99 save $4.49

Sarah’s Escape – 304 pages $15.50 retail: $21.99 save $6.49

Extra special offer: Purchase all of the items above and add an extra copy of Sarah’s Wish for $4.00. You can give it to a friend. They will think you are great!

If you are interested in this offer, please send me an email at Jsouthern93(at)gmail(dot)com. And I will email you the required order form.

Mr. Baumgardner sent us this offer after our reviews were posted. I wanted to share it with you. However, with this offer, we may be eligible to recieve and additional free book. Please, know that I wrote my review prior to this offer. The review reflects my honest opinions.