Nothing by Natalee Creech Book Review

Children's books are fun to review since they bring delight to children's little minds. Books that are Bible based are a win-win in our family as well. My grandchildren and I had the opportunity to review Nothing by Natalee Creech by WorthyKids, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. It's a hardcover book, recommended for ages 4-7, that provides answers to Romans 8:38-39 on how nothing can separate us from God's Love. It is beautifully illustrated by Joseph Cowman providing children with a delightful view as the story proceeds.

My oldest daughter said:

The author provided an opportunity to utilize fun illustrations and scenes with descriptive sentences in reaching out to children and to learn, no matter what, God will still love us. From space to the ocean to all in between, Ms. Creech provides a playful set to draw children into wanting to read the book and to see the beautiful illustrations.

This was one of my favorite pages with the whimsical little girl being held up high by an assumed parent being reassured that nothing can separate us from God's love.

My eight-year-old granddaughter said:

It's very fun to read to them first, and then to watch my granddaughter read. She really enjoyed reading to her little brother and as you can see in the photographs, they really did have fun reading Nothing by Natalee Creech.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, it was a wonderful book to introduce or reinforce Romans 8:38-39 to the welcoming mind. The whimsical illustrations drew my grandchildren in to see what might be next in the story of how God's love never leaves us. The author did a fantastic job in creating a story that was short enough to not lose even the youngest of listeners while robust enough to provide the beginner reader an opportunity to learn on their own. The scenes included boys and girls and fun objects that all young children love from space to the sea to sharks to camels. It's a fun book to read to your children or have them read to you. It's also, in my opinion, not one that should be read and shelved as it's one of those that could be read again and again.

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Pathway to Liberty Homeschool Curriculum: US History Review

I'm a huge history fan which has influenced my children to want to learn more about history and the United States. When presented with the opportunity to review the Pathway to Liberty's US History Year 3/Level 3 by Pathway to Liberty Homeschool Curriculum, I was very interested. 

Pathway to Liberty's History Curriculum provides history from a Biblical worldview which I like. Our country was founded on the principles of Christianity and with teaching history, I feel it's an absolute that they go hand-in-hand when taught. Level 3 is designated for grades 7th through 9th as it requires logic, reasoning and application of principles. Pathway to Liberty's suggestion to utilize the curriculum four days a week allowed us to complete four weeks for this review. I liked that there is flexibility in the curriculum. For instance, one can start at the beginning or somewhere else within the book. The curriculum is also designed for one student or more and the material will cover 26 weeks of study beginning with Creation through Ancient Greece for grades k-12. The entire set I'm reviewing is:

• US History Year 3 Level 3 Teacher's Guide;
• US History Year 3 Level 3 Student Guide;
• Chain of Liberty; and 
• Chain of Liberty Studyguide.

US History Year 3 Level 3 Teacher's Guide

The Teacher's Guide is very comprehensive and when starting out, is broken into key sections on how to use the curriculum along with on-line resources. There is also teacher support available by way of question and answer sessions available by weekly appointments and via e-mail. Additional resources can be found online and lessons utilize YouTube videos to enhance the learning experience. For our level, the core recommended book is The Chain of Liberty and The Chain of Liberty Studyguide by Jayme MacCullough along with some others but I noted those two books since we are reviewing them. 

There is a Table of Contents broken down by the 26 weeks along with a Course Outline that corresponds with each week.

Each week starts out with a Weekly Overview discussing first what the content's theme of the week is along with instructions on how to use the week's lesson. The lessons are organized to be flexible and to fit the lesson plans according to your child's needs. Pathway to Liberty stresses that 'you have the liberty to adjust as you see necessary.'

Each section has the answers to the Student's Guide questions.

US History Year 3 Level 3 Student's Guide

The Student's Guide is set up similar to the Teacher's Guide with Table of Contents, Course Outline and Weekly Overview. As Pathway to Liberty suggests one has the option to do, we jumped to Lesson 21 The Civil War: The Cause. We followed the Weekly Overview provided which resulted in our four weeks of work in the suggested time period.

Since we started with Level 3, I wanted to take the opportunity to explain the different levels and how it works within a lesson:

• Level 1 students will study through literature by reading a biography and identifying literary terms such as character, setting and plot.
• Level 2-4 students will watch segments of a documentary on The Civil War by Ken Burns and the study guides help to retain key elements. They will also author a research report throughout the four weeks by selecting a key person. This is now where the differences for these Levels come about. Level 2 students will write a 5-7 paragraph paper using 1-2 sources. Level 3 will write a 7-10 paragraph paper using 2-3 sources and Level 4 students will write a 10-12 paragraph paper using 4-5 sources. Anyone who has taken standardized tests knows how important it is to write essays so learning how to source and write good sound introductions and conclusions is critical.

The lesson starts out with providing a brief summary of the key players within the War as well as highlights from diaries and letters from two soldiers from the North and South and an introduction to Frederick Douglas and his importance through the War. The Teaching Objectives are short and concise.

What I also like about each Lesson, is it starts out with a Scripture, a Principle and a Leading Idea as noted below.

Every lesson for each week has repeating tasks such as the week's Scripture, Principle and Leading Idea in the Student's Guide. Other tasks vary such as for Lesson 21, Level 3, students are instructed to read from The Chain of Liberty, complete the corresponding The Chain of Liberty Studyguide, watch a YouTube video on the Civil War, return to The Chain of Liberty Studyguide and choose a topic to research with guide.

Our first week looked like this:

• Scripture, Principle and Leading Idea rewrite.
• Read chapter 12 from The Chain of Liberty.
• Completing The Chain of Liberty Studyguide questions.
• Watch Ken Burns' The Civil War Part 1 - The Cause.
• Complete Student Guide's questions.
• Chose a topic for the research component.

That was a lot to accomplish and cannot be done in one day so we spread it out over the four days as recommended.  I first made sure I acclimated myself with the week's assignment because the material is across many sources. Once I understood where to locate everything for each task, I felt more confident in teaching the week's assignment. An older student, or one that is more independent, could navigate on their own or with little supervision. For me, I enjoy this topic so I wanted to be an integral part of the learning process.

Subsequent week's assignments looked similar to our first week which made it easier to progress forward with less preparation required. 

Our fourth week concluded wrapping up the studies for this topic. We watched Part 5 of Ken Burns' Civil War but ended up switching over to my paid online video account (external to Pathway to Liberty) to watch it on the TV. My student then proceeded to complete the Student's Guide assignments as well as The Chain of Liberty Studyguide assignments as shown below.

The Chain of Liberty and The Chain of Liberty Studyguide

This was fun to read with my student as I was able to ask questions and answer questions. This time, I read the assignment pages to her because I wanted her to really focus on what I was reading. She asked me what did it all mean and I was able to explain to her that our Christian forefathers created the Constitution as such to avoid an over-archiving federal government and how it's being misused today. After I read it, I had her read it again on her own to ensure she truly absorbed all that she read. The assignments in The Chain of Liberty Studyguide also reinforced what she learned as well as provided an opportunity to apply critical thinking and write answers in her own words.

The Chain of Liberty provided reasons why America is in trouble and I completely agree with the author of the book. It is presented in a way that really details how our founding fathers wrote the Constitution and how the interpretation is being eroded by Executive Orders and judicial decisions. It's a great way to introduce children to civics relative to why they need to be the change. My daughter asked me how can she possibly be the change and I told her to learn and educate others. Become a journalist, a politician or a judge. She said she will write a book! These type of courses are fundamental for our children to be educated on so we have hope in returning to the country our Christian Forefathers had planned.

Here is another example with The Chain of Liberty and The Chain of Liberty Studyguide side by side:

A final aspect that I liked about Pathway to Liberty's US History Level 3 was the emphasis on research and writing. The beginning lessons contain instructions and guidance on researching and writing which is what I utilized to help my student complete her writing assignment on a person from the Civil War. The following is Research Model-the 4 R's which helped her to start her weekly assignments on writing her paper. The two other photos are her beginning her paper as well as the rough draft.

Final Thoughts

Overall, my student was challenged with the Pathway to Liberty's US History Level 3 by Pathway to Liberty Homeschool Curriculum work. Once I was able to get the hang of the curriculum, as with most, it was easier to teach. She also found that it once she got used to it, she did enjoy what she was learning. She's big into the Bible and enjoyed learning more about different aspects of our Founding Fathers, subsequent US history and how it all relates to the now. She's eager to start our next lesson. I would recommend the Pathway to Liberty's History Curriculum. 

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Study.com's CLEP and DSST Prep Materials Review

Online learning programs have been a great resource for me in the past in picking up knowledge whether to help me in the business world or for personal enrichment. One of the things I have neglected to think about is how I could utilize that knowledge or new knowledge and exchange that for college credit. This is why after checking out Study.com and seeing all they had to offer for online courses, I was eager to try it out with my 9th grader. They have CLEP and DSST Prep Materials, in addition to many other courses, which is a great way to save some money by testing out of subjects. The CLEP and DSST programs, available through Study.com, can provide a path in earning college credit. The online courses are also versatile to use either as a full program or on an as-needed basis to improve knowledge or gain a new skill. In addition to earning college credit, they would be beneficial to the homeschooler as well as an adult wanting to learn different subjects. Other great features I found were the ability to learn whenever and wherever one wants either with a desktop or via the mobile app. It's set up in a manner that would allow the student to learn without requiring side-by-side parental assistance due to the user friendliness of each course.

For this review, I'm going to focus on both the CLEP and DSST and in between, I'm going to check out a subject or two outside of the CLEP or DSST. First, I'll get started with the CLEP Prep Review.

CLEP Prep Review

The CLEP program provides an abundance of resources from thousands of practice questions to 30+ CLEP study guides to 3,000 test prep video lessons.  They even offer a guarantee of a higher score of money back. Some of the most popular courses include:

• CLEP Biology: Study Guide & Test Prep
• CLEP Introductory Business Law: Study Guide & Test Prep
• CLEP Humanties: Study Guide & Test Prep
• CLEP Natural Sciences: Study Guide & Test Prep

For this part of the post, I had my daughter start and review CLEP History of the United States I: Study Guide & Test Prep. The course requires only a few weeks to complete and can be more or less pending one's schedule. Upon viewing the Course Summary, the user will be able to:

• Track progress and pick up where you left off;
• Add the course to your Dashboard;
• Study with practice tests; and 
• Receive a certificate of completion at the end.

When you sign up to take a specific course, a pop-up message will confirm you are taking the specific course and for your own goal, you can provide a finish date to help you track and keep you on schedule for completion.

There are 14 chapters for the course and as you start each chapter, there is a Course Navigator that lists each lesson and the time it will take to finish the video. There is also a place to record your own notes if you prefer online note taking. 

Each course has a lesson transcript, information about the instructor, videos and quizzes. The photos, maps, videos and other graphics really enhance the course. I had her take this course because not so long ago, I watched an online course about Mesoamerica so that was a great way to see if I retained my knowledge while watching her take the course. The instructors sometimes change with each lesson but each instructor was easy to understand and kept my interest. Each lesson for the chapters concludes with a quiz and along with the answer key and an option to watch to see the correct explanation. I dislike courses where the answers are not easily available or aren't explained. 

Another nice feature is being able to complete or print off worksheets and answers. I like to have physical copies to study in between times when I don't want to be hooked up to some device and since we travel a lot on the weekends, it was nice for her to take with us.

Finally, as she returned to her courses via Dashboard, she can see where she left off very easily as well as see her goals to include viewing if she's behind on a particular course:

Although she has not finished her course, I really like the set-up of each chapter and lesson. It's just the right length and it isn't bogged down with too much information. The worksheets and quizzes ensure that I'm retaining the important information for the course. So far, the instructors have all been very good as well.

At the end of each chapter is a chapter practice exam that reinforces what you retained from all the lessons within a chapter. It's timed and allows the user to retake it. This is an example from Chapter 4: Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill: The American Revolution Begins:

There is also an opportunity to apply for a chance to win a scholarship to help pay for CLEP exam.

DSST Prep Review

The DSST Prep area is similar to CLEP Prep on Study.com. The DSST used to be called DANTES and are credit-by-examination tests and administered by Prometric. These were once reserved for military members and their families but are available to anyone. There are 30 exams in six subject areas and are accepted at 1,900 schools. The CLEP is administered by the College Board and has 33 tests covering five areas. They are accepted at more than 2,900 colleges and universities. Some of the more popular practice tests include:

• DSST Environmental Science Practice Test
• DSST Lifespan Developmental Psychology Practice Test
• DSST Health & Human Development Practice Test
• DSST Organizational Behavior Practice Test 

These short tests may help to identify strengths and weaknesses, how you might compare to others, and videos to watch for ways to improve. This is a nice way to ensure you are taking the course you want or to increase knowledge.

For this part of the post, I'm going to first start with the DSST Criminal Justice Practice Exam.

After taking the test, I opted to continue with the course DSST Criminal Justice: Study Guide & Test Prep.  This course has 15 chapters and a total of 102 quizzes. It is also self-paced, and the average lesson is only eight minutes. Upon completion, a certificate is awarded. 

Each course provides the suggestion on which week one should complete each chapter. For example:

This is helpful in ensuring I was staying on track. One of the final chapters also provides more in-depth information on the DSST and it concludes with a chapter of flashcards that can be completed online or printed.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, I really was drawn to Study.com and the array of subjects that are offered. I showed it to my husband, who is a nurse, and he also was very interested in learning more, so I think we will be expanding our 3-month subscription for myself.  Both the CLEP and DSST Prep Materials would be ideal for anyone planning on attending college to possibly test out and save some money, the adult wanting to learn new skills as well as the homeschooler to practice or learn new information. There are many other courses to take in addition to the CLEP and DSST courses. The user interface is easy and intuitive, and I liked the ability to see progress easily as well as to pick up where I left off. Whether it's for earning college credit or just for personal enrichment, it's really a good resource for both the younger student or the adult. My daughter liked the course videos because they weren't too long and weren't difficult to understand. They were broken up in smaller segments that allowed her to be able to retain what she learned. She also liked how she could print off the answers and re-review the one's she didn't get right. 
Study.com is a 20% discount on the first 3 months of their subscription. Use the code TheOldSchoolhouse.

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The Hamelin Stoop Series Book 1 and Book 2 by 12 Gates Publishing Reviews

Every so often, a book is presented to a very reluctant child and that child falls absolutely in love with it. This is the case of two books from The Hamelin Stoop Series by 12 Gates Publishing. I requested both my daughters read and provide their thoughts on Hamelin Stoop: The Eagle, The Cave, and the Footbridge (Book 1) and Hamelin Stoop: The Lost Princess and the Jewel of Periluna (Book 2) by author Robert B. Sloan. My 11-year-old read the first book nearly non-stop and immediately started the second one after providing me with an official book review that is found further down in this post. She read both books within a two week time period and put aside any other books she had previously checked out at the library.

When I first provided them to my 11-year-old, she grumbled. However, eventually she told me she learned what "don't judge a book by its cover" means and I laughed. She was also reluctant due to the length of each book. Hamelin Stoop: The Eagle, The Cave, and the Footbridge (Book 1) had 323 pages and Hamelin Stoop: The Lost Princess and the Jewel of Periluna (Book 2) had 295 pages. However, as she continued to read, she couldn't put it down and it also inspired her to write more on her own as she's an avid writer. 

My Daughter's Review:

About Book 1:

The story's main character, Hamelin, is left at an orphanage when he's only a few weeks old because a bad guy named Ren'dal sent his trackers to find Hamelin and his parents. Forced to abandon him in order to survive and to protect their son, they chose to leave him behind on a stoop at a children's home. The people at the home have no idea what his name is and ends up referring to him as "Hamelin" Stoop since it was the only word they could read from a note that was left. My daughter giggled when she found out stoop was another name for a small staircase. The story continues as Hamelin grows older and struggles with finding out his identity. He decides to runaway when everyone at the home forgot his eighth birthday. From there, he met the Great Eagle and after being gone only overnight, he gives up crossing the footbridge and returns back to the home. 

Without giving up everything in the novel, I'll stop as there is still much more to read and learn about Hamelin! Throughout the novel, he is confronted with life issues such as making new friends, bullies and abandonment. Both books explore the fantasy world that Hamelin is thrust into while facing a barrage of unknowns, fears, failures, mysteries, evil and much more. The fantasy novels are clean, but there are some mild violent scenes. This was not a concern to me nor of my youngest daughter as the movies we watch with a PG rating have the equivalent type of action.

As a young adult fantasy novel filled with a variety of characters, it reminded me of the writings of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. I liked how the book centered and followed along with each of young Hamelin's struggles thus showing children that life, even for youngsters, is not always easy. 

About Book 2:

Hamelin Stoop: The Lost Princess and the Jewel of Periluna (Book 2) was equally as good and captivating. Book 2 continues Hamlin's journey across the footbridge in finding his parents but is sidetracked because the Great Eagle told him he needed to help two new friends find a kidnapped princess and recover a stolen jewel. It teaches him to be patient and how perseverance wins as illustrated in both books. Unknown to Hamelin, he's also being used to seize kingdoms on both sides of the realms. Each story is very well written and full of adventure and twists. The author does a superb job describing characters, scenes and events such as:

"An onslaught from the watery creatures started immediately. It reminded Hamelin of his previous plunge, but now the monsters lunged and flew at him more numerously and furiously than before. All the old images were there in in their strange combination of long, slithering, and slashing fishlike bodies."

The final page provides a nice summary of what might be coming forth in Book 3 and I know I will be watching out for it! My second daughter, aged 16, started the second book but wasn't able to finish it due to competing activities for her time. She thought it was well written and she enjoyed the story line. My younger one, as noted above, really enjoyed the second book as much as the first one.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, they were both entertaining fantasy novels geared towards young adults. I would think that a child maybe around the age of eight or nine could read the books to include as old as in the upper teens pending individual preferences and maturity levels. There are no illustrations which is what one would expect from a novel for this age group. The writing level is just enough that might warrant a dictionary for younger readers with words here and there, but it's not filled with a need to continue conducting dictionary searches. The characters are varied and the author provided just enough description to allow the imagination to visualize each one. My daughter was saddened to know that book 3 isn't out yet as she felt each book stopped at an exciting cliffhanger wanting her to know what was next.

"Hamelin Stoop's story will capture minds, inspire hearts, and leave its readers eagerly awaiting for the next volume." ~from 12 Gates Publishing website.

Upon reading and listening to my youngest tell me her thoughts about the books, I think this would be a great series for a young adult book discussion group. The Hamelin Stoop Series by 12 Gates Publishing is a nice series to add to any young reader's library collection.

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Cooking for the Family: A Great Chore for Kids

I was raised to help out around the house both inside and outside and although I resented a lot of it growing up, as an adult, I see the importance in it. It's not just as some kids might think as a mechanism for parents to get out of chores rather it provides many benefits. From teaching responsibility to ensuring life skills are abundant before they begin their own lives. I didn't really have to force my children to help around the house but I did provide an incentive at first with a weekly allowance. When I quit purchasing toys or like items for them, they found that they needed to earn their own money so doing chores was a bit more of a wanted task.  Within a year, they want to help now out of an obligation to help me more than anything which I just love and feel gives me a parenting award for success.

Their oldest sister, 30 years now, cooked a lot for us when she lived with us so that rubbed off on the two younger ones. Recently after battling a severe case of the flu, they opted to help and prepare dinner on their own. The thrill of preparing their own dinner provoked a desire to continue cooking and preparing food for the family.  Earlier last week, they decided to co-prepare an Italian inspired pork tenderloin recipe, mashed potatoes for them and mashed cauliflower for me, organic corn and they followed it with homemade sugar cookies with an almond flavored icing all prepared by their little hands!

 

  

She invited her pet seal all equipped with a make shift bow tie.

She even prepped the plates and we took a break from the dinner table to watch what we also coin, our family movie night to ensure we have family time together many nights of the week.  Needless to say, it was delicious!