You Can be ‘Beeyoutiful’ Too!

Beeyoutiful is a company I had not experienced until a couple of months ago.  It is a company specializing in natural products aimed at helping others achieve and maintain good health.  I was given two of Beeyoutiful’s products for purpose of review.  One of the products was their lip balm.  I virtually had to  hide it because all of my kids wanted it for themselves.  It is amazing lip balm.  It is moisturizing and smells fantastic!  It is available on the website for $3.00.  The second product  we received was the Tension Tamer.  This is a roll on product (the packaging reminds me of lip gloss I used as a teenager) that is small enough to be carried in a purse or pocket.  It has a scent that is sort of a cross between menthol and wintergreen.  The scent is absolutely intoxicating.  The day we received it, one of my kids had a terrible headache that was affecting the muscles in his neck.  He doesn’t like to take medicine unless absolutely necessary, so he was trying to get through the headache without anything.  We read the information about the Tension Tamer and he tried it.  He rolled it onto his neck, temples, and pulse points on his wrists.  Within a very few minutes, the tension in his neck was relieved and his headache was much better.  I have kept it with me constantly for the past month.  We have been battling head colds and sinus issues.  The Tension Tamer is wonderful to help ‘open up’ a stuffy head and relieve the accompanying headache.  Tension Tamer is available on the website for $11.00.  It is worth every penny! I know I will have to order more of the lip balm and the Tension Tamer when I run out.  We love both products around here.  I have been looking at other products on the Beeyoutiful website and it looks like there will be a lot of other products we will be trying, too.  I recommend these products for anyone in the family.  The age range for appropriate use will be listed with product information, just as with any health-type product.  Beeyoutiful products can be purchased through their website.  Other TOS Homeschool Crew members reviewed these products as well as other cool products from Beeyoutiful.  To read their reviews, visit the main crew blog page here.

**I have received no compensation from TOS or Beeyoutiful in exchange for this review.”

New Blog Followers Challenge!

This week I am rewarding new followers of my blog with a freebie! How do you get it? Follow the blog then leave a comment below letting me know you followed. Include your email address so I can send you your gift. The new follower's freebie is a copy of my devotional book called "Reversing Burnout." Hope to hear from you!

Faster than a Dictionary

Kids (and adults) have become so spoiled to using ‘spell-check’ when writing on a computer. I am a little old-fashioned and I still like to require rough drafts that are hand written.  There is no spell-check when you are hand writing something, though.  Hearing ‘go check the dictionary’ when a word spelling is needed gets a little old.  Kids give all sorts of excuses – ‘I can’t find the dictionary.’ ‘The dictionary is too big.’ ‘How can I find the word I need if I don’t know how to spell it?’

 See-N-Spell, a product of CadenaSmith Enterprises, is an easy-to-use and affordable tool to help increase vocabulary and spelling skills.  It is not a dictionary.  It is a compilation of the “300+ most common vocabulary words and the most commonly misspelled words in the (American) English language.” With See-N-Spell, students simply need to know the first letter of the word for which they are searching.  Words in See-N-Spell are listed alphabetically in three sections: 

1. Most Commonly Used Vocabulary Words
2. Commonly Misspelled Words
3. My Special Interest Words

Unlike a dictionary or thesaurus, containing thousands of words, the See-N-Spell tool only contains 40 pages and slightly over 300 words.  It is much easier to navigate than a large lexicon.  It is convenient to slip in a notebook or back pack for use at any time.  This is proving to be a great resource for those moments when the word you want is ‘right on the tip of your tongue.’  We are learning the See-N-Spell is fabulous for helping a writer vary vocabulary within a written piece.  There are many writing curricula available currently which emphasize varying vocabulary in writing.  With the See-N-Spell tool around, this is easy. 

When you purchase See-N-Spell you will also receive a See-N-Read tool. We love this tool!  It is a must have for emerging readers or for anyone with tracking issues, dyslexia, or other vision / learning difficulties. 

See-N-Spell is available online for $9.99.  This includes both the See-N-Spell book and the See-N-Read tool.  It is recommended for grade 4 – adult, but, I could see younger students using it if they were more advanced in their writing and reading skills. 

**I have received no compensation from TOS or CadenaSmith Enterprises in exchange for this honest review.”

Math Facts are Fun!

A good foundation in math is as important as a good foundation when you are building a house.  Learning basic math facts is the backbone of every math operation.  Any and every student can benefit from learning and/or reviewing addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division facts.  As important as this drilling is, it can be very boring.  That’s where Math Rider comes in.  Math Rider is a fun math facts game geared toward children ages  6-12.  It could be appropriate for children outside that age range depending on their math level. 

We were able to use and review this game both last year and this year. We have enjoyed it both times and have been able to see improvement in the game with the newer version we are using now.  The basic concept of Math Rider is simple.  The player is a rider on a horse.  The player rides the horse through different fantasy quests, solving math facts over the course of the quest.  The quests become more challenging as the player becomes more proficient in the math facts.  Parents can choose the math operations covered on the quest, as well as the difficulty of the facts.  From the Math Rider website:

“A lot of otherwise good games suffer from quirky controls or from making the game-play itself too difficult. It is incredibly sad to watch kids fail a math game, even though they know the correct answer, because they mistimed their spaceship’s shot, or because jumping over that ledge is just too hard. These things have nothing to do with math, so why put hand-eye coordination requirements into a math game?

In MathRider we specifically designed the controls such that they will not get in the way of practising maths. If you can do the math, you win, simple as that. All the player needs to do is key in the correct number and press ‘Enter’. The game does the rest. Sound effects, animation, riding speed and so on are automatically controlled and adjusted. In this way, your child can fully focus on practising their math while still enjoying a highly entertaining game.”

If you have a horse lover, or a fantasy story (think King Arthur type fantasy) lover in your family, this is definitely the math game for them!  Installation is easy and fairly quick.  Setting up players for quests is very easy to do, and the quests automatically gauge student’s progress for you.  Math Rider is available on the Math Rider website for only $37 (instant download access) until February 15.  After that, the price increases to $47.  Math Rider is a very easy to use and effective math facts game.  To read other reviews of Math Rider, visit the main TOS Homeschool Crew blog.

**I have received no compensation from TOS or Math Rider in exchange for this review.**

Observing the Heavens

Jay Ryan has published a new volume of Celestial Almanack and it is beautiful.  Have you ever looked at the stars and wondered what you were seeing?  I can sometimes find a couple of constellations; but, typically I don't know where to look (or if I am looking at the right thing).  Celestial Almanack, available through CurrClick, is a fascinating day-by-day guide to the goings on in the heavens.  We have been able to use this second volume for purposes of review and have been greatly impresses.  I wish the cloud cover would be a bit more cooperative at night so we could actually see more!  Celestial Almanack is a monthly publication, published by Classical Astronomy.  It highlights lunar events, solar events, and other seasonal events with the stars.  This book is written in an old world type font making it appear to be an ancient almanack.  It is really fun to look at and full of more information than one could possibly digest each day.  We are looking forward to learning more about our universe as the month of February progresses.
     Celestial Almanack is available as a downloadable product for $3.00 at Currclick. Quite a bargain for the amount of astronomical information included!  You would be hard pressed to find more current information in any astronomy textbook.  To read about what other TOS Homeschool Crew reviewers have to say about Celestial Almanack, check out the main crew blog.
     **I have received no compensation from Classical Astronomy or TOS in exchange for this review.**

Kinderbach

Kinderbach is a fun, computer-based, introductory music program geared toward kids ages 2-7.  Oh, how I wish this had been around when my kids were small!  The folks at Kinderbach have designed over 20 hours of engaging piano / music lessons.  Students learn through video lessons and optional activity pages.  I especially appreciate the forward thinking of Kinderbach.  The first lesson is available to use on some mobile devices and other lessons will be available soon in the ‘app’ format.  Kinderbach is simple to use and, for these introductory lessons, even a toy keyboard will work for practice. After completing this program, students are well prepared to move on to more advanced piano studies.  Students are exposed to rhythm, note reading, fingering patterns, and melody, just to name a few of the topics covered in this program.  Each lesson is ‘taught’ by an animated character who is very ‘kid-friendly.’ The lessons are short enough for a young preschooler to stay on task yet challenging enough for the older preschooler / young elementary student to remain interested.  Most of all, the kids stay interested because they are playing music.  What child doesn’t love music? Kinderbach is available for home study (the version I tried and reviewed) and classroom use.  I have already recommended the home study version to my oldest daughter (who works as a nanny to 4).  She is excited to try it with the preschoolers. All in all, Kinderbach is a thorough program that is spot on for beginning music studies.  It will spark music interest in even the most reluctant child.  There are many free supplemental resources available on the Kinderbach website.  These are optional, of course.  Kinderbach is very affordable when compared to the cost of private piano lessons.  The online version begins at $7.99/month and the DVD/CD version (great for slow internet connections) begins at $40.45/month.  Right now, for readers of the TOS Homeschool Crew blogs, Kinderbach is offering a 30% discount by using the coupon code TOScrew2012.  This is good through February 2, 2013! Wow!  You can even sample the program online for free!  To read other reviews of the Kinderbach program, check out the main TOS Homeschool Crew review blog.

**I have received no compensation from TOS or Kinderbach in exchange for this review.  The opinions expressed are my own.”