Wednesday, March 28

Djembe Drumming Course

My husband, Avo, has been studying percussion for as long as I have know him. His degree in ethnomusicolgy was only the beginning. As a musician, he has continued to explore world music and specifically to study, in depth, African and Brazilian percussion styles. Living in Chicagoland has given him opportunities to learn more, perform and to teach the understanding of these styles he has acquired. He loves sharing and teaching those skills to others.


As a way to document some of those skills and to share them, Avo created an online intro to Djembe drumming class on the Course Craft platform. That online course is being offered to students of his this spring at a reduced fee. The wonderful thing is that because of how he set it up, it is also available to anyone for that price this spring. Check it out and see if it's a spring or summer learning option for you or anyone you know.


Tuesday, March 27

Traveling the World Together Through Reading - Book Review

One of the wonderful things about reading, known to all readers, is the ability of books, whether fact or fiction, to transport the reader to other times and places. I have long enjoyed the ability of a good written description to take me somewhere I have never been. The author, Carole P. Roman does that with young readers in her books describing countries of the world. She has written a series of children's books that present interesting, relate-able information to young ones about different countries and cultures around the world. All of her many children's books can be found in Carole P. books and collections, on amazon. 

This post is a review of three books from her award winning If You Were Me and Lived In... series that were provided to me to read and review. Introducing young readers to the travel without leaving home aspect of reading, the children's paperback books are large, bright and colorful. In each of these books, Carole focuses on giving children an opportunity to learn about a location and a culture from around the world. With simple and bold images she uses simple language to share what it is like to be a child living in another part of the world.


With the three, If You were Me and Lived in...titles, I shared and "traveled" to Australia, Russia and Mexico with a young friend who is a beginning reader. The reading level of the series is above his early reading level so we read and enjoyed the three titles together. Each narration is presented from the perspective of a child living in his or her home country. The basic format of each is the same, introducing a few new words, food, places and cultural activities that are similar to or different from that of the reader. The differences are presented through the description of a common or universal activity such as a family meal, a religious celebration or a well known sport played world wide.

These three bright and simply illustrated books captured my young reader friend's attention. He was was fascinated by the differences he was introduced to. A favorite fact he learned regarding Australia, he shared with his parents, was the one of an Australian child calling his mother "Mummy"(muh-mee). (The books include a pronunciation guide for the new culturally specific words.) His connection was to his knowledge of ancient Egypt. He was delighted by the choice of the word. Reading about Mexico led us into a discussion of sports popularity and his own interest in soccer and about the different names of the same sport in two countries. Trying to clarify that with a six year old can lead to an interesting circular conversation! It is easy to imagine that any child could find something to relate to in the life of a child in a far distant place as their lives are presented in these delightful paperbacks.



All of the books in Carol's children series can be found on amazon at Carole P. Roman books and collections.

Carole P. Roman books and collections {Carole P. Roman Reviews}

Crew Disclaimer


Wednesday, March 21

A La Carte Projects from Home School in the Woods - A Review



 Time LinesHome School in the Woods is an award winning publisher of a variety of educational materials for the study of history. Their products are suitable for classroom or home school use. They have created visually appealing timeline materials, lap books, maps and games to encourage and enhance the study of history.


As a Review Crew member, I was given the opportunity to download two A La Carte projects published by Home School in the Woods to use and review. Each project is an easy to use supplemental activity. Complete with detailed instructions, including reminders about the optimal use of the art tools needed, these products are excellent for self directed completion for older students or together with an adult for the younger ones. The down load-able projects each contain valuable factual information that can be added as a supplemental activity to a history or geography curriculum for a wide range of ages. Each of the two projects I downloaded add a slightly different activity and approach to the learning.






















I downloaded one project on the Erie Canal and another on Route 66. The Erie Canal Lap Book project was easy and quick to to complete. The information presented would add to a wide age range of curriculum.

Route 66 Folder Game


Despite the content being valuable for many ages, the lap book activities were not of high interest to my teen aged daughter, fortunately, I spend a significant amount of time with a couple of younger children that I can try products and activities with.

So my six year old friend and I colored and cut and learned a bit of history and geography related to the Erie Canal together. We made a wonderful little lap book with information and drawings. He has a project to display and share.






















The second project I downloaded is a folder game. Using the pages provided, we created a dice and question card board game with the theme of Route 66. Living just a few miles from that historic hi-way made that an interesting activity and one we can relate to as we travel in our own community. The theme made this game fun and creating it essentially from scratch it is possible to make it unique and colorful.


Though I found the concept appealing and the questions to move through the game interesting, it was a challenge to bridge the gap of the ages needed for creating the game and playing the game. To put it all together, dexterity is needed. While playing the game may be directed at someone younger with less fine motor skill. My younger friend who colored the Erie canal lap book found cutting and folding the game pieces difficult. It's not a big deal, but we lost a couple of the game pieces in the process of their creation.With my teen the questions about the places along Route 66 were interesting, playing the game not so much. This download is attractive, complete with directions and fun questions for a game but probably not the most age appropriate for the students I used it with (my young six year old friend and my teen). Both projects seem best suited to use with students in 8 - 12 year old range to be the most effective. With younger ones be prepared to help with the making of the game.

À La Carte Projects - Individual projects designed to enhance your studies! {Home School in the Woods Reviews}

Crew Disclaimer

Wednesday, March 14

Parenting Made Practical - A Parent's Night Out Video Review

parenting made practical

Parenting Made Practical offers a collection of video and print materials to assist parents in the journey of bringing up children into adults. My husband and I were provided a DVD to view from the A Parent's Night Out Series, produced by Parenting Made Practical. The title Taming the Lecture Bug grabbed my attention, as I think, it will many parents. The series is presented by Joey and Carla Link who are experienced parents, as well as, professionals with experience working with youth and families.

Taming the Lecture Bug and Getting Your Kids to Think Book
Ideas to avoid the lecture trap.

It's the little things.


According to Joey and Carla Link, when it comes to guiding our children through the process of thinking and acting correctly, all of the little things matter. Does how our teen helps with the chores matter? Do they accomplished requested tasks with the attention to detail parents have asked for? Was the shirt folded as instructed? I'm not a total buy in on the ultimate importance of every nuance, however, in the video, Joey makes a strong argument for his approach and had me listening. He explains and both, he and Carla, have first hand examples to share.

Teachers and others.


Carla addresses a common parental reaction to the behavior of our children when it comes into question by other adults whom we have given authority to for teaching or coaching. Carla described, in detail, a situation in which she was asked to meet with a teacher of one of her children. I have to admit, based on how I suspect I would approach such a situation, as well as the response I would suspect from many of my parenting peers, Carla's approach sounded unique. Carla, despite her parenting experience, or most probably because of it, went into the conference assuming there was a correction her child needed to make. Not the other way around! That is a refreshing take, that I think all of us, as parents, could consider more often. (Do I hear cheering from the teacher section?)

Joey expanded on the topic and acknowledged how hard it can be for us as parents to look at the weaknesses of our children. I appreciate his view and his understanding of the nature of the relationship between parent and child. This example gave me a new view to consider along with acknowledgement and understanding.

The couple went on to describe basic temperament types; the strengths and weaknesses of each and the parenting joys and challenges they each present. Before the end of their lecture on temperaments, I had all my children and myself pegged!

Parenting Validation and Encouragement


One strong point of their presentation was very validating to me, as a mom. It was the specific encouragement to be a student of your child, to study them, to know them. The reminders to look in a child's eyes, to watch his or her body language and really listen to their speech. All important and valuable reminders, that even as parents, we have to learn and develop the the best way to guide each child. They also presented a series of questions to ask when in dialog with a child that creates more understanding and gives parents more to work with in disciplining a child and providing further guidance.

Joey and Carla are veteran parents who have obviously evaluated, thought about and applied technique and love to guiding their own children and offering encouragement to other's as they grow to adulthood. It is on my list to view this video again, for the repetition of the ideas presented and understanding the applications for interacting with my own children better. As I find that my video watching attention span is waning these days, and really wanting the option of returning in bite size pieces to the Link's tools, I do think owning a copy of the companion book to this video would be beneficial. Also, given that Parenting Made Practical has an entire collection of these useful videos, I  plan to watch their DVD titled "Why Can't I Get My Kids To Behave." (Not that my kids misbehave or anything!)

More useful videos here!





(More words than pictures in this review because the last thing you want to see is myself and my husband, in front of a tv screen at the end of the day!)







Parenting Made Practical {Reviews}
Crew Disclaimer

Monday, March 12

Growing Violets


As a child I spent many hours with each of my grandmothers. They were both avid gardeners and they each also had houseplants that they tended and took pride in. My paternal grandmother's indoor green thumb pride showed itself heartily during the winter months when her extraordinarily huge Christmas cactus bloomed each year to welcome the season. I remember hearing (but not memorizing) the schedule of banishing the plant to a darkened closet and the prescription for forcing the plant to burst forth in it's holiday attire. Those blossoms added joy and awe to the family's Christmas celebration.

My maternal grandmother's houseplant of choice was more delicate and subtle.It is the one I have found myself recently drawn to, as I find more time to care for a few green indoor friends. The delicate and easy blossoms of the African violet currently grace my dining room with their sweet cheery faces. Having in the last several years found myself returning to creating more art, exploring photography and taking up needle and thread again, these little gems have filtered their way into my creative process. Their photogenic presence makes them a welcome addition.


In exploring the use of photography, I have found flowers to be a wonderful experimental subject matter. I have learned so much while photographing blossoms in the garden and had lovely results with a basic approach. During the winter months, however, those colorful subjects disappear. Their replacements have been the abundant ongoing blossoms of the indoor African violets. They have provided vibrant photogenic subject matter though the colorless winter of our Chicago-land location. They have even become the subject matter for new embroidery ideas and projects over the winter months.


I'll soon be returning to more outdoor pursuits in growing, crafting and image making but this winter has defiantly given me the opportunity to return to and enjoy some creative activities that have often been traditionally considered a winter past time. Busy hands are a good thing and seem to bring the sunshine back sooner.

Tuesday, March 6

Magic Stix Washable Markers - A Review

We were provided a set of Magic Stix Washable Markers by The Pencil Grip, Inc. to review for Homeschool Review Crew

Who doesn't love a brand new box of drawing or writing tools? I know, I do. So does my teen aged daughter. For us, a collection of color of almost anything, is inspiring. The box of twenty four beautiful colorful washable markers called Magic Stix we received from The Pencil Grip, Inc. is no exception. Bright and inviting, these markers arrived in a durable hard plastic case, great for keeping these vibrant drawing tools organized.

Magic Stix Washable Markers

The brilliant colors of the Magic Stix inspired several new projects and motivated us to complete others. All of the ideas we each used the Magic Stix for were works on paper. The markers maintained the color brightness when we applied the color to paper. They are washable when applied to clothing, a common side-effect of art projects with children. Marks cleaned easily off of our hard surface dining table where we frequently work on projects.

I used the Magic Stix markers to draw on standard printer paper I was using for drawings that I've taken from some of my recent photographs. The Magic Stix color stayed bright and bold when used on the slick surface of the printer paper. My daughter used the markers to finish some of her personal journal projects. The paper contained in her journal is more absorbent and rough. The marks made with Magic Stix adhered as expected on that surface, still bright, but not as bold as it appears on a more finished surface like the printer paper. One of my favorite features of these markers that will be appreciated by families with sensitive children is the fact that they are order-less. They truly are - no smell - at all. The fact that they are non-toxic is a plus for everyone.




The vibrant colors make Magic Stix Washable Markers appealing to any artist. The easy carry feature is great for using these markers anywhere. At our house, art and drawing projects haven't always stayed where they start. Though we didn't try it yet, (still too much winter) this easy to carry, stay organized box will be great for outdoor nature art ideas. That fact that they won't dry out for up to seven days without the lid makes them especially good for families of young artists or absent minded ones of any age. I have to admit though, my compulsiveness to organize supplies made testing that feature just to hard to try. I hope that someone else from the Review Crew has had the willingness to attempt allowing a marker to be left uncapped for a week.




















Magic Stix are available in both twelve and twenty four packs and come in a sturdy plastic carrying case complete with a handle for convenience and to help keep them organized. This box of color was a delight to receive, use and review! They can be purchased on Amazon.com.



Magic Stix Washable Markers {The Pencil Grip, Inc. Reviews}
Crew Disclaimer

Thursday, March 1

Try Driving Through History - A Review of DriveThru History

Need an adventure without leaving home in your homeschooling family? One that will entertain and teach at the same time? Would you like an at home adventure that will actually teach and pique an interest in history? One that will stimulate the curiosity of your students for a subject that can be boring, broad or even overwhelming in the choices of where to start and how to get through it all?
Take an adventure.
I have had the recent good fortune of using an online resource that does all of those things. Drive Thru History Adventures is an engaging and fun history curriculum resource. We have been using the American History section and it has stimulated the curiosity of my teen daughter. It has led to discussions and whet our appetites for more. I so wish I had this available when my boys were also my home school students!


To this day, a wide open prairie is
 my favorite landscape to
view and sink into visually.
I have become more interested in history in general as I have become older. Presenting history to children can be a challenging task. The memorize the event and dates approach rarely leads to any real understanding of the past. It's the stories that makes history interesting. Without any personal reference dates and events have very little meaning. For myself, growing up in Nebraska, the years in American history of westward expansion were the most interesting. My grandmother was a baby on the prairie when her parents homesteading there in the late 1800's. The real life stories she told me brought that time period to life and had significant meaning for our family.

Memories of a trip to New England.
My daughter and I are working our way through American history via the productions of Drive Thru History. These well produced videos capture one's attention and have left us wanting more after each viewing.  As a result, my teen daughter and I have had discussions about historical events. We have reminisced about a trip to New England we took several years ago. She has discovered an interest and curiosity about the American Revolution that has surprised us both.

Drive Thru History Adventures

Dave Stotts has a dream job!

These well produced videos capture ones attention. They have left us wanting more after each viewing, I love Dave Stotts' approach of traveling to related locations, showing and talking us through the historical events of the places he is visiting. In using the Drive Thru History, (viewing the videos, reading the supplemental materials, answering the questions from the worksheets provided and accessing the online community), we have a complete curriculum. A side benefit is that this package shows the power of what can be done by creating an excellent product.

Dave's videos and all that Drive Thru History provides is a wonderful example of how an online business can be used to teach. This online learning tool teaches history and also shows how by using your talents you can create a joyful life and reach others with your message. We will be travelling further and enjoying the miles on the journey with Drive Thru History.

For happy history travel and convenient mobile viewing, all of the adventure is available through the app. 

Click to read Crew Reviews