CapJaxMathFax

What a mouthful, huh?

Guess what this is a review for?  Wait, I just ended that sentence with a preposition, didn't I?

So, let's go out on a limb and announce that this isn't a review for a language arts program.

CapJaxMathFax is a math drill program.



Meet Captain Jack....or Cap Jax.....

 

This program is a software that drills your kid's knowledge of math facts, without you having to flash cards at them. 

We used this for A-man, L-Girl and A-Girl....and I did a few just to see how fast I could be.  I am happy to say that I sailed smoothly through my addition and subtraction levels.



This really is just a fun way for your kids to really get their math facts memorized and quickly accessible.  I remember my 4th grade teacher, Mrs. Toll, and our endless parade of flash cards with the entire classroom.....this is waaaaaay more fun than that!

It is not a fancy program.  It does not have fancy graphics or fancy characters to help lead the kids to math mastery.

It is just good old Cap Jax leaning on his chalkboard (yes.....chalk board....not white board.....gotta love that little retro touch!) and a space in the middle of the page where the math facts appear.



Along the edges you can see how you can pick what you want to work on, the level, how many facts per session, etc.  There is also a way you can just play for practice and not play for a rating.  Along the other side, you can see the summary details of how you have done for each selection.  The T-score is the total of all your ratings.

It isn't fancy, but it is effective.


So, do we like this program?

Aye. 

I mean, in theory, my kids are not crazy about sitting down and doing math again on the computer.  This is a supplement....not an "instead of" product.  So, they are doing this in addition to their regular math lessons.

 But, once they sit down, they are hooked. They try to beat their scores and their speed per answer.

I love it because there is virtually nothing I have to do.  As their website says, "Little teacher time or effort is required, but interest and encouragement are vital."  I have interest and encouragement coming out my ears. 


I also love that when you are done playing and want to exit the game you just press the "Bail" button.  Don't know why....but I just think it is funny.

This, to me, is just a good, no-nonsense, math supplement for the kids.  It will help them well into their adult years if they can get those basic facts memorized and are able to actually access the information when they are in the grocery store.  Mrs. Toll's flashcards are beginning to fade from my memory a bit these days.  I need some help!  Come on kids!

You can get this program by either a software download for $29.95 or there is a CD version available that will cost you a bit more than that to cover shipping costs.

Not sure if you understand the program or whether you will like it? 



You can try a free evaluation of it before you decide. 

See what other TOS crew members thought about CapJaxMathFax.



Disclaimer:  I received a software download version of CapJaxMathFax for free in exchange for an honest review.

Go Science

That title makes me want to burst into cheerleader speak.

"Go, Go  Science, Go, Go, Go Science!" 

Imagine me doing an excellent hurkey right there.  (Actually, my sister, Karen, always had the best hurkey jumps....so imagine her instead.) 

In case you are new to my page, we are sort of a weird homeschooling family.  Some of the things we do for fun are shall we say, a bit nerdy?

This one sounds like one of those things only a weird homeschooling family would enjoy....but you would be wrong.  This is something I think every family would have fun with.

Go Science is a series of videos distributed by Library and Educational Services.



Library and Educational Service is a wholesaler for books, CD, and DVDs.  They sell to libraries, churches, schools, missionaries, day care centers....and homeschoolers.

The Go Science DVDs are definitely science videos that do not ignore God.  In each demonstration, the host/instructor has a spiritual application as to how this "science" relates to God and how He created our world. 

The host/instructor in these videos is Ben Roy.  He has served as an elementary and middle school principal and teacher, earning the “Teacher of the Year” award for the Gordon County School System in Georgia. He has teacher certifications for both Tennessee and Georgia, and designs all his shows to implement state science objectives.

The back of DVD box explains that he currently teaches science methods at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. 

Oh, and it also describes him as high energy.

I would say that is definitely accurate.

Think of the most excited, happy, Vacation Bible School leader you have ever seen...then multiply that by 10 or so....and you have..... Ben Roy.

Honestly though, he really isn't too irritating in his exuberance.  He just comes across as someone who really loves science.  Here, watch him and see for yourself.

We were able to choose two DVDs to review.  We chose Volume 2, Simple Machines, Sound and Weather,



and, Volume 5, Air Flight.




These videos are recommended for ages 6 to 14.  But again, our younger kids (V-girl and S-girl thought they were fun to watch)....although I am fairly sure that they did NOT grasp the scientific concepts being taught.

I enjoyed them too and I am a bit over the recommended age range.

The DVDs have about 12-14 science demonstrations on them for a total run time of about an hour each.

These are great little DVDs.  Some of the concepts we have studied in school and I know we will pull these out the next time those concepts come up in future years.  Mr. Roy does such a good job of explaining why things happen the way they do.  He does not go into great scientific detail...but he does explain the basics.  So, this couldn't be used as an actual curriculum, but it is a great supplement for a full science curriculum that explains all of the hows and whys.

The only thing I don't like about the DVDs is the woosh of music that they play between demonstrations.  It is loud.  Louder than the demonstration sections.

It is sort of like commercials on T.V.  You know what I mean?  You have the volume set perfectly to hear everything that is going on in your show....then the commercial comes and blasts your eardrums?  The in between music/sound is a little like that.  Annoying, but not enough to make me stop watching the demonstrations.  I pretty much just comment every time it happens, "Wow, that is annoying, isn't it?".....to anyone who happens to be around.

There are six DVDs in this series and they are available through Library and Educational Services for $8.97 each, or $47.95 for the entire set.

Check out the other titles available in this series and some of the other things available through Library and Educational Services.

Other crew members got a chance to review other titles in this series.  Go take a look and see what they thought.



Disclaimer:  I received 2 DVDs in the Go Science series for free in exchange for an honest review.

Judah Bible Curriculum

We have been reviewing another Bible curriculum around here.  I recently told you about this one. 

 Now we are working on Judah Bible Curriculum, an on-line curriculum.



My Dad would have really liked this one.

From their website:

The Judah Bible Curriculum is a "Principle Approach" ( Principle Approach refers to a philosophy of education whose content and methods are designed to build character in teacher and student capable of sustaining liberty) Bible curriculum whose distinctives are the following:

• The BIBLE is the textbook. The student studies and learns the Bible.
• The student learns God's purpose in history, studying the hand of God in the lives of men and nations through the Bible.
• The student develops his reasoning ability, helping him to apply Biblical principles personally.
• The curriculum helps you shift from rote learning to Biblical reasoning.
• The student learns the relationship between the sovereignty of God and the personal responsibility of the individual.
• The student learns the relationship between individual character and national liberty

I have never heard of the Principle Approach before, so all of this was new to me.

Here are some things that the author wants you to keep in mind as you use this curriculum:


1. The hand of God in History
2. The hand of God in the life of the individual
3. Christian self-government
4. Individual Christian character and national liberty

So, how did it work at our house?

It was good....and, not so good. 

I love that it uses the Bible as the text. 

But, on the down side, it was a lot of work for me.

To get me started, I got a 100-page K-12 Manual download as well as 8 hours of audio lessons in mp3 format for me to listen to. So, I read the manual and then logged onto their website and listened to some audio recordings that you are supposed to listen to before jumping into the curriculum.  (I did not listen to all 8 hours of lessons.)

Around here, it is really hard for me to listen to....or watch anything uninterrupted.  So, that in itself was a challenge. 

I think the basic point was to teach me, as a student, first....so, then I could turn around and teach my kids.  But, it was just harder than I thought it would be.....or maybe I should say, harder than I needed it to be.....right now.

I did pick up some interesting things from the audio training:

The job of the Home is to train your character.

The job of your Church is to train your conscience.

The job of the Government is to protect individual liberty and property.

This course focuses on 5 themes and what is happening governmentally throughout the Bible.

The five themes are:
1.  Creation
2.  Redemption
3.  Kingdom of Israel
4.  Kingdom of God
5.  Early Church

The goal of this type of curriculum is to help students learn how to extract material from the text. (A good thing for any subject, in my opinion)

Do not ask what the author wants me to do, but what does God want me to do.

Again, I think this was designed so, first, the teacher learns how to dig deep and delve into the Bible....and then, in theory, inspires that same goal of digging deep and delving into the Bible in my children.

Click here if you want to know Judah Bible Curriculum's Statement of Faith.

Here is a video clip explaining what they call  the "American Philosphy of Government" used in this curriculum. Based on the idea that there are three philosophies of government.  God is sovereign, the State is sovereign,   and the individual is sovereign.  This is also based on the idea that we all have our own  philosphy of government and that is what guides our education....one of of the three directions.....God is sovereign.....the State is sovereign.....or the individual is sovereign......which then forms our ultimate character. 



Make sense?

I think it will after you watch this video.

This curriculum also provides basic worksheets called Key Sheets that outlines a few "key"....

1.  Events
2.  People
3.  Institutions
4.  Documents

.....in the different passages of study......for each theme.

Each "key" is studied with a view towards identifying the hand of God, the character of God, and the place of that key in His purpose for history.

You focus on one key each week starting with the Bible.  Then, you expand that and use commentaries, concordances, Bible handbooks, Bible dictionaries, maps, timelines, encyclopedia, and other reference material you may find.  

You also include memory verses in your lessons.  For littler kids, you can include coloring pages and simpler activities.  The students (and the teacher) also keep a Bible notebook of information that they are studying, notes to themselves, memory verses, etc. 

From their website:

 The purpose of the notebook is to produce something of value and develop character qualities of creativity, productivity, excellence and organization, to be a producer not a consumer. The purpose is production, not paper storage.

There is a Scope and Sequence where they have spelled out how to divide the studies up in different grades. 



Okay, here is the part where I make a confession.

I like a curriculum where I don't necessarily have to think.....or put a lot of prep time into preparing lessons.

There, I said it.

I know. 

When we are talking about Bible, it seems kind of lazy for me to complain about having to do work so we can study the Bible.

But, that is sort of what I am doing......complaining.....well, maybe not complaining.  It is probably more like whining.

I said right away that I know my Dad would have loved this curriculum.  It was the kind of Bible study he did.  Deep.  Well thought out.  Using all sorts of other historical information to bring meaning and understanding to the scriptures.

He spent a lot of time studying the Bible.  A lot.  He had notes, cross references, and lines on probably every single page of his Bible.

So, while I loved the idea of this curriculum in theory.  It didn't work so much in my everyday life.....maybe because we have 6 kids.  I think it would have been easier to manage with a smaller household.

But, most likely it just didn't work for us because of  selfish reasons.  I didn't take the time to delve into it like I should have so the kids and I could have dug through the Bible bit by bit together.  We just sort of scratched the surface and I felt like I was missing the point.

I also think that I had problems doing that because we are in the middle of a school year.  My plan, right now, is that I will take some time this summer and see if I can't get a better handle on Judah Bible Curriculum philosophy and approach, and decide how I can lay it out for our family before our structured classes begin next year.

I think we may have a shot at it succeeding that way.

So, if I haven't scared you off and you are interested in checking this out, here are the prices:

A hard copy is available for $69.00, plus 5.00 shipping and handling    Total $74.00.
   
 For that price, you get:
1) Judah Bible Curriculum K-12 Manual;
2) Elementary Notebook Ideas booklet;
3) Eight-lecture Teacher Training Seminar on CDs.

(I think I may have done better with the actual hard copy.  There is something about pouring through a manual that you can't get pouring over one on your screen.)

Or, you can get on-line access/ebook:  Total $44.00.   

For that price, you get:
1) Judah Bible Curriculum K-12 Manual, e-book format to download;
2) Elementary Notebook Ideas booklet to view online or download;
3) Eight-lecture Teacher Training Seminar. listen online or download.

I think this curriculum would work well with a parent who has the time to follow through with all the prep material before jumping into it.  I haven't given up yet.  Like I said, I love the idea of this curriculum, but felt unprepared and like I was missing things because of the way I sort of shoved it into the middle of our school plans.

Go see what other TOS reviewers thought of the Judah Bible Curriculum.



Disclaimer:  I received on-line access to the audio lessons, and the downloadable Judah Bible Curriculum manual for free in exchange for an honest review.