GPA LEARN - A Review

Why do we always seem to stress over math as homeschoolers?  Since we began our current homeschooling journey we have tried several different approaches to math.  One thing that I have been eager to see happen is our nine-year-old to gain some independence in her academics and not require so much one on one attention with me throughout the day.  Initially, it was a non-issue, but now that the younger ones are getting a little older I would like to be more available for one-on-one time with them as well.  It can be a difficult thing to juggle.   I knew that once our nine-year-old strengthened her math and reading skills this would become more and more of a reality.  Using GPALOVEMATH by GPA LEARN has greatly fostered this attribute in our homeschool, and it has been an amazing experience for all of us in many ways.

All three of our children - ages 4, 5, and 9 - just love GPALOVEMATH.  Our nine-year-old has become super independent in her math studies, and it is such a confidence booster.  Not only is she gaining the ability to problem solve and learn on her own, but I am gaining some freedom in my routine.  All three of the children just love the teaching style implemented in this online program, and we have found a way for all three of them to be independent in their math studies in one way or another.  The nine-year-old works 100% independently, with an occasional question for me, and is learning the importance of taking the time to be taught and learn before diving right in.  It can be tempting for her to skip the instruction and practice phases and dive right into the test.  However, she is finding that sometimes we need to take the time to allow ourselves to be taught in order to learn.  When she has worked on lessons within the program I receive an email update informing me of her progress.  This alerts me of her successes as well as provides me with information as to when she may be struggling.

My five-year-old surprised me by showing readiness for first grade math.  This is something I would not has as quickly discovered had we not explored using GPALOVEMATH with the youngest two.  He works equally well on the laptop and the tablet requiring occasional clarification or assistance from me.  He is not only learning math skills, but he is also gaining computer skills and learning how to better follow directions.  I hear, "Can I do math?", on a very regular basis from both the five-year-old and the four-year-old.  The nine-year-old will even request extra math time now and again.  That really says a lot in my book.

The four-year-old using GPALOVEMATH on our nook.

We've gotten a little more creative with our four-year-old using the program.  Life is easier when she can do things on a touchscreen tablet.  We have a nook, nabi, and Kindle Fire.  Currently supported formats are Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac Computers, Apple iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tab 4, Goodle Chrome, Internet Explorer 11, Mozilla Firefox, and Apple Safari 6 and 7.  Although none of our devices are currently supported by GPALEARN we have managed to make the nook work for us.  We access the website via the web browser on the nook and use the website that way.  The sound doesn't always work with it not being a supported format.  The little kids rely on the program reading the lessons to them more than the nine-year-old.  When it won't work right I just read them the lesson, and they do the actual work on their own with occasional guidance from me.  All of my children would absolutely love it if there were an app created that worked on all of our devices, but we manage just fine with the format as it currently functions.

Another fun aspect of GPALOVEMATH is the different instructors.  Since each of my children is working at a different grade level they each have a different instructor.  Everything is animated.  The third grade level instructor is a very friendly robot, first grade is taught by a fun penguin, and kindergarten is led by a cool detective.  Each lesson is divided into three parts; instruction, practice, and quiz.  The student is free to choose where to begin and can go back anytime if necessary.  They earn points for each lesson that can be banked and redeemed for online gift certificates to cool places like Target and Toys R Us.  In addition to the gift certificates the parents can customize rewards to be given randomly for gifts of personal choice.  We have things like extra tablet time, puzzle time with mom, an extra bedtime story, and so on.  This is a lot of fun for everyone.

GPA LEARN has managed to free up some of my personal time, fostered a sense of independence in my children in regard to their zest for learning, and it has plunged my children into the deep end of mathematics all the while making the learning process fun and engaging.  You can learn more about GPA LEARN and GPALOVEMATH via Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest as well as reading reviews by other homeschool families by clicking the button below.

IXL Math & Language Arts - A Review

Our family has been enjoying the additional learning exercises provided through IXL.  Both the math and the language arts programs have provided fun supplementation to the resources that were already part of our home education routine.  Harmony is old enough to benefit from both of the online programs provided.  IXL Math supplies her with both reinforcement of her current skills and extra practice on strategies that pose her more of a challenge.  Currently we are not using a formal Language Arts curriculum.  Rather we have been using a few less formal resources, and IXL Language Arts has been a nice fit.

We use the programs in a couple of different ways here at Royal Academy.  Harmony can go online and practice her choice of skill sets, and the IXL program keeps track of her progress.  Alternately, I can assign her certain exercises and check back later to see if she's grasping the concepts.  I should note that the assignments cannot be given within the program.  I just write the exercise numbers on a piece of paper for her, and she looks them up on her own to complete them.  As you've heard me mention previously, instilling independence and self-sufficiency is high on our priority list.  Using the programs is another simple way for me to work toward that end goal.  In this way we have put IXL to work as our primary math program to fill the gap in our transitional time since she has completed her previous math program.  It is nice to have a resource to help keep her skills fresh as well as provide an added challenge while we decide where we want to go from here in regard to her mathematical education.

Harmony assisting Avery while Bella observes.

Annabella and Avery are both of the preschool age, and they really enjoy IXL Math.  The Language Arts program begins at Grade 2, so they are too young to utilize it yet.  Harmony loves to work with them on the math program.  Reading them the questions and helping them understand the concepts and answer the questions is a great opportunity for all of the kids.  Not only do the little ones learn math skills, but Harmony gains confidence through teaching them.  It's a win, win!

We are also excited about the potential of IXL in our homeschool thanks to the availability of apps.  It is not something we've managed to implement at this point, but we certainly plan to in the future.  Most likely it will be after Christmas since we are planning to add some new technology to our school supplies this holiday season.  The complete program, math Pre-K through 12th Grade and language arts 2nd through 8th grade, is available through the iPad app.  Pre-K through eighth grade math can be accessed through the Android and Kindle apps with higher level access on the horizon.  The math portion goes all the way from Pre-K through 12th grade when accessed via the internet.

Although IXL is designed for skill practice as opposed to a full curriculum, we have found a way for it to take center stage in our current routine.  If you would like to utilize IXL in your homeschool family memberships start at just $9.95 per month or $79 per year.  For more information or to purchase a family membership, visit the IXL website.

You can connect further with IXL via Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Just a Peek

I've been wanting to take a moment to travel back through our first month of homeschooling through the pictures I've taken these first three weeks.  I cannot believe next week will usher us into October!  I remember older people telling me how fast time goes by the older you get.  Now, I am one of those older people saying the very same thing, because it is SO true!  That is why it is SO important to take time to just be.  Be present.  Be mindful.  Be observant.  Be reflective.  Be still.  There is no better way to slow time down than by making a conscious effort to NOT be so busy.  It's the business of adulthood that sucks our time away.  So, now is my time for reflection.  I hope you enjoy traveling back with me.

We ended the summer with our one and only trip to the beach.
Weather was a bit cool here in SE Michigan this year.

The hubby got all our wood ready for this year, and hopefully next!

School pictures!  Our new first day tradition.

The first science experiment of the year; a visual in mummification.
The three-year-old was the one with the spot on hypothesis!
 

We started using the busy bags from the trade I participated in the summer.
(A fun idea I highly recommend!)

Bella loves preschool!

Harmony back at her math program.

We still took time to watch things grow and to enjoy the nature around us.
 

Bella LOVES taking pictures of our growing tomatoes!

We all helped in one way or another to
prepare for hunting season.

Finding out what happened to our apple slices in our first experiment.
Annabella needs to taste everything!

Wild grapes grow around our property.
Maybe we'll do something with them next year.

We enjoy the turkey that travel our yard.
Finding their feathers is like discovering treasure.

My favorite stop when we take a nature walk on our land.

Exploring a new local park.

Bella loves to climb!

The kids think the new hearth is a stage.
Guess what movie we watched recently!

We learned about cells.

And, learned that Play-doh can grow mold.  Gross!

An exercise on the importance of our bones.

People without bones.

Learning about the protective fluid around our brain.

Traveling around Africa before the digging of the Suez Canal.

Benefiting from the short cut of the Suez Canal.

As you can see, we've done a lot in September.  Now that fall is here, we will begin a whole new set of adventures.  I love taking pictures of what we do if for no other reason than to see that we really do get a lot accomplished in our time, as fast as it does slip by.  Pictures are a fun way to record our life together, and with today's technology it is easier than ever.  Most of these pictures are unedited, because I just don't have the kind of time I would like to devote to photography at the moment.  Plus, I wanted you to see that it doesn't matter the perceived quality of the photos, rather it's the ease of record keeping that they provide.  We forget things all too quickly, and pictures are a good way to preserve those memories and even record your school year.

CTC Math 12 Month Family Plan Review

I love math!

Well, not really.  Not me anyway, but my kids do.  What a blessing that is, and what a blessing CTC Math has been to our family.  It blesses me, the "I really don't see a point to all this math" person, just as well as it does my children.  It even helps me like math just a little bit more, and that's pretty cool!  ( Don't worry!  They have NO clue that I'm not so thrilled about math.  What kind of homeschooling mom do you think I am anyway?)

It gives me pleasure to see how CTC Math and the 12 Month Family Plan has ignited a passion for math within my children.  For those of you that do not know, they are eight, four, and three.  Yes, even the three-year-old has gotten in on things a little.  She enjoys watching her siblings do their assignments, and she enjoys having them help her try her hand at the kindergarten level.  It is a bit beyond her capabilities, but it is exciting enough to engage her at least for a little bit.  With her busy, little self, that is saying a lot.

My eight-year-old, our primary focus for this review, enjoys working independently and choosing her assignments.  This detail oriented, homeschool mom would like it a little better if I could actually assign the various lessons within the program itself, but we've learned to just work with it the way it is.  On the plus side, if I had been limiting her to my ideals it would have taken much longer to discover that she knows much more about math than I realized.  It is nice that she can watch the lesson as many times as she needs to in order to completely understand the skills being taught.  She can do the assignments as many times as necessary should she be struggling with a certain aspect of things allowing her to thoroughly understand the concepts she is learning.  Another portion of the program that I just love is that you can skip skill sets and return to them later.  You don't have to go in a certain progression.  This has been especially awesome for us as the eight-year-old is not quite ready for the more abstract aspects of math.  So, we moved along and will revisit them later when the time is right.  One thing that I would enjoy is to be able to print worksheets for the kids when we are unable to be online but still want to keep up our math.  That would be an awesome addition to the program as well.  For now, we just supplement with workbooks I already had on hand, and it is working out just fine.  What do I get out of all this?  At the end of the week I get a nice little update with a summary of all she's accomplished as well as the grades she's achieved.  She even gets the opportunity to learn mastery certificates if she so desires.  It's a beautiful thing!

My four-year-old has been in love with all things math related for quite some time now and will even request to "do math" from time to time.  In the past this meant I would scramble to get him a preschool level worksheet from my stash and let him explore away.  With CTC Math things just moved to a whole new level for him.  He loves getting online and using the manipulatives on screen to learn about numbers and counting at a kindergarten level.  Who knew he could do kindergarten level math?  Not this momma!  We're just a little more relaxed when it comes to things like these, and we don't normally pay attention to grade level and things like that.  We know what we know, right?  Even though the CTC Math 12 Month Family Plan is organized by grade level and skill set, there is this same flexibility.  Despite us knowing the actual levels of the kids now, they are still arbitrary in that there is still the freedom to work at your current level no matter if it's at, above, or below grade level.  The only testing required is what you choose.  This system is designed for you to be in complete control of what you do when, and we love it for that.

Having the eight-year-old help the younger two with their math assignments further fuels her passion for math.  One of the best ways to become a master at something is to teach others.  Teaching her siblings has helped cement their bond as well as build her confidence further.  These are benefits to using this program that we didn't foresee.  Watching the kids work together to solve problems is heart warming.  They all love math now, and they love learning it together!  It will be fun to see where this leads.  I have always enjoyed watching younger children bloom more fully from the love and care of the older ones.

CTC Math for Homeschoolers covers the entire gamut from kindergarten through trigonometry.  How I would have LOVED to have had this for my older children when they were completing high school.  What a difference it would have made for all of us.  (Who knows?  Maybe I would have actually gone past geomotry and tried something a little more challenging.  Maybe I will when this next batch reaches high school.  I guess you'll just have to stick around for a few years and find out!)  I love that there is one low price for the entire family with no need to purchase separate levels.  We have full access to all levels all the time!  There are single student options as well as options for families with two or more students.  The annual family plan is affordably priced at just $118.80 for 12 months.  With what I have invested in math the various math curriculum we've used over the years I can truly appreciate the flexibility and affordability of this particular program.  It is certain to be used in our homeschool for years to come.

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