Phonetic Zool Level A {IEW Review}

Earlier this year Nathaniel and I had the privilege of beginning our writing journey with The Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW). I have been a huge fan of theirs for over a decade and was very encouraged to see Nathaniel's progress in the area of composition using their Student Writing Package.

Due to Asperger's Syndrome Nathaniel has been struggling in the area of language arts and spelling is an area we have been working on. I recently discovered that Nathaniel learns best with short lessons, copy work and with clear instructions. I heard about Phonetic Zoo Spelling Level A [Starter Set] and I was very keen to try it.

You can watch Andrew Pudewa's introduction to Spelling Zoo on YouTube.

What we received

• Spelling and the Brain video Seminar
• 5 audio CD's containing 47 lessons, answer keys and 6 final exams
• Lesson Cards 
• Personal Spelling Cards
• Zoo Cards
• Phonetic Zoo Teacher Notes (PDF file) 3.93 MB. This manual is 76 pages long and contains: How to notes, an introduction to Phonetic Zoo, short lesson notes for each lesson and Appendices.

How we used it

After downloading the Teachers Manual I printed it off and followed took some time to read through the notes in the beginning. I found these notes particularly helpful as they explain the reasons behind the method.

Spelling Zoo uses a multi-sensory approach to teach spelling and has it's foundations in Mrs. Anna Inghams Blended Sound-Sight Program of Learning. The explanations of basic neurophysiology deepened my understanding of the processes involved in learning to spell and helped reinforce the method.

 I downloaded the audio program into iTunes and gave Nathaniel the first spelling card. 

Nathaniel looked over the spelling rule and column A of the spelling words. I had him read the rule to me and explained what it meant in relation to the words he was learning.  We put aside the card and took out a book with plain lined paper.

The next step was for him to do on his own.  He started listening to the audio. Track one explains to the student how the program works.  Track two was the first lesson.  The spelling rule is recited followed by a spelling practice run.

This involves:

• Hearing the word to be learned in context of a sentence 
• Writing the word.  
• Once all the words are written the student is required to mark their own work. The process involves: hearing the word, hearing the spelling of the word, crossing out the incorrectly spelled word and writing it the correct way.  

This process is repeated until the student obtains 100 % accuracy for the list they are working on for two days in a row.

Front of Personal Spelling Reward Cards

Back of Personal Reward Spelling Cards

 Once they have obtained mastery they earn a zoo card for that level.  Each card contains:

• On the front:A picture of an animal whose name follows the spelling rule and the title of the spelling rule
• On the back: The lesson number, rule title and hint poem to help the student remember the rule.

Front: Lesson Card One

 The lesson cards are printed on card stock. Each card has three levels of spelling on them.  Level A, B and C. The front of the card has a drawing of an animal along with their name which conforms to the spelling rule being learned. On the right is a sample of the words being learned that lesson.

Back Lesson Card One

The back of each card contains the lesson summary and rule hint. On the right is three columns.  One for each spelling level. This means that you only need one set of cards to complete all three levels. Once you have worked through level A go back to the beginning and work your way through each successful level. This means I only have to purchase the audio's in order to complete the next two levels.

Cost of Phonetic Zoo Level A*

• CD with Printed Materials $99.00
• Download, $79.00

*All prices are quoted in US $ and are current at time of review. Please consult the I.E.W. website for current prices
** I.E.W. is available for purchase internationally.  Find your nearest distributor here.

Recommended Age Range

• Grades 3 - 5
• Special Education
• English Learners
• Level A (primary)
• Level B (intermediate)
• Level C (highest)

Find out more

•  Getting started with The Phonetic Zoo
• How to use Spelling Zoo
• About the 100 % refund Guarantee 
• Spelling Zoo Placement Test 

Connect with IEW



I am very impressed with Spelling Zoo.  It has removed the stress of me having to daily repeat the spelling I am teaching to Nathaniel.  Spelling Zoo has been a good fit for Aspergers because each and every day is identical.  The results are measurable each day and he has immediate feedback on his personal progress.  There is no pressure because he is working against himself and his own ability.

Blessings
Chareen

Drawing Around the World: Europe {Review}

Over the last few years I have grown an interest in the Charlotte Mason pedagogy of education. The longer I am on this journey the more I want to remove the mundane and twaddle from our Homeschool.

Recently I learned about the curriculum publisher called Brookdale House.  Their passion is "to design curricula that teaches more with less."  I discovered that Ms Mason wrote a couple of Geography books. This new found knowledge has inspired me to search for something to help Nathaniel with his map skills / knowledge.

Brookdale House have a Geography Drawing Series which covers the continent of Europe (Drawing Around the World: Europe) and the USA. The purpose of the curriculum is to help students draw maps from memory.

What we received

• Drawing Around the World: Europe
• 256 page full colour eBook 
• 9,286 kb

Contents

• How to use the program
• Learning objectives
• Suggested weekly schedule
• Memorization Techniques
• Maps
• Drawing Directions 
• Online Resource links
• 50 Countries to learn (spread over a 24 week cycle):

Albania	Germany	Norway
Andorra	Greece	Poland
Armenia	Hungry	Portugal
Austria	Iceland	Romania
Azerbaijan	Ireland	Russia
Belarus	Italy	San Marino
Belgium	Kosovo	Serbia
Bosnia	Latvia	Slovakia
Bulgaria	Liechtenstein	Slovenia
Croatia	Lithuania	Spain
Cyprus	Luxembourg	Sweden
Czech Republic	Macedonia	Switzerland
Denmark	Malta	Turkey
Estonia	Moldavia	Ukraine
Finland	Monaco	United Kingdom
France	Montenegro	Vatican City
Georgia	Netherlands

 How we used it

I printed off the first 14 pages which contained the introduction, instructions and a few sample and reference maps in order to familiarize myself with how the program works.  From here I chose the country we are learning about and printed off the pages for the week.

Learning to draw the country for the week

 Each week follows the same rhythm

• Day 1 - Learn about the country by completing a fact table of the country, locate and label the country on a map, trace the country and draw the country.
• Day 2 - Locate and label the country on a dashed, black and white dashed map. Draw and label the country on a blank map.
• Day 3 - a repeat of day 2
• Day 4 - List from memory all the countries studied so far. Draw the countries on a blank map.

Locating, colouring and labeling the country on a dotted map

Drawing the country on a blank map

If the student would like to practice tracing the country before free hand drawing you can add the maps to a sheet protector and use a dry erase marker. Some students struggle with the slippery writing surface. For these students I recommend using backing paper and a pencil for practice.

Using coloured pencils helps the countries stand out from the rest during practice and review.

**Cost of Drawing Around the World: Europe

• eBook - $22.95
• Printed Book - $25.95

** All prices are current as at October 2015. Price is subject to increase at the discretion of the vendor. Please check the website for current pricing structures.

Recommended Age Range

• There is no recommended minimum age.  As soon as your student is capable of tracing, free hand drawing from memory and writing the country names you can start using Drawing Around the World: Europe.

Connect with Brookdale House



Over All I thought ...
I like the simplicity of this system and the flexibility I have as a home educator to choose which country to learn next. This enables me to line up the country we are studying with our history or our current read aloud.

The system is the same each week which means that for me I don't need to do any new prep work and for Nathaniel it allows him to know what to do without me having to explain it from scratch each time.

Beautifully presented and excellent quality make for a great geography product.

Blessings
Chareen

Sarah, Plain and Tall {Progeny Press Review}

One of the things I really enjoy about homeschooling is discovering books that impact my life and the lives of my children in a positive way.  Charlotte Mason encourages us to find books that are twaddle free so when I find a book that impacts me I look forward to reading it to my children.  When Timothy and Jane were younger I discovered an incredibly though provoking trilogy by Patricia MacLachlan called: Sarah, Plain and Tall.  Last year we worked our way through the Little House on the Prairie books and my aim was to read Sarah Plain and Tall to Nathaniel but I really wanted him to see deeper into the story.  Due to him having ASD this can at times be rather challenging.

Last year Progeny Press blessed our family with a wonderful study guide to use along side Frog and Toad Together and we enjoyed it so much I was thrilled to find that they had an E-Study Guide for Sarah, Plain and Tall.

Their company mission is "To teach our children to think clearly, to understand literature, and to rely on the scripture for truth and values, and enjoy themselves while they do it!"

What we received

• Sarah, Plain and Tall - E-Study Guide
• Author: Rebecca Gilleland
• For the book: Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan.
• Pages: 43
• Format: Interactive PDF
• Sarah, Plain and Tall Answer Key

This Guide contains:

•  Table of Contents
• Note to instructor
• Synopsis
• About the Author
• Background information
• Before you read activities
• As you read assignments
• Chapter 1-3, 4-6 and 7-9 questions
• Word-search
• Summary Questions
• Crossword
• After you read Activities
• Additional Resource List
• Answer Key

How we used it
I downloaded the guide which arrived in an interactive PDF format (575 KB).  It had a total of 43 pages with a full colour cover. I printed our copy at home on our printer. I also printed off the answer key (61.5 KB).

Sample of questions and interactive fill in spaces.

This study guide is an interactive study guide.  You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0+. I wondered what they meant by interactive and discovered that students have the ability to fill in the answers electronically on the computer and save their work as they progress through the guide. You do still have the option of printing the guide as before and using it as a paper guide. We stored ours in a file. To make use of the interactive part of the guide is an easy process.  You open the guide on your pc, click on the blue highlight and start typing.  The blue disappears and your writing appears in a different font. Once you have filled in your response and move to the next question the blue reappears.

Starting off our study we used the background information section to help us understand the time period the book is covering as well as to get a better perspective of life on the Prairie during the pioneer days in America.

Sarah, Plain and Tall is a 1986 Newberry Honor book. Sir N and I took turns reading the chapters together. This is a beautiful book and thought provoking. After Sir N read a chapter to me I would re-read the chapter to him so he could sit back and enjoy the beautiful illustrations and hear the story.

The guide has three sections covering the nine sections.  Each of these sections in the guide cover different aspects:

• Language Arts (each section uses a different exercise eg similes and metaphors, dictionary work)
• Setting
• Questions
• Thinking about the story
• Dig Deeper

We then moved to the table and looked through that chapter's study guide questions.  Digging Deeper is one of my favourite sections of the guide.  I wanted Sir N to have the opportunity to think and share with me his thoughts so I was the scribe and reader of the guide to him. From the guide I learned to turn to God's word and dig deeper and draw parallel's to what we were reading and learning. Together we learned to think more clearly about the story we were reading together. This had a benefit as Sir N got to look in his own bible to discover more about what God said on the subject. Each scripture reference was followed with thought provoking questions to help the student dig a little deeper and apply the knowledge of what they had just learned both from the Word of God and the book they had just read.


Recommended Age Range

• Upper Elementary/3rd grade-6th grade

Formats Available of this guide

• Sarah, Plain and Tall - E-Study Guide
• Sarah, Plain and Tall - Study Guide  CD or Printed Workbook

Categories available from Progeny Press

• Lower Elementary 
• Upper Elementary 
• Middle School
• High School

 Connect with Progeny Press

• Pinterest
• Facebook
• Twitter
• YouTube 
• Blog - Ask Rebecca

Over All I thought ...
Nathaniel and I both enjoyed this study guide together.  I enjoyed the digging deeper questions the most especially watching Nathaniel grasp the impact upon himself. He also enjoyed some of the further reading and listening suggestions at the end of the book. I hope that we can find the movie to watch too.

This guide was easy to use and there was very little preparation work for me the teacher.  I liked how the layout was easy to follow and simple to use.  

If you are looking for a study guide to use with your children that digs deeper and goes beyond asking mundane questions like who is the main character and what did they do? A guide that relies on scripture as the plum line. Progeny Press study guides are your answer.

I look forward to using more guides in the future with Nathaniel.
Blessings
Chareen