Super Fun Math Game

 Fractazmic is a fun way to learn fractions.   

Do your kids hate math?  I have to admit.  I do.  My kids are both really good at it but I'm totally not sure where they got it from .

Fractazmic is brought to you by the company I See Cards.    They also are the company that brings you Pyramath.    When I opened the deck, I honestly thought my kids would hate it.  It looked like flash cards.   I was quickly pleasantly surprised.  This game can  be played by 2-4 players. 

And if you have read many of my reviews, you can already guess that we lost the directions.  This was a card that was included with the deck.  I have no idea where it went.   Luckily, we could look online and find out how to play. 

  We played the Fractazmic Trap version.  After I watched this video it was pretty easy to figure out how to play.  The object of the game is to make a set that equals 1.  Sounds easy, right?  Well, you have to be able to convert fractions to do this.  

Griffin is learning fractions right now and I was impressed that he could do this.  He actually explained it to me and I got it.   Bella, who is 8, could only do part of the time.  

Let me explain why. 

There are three color families in the game.  Each one is a different set.

Blue is based on a denominator of 12.   So there is a picture of an egg carton on the cards.  If the fraction is 1/2 there are 6 eggs, 1/4 has 3 eggs and so on.   This made it pretty easy.  It didn't take long for it to "click" for Bella.  She knew that all she had to do was count the eggs on the cards and when they equaled 12 it was a whole number and the round was over.  She also could convert the fractions without looking at the picture pretty quickly. 

So great job, Fractazmic.  You taught my daughter to convert these fractions pretty quickly. 

Now Green is based on a denominator of 10.  This one was also fairly easy.  There is a picture of a water bottle with the measurements marked off.  You can count the ml's and when they all add up to 10, you know you have equaled 1.    She got this one pretty quickly too. 

Now, Red was a little more confusing.  The reason is the pictures.  It shows a ruler with a cute little bug.  When we were playing, I thought the picture was the same on each card.  I now realize the bugs are 4 cm each and there are different amounts of bugs for each fraction.  Duh!  I get it now.  This will make it much easier the next time we play it for Bella (and me, lol). 

I have some really great pictures but of course my computer isn't cooperating so I will add those later.  

This game sells for $6.95 which is very reasonable.   You can order it here.  

I highly recommend this game to add to your math curriculum and learning fun. 

Our Family gives Fractazmic

Smiley guide

1 Smiley - Product not really for our family. Probably wouldn’t buy. This really should probably be a frown face but we hate to be negative.

2 Smileys - Would maybe buy this product if on sale. Not a great fit for our family.

3 Smileys - We really liked this product and would probably recommend this to friends and fellow homeschoolers.

4 – Smileys – Definitely would buy this if the budget would allow. We suggest you check this out to see if it is a fit for your family.

5 Smileys – Would sell the family pets to get this one (just kidding). A must have for our family and we think you should get it too.
To see what my fellow crew mates have to say about this this product, click here.

For giveaways,and other great stuff, please check out the TOS Homeschool Crew blog by clicking below.

Please note: I received this product in exchange for my honest opinion in this review. No other compensation was provided. Thank you to I see Cards and TOS for this opportunity.

I don’t want to give it up . . . . The 2010 TOS Planner, that is. And now the New Student Planners

When I was growing up, my favorite commercial was for a toy store. When I received the new 2010 TOS Homeschool planner, it made me think of the jingle.

Here is my version for the planner:

I don’t want to give it up,

I’m a TOS Mom,

There’s a million forms for me to use

to plan my school year on. .

From schedules to recipes to lists and goals

It’s the biggest planner out there there is. Gee Whiz.

I don’t want to give it up,

I really don’t see how.

We’d get our school year started with a wow.

More pages, more info, Oh, Boy.

The Schoolhouse Planner is the best there is.

BUY IT HERE

If you are a homeschool family and haven’t seen the TOS Schoolhouse Planner, you are seriously missing out. One of my biggest fears used to be that my kids would have gaps in their education. I finally realized that I could never keep that from happening. There is no way that anyone can go through their education without gaps. I had gaps and I went to public school. The great thing about the new Planner is that I will be able to plan so well that the gaps will be kept to a minimum. I have always bought a boring planner from the teacher supply store, but never again. I love that I can type directly into the planner and print it out customized for my own family.

The planner comes as a download so you are able to access it immediately. This is great because as you know the new school year is fast approaching. You don’t want to waste any time waiting on the postman and with the 2010 Schoolhouse Planner E-book you don’t have to. It is a huge (over 600 pages) E-book. I love the fact that I don’t have to print everything out at once. I can just print out the pages that interest me. Because it is so big, there are bound to be things you will not need. The great thing is that almost everything you can think of is in there just in case. If you don’t want to print out pages, you can just type the information into the planner and save it. How cool is that?

You will find a wealth of information listed under monthly categories. From Wars involving the United States to American Sign Language as a Foreign Language Credit, it’s in here. You can find Indoor fun, information for cooking Gluten and Dairy Free, how to do notebooking, and even animal classification.

Here are a few more things that you will get when you order this amazing planner.

• Homeschool forms (including but not limited to)
  • Curriculum recording sheet
  • Goals
  • Objectives
  • To-Do list
  • Annual Plans
  • Course of Study (love this one to send in with notification forms)
  • Weekly planning forms (here you can see ours for next week)
  • Field Trip planning
  • Daily Planner (new)
  • Report Cards
  • High School Transcript
  • Log Sheets (videos, books, etc.)
  • Journal pages
  • Preschool Forms
  • 
    

• Household Forms
  • Important Phone Numbers
  • Babysitter information
  • Emergency Medical Info
  • Family Computer Schedule
  • Grocery Lists
  • Menu Planners BUY IT HERE

And so much more. The list of forms takes up 16 entire pages. That is over 120 forms for only $39. No, I am not kidding. It is only $39.00. It seems like the list is never ending. This is one time when that is a good thing.

One of my favorite things for our family is the Co-op planning sheets. This year I have been asked to be the co-leader in our local CHEC group. This is new to me so these sheets will be wonderful in helping me keep track and plan our co-op activities and field trips.

I haven’t even mentioned all of the recipes. The price tag of $39 would be worth it for the over 84 recipes alone. Every month has several tempting recipes to enjoy with your family. My favorite is the Holiday Chicken Ring.

Have I coerced you into buying the Schoolhouse Planner yet? You will not be disappointed.

Wait, I forgot to mention there are two articles every month written by experienced homeschoolers and well known authors. I loved the one titled “What kind of homeschooler are you?” I enjoy reading about all of the different types of learning styles.

You can check it out right here if you would like to see a sample.

This isn’t just Mom’s Planner, either. You can print out individual sheets for each of your children to help keep them on track. Younger children will be able to keep track of audio/video logs, book reports, US Capitals, nature journal pages and their chore charts. You can print off the sheets for them to fill out or customize them on the computer and really make it special.

What teenager wouldn’t love their own personalized planner that includes car maintenance forms, bible study notes, getting into college checklist, weekly or daily schedule (they get to pick), library book list (no more fines) and a chore reminder form.

Don’t forget you can print off as many copies as you would like. No need to buy separate planners for each member of the family. You get it all with the Schoolhouse Planner from TOS.

I really think this will be the best $39 you have spent on homeschooling. If you only use a small part of the planner, it will be worth your investment.

Wouldn’t it be great to have a well planned, laid back school year in 2010? Buy the new Schoolhouse Planner and you will be well on your way. Don’t wait, do it now.

Are you still here? What more could you want? How about a better planned homeschool conference next year? Okay. They have forms for that too. Four new forms designed just for convention planning will help keep you organized at your favorite conference. You will not be overwhelmed when you enter the vendor hall and these will help you make better decisions when it comes time to purchase that new curriculum. This also would be great when you attend the Homeschool Expo at The Old Schoolhouse that is coming up this fall.

Now really, go buy it. You’re family will thank you. You will be a more relaxed homeschool mommy. You’ll have more time to do the fun stuff and make wonderful memories with the children God has blessed you with.

You’ll have more time to stop and smell the

And, as always, shipping is free at The Old Schoolhouse Store.

BUY IT HERE

TOS has also came out with Student Planner'>Student Planners for all of your homeschool students needs. You can read all about these here. There are levels for every age including Primary, Middle and High School. These are a great way to give your student more accountability in their education. It includes schedules, forms, journals and so much more.

They are very reasonably priced.

High School & Middle School Planners-$28.80
High School & Secondary or Primary Planners-$23.37
Middle School & Secondary or Primary Planners-$17.37
Secondary & Primary Planners-$11.94

Please check them out, I think you’ll really love them.

I am doing reposting this as part of a contest for TOS. I have not received any compensation but there may be a prize (hopefully). I did not exaggerate my thoughts because of this. Really, I love it. I'm not kidding.

Travel the World E-Book – TOS review

Product:  Travel the World E-book

Company:  The Old Schoolhouse – where shipping is always free!

Price:  $7.95

 

Our new school year started about a month ago.  We are enjoying  an exciting adventure as we learn more about the world that we live in.   World history and geography is what we are focusing on this year.  We use a lot of unit studies and have an eclectic, Charlotte Mason learning style.   I received the Travel the World E-book to review as part of the TOS crew and it fits in perfectly with what we are learning.

This exciting e-book has so many wonderful  elements.   First, it is an add on for the Schoolhouse  Planner.   The 2010 version of the planner is better than ever.  This e-book is the first module for this years planner.      Because it is an e-book, you get it immediately as a download when you purchase it.  This is great for us because I have a hard time waiting when I buy homeschool curriculum.  I’m a get it right now kind of girl.   The only thing you will need to use this is a printer, crayons or markers, the internet (if you choose to use the links) and some kiddo’s. 

What is a module, you say?

A module is something to add to the The Schoolhouse Planner, the amazing planner brought to you by The Old Schoolhouse®. This module includes a study guide, activity pages, quizzes, coloring pages, copywork, lapbooking, and more!   You can get all of the past years modules for $83.95. 

Even though this was made to add to The Schoolhouse Planner, you do not have to have the planner to enjoy this module.  It is designed as a stand alone unit study to be enjoyed by anyone.   Answer keys are included for your reference. 

We are always looking for ways to add to our curriculum and these modules are definitely worth the cost.    There is so much information including hyperlinks, crossword puzzles, quizzes, maps and so much more.  My favorite thing about this is that when flipping through the pages, there is a definite “God centered” feel to the lessons.  There is a song sung to the tune of “He’s got the whole world in his hands” that my kids loved.  

Here are some things your child will know after completing this module along with a few of the activities:

Longitude and latitude lines

Maps

The compass rose

Continents

Word Searches

Fill in the Blanks

Rebus puzzles

Lapbook beginnings

Cursive and Manuscript copywork

Recipes

There is also a high school extension which allows this to be used for the entire family.  We were able to use this for our 7 year old as well as our 11 year old.  Each one liked different things.  Bella, who is younger, really liked the maps and lapbook features and Griffin enjoyed the crossword puzzles and word searches. 

This is going to be great for our family as we continue our study of the world.   There are pockets you can  add to a lapbook for each continent.  This will be great to keep information we learn as we continue throughout the year.  I really loved this aspect.      The only drawback for this would be the cost of printer ink.  I do love that you can pick and choose which pages to print to help save on this aspect. 

Still don’t know if this is right for you?    You can click HERE to see a sample of this item!

All e-books published by  The Old Schoolhouse Magazine  come with a money back guarantee so there really is nothing to lose.   The cost of each module if you purchase them separately is $7.95. 

Oh yeah, don’t forget shipping to anywhere in the U.S. is always free with TOS. 

Please check out what my fellow crew mates have to say about the June 2010 Module – Travel the World over at Homeschoolblogger on the crew page. 

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Our family gives TOS Travel the World

Smiley guide:

 

1 Smiley -  Product not really for our family.  Probably wouldn’t buy.  This really should probably be a frown face but we hate to be negative.

 

2 Smileys - Would maybe buy this product if on sale.   Not a great fit for our family.

3 Smileys -  We really liked this product and would  probably recommend this to friends and fellow homeschoolers.

4 – Smileys – Definitely would buy this if the budget would allow.  We suggest you check this out to see if it is a fit for your family.

5 Smileys – Would sell the family pets to get this one (just kidding).  A must have for our family and we think you should get it too.

__________________________________________________

 

Please note that I received a free copy of Travel the World in exchange for my honest opinion in this review.  No other compensation was provided to me.  Thank you TOS for this opportunity.   

Also, if you click on any of the TOS links, I will earn a small percentage of your order to help our family get great new curriculum.  Thank you for helping us out in this way.