Keeping Our Family Safe

For the most part, the Internet can be a rewarding place for kids, teens, and adults, but the potential risks to privacy and personal safety are real. While surfing the Web, your children may stumble upon disturbing information or images, or they may innocently accept or share files that could expose your family to identity theft or computer viruses. They may encounter cyberbullies who try to embarrass or intimidate them. Even worse, your children may unknowingly communicate with child predators, who use the Internet to befriend vulnerable children by pretending to be another child or a trustworthy adult and then try to persuade them to meet in person.Being aware of the risks and engaging with your children about safety are the most important things you can do to keep your family safer online.

"PGKey (http://www.pgkey.com/) was created and endorsed by a team that includes Internet security specialists, law enforcement, educators, parenting experts and family psychologists to give you the first complete Internet safety solution. PG Key gives you everything you need to keep your children and teens safe online and be alerted and informed when dangers do come up – all with one simple, plug in device."

PGKey places the control of Internet security in the hands of parents in one easy step. Plug it in and go! Take a look at some of the reasoning behind the development of PGKey:
Strong and effective parenting is the most critical part of any strategy to deal with these challenges. They have designed PG Key to be the all in one technical product for this purpose.
Simply plugging PG Key into a child’s or teen’s computer allows parents to follow the advice so often given by law enforcement and parenting experts: 1) Control when and how long the computer is used, 2) Properly setup your system with filters and web site blocking, 3) Create the “over their shoulder” environment that encourages kids to act the same way “on line” as they do in every other part of their life.
Simply put - PG Key does NOT replace parenting with technology - It ENABLES parenting with technology.

Here are some of the features of PGKey, straight from their website:
Access Control
Control computer use by inserting or unplugging PG Key.
Time Allowance
Decide the amount of time the computer can be used daily.
Content Filtering
Eliminate unwanted results from innocent searches.
Site Blocking
Block sites you decide are inappropriate.
Activity Tracking
Review all activity on the PC with a DVD-like interface.
Activity Notifications
Be informed via text message or e-mail of any flagged activity.
Chat and E-mail Logging
See both sides of chat and e-mail conversations.
Computer Configuration
Properly configure all users of the protected PC.
User Name and Password Logging
Keep track of user names and passwords.
Inappropriate Activity Evidence
Use video recording to show obvious or suspected inappropriate activity.

From my own experience, PGKey is easy to install and use. It is so simple that even a "techno-challenged" person like can understand and use it. We have always followed the policy of keeping computers out in the open, and we have always locked our computers to prevent unauthorized usage, but PGKey adds many more layers to the security when my children are on the Internet. I would highly recommend PGKey for any family desiring the safest possible Internet experience for their children. Just like any computer "gadget," you do need to spend a little time becoming familiar with the features and setting up parameters. The minuscule amount of time spent in learning the system is inconsequential to the amount of peace of mind you have in knowing everything your child does on the protected computer. Our families are definitely worth it!

For other reviews of PGKey see: http://homeschoolblogger.com/homeschoolcrew/783233/

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

Let's Take a Trip!

As a science "nut," I was thrilled to be able to examine Digital Frog International's field trip series DVD. **I have not been compensated in any way by Digital Frog International or TOS. The opinions expressed below are solely mine.**

When I received this DVD, I was unfamiliar with the company itself. From the name listed I assumed the DVD I would be viewing would be a virtual frog dissection. Digital Frog International does have a virtual frog dissection, but they are about much more than this.

What exactly is Digital Frog International?

(from the Digital Frog International website: http://www.digitalfrog.com/products/index.html
We are an innovative, enthusiastic, software company, dedicated to creating high-quality educational, multimedia CD-ROMs with an ecological focus. Our corporate headquarters is a converted barn surrounded by frogs, dogs and bogs in rural Ontario, Canada.

Our focus is on biology and ecology. Our goal is to make a difference to the way people view the natural world. Our computer-based learning tools encourage a lifelong interest in, and respect for, the world around us. We believe that people cannot care about a world they do not understand. To this end, our products present accurate, detailed information in an interesting and engaging way.

I received the Digital Field Trip Series. This DVD series is beautifully mastered and delightfully informative. The DVD contains three virtual field trips. Here is a screen shot of the field trip to "The Rainforest." Notice the vibrant colors. The DVD program is interactive and very user-friendly. How many children and parents can actually visit The Rainforest in person? Very few, I would venture to say. This DVD is as close to the actual visit as you could get. The material would be a fabulous add in to a study of geographic regions or a science study of different ecosystems.
"Experience the tropical rainforest of Belize with 28 virtual reality posts from deep in the forest and even up in the canopy. Other topics covered include rainforest types and mechanisms, an interactive dependency web game and a botany primer."

The Wetlands is another field trip on this DVD. Through this interactive DVD you feel like you are in the field observing an actual wetland. The video is fascinating and the graphics are clear and informative. Children of all ages will enjoy these videos.
"Explore wetland ecology with a virtual field trip to a wetland in southern Ontario. Includes wetland types, bog formation, plus detailed sections on photosynthesis, food chains and webs and nutrient cycles."
Our final destination was the Desert. Again, the video and graphics are absolutely stunning and a wealth of information is presented.
Five deserts of the southwestern U.S.—from the saguaro cacti of the Sonoran to the sand dunes of Death Valley—are brought to life in our biggest field trip ever. Try your hand at building your own desert, learn about landscape formation and in-depth sections on adaptations and homeostasis.

Pricing Information:

Save more than 20% off individual prices .
The Digital Field Trip Series costs only slightly more than two individual field trips. Lab packs and site licenses, as well as both single educational and home versions, are available from prices as low as $99. See our price list for details.

The Digital Field Trip Series, as well as many other products such as the virtual frog dissection, are available from the Digital Frog International website. http://www.digitalfrog.com/products/digital-field-trip-series-dvd.html

At first glance, the entire series does seem a little pricey; however, there would be no way the average family could actually take field trips to discover, explore, and study these three regions for anywhere near the individual license price.

I have enjoyed learning about Digital Frog's virtual field trips and will be incorporating these into our World Geography studies this year.

To read other reviews about Digital Frog go to: http://homeschoolblogger.com/homeschoolcrew/783186/

Enjoy your trip!

The End to Our Spelling Frustration!

I don't know about you, but calling out spelling words for multiple children is one of those tasks I would rather do without. I have six children. I was doing a little calculating the other night and figured I was calling out spelling words at least 360 times over the course of a school year. Now, if each list takes around 10 minutes, that means I was spending 3,600 minutes or 60 hours of our precious school time calling out spelling words. I was a little skeptical when I was asked to review Spelling City. I really was reluctant to let a computer take over this area. What I discovered through using the program changed my attitude entirely.

Spelling City is very affordable, first of all. A family can purchase a subscription for a year for around $25. There is also a free membership option. With that option you do not have access to the record keeping areas of the program and there are a few games you will not have access to. I would recommend trying the free option for a few weeks to see how you like it, then go on and purchase the premium membership. The membership is well worth the cost.

I used Spelling City with two of my children. One is a fifth grader and the other an eighth grader. I really wanted to check out the games to see if they were too juvenile for the eighth grader. Miraculously, he enjoyed them immensely as did my fifth grader. I was using the premium membership. The initial set up was very easy. I am not techno-savvy at all, so I really appreciate when a vendor takes pains to make setting up a program very user-friendly. I used the teacher options to set up my children in my grade book and assigned each of them their own personal log in and password. Then, each week I simply set up their spelling lists in the program. In retrospect, if I had really been on the ball, I would have set up all of their lists for the year at once. That way we just would have chosen the list each week. There are a lot of spelling curricula already set up in the Spelling City program. My curriculum was not, but entering the words was really easy. My children enjoyed being able to log themselves in when it was time to practice spelling. They would actually beg me to let them play their spelling games. There are lots of different options for games. They range from simply spelling the words, to identifying the correct word for a sentence, to writing sentences and paragraphs that are original. I was really impressed that the program wasn't simply a robotic "call out the words" program. If the students use the program regularly, they not only learn to spell the words but also learn the meanings of the words through context and usage. The premium membership does track their progress and even shows what they have been playing.

I can't say enough good things about Spelling City! We have thoroughly enjoyed using it. I didn't receive any compensation for this review. I was allowed to use the program for two months as a part of the Homeschool Crew. I highly recommend Spelling City. For more information about Spelling City, check out their website: http://www.spellingcity.com/. I hope your family enjoys it as much as we have. This is one program I am going to continue using. I am signing up for the premium membership today!

To see more reviews on this product as well as other Time4learning products go here: http://homeschoolblogger.com/homeschoolcrew/782954/

The 2010-2011 TOS Schoolhouse Planner is a Lifesaver!

The 2010-2011 TOS Schoolhouse Planner gives you the resources you need to reacquaint yourself with homeschool organization. I have been working this planner as a member of their homeschool crew. Here are some things I have learned when working with this planner.
The Re’s of organization with the Schoolhouse Planner:
1. Realize the beauty of an all-inclusive planner. The 2010-2011 planner contains over 600 pages of monthly unit planning, homeschool forms and calendars, and household forms.
2. Reduce the amount of writing you have to do. The 2010-2011 planner has been created so that the pages are type-in pages. You can print blank pages and fill them in by hand or type-in and print the pages. You control the amount of writing you do.
3. Record pertinent school and household information and only print the pages you need. Your planner is as personalized as you make it.
4. Recipes are fabulous and are listed by relation to each monthly unit. Gluten-free recipes are included.
5. Reclaim valuable time by knowing where information is at a glance. Used correctly, the 2010-2011 planner will work for you and give you an indispensable resource.
6. Refresh your homeschool studies by using the monthly unit plans. Units are thematic and are beautifully put together. The units are incredibly thorough and include resource links.
7. Relax and enjoy the beauty of organized homeschool and household records.
8. Remodel your current system by using the myriad of forms provided. Personalize your planner to fit your needs.
9. Recognize that everyone is different. Your planner will not be the same as someone else’s planner. The ease of the 2010-2011 planner is the ability to individualize the planner.
10. Reacquaint yourself with organization. Enjoy the over 600 pages of forms and useful pages to help you plan and implement your homeschooling year. There are pages included for Bible study, journaling, book reports, and more. I love the lists of presidents, the miracles of Jesus, Greek and Latin roots, and daily Bible reading. There are even pages included to help your child learn how to write different types of letters.

All in all, the 2010-2011 Schoolhouse Planner is a completely thorough resource which can be personalized for any household or homeschool. The dated calendar pages go through 2013, and non-dated calendar pages are included so you can use your planner beyond 2013. However, as beautiful as this year’s planner is, you will want to update your planner every year so you won’t miss out on the new unit studies and recipes! At only $39 you will quickly recoup your costs!

**I am not being compensated by TOS for this advertisement. I did receive a copy of the planner to use in order to write this. This advertisement is part of a contest for the TOS Homeschool Crew.**

Free Webinar Opportunity

I want to take just a second and let you know about the free webinar opportunities offered through TOS. They are awesome. I am going to have the privilege of being the pre-show speaker for their webinar on August 5. I am speaking on "Incorporating a Christian Worldview into your Science Studies." Sign up and attend if you can. Here is the link:

http://homeschoolblogger.com/webinar/can-a-christian-teach-%e2%80%9creal-science%e2%80%9d-in-the-homeschool/