Your Finances God’s Way ~ a book review

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are my honest opinion.

Welcome to the Blog Tour for the Your Finances God’s Way book and workbook by Scott LaPierre, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: Your Finances God’s Way

Author: Scott LaPierre

Publisher: Harvest House

Release Date: May 3, 2022

Genre: Christian living – nonfiction

Experience the Peace that Comes with Wise Stewardship

Financial insecurity can be one of the greatest threats to your well-being—but the good news is that even if you’re on a tight income, you can eliminate many of your monetary worries when you create and abide by a biblical plan for your spending.

In Your Finance’s God’s Way, you’ll identify the negative money management habits you need to break and the positive habits that should take their place. Implementing the teaching laid out in the Bible, this book gives you advice and practical steps backed by proven principles, helping you

• get the most out of your money by paying off debt and building up savings

• make wise spending decisions that enable you to avoid anxiety, regret, and conflict

• find a healthy balance between being financially frivolous and frugal to a fault

Even when you have less to spend, you can use what God has provided to thrive. Whether you’re young or old, married or single, working or staying at home, Your Finances God’s Way will give you everything you need to be a careful steward of the resources you’ve received from the Lord.

PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | IndieBound | Christianbook | BookBub

ALSO AVAILABLE

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Scott LaPierre is a senior pastor, author, and popular conference speaker. He holds an MA in biblical studies from Liberty University. Scott and his wife, Katie, live in Washington State, and God has blessed them with nine children. Learn more about Pastor Scott at his website, www.scottlapierre.org, and connect with him on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter.

CONNECT WITH SCOTT: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

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TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a $100 Amazon gift card and a signed copy of the Your Finances God’s Way book and workbook!

Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway began at midnight May 9, 2022 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on May 16, 2022. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Books US only, Amazon gift card where available. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links from JustRead Tours.

My Thoughts About The Book and Workbook:

Your Finances God’s Way: A Biblical Guide to Making the Best Use of Your Money has been an interesting read. I have found it, thus far, to be biblically based and without denominational influences. This is a huge plus when talking about money and God’s word. The style of writing is easy to understand and Scott LaPierre approaches the topics with a unique approach.

Topics included are:

• stewardship and faithfulness,
• God’s kindness and severity,
• Money is the foundation of faithfulness,
• The Dangers of loving money,
• Learning from a rich fool,
• How to avoid being a rich fool,
• Give willingly,
• Give sacrificially,
• God’s Generosity encourages giving cheerfully,
• Good stewardship toward the poor,
• Spending problems versus an income problem,
• God’s view of debt,
• Avoiding and eliminating debt,
• Saving the right and wrong way,
• Retiring well,
• The greatest riches.

So far, one of my favorite chapters has been when he is dealing with the parable of the unfaithful servant in Matthew 25. He really dissects the parable in a way I have not seen done and deal with the monetary decisions made in it. While this parable is often used to talk about the use of the talents, Mr. LaPierre looks at the fact that the steward was going to have to give an account and that he took that very seriously. Did he do it right? No, as Jesus called him dishonest but looking at how seriously the steward took the fact that he was going to have to be accountable, he prepared for the future. He knew he had a limited amount of time so he worked quickly, he knew it was coming so he worked hard, and he used the situation to create some safety for him in the coming days after he had faced judgment. I found this look really interesting. And there have been other looks at things that were different and interesting. I am really enjoying this study.

As for the workbook, well, I am not as impressed with that. It is a good supplement, especially if you are needing something to document completion (as with a high school student getting credit) or as a guide for a small group study. As an independent study, I feel that the workbook is unnecessary. A large part of it is basic knowledge questions that don’t require a depth of understanding or application. Those types of questions are there but they are not the majority. Still, the workbook has its place in certain situation but it is not required to make the study helpful.

As of this writing, I am only about halfway through the study. There could be things later in the book that I have not yet come across to be concerned about but I don’t suspect there will be based on what I have read so far. I am finding this an enjoyable study that has presented some financial ideas in a bit of a different way. I have enjoyed that.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

Learning Tech and Coding Skills with Simply Coding ~ a Crew review

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Simply Coding is a company that has created a huge number of classes over topics related to learning to write code for computers and learning technology skills that will benefit everyone. Coding for Kids Annual Membership gives access to everything on the website for one year. They have a 10 day free trial to find out more. But let me tell you about the company, what they offer, and our experience.

Simply Coding is a company that was born out of the understanding from the founders that everyone needs to have a background in technology and some basic code writing skills. Computer science is growing and changing before our eyes and these guys recognized it. Setting up a “summer camp” for their nieces and nephews, they tested their idea and curriculum. Thus, Simply Coding was born and it continues to grow and thrive through summer camps, in school and after school programs, and with online pathways.

The mission of Simply Coding is this: to prepare youth with the core principles of how all software is created so they can feel confident and able to contribute to technology of the future.” – on the About page from the website

In order to fulfill the mission, Simply Coding has over 40 courses that members can access. The site says it is for ages 11 – 18 but there is a lot on there that adults could benefit from, also. There are four areas these courses fit under:

1 – Simply Coding – how to work with various code languages, building websites, using Java, creating games and apps, and more.

2 – Simply Media – classes on photography, videography, different Adobe programs, and more.

3 – Simply Tech Essentials – different application programs, particularly Microsoft but also Google applications and Prezi, plus some general introductions to computers

4 – Simply Tech4Kids has a number of options that will help younger students get into some different technology areas that might be more interesting than the programming websites and such. This includes electronics, blogging, photography, and keyboarding skills, in addition to creating a YouTube channel. Lots of interesting things that I wish we had found earlier! This seems to be materials directed more towards the younger end of the age range for the Simply Coding site.

With the variety of materials on here, it seems there would be something for everyone. The classes run in different formats, depending on what you are learning. I started the photography course and it is simple. An instruction video runs (a few minutes up to 10 minutes per video) and then there is a short quiz to see if you were paying attention. After a few videos, it was time to upload some projects. I was disappointed that I couldn’t go further without uploading projects because I was wanting to learn more about photography but I don’t have a DSL camera. Since I couldn’t upload the projects, I could not continue. Maybe sometime soon. . .

Miss J is 11 and thought that learning to code a simple website would be fun. She started the Intro To Websites course. It us a fairly straight-forward navigation but you must be on a computer that you can download and save to. Which means this is not a portable program for us but we knew that ahead of time. 🙂

Each section of the lesson lists what it is at the top and you can navigate there through a sidebar to get to where you were working. You read the instructions and the work in the box on the right to complete the task being asked for and see what it does. This clear example is very helpful. If you need a video to teach you what is on the screen, the green button top center will do that for you. This was helpful for Miss J several times as she worked with the program because she just had a difficult time following the instructions. They just didn’t make sense to her. These video reviews really helped.

While this is a great skill to have, it quickly became obvious that Miss J was just not going to enjoy learning to code. This was not a good fit for her. I also struggled with using this program but it had more to do with my time at home on a computer that could work with their coding program.

Simply Coding is a strong company and the way they handle instruction is very good. The variations in styles of instruction varies with instructor and course, which is good. Different courses need different styles of instruction. The video based instruction runs from a video of the actual instructor (photography), to a video of animated instructors (Blogging For Kids), to an audio over a video of the computer screen showing what actions need to be taken for that programming/coding step (Intro to Coding). This variety does a good job of fitting the type of audience the course is aimed at and the type of instruction actually being given/what is needed.

Many students will benefit from Simply Coding and the courses they offer. There is much to be gained from this site and we are going to continue to explore some of the other course options that are not programming. Perhaps one of the girls will want to use the Blogging For Kids course, which is only 5 modules. Or maybe the photography or keyboarding classes.

Any family can gain much with the many different options available on Simply Coding for learning any number of technology-based things.

Be sure to visit the Homeschool Review Crew to read about other families experiences with Simply Coding because a lot of them have had great success with this company and it was a terrific fit for their tech interested students.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

Creator Kit from Pitsco Education ~ a Crew review (& giveaway)

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Hands-on learning engages the mind like nothing else can. It turns it on. Maybe that is why Pitsco Education uses the hashtag of #handsonmindson . I really like that! We have been using the Middle School STEM Creator Pack (46204), which is designed for grades 6-8. It has been a great fit and we have enjoyed it tremendously.

Pitsco Education is a company that has products designed for hands-on learning and  problem solving that engage the brain in discovery learning. The company is striving to provide real-life learning and training that does more than boost their scientific knowledge. Rather, they are trying to build the relevant skills to help the academic skills thrive alongside. This includes social interaction, working with others, observing and testing ideas, and guiding open-ended projects. Pitsco has worked to make sure their products meet national standards and guidelines, as well. The core mission is student success.

Pitsco Education works to meet this core mission of student success through products and activities they offer. There are products available for all ages. Whether you are looking for a STEM kit of activities, a set of family challenges, or a programming activity, there are several choices for you. The Crew has been reviewing these products:

Elementary STEM Explorer Pack (46198) – Grades K-5
Middle School STEM Creator Pack (46204) – Grades 6-8
High School STEM Innovator Pack (46210) – Grades 9-12
Family Design Challenges Kit (TRG kit 46235) – Grades 3-8
Code Cube Single Kit (45843) – Grades 3-5
Smart Buddies at Home  – Grades 3-5
Arduino Education Student Kit (46239) – Grades 6-12

(You can read more about each one and see more information on the giveaway by visiting the Homeschool Review Crew blog.)

STEM Creator Pack for Middle School (grades 6-8)

We received this fully-packed box in the mail and had a joy opening it to see what we were going to get to do.

The kit included the following activities:

• Creating a Friction Climber
• Creating da Vinci bridges
• Creating Rolling Vehicles
• Creating Catapults
• Creating My Invention

Each package had the materials needed to complete the activity and an instruction booklet (the Creator’s Guide) with additional activities and interesting facts. We did have to provide a couple of things from home like scissors and a ruler.

Most of the Creator’s Guide instructions were easy to follow and Miss J was able to complete them on her own. She did need an extra pair of hands for several things but she was able to tell me what to do in order to help her. We had a couple of times where we had to modify the plans because we could not make them work as written, such as when working on getting the catapult set up, the o ring would not hold the sides in place so we added a piece of tape to hold the sides together. Another time was in trying to put wheels on the car. The holes in the plastic wheels were not wide enough so we had to widen them a bit with a knife. While it would have been nice for these to work without needing modification of any type, it was fine to have to problem solve how to fix these minor issues.

Let’s look at each kit just a bit.

We started with Creating Rolling Vehicles. The templates were included so Miss J picked one and colored it, then cut it out. She followed the instructions for adding the axles. She got it together and had a good time sending the car back and forth across the floor. The Creator’s Guide asked her to work with push power first and had her use an elevated plane to evaluate some of the ways in which it worked. There were questions for her to consider, such as “Where does the energy come from for it to roll down the ramp?” The guide included charts to fill out when comparing things in an activity, which was nice. After a few activities, she added a balloon on a straw to the vehicle to make it powered differently. This was fun and it allowed them to talk a bit about jet engines and increasing speed.

The da Vinci bridges Creator Guide was difficult to follow. The instructions, I can imagine, were really difficult to write. We ended up having to look for a video on building a da Vinci bridge and still struggled. We did get one that could hold weight but we could not build it very big.

That was a bit disappointing and we hope to try it with larger pieces of wood. We felt like the craft sticks were just too short to use effectively. That would be a nice change for the company to make to this particular kit.

Creating Catapults was a kit that Miss J loved. She had a great time with the catapult. It was fairly easy to make using the die cut pieces in the kit. The questions guided her to consider how to increase the accuracy, precision, and distance. The Think About It sections really had her evaluating what was going on and creating and testing hypotheses. She worked hard to learn how to aim and be precise with her throws. The one thing this kit did not include that may or may not be lying around the house is a pair of safety glasses.

Creating My Invention was a fun kit that even had Miss J doing a bit of research. It discussed elevators a bit and then asked some questions. She had me look some things up for her and we talked about it. She then drew a picture of how she was going to build an elevator. Well, as is always true of inventions, the first incarnation did not work so she had to reevaluate and redesign. She eventually came up with an elevator that could lift a small doll. She was super proud of that and played with it for several days. There are plenty more materials left for her to design more inventions.

The final kit was Creating a Friction Climber. This one was super disappointing for us. Even with me reconsidering all of her work and making sure she followed all of the directions in the Creator’s Guide, we could not get this to work. We have made friction climbers before and we still could not figure out why this one will not work. Just the same, it was good for her to experience that not everything works perfectly the first (or second or third, etc.) time and sometimes you have to abandon what you are doing and just move on. We will revisit this one with a fresh attitude in a bit.

Final Thoughts

We have really loved this Middle School STEM Creator Pack (46204) for Grades 6-8. It has provided quite a few hours worth of interest and activity. She has learned a lot, worked independently and with someone else, approached some things she thought she could not do, and failed at some thing that she thought were simple. All of these are great outcomes and don’t even touch the STEM learning that occurred. Hands-on, minds-on learning is wonderful. Interested?

Pitsco Education is giving away one of each of the kits being reviewed by the Homeschool Review Crew, including one of the Middle School STEM Creator Pack. Head to their website to enter the giveaway for the Middle School Creator Pack. Want to know about some of the other kits and enter those giveaways? Visit the Homeschool Review Crew to read about them and find the links for the other kits being given away.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

Dream Big – recital 2020

I find it so fascinating when things just “work.” Like the recital theme for this dance year that was completed last night – Dream Big.

Who would have imagined when the theme was chosen, probably last fall, that Dream Big would come to mean so many different things, very few of which deal with getting through recital.

Dream Big – the girls did, JSOD did, and most of all, the teachers did. Without all of that, recital would never have happened and the joy of dance would have been stiffled for a bit. But our dance teachers and studio did something amazing, as many across the US and around the world probably did during the last few months. They figured out how to do what they needed to in order to provide the teaching and encouragement the students were craving. I know my girls were. Without JSOD, things would have been so much different.

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We are blessed to dance at a studio with God-loving, God-fearing teachers and staff who seek God through prayer and want to serve Him. In honor of my dancers and their teachers, here are a few pictures from Dream Big 2020 with JSOD.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home

 

Complete Curriculum For The Whole Family – SchoolhouseTeachers.com ~ a Crew review

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

We have been members with SchoolhouseTeachers.com, a site with online classes, for, well, a good number of years. We started with a membership there just a few months after we started homeschooling the girls. So, I guess we are on our 7th year and we are constantly benefitting from this wonderful, online subscription.

The Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership is the best option for a multi-age family as it gives you access to everything on the site for one price for the year. Sign up now and that price is set low, as a price increase is coming in February. If you would rather, you can also choose a month-to-month plan, though that cost is a bit higher.

The access, though, is for a complete PK-12 curriculum that not only includes all of the core classes you need, but also a whole slew of extra-curricular choices. The scope and sequence charts are some of the best ways to narrow down choices for each child.

Recently, we were looking for a science course for my 8th grader who is capable of high school level work but doesn’t just love science. So, I downloaded the scope and sequence chart for 8th grade science but what I found was that most of the science classes at her level have options that make their grade range 7th-12th. Perfect! Options! But narrowed down. I debated between Botany and Geology, both 16 week courses for this spring semester. I settled on Botany but that Geology course is still on my radar. (I may do it myself.)

What Is Great About SchoolhouseTeachers

Variety is the spice of life, right? Well, you get it with SchoolhouseTeachers. Whether you are looking for preschool or something for an adult, there are tons of choices.

Full curriculum means math, science, history, and language arts. These are all there in abundance. You can choose between different classes for lots of the levels. And then there are the extras or high-interest classes – photography, music (for example: Advanced Music Theory), art (for example: Everyday Easels), drama, speech, fashion, technology, unit studies, health, and more.

Navigation of the Site

I know that when a site has a ton of content, it can be overwhelming and intimidating. Let me reassure you, this site is navigable by multiple ways which makes is less of a burden. Are you looking for a particular class type, such as cooking or geography? Look under the Scope and Sequence chart or browse by class. Are you looking for a grade level to plan the whole year or multiple grade level subjects? Use the Browse By Subject tab to get started. Are you looking for something just for you as a parent? Head over to the tab titled Planning or Resources.

Two other nagivation options? There is a search bar at the top, which, while it can be helpful, also pulls things from a single lesson inside of a course. This can be good if you are building your own study, like we did a while back on India. That was really helpful to find a unit on tigers and a recipe to make. Bits and pieces came together to make a fabulous study.

The other option is to use the chat icon in the lower right. The folks who handle the chats are really knowledgeable and are able to give links directly to classes to check out that might meet your needs to help you find things that fit you needs.

Other Benefits of SchoolhouseTeachers

Planners! Any homeschooling parent knows that there is a need for a good planner. But we often want different things than are typically found in planners or we want this page from one planner and that page from a different one. Well, you can find two different planners to meet your needs. The Schoolhouse Planner is over 750 pages so that you can pick and choose what you want to print to meet the individual needs that you have. There is also a planner for high school students to help them be responsible for their own materials and requirements.

World Book Encyclopedia! Research is something that we all need to do and teach. As a member of SchoolhouseTeachers, you will receive access to the full World Book Encyclopedia online. This kind of access is really quite remarkable and is a great tool. Whether researching people or events, the articles, images, and timelines are very useful.

RightNow Media! Access is also available to many, many videos from RightNow Media. Whether a Bible study, a missionary study, or a cartoon for the kids, the variety on RightNow Media is extensive.

Interactive Content! There are multiple ways in which your students can have interactive content. You might choose a course (such as Drive Thru History) that has a video segment for teaching. You might find one (such as geology) that has both a video segment and an online quiz that sends results directly to your email.

Lesson Plans! Most of the course (maybe all, I am not sure!) have a printable lesson plan that takes the student step-by-step through what should be done for each day. For example, with Botany, I printed the lesson plan and put it in a folder with notebook paper. The lesson plan tells Miss L which pages to read in the text (which we downloaded as a PDF to the computer so she can read from there but we could also put it on her Kindle) and which questions to answer. If there is an activity, such as writing a paragraph on a scientist, it tells her that, also. If there is something she needs to print, you’ve got it, the lesson plan tells her which page to print.

Literacy Center! This is a center that focuses on teaching reading. With a grade level of PK – 2nd grade for pre-reading and reading activities and grade level or 3rd-4th for their comprehension activities, there is a lot of support in this center for assisting parents who are teaching their children to read.

Focused Learning Centers! These are various areas that focus on topics like math, reading, special needs, foreign language, high school, college planning, or science. These materials will direct you to the materials – whether courses or particular lessons – on the site that will help you teach and address the particular area of need that you have.

So Really –

I could keep going because SchoolhouseTeachers truly is a site that is packed to the brim with materials and information. I could easily use this site to teach everything my girls will need to know. It truly is a complete curriculum choice and with the current sale going on, it would be hard to not call this a bargain. Please check out the site and see what would benefit your family.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

There are many Homeschool Review Crew members sharing their reviews of SchoolhouseTeachers.com, a complete curriculum site. Please click on the banner below to read their reviews.

Zeezok Music Appreciation Book 2 ~ a Crew review

A couple of years ago, we had the opportunity to use a music appreciation program from Zeezok Publishing. This year, we got to review the next level of the program – Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades.

We received a lovely package of materials that included

• One student book and the following books
• Frederic Chopin, Early Years
• Frederic Chopin, Later Years
• Robert Schumann and Mascot Ziff
• Adventures of Richard Wagner
• Stephen Foster and His Little Dog Tray
• The Young Brahms
• The Story of Peter Tchaikovsky
• Peter Tchaikovsky and the Nutcracker Ballet
• Edward MacDowell and His Cabin in the Pines

The student book is a softback, perforated book of more than 300 pages. The reading books are all different lengths. Most are softback but a couple are hardback and one was sent to us as an ebook. (It would come as a physical reader if you purchase the package.) These readers are definitely written at a challenging level for upper elementary, as the vocabulary is advanced. It is great and does a wonderful job of stretching language. The chapters are fairly long so they took more than one sitting each to read.

I read the first Chopin book out loud to all the girls, as it was a fun story, taught a lot about how Chopin came to be the composer he was, and had great vocabulary!

The student book includes so much information! Miss E has worked on the questions about Chopin and his life. There are music education parts where she had to do things such as write in the beats of the music and work on the website to learn more about the grand staff and key signatures. Much of the written work in the student book includes comprehension questions over the reader. The biggest benefit of the student book, though, is the emphasis it puts on where the music comes from, the heritage of the composer, and the land in which he lived and how it influenced his writing. This and the musical education on reading and writing music is fabulous.

There is also a lapbook to go along with this that can be purchased separately and we have not seen or used it this time around. It is designed for more hands-on learners and there are designated assignments in the student book to let you know when to do each part of the lapbook.

 

One other aspect is the website, app, and QR codes to supplement the program. We did not use the app or QR codes. The website has been wonderful. There are not only links to the music of the composer to go along with the reader and story but it contains videos that teach more about the composer, his country, and his music. We have really enjoyed watching some of the videos on Chopin. There are additional lessons to complement the student book, such as key signatures or the grand staff. There is also an online quiz that can be taken at the end of the composer study for each composer.  Other activities include comparing different types of music with McDowell, viewing Cossack dancing for Wagner, and seeing the New England primer book and hearing a master storyteller for Foster. What amazing transferring of knowledge is being encouraged and taught!

It is suggested that the student keep a journal for specific assignments. One example of an assignment for the journal is when talking about how Chopin really used the music of the people, the student is asked to choose a patriotic song from their country and write an entry about the emotions and sentiments in the music. Another example, when studying Brahms, the student is encouraged to study a picture and quote, then write about what it is conveying and answer a couple of questions about it. Again, this is just asking the student to stretch their knowledge and make additional connections. This is where learning blossoms!

Zeezok’s Music Appreciation, the first book on Chopin, and the CD of some Chopin music that we added to expand the music selections we listened to.

The program is designed to study the seven composers over the course of a year. There are 29 weeks worth of study and each week is delineated at the start of the student book as to the reading and student book activities to complete. There is a scope and sequence in the book, as well as all of the QR codes listed in the front of the book for quick access. This study will cover all of the national music standards for 5th – 8th grades. Paired with vocal lessons and practice, this is going to be counting towards a high school credit for Miss E. It is so thorough and intense that I think it hits everything she needs it to.

Music appreciation is about more than just listening to a piece of music and knowing who the composer is. It is about understanding where the music came from and the influences of the land the composer comes from and life the composer lived. Music appreciation is hearing the music and connecting it to something else. Zeezok Publishing does a great job of this for the middle grades (and on into high school) with Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades. You can read our previous review of Music Appreciation Book 1: for the Elementary Grades, also.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

Please visit the Homeschool Review Crew to read more about the program and how other families have used Zeezok’s music appreciation course. Click on the banner below.

Middle School Plans 2019-2020 (8th Grade)

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one and choose to purchase from the company, we will receive a small compensation.

 

Miss L is in 8th grade this year and we have struggled to figure out what materials would be best for her. Her interest lies strongly in dance and many new opportunities have come her way this year due to her hard work last year and through the summer. We know that she needs to have a good strong foundation in all areas of education and are trying to set her up for success in all areas.

The plan is slowly taking form. Here is what we have at this time.

Math – CTCMath – This has short but helpful lessons that Miss L can handle them well. She is learning and doesn’t mind the lessons. Between the videos, the online questions, and the worksheets, she is doing well. You can read our CTCMath review that we posted recently if you want to know more.

Language Arts/Literature – Grammar is going to be Easy Grammar Lessons. This is a 5 minute daily review of grammar, punctuation, and other grammar needs. For writing, she will continue with Jump In. We posted a review on it last spring. Literature will be a continuation of the poetry study she was using at the end of last spring from Memoria Press.

History – We reviewed a study from Memoria Press a few years ago titled Famous Men of Rome. Miss L will begin this study that consists of the people that are part of the history and legends of Rome.

Science – This is where we are really struggling. Her true desire is to have a study that resembles the style of learning that she did when she used Something’s Fishy at Lake Iwannafisha a while back. She wants to have mysteries to solve or figure out while having to learn bits of different types of science to gain the information she needs to find the solution. This is extremely hard to find and, honestly, her brain is far beyond mine in this realm so I can’t figure out how to write it. We were talking last night and perhaps she will actually write her own, making the writing of it her education. Until we settle that part of it, she is going to be using a book we found at the local educational retailer – Forensic Investigation: Using Science to Solve Crimes. It is published by Mark Twain Media/Carson-Dellosa Publishing. It will only take her a couple of months, at the most, to complete.

PE/Art – This is going to be dance. She has about 10 hours of dance a week scheduled between her classes and her work as a student assistant. Once in a while, I hope she will join me in creating a piece of visual art, as I am really enjoying my current subscription to Creating A Masterpiece’s drawing lessons. These are a new set of lessons available and will be sharing a review of them soon. (This link is to a previous review of their art lessons from a couple of years ago.)

Music – She will continue her study of violin and will be taking private lessons this year.

Those are the plans for 8th grade. It will be a lovely year for her! Do you have an 8th grader or middle school student? I would enjoy hearing what you are using. Feel free to share your plans in the comments.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

SchoolhouseTeachers.com is a fabulous resource that we turn to often for supplementing our courses or finding new areas of interest. From full classes to supplements, there is something here for students of every age and one subscription is usable for the entire family. Click on the image to head over to SchoolhouseTeachers.com to learn more.

High School Plans 2019-2020 (sophomore year)

Miss E is heading into her sophomore year and we are fully immersed in plans and discussions about what she is going to do for her classes. While as her parents we have a general plan, we definitely allow her to make some choices. So, with the discussion just about complete, I am going to share with you her choices.

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ART – Located on SchoolhouseTeachers.com, Digital Art and Product Design is on the agenda. It sounded really interesting to Miss E and so she jumped at that title. We have to find the right computer program that will work with the class and her laptop but then she will be ready to go.

MATH – We are using CTCMath. At Home Dad and I really like the look of the program and have decided that this is what we will use for the girls this year. Miss E is starting with Geometry but we have given her the choice of changing over to Algebra II when she gets to a point of frustration with Geometry and then moving back. This freedom means that she will have an out when she begins struggling but if she doesn’t struggle too much, she will fly through Geometry and onto Algebra II.

HISTORY – Miss E has chosen two things for this year. First is completing the Home School In The Wood study of the Middle Ages. Then she will move back to Pathway to Liberty World History Year 4. She really liked the way the program was set up and she found the books that she was using in addition to the program fascinating. I liked the way it all worked together and will be her World History credit.

MUSIC – We are scheduling a time to be evaluated for vocal lessons this year. She has wanted to do voice lessons for a year or so and we will make it happen this year. She has begun a bit of music history and appreciation with Zeezok Music Appreciation Book 2 (review to come but we used their Book 1 a couple of years ago).

PHYSICAL EDUCATION – Dance, dance, dance. Miss E is very involved in dance classes and will be dancing a number of hours each week this year, taking 5 classes and assisting in several more.

LANGUAGE ARTS/LITERATURE – Miss E is going to start out with YWAM Biographies. She found a missionary study book titled To Every Nation from Not Consumed that is going to guide some of the reading and I have written a plan for her to follow which will have her doing a written assignment on at least half of the biographies and designing a final product on each one in addition to the study book she will complete. I will try to post more specifically about what she is doing with this. When she finished the biographies, she will move on to Illuminating Literature: When World Collide by Sharon Watson. We liked the Illuminating Literature: Characters In Crisis that she did last year so this will follow it, as the biography study may only be about a half credit when she finishes. We’ll see. For grammar, she is going to use the Easy Grammar Lessons (review coming soon). It take 5-10 minutes a day and is comprised of exercises that help with review and improvement of writing, which is part of our focus this year.

SCIENCE – We were able to review CrossWired Science a few months ago. Miss E really, really liked CrossWired Science. She wants to work on completing both of the Global Topics contained in the program currently and we hope they will add more before she finished those and she can continue on in that. She will use the calendar for progress included on the CrossWired Science page. If she finished that in about October with nothing else added yet, she will search SchoolhouseTeachers.com for a class or go back to Supercharged Science, which we will still have access to at that point.

SIGN LANGUAGE – We are also still struggling with this one.  There is a class on SchoolhouseTeachers.com but she is beyond it. She is far beyond any of the classes we have found online. She is working on some assignments that her sign teach from last year has given her and she is teaching her youngest sister this year for the Lads to Leaders program. We are pursuing a few days of internship or helping with the preschool sign language story time at the library. We will see where those take us.

That is one full class load, if you ask me. But, honestly, Miss E had a hand in every decision and is pleased with all of them and delighted about many of them. Sophomore year – here she comes!

I would love to see what other high schoolers are tackling this years. Feel free to drop me a list in the comments or drop me a link to your own blog post. I’d love to visit.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

The Kingdom Code (financial education) ~ a Crew review

Financial education is something that should not be neglected yet is often not considered as important as other subjects. At the Teach Them Diligently convention held in Waco, TX, we stumbled across a little gem of a company – The Kingdom Code. They offer a course in financial education through the formation of a business run fully by the students and working on personal and business budgeting in the process. Their The Complete Starter Kit  looked so wonderful. We were unable to purchase it that weekend but definitely had it in our sights for later this year, hoping to find a place to have it fit in our fall schedule.

When we got home and I opened up my Homeschool Review Crew email, I found that The Kingdom Code was the next vendor we were being asked to take a look at. Now that is not a coincidence! We were very excited, especially my 15 year old daughter who had two business ideas in her head that she wanted to figure out what to do with. We were thrilled to be chosen to be on this review.

The Kingdom Code is a company that was designed to help educate students at a young age about budgeting, spending wisely, managing money, and running a business. What a great idea! Geared towards grades 3-6, it can easily be adapted to work for older students. If you are looking to make it a high school credit, you may decide you need to add an additional budgeting book to it but there is a lot of meat to this program all by itself.

All three of the girls decided that they wanted to work through the program after it arrived and we were happy to accommodate that as we understand the importance of learning to handle money wisely. And the earlier, the better. We received

• The Complete Starter Kit – the Textbook, Student Packet, and Teacher’s Guide.
• a JR Budget Kit and
• The Kingdom Code Coloring Book

There are free lesson samples available on The Kingdom Code website.

The textbook came as part of The Complete Starter Kit. This 240-page, spiral bound text has 27 lessons that are recommended to be taught no faster than one lesson a week, through two sessions. There are a number of features that I find to be a huge asset. Each lesson has a different character focus, such as seeking wisdom, having courage, showing honor, or being thrifty. This is a code of honor that Kingdom Code Kids are encouraged to follow and is put into a Biblical context, with a focus on trusting in God to guide and provide. There are Bible verses in each lesson to help students frame the information in a Godly manner. There are studies of people who have created businesses and done well with them, highlighting that success but not ignoring the failures and struggles along the way. There are letters from “Aunt Jimmi” which helps students see the idea that is being talked about in the lesson and putting real life experiences to it. There are discussions, worksheets, additional research, and so much more!

Each lesson follows approximately the same set-up. Starting with a proclamation, the students begin their worksheets, have a quest for the clue (often historical in content and leading to the character focus of the week), learning the code of honor, applying that to their business or life, marking the treasure map and then going through some On Your Own activities. There are a few other parts of lessons that will come in but these are the main ones.

Following the On Your Own activities is a recap of the Kingdom Keys for the lesson and then some additional Bonus Code Work. These are activities to help the student internalize the ideas even more. Some of these are hands-on and some are more abstract. For example, you might write a jingle to remember the JOEYS letters for budgets, write a letter of encouragement, take a trip to the bank, make a flipchart or have a discussion. Each lesson also includes vocabulary words that are important to financial matters and the Code of Honor, including words like financial, entrepreneurs, taxes, pride, and perseverance.

The Teacher’s Guide is a black and white set of 132 pages, hole punched and ready to go in a teaching binder.  After the listing of what all is included and A Note to the Teacher, there is an Introduction that gets you started with step-by-step instructions. This walks you through the purpose of each part of the lesson and each of the additional materials that go with the program. (These additional materials are found in the Student Packet.) It is a bit intensive up front to set it all up and get familiar with the program.

Next in the Teacher’s Guide you get the lesson plans. These are extensive lesson plans and are set up for two sessions per lesson for most lessons. This gives you a full year’s worth of financial curriculum. Each lesson gives you the objective, learning goals, and essential questions, a list of materials, any suggestions or reminders, and the two days worth of lessons. There are specific instructional materials for each part of the lesson and each activity for the lesson. It is very thorough. You also have the answers to the worksheets and suggested enrichment. At the end, there are some assessments and feedback cards, with a few other blank forms that may be needed.

The Student Packet is intended for use by one student as the materials are consumable. This is where you find the worksheets to go with each lesson. There is a map for tracking progress by using stickers. There is a set of stickers to use with setting up the budgeting part of the program. There are flashcards to help students learn and remember the vocabulary for each lesson, noted with the lesson number. This is where the “rubber meets the road” so to speak – these forms, notices, worksheets, and vocabulary become the part that is carried with the student throughout their lifetime. The instructions for setting it all up are found in the Teacher’s Guide.

There are several forms and notices available on the website for those who have purchased the curriculum and are customers of The Kingdom Code. These include calendars, ledgers, income statements, and more.

The JR Budget Kit is a small package that includes a budget poster, a sticker set, six coloring pages, budgeting percentages page, and instructions on using the budget kit. It is a simple way to begin budgeting and helping students learn to allocate money. It uses the same budgeting allocation as the business kit, only does not include putting money into the business. It is appropriate for very young students with guidance from parents.

The Kingdom Code Coloring Book is a 32-page book of coloring pages for students that may be too young for participating in the business part of the program but are listening to the lessons. They can color pictures of bible verses, knights, treasure boxes, budgeting shields, and more. It could be very good in combination with the JR Budget Kit for younger students, though some of the pages are the same.

All of this comes together to be a practical application of financial literacy. We started really strong with the program and everyone is pleased with it. It is not difficult to teach, nor is it difficult for older students to work through on their own, though they will need guidance along the way. We have spent two days per lesson so far and feel that it is a fairly comfortable pace during full school days. Days can include reading text, discussion, brainstorming, or completing worksheets, among other activities We slowed down when it came time to really figure out what business was going to be pursued to get that solidly in place.

The focus of The Kingdom Code for the first business is a service based business. This is a great idea for younger students but it was a difficult thought for the older girls when they already had ideas for goods based businesses. But, after we took an extra couple of days to think about what service based might look like (not everything has to be mowing lawns or cleaning houses), some good ideas were come up with. Miss E realized that she was actually already do a service-based business – sign language interpretation.

Miss E signing to a player at a baseball game.

She took this idea and will be working further with it. It was quite a realization to discover that, without the formal recognition and paperwork, you are already working as a volunteer business. She is planning on teaching her younger sister sign language this coming year and that will be where she takes this program next – applying the business building materials to her job as sign language interpreter and instructor. We had planned to have someone teach Miss J anyhow, so Miss E will be earning pay for this service.

We are pleased with the program and plan to pause with it for the remainder of the summer as the girls’ camps, missions, and conventions are starting. But, come fall, this will be on the curriculum list for high school, middle school, and elementary. I plan to have Miss E read a book on personal finance that we really like, as well as write a paper or keep track of budget for a few months, in order to grant her a high school credit.

Miss E looking at the Student Packet.

I am going to close this out by letting Miss E have your ear/eye for a bit to give you her review of the program.

Miss E’s review:

I really liked this curriculum. I think that our whole family wanted to do the goods based business first rather than the service based, but I enjoyed the first few lessons just the same.

Something that I would change would be the worksheets for preparing your service business. I don’t see any reason to come up with 5 different businesses, then narrow it to 3 without even doing anything with them, and then working out the barest minimum of a plan for all 3. I personally had minor problems with the service based because our family’s schedule during the school year is full of commitments and on top of that, a number of my commitments were service jobs that I did not charge for.

I do understand that the curriculum was not designed for a high school freshman like me, but I think that it would work with a little bit of tweaking. The material was a little bit easy for me, except for figuring out a service based business. I would enjoy seeing a higher level KCK curriculum.

One thing that I really enjoyed about this is that it brought God into everything. Again, it was not talking about God on my level of comprehension, but a younger level. To be honest, I never really thought about what to do with the money once you had earned it. Obviously, you spend some for the business, give some to God, and save some, but I never thought about how much goes where.

I really want to learn about managing money and a business because I might want to own a business someday. Or I might sell bracelets or something. And even if I don’t, it is still a really good thing to know.

As you can see, this appeals on many levels and is guidance that is much needed in our society. One of the things I was blessed with growing up is strong financial stewardship examples. At Home Dad and I have talked often about the best way to pass Godly financial stewardship on to our girls. The Kingdom Code is helping in that goal.

I also have a code for you to use when ordering to receive 10% off of your order on The Kingdom Code webside. I do not know for how long this code will be good so don’t hesitate in using it. This is a worthwhile curriculum.

Coupon Code:  10TKC33

Blessings
Lori, At Home.

Be sure to click on the banner below to visit the Homeschool Review Crew to see what other families thought about The Kingdom Code
program.

Summer Activities are Education, Too

(This post contains affiliate links. If you follow a link and make a purchase, our family may receive a small commission from your purchase.)

“Life is learning and learning is life.”

I was given the opportunity to share a bit about how our summers look by the Homeschool Review Crew during their weekly series titled Spotlight on the Crew. Our summers are spent in learning. Some of it happens here at the house, like it does during the “school year.” But a ton of it happens in the summer through other opportunities. There are great benefits to these activities.

Visit the Homeschool Review Crew blog to read my post on Education Through Summer Activity.

Blessings,
Lori, At Home.

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