As a Crew leader I was blessed with access to all four levels for this review and as such today I will be sharing a few samples from different levels. To read more about a specific level please read reviews from the Homeschool Review Crew which can be found here: Art Lessons Inspired From Around the World {ArtAchieve Reviews}
How we used it
After logging in you will be taken to the lesson page which is arranged in levels. In each level you will see the lesson number followed by the lesson name. Each lesson name contains the country and name of the picture you will be making followed by a plus sign on the right. When you have selected your project, clicking on the plus will open a drop down menu. In the menu you will find everything you need to do a project (PowerPoint Version, Printouts, Video Lessons)
For this lesson we used the PowerPoint version. Once you have loaded the lesson John shares a photo demonstrating the lesson in real life applications. For example for this lesson he shows a picture of an owl and explains what the word Tessellation means. He encouraged students to find tessellations in real life around them and gave examples. He then gave them a simplified lesson followed by an explanation of a Pentomino. One of the best parts of the program is how each lesson is fully expanded upon for Cross-Curriculuar Connections. You can see an example here: Level II-Lesson 8: Tessellations: Repeating a Pattern to Create Original Art
Tessellations: Pentomino
Here is another sample of some work we did with ArtAchieve. We decided to try our hand at a level III art lesson. We did The Woodcarving from Kenya. This one involved doing a silhouette and a background pattern. Here is the Cross-Curriculuar expanded lesson: Level III-Art Lesson 7: The Woodcarving from Kenya
It's okay not to like everything you draw. Even famous artists do not like everything they create. Remember to draw for yourself, not for your teacher or your classmates.
- John (ArtAchieve)
Here is a sample of the step by step instructions:
Here is Nathaniel's completed project:
Level III Woodcarving from Kenya
Within the Cross-Curricular Connections John shares a number of things. For example in this lesson he supplies links and ideas to cover:
Over All I thought ...
I love the variety of lessons and the fact that I do not need a lot of resources to accomplish beautiful art with ArtAchieve. I also appreciate the detailed step by step instructions for each and every lesson.
Blessings Chareen
There is no right or wrong way to draw. One drawing is not better than another. It's just different - because the people who are drawing are different - John (ArtAchieve)
I have a new daily source of inspiration thanks to Planet 316. They have a fabulous FREE app called Daily Bible Jigsaw which Nathaniel and I have been using on my Android smart phone. Today's review will be slightly different to my normal review. This one will be more of a show and tell with pictures.
When you open the app you will have the option of signing up with your email or using Facebook. Each time you open the app you will click Log in and it will generate a new puzzle. I loved the name for each day (Motivational Monday, Renewing Saturday, etc) During the first few times you play the app it will prompt you with a hint on how to use the app.
Once the puzzle is loaded the timer will begin in the top right hand corner and it will continue counting until you place the final piece.
Once the final piece of the puzzle is placed the puzzle fades into a beautiful photograph and a scripture verse appears. There are also streamers and confetti to celebrate the completion of the puzzle. IF your account is linked to Facebook you will be asked if you would like to share it to Facebook.
After you have finished the puzzle morphs into a puzzle piece which is added into a month long puzzle. The puzzle pieces fill in every day you do the new puzzle. If you miss a day you will have a missing piece in your monthly puzzle. The missing puzzle piece/puzzles can be purchased using in game puzzle coin currency. During each puzzle there is a boost piece which lights up. If you are able to connect this piece to it's mate you earn a puzzle coin!
You can earn FREE coins through sharing on Facebook or purchasing. Planet 316 gifted members of the Homeschool Review Crew with 500 coins (worth $39.99) to expand our experience and enable us to complete a month of puzzles.
It was very rewarding watching the puzzle pieces fill in each day and watching the picture appear.
Each day as we built the beautiful puzzles I began to really anticipate a new scripture to meditate upon.
There is an Awards center in the App in which you can earn awards and special tokens as well as a leader board if you sign up via Facebook. A few of our Crew joined up together and there has been some fabulous challenges to see who could get to the top of the leader board!
I was quite thrilled to see the puzzle completed by the end of the month!
In the Future Planet 316 has some fabulous ideas in the pipeline for the future. Here are couple of the ideas they are working on:
They are very excited about connecting the Bible verses to the Fusion Bible. The Fusion Bible is an all new digital bible app they are releasing later this year.
For example after completing a puzzle players would have the opportunity to read the passage of scripture by simply clicking on the a button that opens directly to the that passage in the Fusion Bible.
Considering adding a Scripture of the month to the monthly puzzle upon completion
Being able to share the inspirational scripture / picture to Instagram.
Daily Bible Jigsaw has been loads of fun and has lived up to it's aim of providing inspirational bible verses to meditate upon along with beautiful photographs. I hope that you and your family will be as blessed as we have been with this app.
One of my greatest challenges and biggest blessing over the last few years has been raising and educating a child who is articulate and has been gifted with Aspergers Syndrome. Having a student who is equipped with an excellent vocabulary but at the same time pedantic in his expression and understanding within conversations has certainly had it's very challenging moments.
What we received
Color My Conversation comes in a sturdy 14" x 16" box which makes storing and keeping the kit easy and neat. The kit box contains:
12 "Conversation Path" Stepping Floor Graphics
100 Topic Prompt Picture/Emotion Cards
50 Game Tokens
50 Dry Erasable Wall Display Cards
2 Dry Erase Pens
Cloth Ribbon (approx. 9.5ft)
Game Board (foldable) with 4 new Activities on the back
CMC Ball
Classroom Poster
Instructional Manual on CD
12 CMC Songs on CD
Additional Reproducible Worksheets & Activities
I am very impressed with the quality of the materials within this kit. All the boards, display cards, prompt cards etc are made from good quality card stock and are coated in plastic to protect and extend their longevity.
Nathaniel loves the feel of the ball which we use during the conversation to demonstrate passing /taking turns in conversations. This ball is often played with throughout the day at home.
Color My Conversation uses a multi-sensory teaching approach to solidify the concepts of the subtleties of conversational structure with students. It's main purpose is to take your student from a basic greeting all the way to a complex conversation that they are capable of having.
Color My Conversation in Action
How we used it
After looking through the box of wonderful resources I took some time to watch the training videos. I was encouraged to remember that I am the leader and the children are following me. I particularly felt empowered by the introduction to:
Be Intentional - observe and take note of individual and group dynamics. Every personality is unique and every learning style matters.
Be of interest - expressive and animated
Be a curious learner - Your enthusiasm about learning is contagious
Be Flexible - expect the unexpected. Conversations are predictably unpredictable
Be Alert - Watch out for teachable moments throughout your day.
The Manual
All the activities and lessons are easily laid out within the PDF manual contained on the CD within the box. The manual has been designed in a linear fashion so that the current concept being taught is building upon the last one learned. The manual contains everything you need to say and do for every single session.
The instruction manual is divided up into
Beginner Level - Age 5 to 12 years (5 weeks to complete)
Intermediate Level - Age 5 to 12 years(6-8 weeks to complete)
Advanced Level - Age 8 to 12 years(3-5 weeks to complete)
Lesson - introduction, basic training, practice, wrap up
Teaching Tools
Hands on suggestions
The program is easily adapted to the specific needs of your child.
Throughout the manual there are note boxes containing specific
instructions on how to set specific and measurable goals for the
students including and specific information for special needs students.
I particularly like how I am reminded to look at my child and take note of his specific design. I was reminded to consider his personality, learning style and what motivates him. I appreciated the list of specific questions aimed at helping me accurately asses and encourage Nathaniel.
Each lesson finishes off with a wrap up in which
the student is encouraged.
Short review of the lesson via two or three questions to prompt them.
Specific Homework Challenge for the week.
The recommended time frame for each lesson is half and hour twice a week or a single forty five minute lesson once a week. We are being flexible as some weeks we have time to do two smaller lessons and other weeks we have time for a longer single lesson.
I like to be flexible in my approach and as such will switch between table work and floor work depending on where Nathaniel is at on the day of our lessons. I have appreciated having the tools which have enabled me to recognise that and enabled me to teach him the skills he needs at the point he is at.
Depending on the lesson and the training module I have at times used the training tutorial module video to start the lesson with Nathaniel. Roasslyn speaks and presents in a clear and concise way which is easy to understand and take on board. At times I have felt her presentation for the lesson is a perfect way to introduce the lesson to Nathaniel. As such I have found the instructional video's indispensable and really have appreciated the time she has taken to put them together.
For the Parent Color My Conversation (CMC) is a dynamic, multi-sensory social skills program developed by Rosslyn Delmonico, MA, RSLP, CCC-SLP, who a Speech-Language Pathologist with over 35 years of experience.
It has been developed to teach the skills of face-to-face conversations and is easily adapted for varying skill levels to help your children navigate the conversation flow, including the greeting, changing topics, WH__ questions, and how to close a conversation.
CMC has been designed to be used over 14-16 weeks. The lessons can be adaptable for any period of time - up to an entire year - as curriculum.
Color My Conversation provide comprehensive training via online video's to equip you the teacher/parent in implementing the program.
Upon purchasing your product you will be sent an email with links to video's on how to implement and comprehensively use Color My Conversation. Currently CMC provide training video's covering the following:
Training Videos:
Introduction & Section 1: Teaching Methods
Section 2: Getting Started
Section 3: Assessment Tools & Data Keeping
Section 4: Lesson Modules
Individual Lesson Training Videos: Beginner Level
Lesson 1: The Yellow Conversation
Lesson 2: The Short Conversation
Lesson 3: The Long Conversation
Beginner Level Wrap-Up
Intermediate Level
Introduction: Take It To The Table
Lesson 4: Who What When Where Why
Lesson 5: Yes! No! Maybe so!
Lesson 6: Making Comments Count
Lesson 7: Topic Changer Pro
Lesson 8: Speaking Loud & Clear!
Lesson 9: Beading
Intermediate Level Wrap-Up
Advanced Level
Advanced Level
Expert Level
Expert Level
I am a visual/auditory learner and found each of these particularly helpful.
Over All I thought ...
I have learned a lot about the nuances of conversations. The purpose of Color My Conversation is:
Color My Conversation was developed to assist children in their social language development. By establishing strong communication skills it leaves kids with self confidence and empowers them to engage in life. - Rosslyn Delmonico
It's good to see Nathaniel beginning to use the skills he is learning to engage more fully in life and understand the finer points of conversations as they happen. I like the way the program purposes to explain fully how conversations work in a step by step method.
Until now I had never thought about what goes into learning how to carry a conversation. Why is it that some people do it so easily and others struggle? I feel that Color My Conversation is a fabulous resource for every single home. It is a program that not only special needs children need. This is a program that all children should have access to.
With this program your children will not be left to themselves to figure out how to converse with others through trial and error. They will understand different types of conversations and exactly what is expected in each one. Children will no longer be left wondering what to say or how to respond after participating in Color My Conversation.
A few years ago I became interested in web page design after attending a Cert III in Computer studies course. I spent a few months learning all kinds of new protocols and then shifted my focus into the blogging world. The HTML coding I had learned along the way certainly helped and made manipulating my blog a little easier.
Nathaniel has been working on his YouTube channel and as a result has been nagging me to learn to do HTML coding as he wants to build a website. I was very pleased when CompuScholar, Inc. gave us one year access to their Web Design course.
What is covered
This course covers fundamental web design skills such as:
Basic web site layout
HTML5 symbols and elements
Text styles
Hyperlinks and navigation bars
CSS effects, spacing and positioning
Graphics and image editing
Tables
Page design principles
Dynamic menus
Embedded audio and video
JavaScript and jQuery
The courses is designed to be used over a 36 week school year. You can view a detailed breakdown of the syllabus by clicking on the link on the Web Design page.
How we used it
One of the things I really like about CompuScholar, Inc. is that you do not need several different log in addresses to do different courses. You can have one account and add in the courses you are enrolled in. After logging in you are taken to the home page where you can choose which of the courses you are working on for the day. Nathaniel is enrolled in two courses with them this year: Digital Savvy and Web Design. Both of these courses follow the same presentation format.
After selecting your course you are taken to the course home page where you are able to access the following:
Student Menu - here you are able to edit the profile, change the password, access a tutorial on how to use CompuScholar, Inc., see your grades and when your class enrollment expires.
The Chapters of your course - including a brief sentence on what to expect. On the right on the bottom you will see how many files, quizzes and assignments there are for that chapter.
Once you select the chapter you are working on you will then be taken to the lessons for that specific chapter. Each lesson is presented in a pop up video, lesson text and quiz.
CompuScholar, Inc. Lesson Text Sample
CompuScholar, Inc. Video lesson sample
After you have completed a chapter there is an exam button. Upon completing exams and quizzes the student is graded. Each quiz is a multiple choice questionnaire and is self graded upon submission. The student immediately knows which questions they got correct and which ones were answered in error. Each quiz allows you a maximum of three attempts. All grades go towards the course total.
The course grade is calculated using:
Quiz Scores - Self Graded
Chapter Exams - Self Graded
Activity Scores - Teacher Graded
For the Parent
Should you require to have a transcript for your student CompuScholar, Inc. have researched which specific standards and titles are covered. You can find this under the State Standards tab on the Web Design page.
Due to the interactive nature of the course your student will need access to any HTML5-compliant web browser and computer running:
Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10
Mac OS version 10.7 or higher
There is a Teacher Login for you the parent. Once you have logged in you will be given a Course Overview page the same as the Students in your class. Upon selecting the course you want to see you will have access to a Teacher Menu containing:
Grade book
Edit your profile
Change Your Password
Tutorial
Professional Development
Report Issues/Get Help
Server Status
Manage My Logins
Add Siblings
In the Professional Development area you will have access to video training on the administrative features (covering how to give the Quizzes and Tests, How to Grade a Project, How to use the Electronic Grade Book, How to add a Sibling and How to get Help) and the different courses your students are working on.
In the Teacher Support overview of the course you will find video's and downloads available for you as the teacher. The video's are a quick overview of what your students are learning in that particular section of their course.
All of the tests and quizzes are self graded by the system. On occasion the students are given an activity to demonstrate their knowledge. These are submitted to you the teacher.
Marking them is very easy. After you open the activity submission and click yes or no. The system automatically adds in the points and auto-adds up the score. Upon saving the score is then automatically added to the students work.
Cost of Web Design
There are two pricing options available. You can choose between a monthly or a one year subscription.
Recommended Age Range
This course is recommended for students in the grades 6-12 range.
Over All I thought ...
I am very impressed with CompuScholar, Inc. I have learned a few things I didn't know and will be able to use here on my blog. I am looking forward to pursuing my own personal understanding of Java Programming and Digital Savvy.
I really like that CompuScholar, Inc. show the lessons on both the Windows and Apple platforms as now I will be able to use either computer to do what I need to. If you or your students are technologically challenged I highly recommend you adding in Computer Sills class - Digital Savvy to your day as well as Web Design. You will learn to understand the basics of designing your own websites and build up a personal knowledge of current HTML 5.
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