Spell Quizzer (Review)

We’ve set aside our usual spelling curriculum over the past few weeks to try out the Spell Quizzer software. Spell Quizzer provides a way for drill and practice for most existing spelling programs. We’ve been using All About Spelling this year, which is set up a bit differently and doesn’t use weekly spelling lists, so it doesn’t coordinate well with Spell Quizzer, although most traditional spelling programs would.

To use Spell Quizzer, you (or your child) record the weeks’ spelling words, with a sentence if desired. The child can then open up the program, which reads the word and sentence aloud. The child types in the spelling word and receives immediate assessment as to whether the word is correct or not. The child is then given the opportunity to practice the missed words until they are all spelling correctly. I can see that this would be great for a child to master his or her spelling lists each week. It’s not much different from the parent quizzing the words, but it’s more fun for the child on the computer. Because the parent (or child) can record the lists, Spell Quizzer will work with almost any spelling program.

Multiple lists are also available for download at the Spell Quizzer site as well, including the entire Houghton Mifflin Spelling curriculum through fifth grade. Lists for Sequential Spelling (first and second grades) are also available, and I assume more lists will be added from that curriculum.

Word lists are also available for the National Spelling Bee. This would have been great for my oldest daughter when she was competing in our county bee several years ago.

Since I don’t have a spelling program to coordinate with, I started Emily out with the “frequently misspelled words” for fifth through eighth grades and US states. She zipped through those lists in a few days and begged for more! So I downloaded the Houghton Mifflin words and set her loose with those. She’s been quite enthusiastic about mastering the lists—and I’m enjoying the fact that she’s totally independent. No help from Mom needed!

As you can see from this screen shot, Spell Quizzer is simple to understand and use.

This is what the child sees as the computer reads the spelling word and sentence aloud:

SpellQuizzer has been a big hit at our house. Simple as it is, Emily loves it and has enjoyed the feeling of mastery as she is able to complete each spelling list perfectly. If the SpellQuizzer folk continue to add ready-to-use spelling lists, the program will be even better.

SpellQuizzer sells for $29.95. If you think this is something that would be helpful in your home, try it out free for 30 days first.

I received a free copy of the SpellQuizzer software in exchange for my honest review.

This is a MamaBzz review.

Spring Scale

Emily made this homemade spring scale using a cereal box. She marked the scale on an index card using the 1 gram blue chips for calibration. Then she found objects around the house to weigh. It was quite crude, but she enjoyed the project and learned how a spring scale works.

The Organized Home Schooler (Review)

Do you ever wish your home school was more organized? I think we all do! I am actually a pretty organized person and enjoy cleaning closets, organizing school supplies, and making plans. (I know that sounds crazy to some people!) However, we all have room for improvement. Personally, I tend to start the year out with a bang, and by mid-year, we’re getting more distracted, I’m getting behind on lesson plans, and our school supplies are getting scattered.

Enter The Organized Home Schooler, by Vicki Caruana…  This book provides both inspiration and practical ideas for organizing your home school. The author doesn’t focus solely on lesson plans and supplies, either. The chapters include:

1. The Heart of the Matter

2. Why Organize?

3. Organize Your Thoughts

4. Organize Your Time

5. Organize your Space

6. Organize Your Supplies and Materials

7. Organize Your Paperwork

8. Organize Your Family

9. The Task of Reorganizing

10. Habit Forming

11. The Nuts and Bolts of an Organized Homeschool

12. A Homeschool File System

13. The List of Lists for Homeschooling

You can see from this list, that the scope of  The Organized Home Schooler is quite wide. I enjoyed reading it, and picked up some good ideas for storing finished schoolwork, organizing my family, and storing (or eliminating) “stuff.”  The book is effective at motivating the reader to organize in addition to providing practical ideas.

  The topic that was most convicting to me was the one on time management, so that is what I am focusing on first.   As the author says, “I have yet to meet a person who was content with how he or she spent his or her time.”  I have gone back to my off and on practice of list making, which eliminates the need for me to carry around mental lists all the time, allows me to better prioritize my responsibilities, and gives me a feeling of accomplishing something when I am able to cross tasks off my list.

My only concern with the book is that, although the author acknowledges that her methods may not be the right ones for everyone, I thought she came a across as a bit judgmental at times of those who may not hold the same priorities about schooling styles or use of time or as she does. I don’t think this detracted from the overall value of the book, though.

I think that The Organized Home Schooler would be useful to both new and veteran homeschoolers.

Thank you to Crossway  for providing me with a free review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Planning Our Disney Trips

This post is part of the Destination Disney Blog Hop. This week’s theme is “Anticipating Disney.”

To me, half the fun of a vacation is the planning. I’ll spend hours poring through books and the internet researching the best places to stay and things to see.

While many people show up at Disney World and fly by the seat of their pants, I think that Disney World is a destination that needs  to be planned. A bit of research can save you hours in line as well as enlightening you about Disney activities that you might not stumble on yourself.

We used to arrive at a WDW park at least 15 minutes before opening time, schedule in hand. My husband was always a good sport about sticking to the schedule and moving quickly about the parks in those first few hours after opening with his “Disney Commando wife.”  Later in the day, after we had hit the busier attractions, we would slow down, relax, and enjoy the surroundings while we visited the less busy attractions.

We’ve been to WDW so many times now that  we’re not as rigid. We still try to arrive early and visit the most popular attractions first, but we don’t mind if we don’t see everything in a day either.

I still do some planning and research before trips, though. We like to stay at the Fort Wilderness campground, so I check out the movie schedule and any changes there, find out which attractions are new or closed for refurbishment, and make note of early entrance days for on-site visitors and park hours to help decide which parks we’ll visit on which days. I also just love to read Disney message boards to put myself in the Disney mood!

Some of my favorite resources are:

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World (This was my “Bible” in our early days!)

DisBoards.com

Intercot.com 

Mousesavers.com (This site is a must-visit for saving money at WDW. Sign up for the newsletter, too!)

The End of Basketball Season

Emily had her last Upward Basketball game today. This was her second year to play and she has really enjoyed it. She is not as aggressive on the court as she could be, but her ball handling skills have improved and she’s made a lot of friends. We enjoy the non-competitive atmosphere of Upward.

Friday’s Fave Five

Here are some of the highlights of my week. Thanks to Suzanne at Living to Tell the Story for hosting this blog hop.

1. I am so thankful for my church family. We spent yesterday afternoon visiting with a older friend who is giving Emily knitting lessons. I love all the relationships she has with people of all ages.

2. I’m directing a children’s musical at church about the story of Gideon. The kids are enthusiastic and we’re all having a lot of fun.

3. Spring weather!! It’s been in the 60’s and even 70’s for the past two weeks. I can’t imagine that it will really last, but I’m soaking up the sun while I can!

4. Because of the nice weather, I’ve been spending time out in the yard, getting it cleaned up and ready for spring. It’s so nice to be outside that I don’t mind the work!

5. I’m still nibbling on the chocolate and enjoying the orchid that my father-in-law gave me for Valentine’s Day and feeling thankful for people who care. Emily gave me a box of chocolates, too. Sweet girl!

Handmade Spy Notebook

Emily and I had fun making this cute notebook for her friend’s birthday. The girls are both into mysteries, so I knew she would enjoy a spy notebook.

I made the covers using clip art and scrapbooking papers. Then, I laminated the covers. I trimmed lined and unlined paper to the size of the covers and punched everything with my Pro-click punch.

I folded the extra laminate plastic over and taped it to make an inner pocket.

Finished product!

Emily’s Valentine Box

Emily had fun making this valentine boat for her homeschool  group Valentine party this year! We found the directions for this cute boat in Family Fun magazine.

Winning Him Without Words

Are you in a “spiritually unmatched” marriage? Mine didn’t start out that way, but has become so in recent years as my husband changed his values and beliefs when he decided to move to Korea without us. It has been tough for me, not only living without my husband, but also in knowing that he has rejected the God he once professed faith in.

Authors, Lynn Donovan and Dineen Miller, who are, themselves, in spiritually unequal marriages, have just published Winning Him Without Words, on this very topic.

I’ve been following their Spiritually Unequal Marriage Blog for a few months now and have found these ladies’ faith and insight inspiring. Maybe you will, too!

Their brand-new website, Winning Him Without Words, tells more about the book and authors. There is also an opportunity on both blog and website to win a free book or $300 value “marriage basket!”

The Family Business

I occasionally put the girls to work assembling the Super Star Speech binders. It makes the job go faster with several of us working on it.

Notice that as soon as the camera comes out, they go into “pose mode!”

New Luggage and Bakewear

I just received this Rockland 22 inch rolling duffle bag  ($23.99) from CSNstores to review.  The Rockland duffle bags come in many different fun patterns. I chose the “pink giraffe” pattern. I have been wanting luggage that is not boring black or navy, but usually the nice prints come with designer prices that I’m not willing to pay!

The duffle bag was a little larger than I expected—easily big enough for a weekend or more. The fabric is heavyweight and sturdy and the handle and wheels operate smoothly. The two outer pockets are smaller than I would like—big enough for a small book or a couple bottles of sunscreen, but not big enough for most shampoo bottles. I really like this duffle bag. I had thought about saving it for Emily’s birthday, but decided to keep it for myself! I told her I would share it with her, though!

Here is a photo of Emily with the bag, to give you an idea of the size:

I also ordered this nice Faberware 11x17”  cookie pan. ($9.99) I do a lot of cookie baking, but all I’ve ever had were cheap cookie sheets, so I was interested to see how much difference a nicer pan might make. The first thing I noted was that this is a very heavyweight pan.

The cookies I made on it came out very well and slid right off the pan. Here’s a side by side picture of my new and old pans.

Shipment from CSNstores was prompt and everything arrived in excellent condition.

I received a merchandise credit from CSNstores in exchange for my honest review and thank them for this opportunity!