Tektoma

As a member of The Homeschool Crew I received a 3 month subscription to try out the Tektoma website for our homeschool and review it here on my blog. What I love about this product is the fact that is attractive to all ages! You must check out the free preview tutorial! (I love it when you can test drive before you buy!)

CREATE PLAY SHARE!

"Make Games Online

Do you want to learn how to make video games?
Tektoma offers you this:

•Engaging video tutorials for ages 7-17
•Tutorials of varying skill levels and topics
•Learn at your own pace in the comfort of your home
•Natural progression helps develop technical skills
•Customize your learning experience
•Low monthly membership fee gives access to all our resources
•New curriculum available monthly"

Sign up now for a FREE 14 day Trial!


PRICE: Just $14.95 per month or $140 per year gets you access to all the tutorials as well as online help via the forums. Payable by credit card or Paypal. Monthly fee automatically renews until canceled.




About Tektoma

Tektoma was founded in 2009 by Tom Marx and Matilda O'Connor, to provide 24 hour a day, 365 days per year access to engaging video tutorials that teach children game programming.

Both Tom and Matilda are owners of local Bits, Bytes & Bots Computer Adventures – summer camps for kids interested in computers and technology. Tom opened his Bits, Bytes & Bots in Boulder, CO, after 10 years as a software developer. He was also a teacher, prior to getting involved in the tech industry. Before starting the Austin, Texas branch of Bits, Bytes & Bots, Matilda worked over 20 years in management and engineering, for high-tech and manufacturing industries. They certainly know tech stuff, as well as how to teach it!

Tom and Matilda have been teaching kids how to program their own computer games for a combined 9 years. They each have a child that really enjoyed learning to program games. Their children and students keep them in touch with what children this age enjoy. Tom and Matilda understand children need the opportunity to learn programming, because it also teaches logic, creative problem solving, algebra and geometry. They also know that providing kids with their own projects to work on increases the enthusiasm of these children.

Continuing their game making programs after the summer sessions ended became an intriguing idea to this duo. With that in mind, they created Tektoma, an online way to extend what they were already successfully helping kids do offline. The campers’ parents have been delighted to find these less expensive program options for their children, with year round accessibility. And Tom and Matilda are delighted that they can now offer children, without access to Bits, Bytes & Bots summer camps, the opportunity they deserve to learn game programming, and at their own speed.

We hope you enjoy the tutorials. We definitely have been enjoying putting them together for your children and you!

If you haven’t already, please sign up for a free 14-day trial and see what kids across the globe are creating. Or contact us with any questions.

All About Spelling

As a member of The Homeschool Crew I received the All About Spelling curriculum to use in our homeschool and review here on my blog. All About Spelling utilizes letter tiles, magnets and phonograms to create a unique spelling lesson experience!

"Level One in the All About Spelling series brings together the three pathways to learning—auditory (hearing), visual (seeing), and kinesthetic (touching). This multisensory approach, combined with a built-in review system and reinforcement activities, ensures that students retain what they learn and understand how to apply it in practical situations.

In a practical, hands-on way, your student will learn:

•How to say and write the first 32 phonograms
•How to segment words into their individual sounds
•Short and long vowel sounds
•How to identify and count syllables in a word


•How to choose between c and k at the beginning of a word
•When to double f, l, and s


•How to spell /k/ at the end of a word
•How to form plural words by adding s or es


•Compound words
•Open and closed syllable types
•and more!

The multisensory learning tools and activities included in the program help your student master important spelling concepts.

•The Flashcards provide a visual and hands-on way to help your student learn and review phonograms, words, and spelling rules.

•The Spelling Review Box helps you organize the flashcards so you can quickly see which words, phonograms, and spelling rules your student still needs to learn and review. (Flashcards and dividers are included; you supply the 3x5" index card box.)

•The Segmenting Words activity helps your student identify the individual sounds in a word so that he can spell more easily and accurately.

•Concept-oriented spelling lists that are grouped by similar phonograms and spelling rules accelerate learning by organizing ideas in the student’s mind and allowing the student to concentrate on and master one or two main concepts before moving on.

•Key Cards clearly present key ideas, concepts, and spelling rules that help your student thoroughly understand why a word is spelled the way it is and how to apply that knowledge to many other words.

•The More Words and Dictate Phrases sections reinforce current and previously learned concepts, increase the student’s repertoire of words, and allow the student to apply his knowledge in practical situations.

•Tips for the teacher anticipate and provide answers to your questions and give you on-the-spot strategies for helping your student overcome stumbling blocks. Worked seamlessly into the lessons, tips are placed right where you need them, when you need them, so you can continue your teaching uninterrupted.

•The Progress Chart gives your student a visual reminder of how far he has come and motivates him to master the next step.

Features are arranged in three easy-to-follow sections:

•Review: The Review section provides continual review of phonograms, spelling words, and important concepts so your student can advance confidently from one lesson to the next without the frustration of having to re-learn previous material. All About Spelling doesn’t “teach it and forget it.”

•New Teaching: The step-by-step lesson plans lay out new material clearly and concisely and save you valuable time. You don’t need a degree in education or hours of planning every night to teach All About Spelling—all the work has been done for you.

•Reinforcement: The important Reinforcement section gives your student the opportunity to apply what he has learned and to use that knowledge in practical situations.

By the end of Level One, your student will be able to write phrases such as:


the pink pig
camp in tents
sad songs
a stiff neck
big clamshell
quick snack

The 24 steps of Level One progress in a logical, sequential order. Through direct instruction, students learn exactly what they need to know in order to spell well."



The starter kit that includes the letter tiles, magnets and phonogram CD-Rom is $26.95 and is utilized in levels 1-6. The level one packet that includes the student and teacher's manuals is $29.95. You can purchase materials for additional students in each level for $14.95. Quite a value for such a fun and unique spelling curriculum!

AVKO Educational Research Foundation

As a member of The Homeschool Crew I received a membership to the AVKO Educational Research Foundation website. I was thrilled to get a chance to review this website for The Homeschool Crew because I was already a member of the AVKO site! I purchased my membership specifically to get the complete set of Sequential Spelling ebooks! This is just one of the many things offered on the AVKO website! A basic yearly membership to the website is $25.00...with your membership you have access to:

Benefits of AVKO Basic Membership

Discounts on AVKO printed materials
Hundreds of dollars worth of FREE e-books (PDF)
The Patterns of English Spelling (All 10 Volumes) with Word Families in Sentence Context
To Teach a Dyslexic
Starting at Square One
The Teaching of Reading & Spelling: a Continuum from Kindergarten through College.
The Reading Teacher's List of Over 5,500 Basic Spelling Words
Access to the Member Only section
AVKO Newsletter with freebies, discounts, resources, and promotions
Access to Don McCabe's most popular workshop recordings in MP3 format.
Supplemental Curriculum Materials including word games, worksheets, activities, and more!
Access to Pretests and Placement Tests
Access to the Answer Keys for the Unscramblers and Family Reunion exercises of the Engaging Language Kits


A Deluxe yearly membership is $100.00 and includes:

Benefits of AVKO Deluxe Membership

Institutional Membership is open to individuals as well as tutoring centers, schools, learning centers, homeschool resource centers, etc.

Access to all of the benefits of AVKO's Basic Membership (see below)
25% discount off all materials ordered
Read-only access to ALL AVKO curriculum materials (except for Sequential Spelling and Engaging Language Kits)
Access to AVKO's newest e-books:
Word Family Supplements 1-7 for Sequential Spelling
Spelling Remediation Test Kit

This website is a wealth of information. I believe the $25.00 basic membership price is well worth what you get just in the Sequential Spelling curriculum! (My kids enjoy spelling now! It really takes just a few minutes a day...and their spelling scores are much higher than they were last year!)

I hope you will check it out and see the other many free items you will find on the AVKO website! ;)

Gymathtics by Exploramania.com

"The Exploracise interactive educational programs are revolutionizing education by integrating technology, learning and fitness for an optimal teaching environment while getting healthful exercise.

Multi-sensory learning enhances the retention and recall of concepts and the Exploracise programs use the TV to synergize visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning techniques.

Scientific research shows exercise releases neural growth factors in the brain developing connections and improving memory. Everyone can GET FIT! GET SMART! HAVE FUN!"

As a member of The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew I received a copy of the Gymathtics DVD to use and enjoy at home for review here on my blog. Since receiving this DVD we have watched and enjoyed it many, many times. The kids really enjoy the exercises (we are big fans of The Biggest Loser!) and I love that math concepts are reinforced each and every step of the way! What an awesome diversion to get those young bodies and minds moving! I am looking forward to purchasing Gymathtics 2.0 which recently became available. ($24.99) A great addition for your health/wellness curriculum!

Exercise + Education + FUN = Exploracise!

Maestro Classics

Classical Music CDs for Children
"The award-winning new classical music CD series for children and families combines classic stories with great symphony orchestra music. Combining literature, classical music, education and entertainment, these CDs for parents and children are perfect for ALL kids and interested parents. Once it was Baby Mozart, Raffi, ClassicalKids; now it is time for Maestro Classics(TM).

London Philharmonic Orchestra,Stephen Simon, conductor, Yadu, narrator, Bonnie Ward Simon, elucidator. "




What a cool new product! Each CD is only $16.98! OR for a limited time you can purchase any 3 CD's for $45! (Coupon Code: MAESTRO45)

Available Titles:

*The Tortoise and the Hare
*Peter and the Wolf
*The Story of Swan Lake
*The Sorcerer's Apprentice
*Casey at the Bat
*Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
*Juanita The Spanish Lobster
*Juanita la langosta española