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Carole P. Roman Books {Crew Review}

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Carole P. Roman is one of our absolute favorite authors.  We were introduced to the amazingly wonderful Carole P. Roman Books and Collections many years ago through the Homeschool Review Crew.  Every single book we’ve been blessed to read from Carole has been absolutely outstanding!
For this review, we were allowed to choose three of her many books.  I always try to choose things that go along with what we’re learning about or are specifically for Laycie and Jack since they are our youngest children.  This go round, I chose the following:
I chose If You Were Me And Lived In Scotland because I have been searching for titles that specifically teach about Scotland.  I have found that most books focus on Great Britain or Ireland but I wasn’t able to find as many as I hoped on Scotland specifically.   Recently, while tracing our family tree, I have found that we are heavily Scot on both my father’s and my mother’s sides so for me it’s very important that my children learn about this culture so they can learn more about the history of their ancestors.  I love relating our history to our real history.
We were not unfamiliar with the If You Were Me And Lived In series because we reviewed this series from Carole when she first developed and released the series several years ago.  I knew this series was simply awesome and would teach the kids a lot about Scotland and it’s people.  It didn’t let me down.
Through the book, we learned what we may have been named had we been born in Scotland.  We learned that Unicorns are the official animal of Scotland.  We learned a bit about Nessie and Loch Ness.  We learned about traditional foods served in Scotland, some of which we actually tried during the week of St. Patrick’s Day.  Golf was developed in Scotland and the Highland Games.  We look forward to visiting our local Scottish Festival this summer and will briefly review this book before we go.
We learned so much from If You Were Me And Lived In Scotland.  It was perfect for our short study on the culture.  Carole never let’s me down with this series.
Last year we reviewed Fribbet the Frog and the Tadpoles.  Jack absolutely LOVED Fribbet and his story so I knew this year I wanted to review another of Carole’s amazing Captain No Beard series.  I chose Pepper Parrot’s Problem with Patience because sometimes Jack has a little trouble with being patient.  As the baby of the family, you can bet he’s the most spoiled and loved little boy there is, so I thought this book would provide a great lesson for him.  And it has.
A few weeks before we received this book for review, Jack decided he wanted to makeover his bed with a Pirate theme.  I purchased a wooden wheel, a spy glass in a box, a large pirate flag and an a wooden anchor which we painted and hung with a rope on his bed frame.  I also got him his very own Parrot.  Jack loves it!  And he loved reading Pepper Parrot’s Problem with Patience while snuggling in his pirate bed with his Parrot.
Captain No Beard is the captain of the Flying Dragon.  He has one crazy crew of all kinds of characters that help him out, including Fribbet the Frog and his cousin, Hallie.  In this book, Captain No Beard adds Pepper to his crew, making Pepper the crew’s cook.  Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea considering the Parrot is named Pepper.  But maybe Pepper has her name for another reason.
Pepper has quite the temper.  She’s actually a little fire cracker and that temper isn’t the greatest thing ever.  But with the crew’s help, Pepper realizes she doesn’t need to get upset or angry and she can learn to have patience just like everyone else.
This story was so adorable.  Jack truly loved it and he talks about the characters all the time.  We look forward to reading more Captain No Beard stories like Pepper Parrot’s Problem with Patience in the future.

Oh Susannah is a relatively new series from Carole P. Roman.  Last year, Laycie and I read Oh Susannah: It’s In The Bag and we fell in love with Susannah and her crazy life.  Susannah is someone Laycie can really relate to so when this review came up, I knew I’d choose another book from this series for Laycie and I to read.
Oh Susannah: Things That Go Bump was just as silly and fun as the first book we read from the series.  Susannah is always having a rough time, usually of her own making.  This time around, Susannah is invited to a dear friend’s house for the friend’s birthday.  Susannah really wants to go but she’s afraid.  She just knows that her friend’s house is haunted.  Her friend’s little brother has told her so.  Susannah isn’t too sure she wants to see a ghost!
Susannah some how finds the courage to face her fear and finds that she has the BEST time at her friend’s house.  Friendship helps her overcome her fears and Susannah learns not to be afraid.  She also learns that little brothers are sometimes annoying and sometimes great.
Oh Susannah: Things That Go Bump is a new favorite of mine and Laycie’s.  She and I enjoyed reading this one together.  We look forward to reading more from this series.
Carole P. Roman is one of the best children’s authors I have reviewed for.  She truly loves the work she does and it shows greatly.  She’s an inspiration and blessing to all who know her.

The cost of these books is in a range between $5 and $10.  Nothing too expensive.  They are also available in Kindle versions.

You can read our previous reviews on Carole’s other books as well by clicking each of these links:
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Carole P. Roman books and collections {Carole P. Roman Reviews}
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Library and Educational Services: Go Science DVD Series 2 {Crew Review}

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Welcome to Learning Time with Ben Roy!  Ben Roy is the “teacher” on Library and Educational Services excellent Go Science DVD’s.  He’s so much more than a teacher though as he loves to bring Science to life for children.
Go Science DVD’s have been created to be used with children who are ages 6-10.  For this review, we used the second series of the DVD’s.  Last year, we reviewed their original series.  Because we LOVED those so much, we chose two new videos for review this year.
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These videos were just as great this year as they were last!  Over the past year, we’ve watched our original Go Science DVD’s multiple times.  I didn’t notice a lot of differences between series one and two.  There are some new transitional effects but the main content is just as great as the originals.
Each video is a little over an hour long with segments in each covering the topics that the DVD is about.  Each segment lasts just a few minutes but packs a lot of information into that time frame.  You can choose to view the DVD by individual segments or to play all.  We like to play all because once we start learning, it’s hard to stop.  Plus Ben Roy really makes Science interesting with his comical ways and his witty humor.  I really learn a lot just listening along!  So do the kids!
Go Science videos are a huge hit around our house and this series is one we go to over and over.  The kids and I both enjoy watching the experiments and we have tried a few on our own after watching.  We’ve also used what we’ve learned through the videos to try out other experiments of our own.  Just viewing these videos has definitely changed our learning process and our own experiments in Science.
Through Go Science DVD Volume 1, we learned about the sounds that instruments make and were able to see an piano that had been taken a part.  Ben Roy showed us how the piano works which was completely new information for me.  Another fun experiment was the screaming soda pop can.  This one can be done at home with supervision.
On the main menu of Go Science DVD Volume 1: Sound, Gravity, Space you can choose between these three topics.  Clicking on each will provide a second menu of experiments that are related to each of these topics.  Between the three topics, there are 15 different segments with experiments to watch and learn about.
Go Science DVD Volume 2: Life Science and Weather starts the same way.  Clicking on each topic leads to a second menu.  Between the two menus, there are 12 episodes with experiments to watch.  Things like a Fire Tornado and Ping Pong Cannon, or How Much Do Your Lungs Hold are covered on this DVD.
Two of our favorites from Go Science DVD Volume 2 are the Naked Egg and Cloud In A Bottle.
The Naked Egg is the experiment where you soak the egg in vinegar until the shells dissolves leaving only the egg membrane and yolk in tact.  The egg feels rubbery and is see through.  This is a great experiment to really show what’s inside an Egg.
Cloud in a Bottle is an experiment where you place a bit of alcohol into a 2 liter soda bottle then pump air inside.  Clouds really form from this experiment.  Watching and learning how clouds are created lead us to find other cloud experiments to complete at home.

We love that Go Science DVD’s leave us thinking and wanting to learn more.  You can purchase these wonderful DVD’s through Library and Educational Services for $8.97 individually or you can purchase the 7 DVD series set for $59.82.
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A Journey Through Learning {Crew Review}

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A Journey Through Learning creates the most amazing lapbooks for your use.  There are 100’s of lapbooks to choose from on many varied subjects.  From educational to fun, you can find the perfect lapbook at A Journey Through Learning.
What’s a lapbook?  A lapbook is a hands-on, creative activity using mini-books featuring a topic you are learning about to create a sort of journal in a folder.  The finished folder can be viewed on the lap of your child, therefore being termed a “lapbook”.  This is a fun method of learning for almost anyone.
Lapbooks are something that we enjoy using in our homeschooling.  For this review, I chose to use two different lapbooks: Letters, Numbers and Shapes with Laycie, and Astronomy and Space with Winston, Emmalee and some of it also with Laycie.
This lapbook contains 51 color-filled pages.  The first 5 pages are a lapbook introductory showing the key elements of lapbook how-to’s: creation, storage, purpose.  Page 6 provides a guide to putting this particular lapbook together, followed by the Table of Contents on page 7.
The next 34 pages are jam-packed with activities teaching letters, numbers and shapes to the early learner.  Every letter of the alphabet is covered, basic shapes and numbers 1-10.  The activities make a great introduction to any preschooler or review for a child who may just need a little extra lesson review.
At the end of the lapbook, the teacher can find suggestions for things to teach letters.  Listed are several suggestions for every letter of the alphabet and are a great guide for teaching or just getting ideas to expand the lessons you may already have in mind.  There are also suggestions for learning about shapes with food, fun activities and games, fingerplays for shapes and numbers, printing poems, and a suggested book list to use with this lapbook.
Astronomy and Space is a full color-filled 70 page unit study.  The first two pages of this lapbook provide a brief explanation of a unit study.  A supplies sheet is also included in the beginning of the lapbook so that the educator can prepare ahead, followed by a thorough Table of Contents.  
This particular study begins with Creation in Genesis 1.  Other things covered in this study are where you live, particulars of the solar system, day and night, and so very much more.  There are planet information cards for the student to fill out in detail.
Near the end of this study is an included Bibliography with websites used to create the study.  These websites are also a great source of additional information that can be used to expand upon this particular study.  A set of enrichment pages can also be found towards the back of the study which includes additional reading suggestions, a NICK list, a reading tracking sheet, planet book report, and narration forms.  
We used these lapbooks in our homeschooling over the past few weeks as a center of learning for our daily lessons.  I used the Letters, Numbers and Shapes lapbook with my soon-to-be five year old and she had no problems completing it.  She enjoyed pasting the shapes into place, practicing her letter and number writing, and creating her mini-books.  This particular lapbook was a little more of a review for her than it was a challenge as she already knew much of what it provided but it will be a perfect lesson for her brother when it comes time for him to learn the same things in the future.  I suggest it used with an early preschooler over an almost Kindergartener.
We used the Astronomy and Space unit study as a family study.  I read all of the inclusive materials, as well as took the kids on a quick tour of the websites listed in the Bibliography to expand our lessons.  Each child found a different planet that interested them and we learned many strange and specific details for each.   The kids shared in filling out the worksheets and answering the questions provided in the study.  We did not use the suggested reading selections since we did this study quickly but we did track our reading of books already in our libraries as an addition to our lessons using the sheet provided in the study itself.  We also used the planet reports to research more about each planet we learned about.
Overall, we all enjoyed these studies.  Both are wonderfully thorough and exceptionally made.  They are easily implemented and can be used to create a full lesson on their intended subjects.  Colorful, fun and challenging the student to learn more.
You can purchase A Journey Through Learning Lapbooks through their website.  Letters, Numbers and Shapes Lapbook is available as a download for $13, on CD for $14, printed for $20 or assembled for $29.  Astronomy and Space Unit Study is available as a download for $13, on CD for $14 or printed for $21.
For more reviews of A Journey Through Learning, please visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog!

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