by Just_Aimee on March 2, 2010
Math Mammoth is AWESOME! It is hands-down my most loved product of the TOS-Crew year. WHY? I forgot how to do a lot of math–I have a calculator and very little use for math in my daily world….BUT with a 7th grade daughter who needs to learn concepts such as fractions (which embarrassingly I admit I don’t totally remember), I was stuck in how to teach it to her. 
Concepts (such as fractions) would come up in the curriculum we were using but the explanation on how to do it was not very clear. I was unsure of what to do. I have tried so many math curriculum’s but none were very helpful. I was unsure of what to expect with Math Mammoth. Was it going to be just another math curriculum with a lot of problems and practices and vague instructions?
One great thing about Math Mammoth is that you can purchase a full curriculum for a specific grade level, a worktext based on a specific topic (fractions, divisions, clocks, etc), or worksheets that contain problems only.
Silly Girl and I are working our way through the worktext on fractions! FINALLY a curriculum that provides a complete, clear, and visual explanation of the concepts with lots of practice problems for review.
Today we worked on converting mixed fractions. The page starts with visual representations to explain the concept and gradually reduces the visuals with the last section containing the problems (without the visuals as a guide). This is a great curriculum!
It is also extremely affordable. The fraction book we are using costs $4.50. The curriculum is in eBook format. I chose to have it printed at Staples so that increased our cost slightly. There is also an option to order some of the materials in printed format, as well as options to buy more than one topic and or curriculum choices in package format. Basically, there are options to fit all budgets.
I highly recommend Math Mammoth and it will be the curriculum Silly Girl and I use to master math concepts. LOVE IT!
Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of this curriculum in order to write this review. No other compensation was given. This review represents my honest feedback of this product.
by Just_Aimee on March 1, 2010
OK…so I think that February didn’t really exist 
It certainly flew by very quickly….March will be another quick month. Looked at the calendar yesterday and I only work 19 days this month. The rest are either regular days off, special days off, and SPRING BREAK–which is only 26 short days away–would someone tell the snow that?!
I am excited for spring weather…but it will also bring with it NO EXCUSES to exercise! I need to get out running again.
Things I must do in March:
- Figure out which PA required test to have Moon Boy take…and order it or sign him up.
- Complete my CITI training (part of the dissertation thing) and schedule my proposal review with my committee. Would love to have this thing over and done with by December….
Actually in terms of MUST dos…those are really the only two things. Now the list of SHOULD dos is much longer….but for now will focus on the must dos!
OH…and can I just point out….the other thing that flies by fast…MONEY! Got a little bit back in tax return…but after paying for Moon Boy and Silly Girl to go to summer camp, getting Silly Girl and Moon Boy plane tickets to Granny & PaPa’s house for the summer, paying the local taxes (it is such a privilege to live where we do & the taxes remind us that every six months)…it also was gone before it started. OH well, just grateful it was there to cover those not-so-normal expenses.
How about you? Was your February gone in the blink of an eye? Do you have must-do’s for March?
by Just_Aimee on February 18, 2010
I recently received a copy of Beehive Reader 1 to review. This BEAUTIFUL book is published by All About Spelling and correlates with their level 1 lessons. It is also can be used as a stand-alone early reader.
The book is hard-covered and printed on high quality paper. It is 160 pages and contains 10 stories. All stories have great illustrations and are phonics-based.
From the All About Spelling website:
Your beginning reader will delight in finding out what happens when…
…a busy cat lives in a windmill
…a sleepy bear cub takes a nap
…a grumpy duck demands a snack
…a singing bat befriends a lonely king
… a curious boy shrinks from tall to small
… and much more!
This book is below my children’s age level. It is for beginner readers. However, Silly Girl, who is 12, has learning disabilities–and although, I would not give her this book to read independently as she would likely be insulted, I was able to get her to read it to the little children she babysits for….It provided good practice for her and entertaining stories for the kids. She will add it to her ‘babysitting bag.’ It is one book to carry that contains 10 fun stories!!
The book costs $19.95–which seems high at first–but when you think of it as less than $2 per story it is definitely worth it; and it is something that can be passed down and used a lot. We loved the book and do recommend it if you have beginning readers.
DISCLAIMER: I was provided this reader free of charge for the purpose of giving my honest opinion as part of my involvement in TOS Crew. No other compensation was given.
by Just_Aimee on February 15, 2010
What is the Eclectic Education Series?
The Eclectic Education Series (EES) is a set of textbooks which from roughly 1865 to 1915 WAS education in the United States, almost exclusively. They were the standard textbooks in many states and were chosen independently by over 10,000 school boards as their standard textbooks. (from www.DollarHomeschool.com)
Dollar Homeschool has pulled together all these classic textbooks, scanned them into PDF format, and assembled them on CD’s. The cost for the complete set is $159.
A lot is included for that price.
Ray’s Arithmetic
- Ray’s Primary Arithmetic.
- Ray’s Intellectual Arithmetic
- Ray’s New Elementary Arithmetic 192 pages. /Rudimentary Arithmetic.
- Ray’s New Practical Arithmetic
- Ray’s New Higher Arithmetic
- Ray’s New Elementary Algebra
- Ray’s New Higher Algebra
- Ray’s Treatise on Geometry and Trigonometry
- Ray’s Analytic Geometry
- Ray’s Differential and Integral Calculus
History
- Thalheimer’s Histories
- Cromwell
- Progressive Course in Reading
- Cyclopedia
- Andrews Constitution
- American Poems
- Rhetorical Reading
- Good Morals and Gentle Manners
Science
- Norton’s Elements of Chemistry
- Norton’s Elements of Natural Philosophy.
- Norton’s Elements of Physics
- Ray’s Elements of Astronomy
- Ray’s Surveying and Navigation
- Complete Book Keeping
- Schuyler’s Principles of Logic
- Introduction to Botany
- Nature Study
- First Year Science
- Political Economy
- Simplified Industrial Mechanics
- Guide to Health
McGuffey’s Readers
The Grammar Series
- Long’s Language
- Pinneo’s Grammar
- Harvey’s Grammar
What I think?
It is not something I would ever consider for our family. Although, I respect history and believe we can learn a lot from it, we are a very contemporary family. We do not embrace a classic approach at all.
In addition, most of these resources are available for free on the Internet. The benefit of buying this from Dollar Homeschool is that they have found the resources, assembled them–therefore saving you time if this is something you would want to incorporate into your homeschool. They are classic/old and so therefore are written in an older style; some scans are not totally clear.
That said, if you want a classical approach, and to save time by having to search the Internet for these resources, check out the Dollar Homeschool website. If you want to see what other TOS Crew reviewers are saying, click here.
As a TOS crew member, I was given a free download-able copy of this curriculum in exchange for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.
by Just_Aimee on February 15, 2010
I keep forgetting it is MONDAY!! We have had such a LOOOONG weekend…two snow days + two planned no-school days + two weekend days = almost forgetting what ‘normal’ is like….
We are trying to settle back into our schedule this evening but it is very difficult to adapt!
