What do you know about Hershey (Milton Hershey, that is)? More ThanChocolate!

My family always enjoys receiving new books to read, and some of us are especially fond of YWAM Publishing books. We have been purchasing books from their Christian Heroes: Then & Now series for years (possibly even a decade +!), and I always appreciate the opportunity to review their books as well. I was particularly excited to receive Heroes of History: Milton Hershey from the Heros of History series (currently 27 books published in this series!) for review.

We have been interested in Hershey, PA since 2006 when we first visited on our initial "Great American Road Trip." My (then) two kids and I were delighted with the "Sweet" lights and even a picturesque drugstore wall... we even were able to find that wall 10 years later for a photo op this past summer!

Our interest was piqued even more when my daughter and son briefly visited the Hershey School in 2014 when they were in PA on a youth group evangelism trip.

Now, my daughter is going to college not too far away, on the other side of Harrisburg, PA, and one of her soon-to-be classmates is a soon-to-be-graduate of the Hershey School. (You can click on this link to view a video on the Milton Hershey School's facebook page that features this student and others as the walk the elementary school halls in their caps and gowns~ inspiration! ).

OK, so on with the Review!
This was a perfect book for my 9 year old to read and enjoy (and pique *his* interest in Hershey as well), so I let him read it... after I finished. :) His big sister is next in line, and eventually his older brother will get a chance to check it out.

Although I knew about the Hershey School thanks to my older kids' visit, I really knew very little about Milton Hershey (in spite of going on the Hershey Factory tour with the singing cows both in 2006 and 2016). What an amazing rags to riches story this is... a story of perseverance, character, and ingenuity as well as generosity and love. Milton Hershey was a great man who amazingly enough held on to his humility in spite of his riches.

YWAM has developed study guides to go with the books in their series in both Downloadable and CD format. They have created documents with helps on how to use the study guides in various settings, including homeschooling, group, and classroom settings (I appreciate that they are making their materials accessible for a variety of learning environments!). Some of these resources included in the study guide are also available on their website on the bonus materials tab. You can check that page out for more information including word puzzles, coloring pages, samples, maps, chronologies of the books, and more. Definitely an informative page!

We received the downloadable study guide on Milton Hershey to check out for this review. The file downloads as a zip file, and opens as an html document in your browser.

Here is a screenshot of the Table of Contents to give you an idea of how the study guide is set up (Aren't the kisses cute? Just like the street lights in Hershey!) :

• The Key Quotes included are great for memorization or copy work.
• The Display Corner gives ideas for those who have space for it. For this particular study it includes fun things like Hershey Kisses as well as suggestions of books, pictures and other items that would coordinate with this particular story. 
• The Chapter Questions are comprehension questions~ pretty straight-forward there. 
• Student Explorations include suggestions for a variety of age groups: Essay/Research Topics, Creative Writing assignments, Hands-oh Projects, Audio/Visual Projects, and Arts and Crafts projects. 
• Community Links give suggestions for taking the study outside your home or classroom by going on a field trip, or bringing someone into your classroom/co-op group. 
• Social Studies includes Places, Journeys, Terms/Vocabulary, Geographical Characteristics of places Milton Hershey lived or visited, Timeline, and Conceptual Questions concerning the social history of Pennsylvania. 
• Related Themes to Explore includes charts with topic suggestions for History, Math, Science, Literature, and Business

The Books and Resources Appendix includes titles and descriptions for many books, movies, and articles (suitable for a variety of different ages) that may enhance your study of Milton Hershey if you so choose, as well as a number of websites that can be visited to add to the wealth of knowledge you and your children will be acquiring. 

Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 
This was one of my bookworm boy's favorite books of late ~ he kept popping his head out to tell me some nugget he'd just learned about Milton Hershey and his life. I love that he is so invested in this biography, as Milton Hershey led a life of great character, with excellent values, and I don't mind if Youngest chooses to model that at all!

And who knew~ America's love affair with chocolate (Hershey Chocolate to be precise) has been the source of countless lives changed and given opportunities they otherwise would not have had~ but you need to read the book to get the whole story! So many things to learn, appreciate and enjoy about the man, Milton Hershey. His trials, triumphs, creativity, and genuine care for those around him make for an inspiring read for all ages!

• Company: YWAM Publishing
• Product: Heroes of History: Milton Hershey
• Ages: Publisher recommended age 10+ (Unusual for me, I would actually say 8+ is fine with this particular story. If you read my reviews often, you will know that I'm very conservative in my age recommendations. ;) 
• Price: List Price $9.99/ YWAM Price $7.50

You can visit YWAM on their social media pages: 

Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and their Blog

Please click the banner below to visit the TOS Homeschool Review Crew and see what others had to say about this book or any one of the others that were reviewed this time around. As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~

#hsreviews  #YWAMPublishing #ChristianHeroes #ChristianBiographies #Truebiographies #HeroesofHistory #HeroBiographies #TrueStories #ChristianHeroesThenandNow #Homeschoolcurriculum #Teachthemwell

Bessie's Pillow (Book review ~ Immigrant Biography)

My latest read is a new Immigrant story about a Jewish girl who comes to America from Lithuania in 1906. Bessie's Pillow is published by Strong Learning, Inc., and is the story of the Linda Bress Silbert's Grandmother, Bessie Dreizen. It is amazing to realize that something so small as a pillow could make such a huge impact on someone's life. You'll have to read it to find out why.

Love the transparent packaging!

In these times when immigration is on the tips of everyone's tongue, it is encouraging and thought-provoking to read the true story of the path of a legal immigrant and her family. To connect with the struggles and the triumphs faced by those who chose to come to our country's shores and assimilate into the great melting pot culture of America.

I particularly appreciated reading about that melting pot culture, and how so many of the people Bessie came in contact with were not concerned about her country of origin, her religion, the fact that she was a woman, but in her as a person. She notes about her Catholic Irish neighbors that when dealing with a health pandemic "despite our differences we all bury our dead and say prayers..."

While I feel that this is very much more a "girl's" book than a "boy's" book (I did not require my 16 year old son to read Bessie's Pillow for this review), if one is currently studying this specific time period, it is a fantastic read for upper middle school through high school, and would add great dimension and depth to a history study of the the first half of the 20th century.

Any story that comes from family history is by nature engaging and interesting. Linda Silbert has added to the conversational interest and engagement factor by including photos and a study guide at the end of the book. This guide gives additional historical and social information, and even more can be found on the dedicated website Bessie's America.

Explore articles and multimedia links on the topics of:

• European Immigration
• Famous People
• Food and Recipes
• Health
• Housework
• Movies
• Music and Dancing
• News
• U.S. Presidents
• Radio

There is so much interesting information to read, listen to and watch that I highly recommend visiting Bessie's America .


Bessie's Pillow is a story of courage, humility, strength, integrity and ingenuity, of love and loss, sorrow and joy. In short, it is a snapshot of the human experience, the brother and sisterhood of mankind, and a picture of the hope that America has brought to the many who have come to her shores (legally) seeking refuge and a better life. 
Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 

• Company: Strong Learning, Inc.
• Product: Bessie's Pillow
• Ages: personally, I would suggest at least 14 years old, but read it for yourself and decide! 
• Price: List price $19.95, available on the website for $15, with a discount for 6+. It is also available as a Kindle eBook. 

Visit Bessie's Pillow on Social Media: Facebook and Twitter 

Please click the banner below to visit the TOS Homeschool Review Crew and see what others had to say. As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~

#hsreviews #historicalfiction #BessiesPillow

Home School in the Woods (Renaissance & Reformation) A Review

You may recall if you've followed my blog for very long, a review for Amy Pak's Home School in the Woods that I wrote this past fall featuring the Election Lap-Pak, which is a somewhat condensed unit study. I also reviewed her HISTORY Through the Ages Project Passport World History Study: Ancient Egypt(review link) in Summer of 2015. Members of the Homeschool Review Crew have been blessed with the opportunity to review another of her Project Passport Studies. Some reviewed her brand new study on Ancient Greece, others looked at the Unit we reviewed last time, Ancient Egypt, The Middle Ages, or the unit we received this time, HISTORY Through the Ages Project Passport World History Study:Renaissance & Reformation. I understand that a Project Passport Study on Ancient Rome is next in the pipeline!

I actually can't believe it has been a year and a half since we worked on the Ancient Egypt Project Passport Study, as my son and I both refer to it as if it were much more recent than that. Because of our previous experience(s), this is one unit study that I can pretty much guarantee my son will enjoy completing. Of course, he loves history, so that helps, but really, the care that is put into the Home School in the Woods projects ensures that just about everyone will find something to appreciate.

As a mom with an artistic bent, I LOVE the gorgeous woodcut illustrations. My son, who is less than excited at times about coloring things in, appreciates that the woodcuts look just fine in their black and white condition ;). If my Eldest had these studies available when she was younger, she would have jumped at the chance to color these lovely illustrations.

While younger children will need help completing and assembling the elements in the study, the instructions are clear enough that a child in the older "middle school" age range will be able to do most of the work themselves.

The project utilizes both notebooking (A "Scrapbook of Sights") and a lapbook format. The Scrapbook includes some of the larger chunks of information including a timeline and a newspaper to be filled out by the student as they travel through the study, a postcard gallery, and more.  There are also a variety of lapbook elements (which we are still "collecting") which will be put together when the "trip" is over, as a final project.

Sample of some of the projects and elements for the Scrapbook and the Lapbook

There are multiple options for some of the lapbook elements, which I greatly appreciate ~ blank spaces for older students to write in information themselves, and others with the information already printed, with only the need to assemble the element. That works well for my writing-phobic youngest.

As the teacher, you can access the instructional information directly on the computer or print out your own teacher's notebook, for ease in taking the schoolwork with you wherever you go.

Of course, a study that covers multiple Centuries will be jam-packed with a huge amount of information, but especially this study, that covers the explosion of thought and industry during the Renaissance Period. Here is a list of the "stops" on this trip, just to give you a good idea of what is included:

Gorgeous pastel artwork done by youngest, with a beautiful paper frame! LOVE it!!! 

1. Laying the Foundation/Introuduction
2. Italy and Da Vinci
3. Everyday Life part 1
4. Everyday Life part 2
5. Renaissance Art
6. Famous Artists of the Renaissance
7. Music of the Renaissance
8. Literature, Drama, and Shakespeare
9. Science, Math and Astronomy
10. Inventions
11. Exploration Part I (The Americas)
12. Exploration Part II (Africa, Asia, and Around the World)
13. The Early Reformers
14. Martin Luther
15. The Thirty Years' War
16. Zwingli and Switzerland
17. John Calvin
18. France and the Wars of Religion
19. Henry the VIII
20. Henry's Children
21. Civil War
22. Knox and Scotland
23. The Counter Reformation Part I 
24. The Counter Reformation Part II
25. Final Stop, Packing Up, Assembling Lapbook, Travel Brochure

WOW! So much stuff to "see" and "do" it takes my breath away. Really! Even though we're already working through this unit, just seeing it written out makes me excited to keep going! So many interesting topics and activities to work through.

I do encourage you to go back and check out my most recent reviews (linked above), as they give some of the nitty gritty regarding the project layouts and how to navigate the electronic format. You can check out a scope and sequence for this study for a more thorough look at what is covered in the more than 50 projects and activities, as well as download a sample of a stop, and see some more detailed photos.



Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 

• Company: Home School in the Woods
• Product: Renaissance & Reformation
• Ages: 3rd - 8th grade
• Price: $33.95 (Download) $34.95 (CD)

You can visit Home School in the Woods on the following Social Media pages:
Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ , and Twitter

Please click the banner below to visit the Homeschool Review Crew and see what others had to say about the Project Passport History Studies they received for review. As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~

YWAM Publishing Heroes of History- William Penn (A Review)

We have been fans of YWAM Publishing's Christian Heroes Then and Now, and have collected quite a number of them at Conventions as well as one received for review (Jim Elliot). I was intrigued by the Heroes of History Series, as we didn't have any of those on our shelves yet. From their wide selection of biographies, covering historical heroes from Christopher Columbus to Ben Carson, we were sent Heroes of History- William Penn, and the coordinating Unit Study Guide.

My memory of William Penn from my history classes in grade school was a little fuzzy, so this was a great refresher for me, as well as a good overview for my kids. The recommended age for this particular book is 10+, and I would agree with that as a minimum, but might even edge it up to 12+. The first chapter begins with William Penn in the Tower of London, passing implements of torture, whose use is described~ perhaps a little gratuitously, and you can probably easily skip that chapter... my high school students who were reading this book would have preferred not to start the book with that sort of beginning (when I read the book, I accidentally skipped that chapter, and it didn't affect the story at all). I had to remind my Eldest that the time period William Penn lived in was really still coming out of the Dark Ages, and life was not pretty or easy, but that William Penn was definitely a huge part of paving the way to "Liberty and Justice for all."

William Penn's biography is very timely, with this being a Presidential Election year, we've been talking about the Constitution and the principles on which our country was founded. Even though this is a mostly Junior High aged book, it is a great vehicle for opening up even more discussions and showing where basic concepts come from such as a fair trial with jurors who make decisions based on facts and conscience, not making decisions as ordered by a crooked judge.

UNIT STUDY
Because I used this book with older, high school students, more as a historical literature reading assignment, we didn't really do much with the Unit Study at this time. In looking it over, it offers a very thorough unit of study for a Middle Grade student. We received the downloadable version, it also comes on CD. After opening up the zip file, you can access it through your browser by clicking the Start-Here file, or you can access the pdf files directly. This is what the browser-version of the Unit study looks like:

They very nicely offer suggestions on classroom, small group, and homeschool use, as well as some bonus materials and background on William Penn.

Unit Study- Part 2 contains the graphics for geography work, timeline, and a biography sheet
Unit Study - Part 1 contains the bulk of material:

• Key Quotes: Interesting quotes that are related to the theme of the book. In this case there were quotes that referenced Liberty and Justice (or fairness/tolerance). It is suggested that the quotes could be used for memorization, as part of a display, or to kick off a skit of some sort.
• Display Corner: Suggestions for gathering and displaying materials that relate to Pennsylvania and William Penn's life. This is a fun idea for the younger student if you have the space to utilize a display corner. 
• Chapter Questions: Each chapter has four questions:  a vocabulary word from the chapter, a factual question, a comprehension question, and an open-ended opinion question. Basic Middle School level stuff here.  Because of my students' age, the open-ended questions were most useful~ While I didn't bring them all up in conversation, they offered good jumping off points, as the topics arose. 
• Student Explorations: This section offers something for everyone, from essay and creative writing assignments to hands on activities~ arts, crafts, and audio visual. I would recommend checking this section out on the sooner side when beginning this study, as some of these projects could take a while to complete. 
• Community Links: Suggestions for field trips that relate to the book
• Social Studies: 
• Places/Locations mentioned in the book, 
• Vocabulary
• Geographical characteristics
• Timeline
• Conceptual Questions. 
• Related Themes to Explore ~ this is another place that can be expanded to offer upper level students more topics to dig in to if time allows. 
• Culminating Event~ many homeschool families enjoy the opportunity to wrap a Unit Study up with a final "event" that showcases some of the subject matter in a creative way~ whether shared with other homeschoolers, or simply in a family setting. Because of our crazy schedules, we don't have a place on our calendar for something like this, but I really like the idea (Especially for the younger student).  The Study Guide gives some great suggestions for activities, menus, displays and presentations, among other things. 
• Appendix A offers a large list of books (for a variety of ages) and other resources (including film) that coordinate with the topic. 
• Appendix B contains answers to the Chapter Questions. 

I was surprised and impressed by the scope and quality of the Unit Study Guide. Because I planned to mostly review the book as historical biography/literature (using it with older students), I did not plan to use the study guide, but rather look it over to see what I could use in a few years with my youngest. I believe that if I had known the depth allowed before the review period started, I might have been able to adjust my high school students' schedules to incorporate more of the study guide options into their days. 

Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 

• Company: YWAM Publishing 
• Product: Heroes of History- William Penn
• Ages: Publisher suggested 10+ (I'd agree, or possibly even 12+, due to historical content~ depends on your child, but could be used with a younger age as a "Parental-Edited" read-aloud)
• Price: 
• Biography ~ List $9.99, YWAM current price: $7.50
• Unit Study Guide ~ List $9.99, YWAM current price: $7.49

You can visit YWAM publishing on their social media pages:
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and their Blog

Please click the banner below to visit the TOS Review Crew and see what others had to say about the Unit Studies they used. There were four Christian Heros Books/Studies and twenty-four Heros of History Books/Studies that were reviewed. I'm anxious to go read the Milton Hershey reviews~ which was one of my top two choices for review. :) As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~

Practice Makes Perfect! Homeschool Copywork Lifetime Membership Review

It's not often that I am given the opportunity to review something produced by one of my friends, but today I get to talk about the Lifetime Membership from my friend Amy Blevins' company, Homeschool Copywork. She has produced a large number of quality copywork ebooks with themes to suit all ages, and many interests.

Amy has created copywork ebooks which feature themes from Scripture, History, Poetry, Art, Science, Music (Composers and Hymns), Nature, and Seasonal Themes. These ebooks are put together with care. They include multiple styles of print and manuscript for handwriting practice and are beautifully illustrated. Some of the pages have great line drawing illustrations which can be colored in when the copywork is finished, and others are accompanied by full color illustrations.

Some of the books are pretty much strictly copywork, others include extra information and/or activities or suggestions that can become a little unit study. Here is a screen shot from one of the Van Gogh books. You can see that the page has a beautiful Van Gogh picture to go along with the quote~ lovely! The beginning of the book includes a biographical snippet and some activity suggestions.

I really appreciate the variety of styles of print/manuscript that she has included, as all of my children are at different places in their handwriting. My Eldest has developed her own style:

My Middlest is still figuring out his style...

And my Youngest is working on letter size and spacing... writing neatly is something that he needs to work on, and these sheets are great, because they give a clear example for him to follow, using sentences that are interesting and/or beneficial.

Because it's a Presidential Election year we chose to use some pages from the Presidential Quotes book. There are quotes from each one of the Presidents, in a variety of styles.

My eldest was delighted to discover verses that included two of her favorite things, Dragons AND Owls in the Dragons of the Bible book (Among other Dragon references...)

My youngest was also interested in The Armor of God book... Anything having to do with "army" or "armor" makes him happy, even if it isn't Military Police or some other modern force. For my part, I think this is a good way to help to learn the verses from Ephesians 6!

Some of the benefits of using copywork, even into high school include:

• Reinforcing proper  Spelling, Punctuation, Vocabulary, Sentence Structure, and Grammar ~ as they copy what is correctly modeled they *will* learn.
• Memorization aid~ when the eyes see the words, the brain thinks the words, and the hands write the words they are more likely to be retained. This is where quality copywork comes into play. We want our children to be putting meaningful words to paper, into their brains, and hearts. Amy's books definitely set a standard here. 
• Of course, there is also the benefit of "hopefully" improving penmanship. This is a big thing with my youngest, as his letters are of all shapes, sizes, and smooshed together, so seeing properly spaced and written words directly above his workspace is extremely helpful! 

While Amy often shares some samples of her copywork ebooks for free, a membership allows you to pick and choose content from *everything* that she has produced (I believe I counted 47 copywork ebooks), as well as access to Member only Bonus materials, including notebooking and coloring pages.

This is a great resource for all ages.
Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 

• Company: Homeschool Copywork
• Product: Lifetime Membership
• Ages: Pre-K to High School
• Price: Lifetime Membership $45, Full Membership $29.95 for one year

You can visit Homeschool Copywork on their social media channels:
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Instagram

Please click the banner below to visit the TOS Review Crew and see what others had to say. As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~

Progeny Press~ To Kill A Mockingbird Study Guide Review

As I mentioned in my review yesterday for Progeny Press' Sam the Minuteman, I have been blessed to review for Progeny Press a number of times. In 2012 we reviewed Pride and Prejudice and The Bronze Bow, in 2013 we reviewed The Hobbit and Treasure Island, and in 2014 we reviewed Hunger Games and The Giver. I think it is VERY safe to say that Progeny Press is among my very favorite products that we have received as part of the TOS Review Crew.  In-between reviews we have purchased the study guides for Amos Fortune Free Man, A Wrinkle in Time, and Jane Eyre, and I have my eyes on more. These are fantastic, well-rounded literature curriculum guides written from a Christian Worldview, which in my opinion is very important when delving into world literature.

I found it very opportune that we were offered the study guide for To Kill A Mockingbird for review this fall. Believe it or not, this one one of those classic books which hadn't made its way into my reading stack as a student or young adult. I finally had the chance to read it this summer, and decided that it was a must read for my senior+ .

We found this particular guide was not set up quite the same as the others that we have reviewed at the high school level, in that it did not include a "Think About the Story" group of questions for each section (However, the Dig Deeper section included comparable sorts of questions). Other than that it was fairly similar~

• Literary Elements are discussed as they show up~ setting, characters, etc...  
• Vocabulary for each set of chapters~ this was one of my daughter's favorite sections this time around. She ran into a number of words with which she wasn't familiar, and has been enjoying adding some of them to her personal arsenal. 
• Dig Deeper sections~ once again the portion of the study guide that I find to be very helpful, particularly when reading literature that may or may not have been written by someone with a Christian Worldview. This is where bits and pieces of "humanity" are picked out, whether good or evil, and looked at through the lens of the Bible.  For instance, it is pointed out that Atticus Finch is a man of integrity, which is a very small point in the novel, but a very important point overall (as it carries through the story, as well as being an important trait to cultivate)

I should mention here that we received the e-book version of this study guide for review. This is an interactive pdf file that can be typed into directly (Which as I have mentioned in previous reviews is a GREAT option for my Middlest child). However, my Eldest doesn't want to be tied to a computer when doing her literature, so we have chosen to have her access the pdf file from the ipad, and write her answers directly into a notebook. Much more portable that way. :) So nice to have both of those options as well as the "write directly on the pdf file"  in the pdf-notes app option as referenced in my review of Sam the Minuteman with Youngest.

I really can't say enough good about Progeny Press study guides for literature. They are THAT good.

Not So Nutty Nitty Gritty 

• Company: Progeny Press
• Product: To Kill A Mockingbird
• Ages: High School 
• Price: $21.99

You can visit Progeny Press on Facebook, Youtube, and Twitter

Please click the banner below to visit the TOS Review Crew and see what others had to say about other this and other High School, Middle School, Upper and Lower Elementary Titles. As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you choose where best to spend your homeschool budget.

Blessings~