Here We Are....In All Our Blue Glory!

Rainman attends a different church than the kids and I do.

The upside of that is that we get 2 family pictures taken for the church directories.

Our last family picture was taken shortly after we moved to Georgia at my church.  I will not post that one here.....I had a migraine on picture day.....it was not a good shot.

But, this year the time came for directory pictures at Rainman's church.  I like this one.  (Mom....we have a copy for you......don't worry.)

Here we are......

(Sorry....I took a picture of a picture...hanging on my wall.....and I couldn't figure out how to crop out all the wall and wasted space!)

L-girl had broken one of the arms off her glasses, so her glasses were always askew on her face....and her new ones hadn't arrived yet.  We told her she didn't have to wear them for the picture, which lead to A-girl asking if she had to wear her glasses.  So, that just left the triangle of glasses wearers as Rainman, D-man, and I!  I am sort of wishing that I took mine off too.....but, now I can remember my cool aqua glasses I had back in 2014, right?!?!

Mango Language Review

This is a review.

Oh, what a fun, fun, product to review for Mango Languages.



We got a change to pick from over 60 languages to start learning, here at home through Mango Languages Homeschool Edition! The programs are recommended for ages 6 and up.  (I could have even taken a class)

I just let the kids pick....I didn't do any mother-like nudging either!

Four of my students were able to use Mango Languages.

A-girl picked Irish
L-girl picked Irish
A-man picked German
S-girl picked German

I was actually happy that they ended up pairing off in their choices, so they could practice with each other.

Now, would you like to know their reasons for picking what they picked?

Here is A-girl and L-girl's reason:



See the guy on the far right?  The blond.  Yup, he is Irish.

What a noble reason for choosing a language, right?

Here is A-man and S-girl's reason:

She is a special friend of.....D-man's.

We will call her J-girl.  J-girls' mother is actually from Germany.  J-girl has dual citizenship and speaks German.  J-girl and her mom speak German to each other in public sometimes.  It is cool, but there is a little piece of me that is afraid they are talking about me....in front of me....you know?    Edit:  Upon reading this blog post, they have assured me that they don't talk about me, so I feel much better.  Whew!!!

Obviously, D-man isn't the only one who likes J-girl!



We got to try the beta version of Mango Languages Homeschool Edition.  The homeschool product is still pretty new and they were still adding aspects of the program as we were trying it out.  But, in general, here are the things that are available when you get a subscription to Mango Languages.

You have a choice of over 60 different languages
Progress Assessments

Built-in journals, discussions and wikis
Collaborative learning spaces
eNote messaging
/chat rooms

Access to embedded/downloadable content

Support from other community members

Calendars to schedule meetings or study groups

The thing that I think is one of the most unique aspects to this program is the sense of community.  You can find other people, all over the world, that are working on or know the language you are learning.  You can practice with each other.  You can ask questions about translations or when to use a certain form of a word.


Within the different language spaces, there are forum or discussion groups.  In the Irish one, a few links for pronunciation helps was added.  We currently have a small group learning Irish, so there isn't much happening in our discussion group, but I can see where this would be an awesome feature for one of the more common languages.

I heard of an example of one of the students who was learning Russian had trouble with the Russian word for the word "you".  She put a question on the forum and her question was answered by another student who speaks numerous languages, including Russian, on the forum.  It is sort of like homework help or having a tutor available when you get stuck.

Mango Languages is on top of any safety concerns you may have if this type of "chat" situation, so things like anonymity aren't allowed.  You can also set up your parent account to be sent every communication through your child's page.

The whole idea behind Mango Languages is that it is a conversational approach to learning a language - so it isn't like my old years of Spanish, where I learned how to conjugate verbs, but not how to speak to anyone.

This program teaches you how to talk and communicate in a different language.  It doesn't really focus on writing or the nitty gritty of conjugating verbs.  But, if you ever find yourself in another country, you will have learned the way to ask for directions, to use the bathroom, find out their names, what is the best restaurant to eat at, how you use the subway/train.  You know....the real stuff you need to know when you travel!

Honestly, it didn't bother me at all that there wasn't really a written/spelling portion to Mango Languages. Although A-girl said that she sort of missed having that component because she thinks she gets the words more solidly in her head if she knows and has to practice how to spell them.  Out of my 4 students, she was the only one that missed writing/spelling.  I think my other 3 students felt less pressure that they didn't have to know how to spell the words.  They were happy just to know how to say them!

Like I said, Mango Languages is still adding things to their program and these are just a few of the things coming up on the horizon:

Enhanced Tracking and Progress Monitoring - including seat time (for students and parents)
Goals and Personal Lesson Plans (both stand-alone and tied into Mango courses)

Resume and Portfolio Builder

I thought the program was great without the enhanced tracking and progress monitoring, but I can see where knowing how much time your student had put in would be helpful.  I had a chance to attend a webinar by the creators/forces behind Mango Languages to explain in a little more detail of what is coming for Mango Languages and their excitement was contagious.  They definitely have a passion for people to be able to learn another language.




For the purpose of this review, I will show you some of the basics of how Mango Languages works.  We will pretend you want to learn Pirate.  Yes, I said, Pirate!

That is one of the 60+ options.  At first I thought it was a joke, but then I decided it was actually sort of brilliant.  What better way to get a reluctant boy-child to learn a language?  Then, once he masters Pirate, he can move onto, shall we say, a more useful language, like Spanish or German?

When you pick a language, you will end up on a page that looks like this that says, "You are not a member of this Space."  At this point, you could read the information included in the Mango Passport section about what is included.  If you decide it will suit you, you just click on the Join This Space button near the top of the page.

Then you will get a Login to Mango button that pops up...pick that and it will take you to your specific language page, where you can get started.

Here is the first page of Lesson 1: Chapter 1 - Captain's Orders.  (Call Someone Names; Express Surprise; Give Sailing Commands; Great and Friend and a Supervisor; Pay a Compliment-------)

The Grammar Goals also  cracked me up!

"Use Me as a Possessive"  

After these first few cards, it jumps into the actual conversation lesson.  The conversation is first given in English, then in your language of choice.  You can have it repeat the whole conversation or just pieces of it. You love through the lesson repeated phrases and translating from English into "your" language. Here is an example page from Latin, not Pirate.




I will note that a voice comparison tool is available, but since we don't have a good microphone, we didn't use this tool.  The kids just talked out loud to the computer.  From what I could tell, they sounded pretty good.

This turned into one of those subjects that I do not have to ever force them to do.  Well, that is not entirely true.  There was like a week and a half where S-girl didn't go on.  I would remind her/ask her and she would tell me she just forgot.

Upon further investigation, I found out she lost her German notebook that had all her notes and pronunciations in it and she didn't think she could do the lessons without it.  Creating their own notebook was something the kids came up with themselves.  They all created one and took notes on pronunciation/usage on their own to refer back to when they needed it.  Luckily, we found her notebook and she is back at it!  (I would like to see a way to print flashcards for the languages as another way of solidifying the words.  It would have been a nice way for me to be more involved in their lessons too)

They fight for computer time.  Some people, who shall remain nameless, (L-girl) ...oops.....I mean, I guess, officially, she is still nameless, right?  I didn't actually name her L-girl when she was born! Anyway, a certain someone gets competitive and completes more than one lesson a day, when she can.

I love hearing them speaking their German and Irish back to the computer.  Like I said, they have all started keeping notebooks to keep track of the phrases and rules of the language.

The beauty of this program is that if they pick one language, they are not just limited to that language.  They can pick other ones.  They can learn more than one at a time, if they want to.  All for the same price.

Did that make sense?

If they wanted to, they could work on Biblical Hebrew, Latin, Greek, Spanish, Italian, and Pirate all at the same time.  Or, they could try out a new language every week if they wanted.  Once you are a member of Mango Languages, you have free reign to learn as many different languages as you want, in whatever time frame you want.

There is a component to Mango Languages that we didn't get to try, but I find intriguing for future use, it is called Mango Premiere, which is centered around learning languages via foreign films.  Most of the films currently  in Mango Premiere aren't quite suitable for the under 18 crowd, but they are working on finding more family friendly foreign films to add to their repertoire.  I will definitely be checking back on this one.  (If nothing else, my picks on my Oscar ballot may be more knowledgeable in the foreign film categories!)


If you want, you can give Mango Language a try, for free.  Once you decide you love it, like we have, the current price is: 

1 subscription is $18/month or $125/year total 
2 subscriptions is $28/month or $175 /year total                     
3 subscriptions is $38/month or $225/year total                   
4 subscriptions is $48/month or $275/year total               
5 subscriptions is $58/month or $325/year total

(more than 6 has special pricing)

The price will be tough for us, but if they keep on using it/loving like they are right now, it would be worth it for the language training they can get....especially because they aren't locked into just one language.  You know how kids change their minds.  This time I won't have to force them to stick with their first choice because I already paid the money, you know?

We really liked this one and I think it has great possibilities for us for years to come! A-girl and L-girl are convinced it will help them get a husband. 

Slaan!  (Goodbye in Irish!)

Take a look at what the other TOS Reviewers thought about Mango Languages.  Or check out some of the links here:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MangoLanguages
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/mangolanguages/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MangoLanguages

Egglo Entertainment - Review

This is a review for Egglo Entertainment.



This is a fantastic time to try a new this cool Easter activity/book/story.

We were sent a hard copy of the book, The Egg-Cellent Easter Adventure, written by Darcie  Cobos, AND we also got the Egglo Glow in the Dark Easter Eggs and a few other goodies.



If you are looking for a new way to do an Easter Egg hunt, or looking for a way to tie in the true Easter story along with a traditional egg hunt, Egglo Entertainment is a company you will want to know about.

This was a super fun way for us to jump into the Easter season a little earlier than normal.

We started on Ash Wednesday, when we got home with our ashes on our foreheads and I started reading the Egg-Cellent Easter Adventure book.  I say "started" because it is sort of a long book.  It is 40 pages...a little long for a quick kids read.  It is a little more chapter book, than storybook.

That would be my only (sort of) criticism of this book.  It has the look of a storybook, great illustrations, great storyline, but it is long and has big pages of reading.  Even though it was a great book, it was a little bit hard to keep the kids attention for a prolonged period of time.

I was actually sort of surprised by that because to me, it was a really interesting story.  Full of mysteries and adventure....plus there were opportunities for the characters in the book to learn to be better people....with real life examples I thought the kids would relate to.  (Like the oldest child always wanting to be in charge of everything!!!)

We also got a downloaded Adventure Audio version of the book, complete with "dings" when it is time to turn the page.  That made it a little easier for them to sit and listen to the book.  This way worked best when they were listening alone, so they could hold the book themselves.  The narrator was very professional and it sounded very radio theatre-like.  For just $2.99, this is a really great addition for you to have....especially if you are the type of parent that doesn't want to read the same book over and over and over.  Good option for parent and child!

Since, I wanted to read to all the littles at the same time, I read it aloud, but broke it up into 2 sessions.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, since this product is ideally for ages 4-13, I recruited D-man to be in charge of charging/hiding my eggs for our big egg hunt.

 (He made it pretty easy, because neither one of us was sure how the kids would do in  the dark and we didn't want anyone getting hurt.  This picture makes it look SUPER easy....but they were a little harder to spot in the dark.)

We did the egg hunt on a Sunday night.

I used the little scripture scrolls that I also received to fill the eggs.  They were like the scrolls the kids found in the story.  One would have a clue for their next egg and the other would be a scripture verse.

You can fill them with candy and other treats too, just like a traditional egg hunt.But these were really fun and teeny, tiny.

Okay, here is the truth.   Loved this product.  The kids loved the Egglo eggs.  I wish they would hold their glow for a little bit longer.  We wanted them to hold their charge, but then we had to wait for it to get completely dark, which meant that they lost a bit of their charge before being hidden.

I will be honest, I have always had a little trouble explaining the Easter Bunny and egg hunts to the kids as part of the real celebration of Easter.

Yes, I have heard the explanation that the egg itself is like the Trinity - Father, Son, Holy Spirit and the Egg - shell, white, yolk.  But, that didn't really sit well with me and I am sure that the kids could tell my lack of conviction in what I was talking about.  So, yes we did Easter egg hunts, but they were just a fun part of the springtime/Easter celebration.

With The Egg-Cellent Adventure and the Egglo glow in the dark eggs, I have a way to tie egg hunts into the true and wonderful Easter story.

Jesus is the light of the world.



Jesus lights our way in the darkness.

They opened and read every single scripture scroll too....V-girl obviously needed help reading hers.

Will all of our Easter egg hunts be down in the dark from now on?

No.

But you can bet that this is the start of a family tradition and I can tell you it was a memorable one for all of the kids....big and little. (They have organized and had their own Egglo Easter egg hunt every night since our first one!  They have also had good luck letting the eggs charge in the sunshine during the day and bringing them in and putting them under a lamp while they wait for it to get completely dark....then they recruit one of us older people to hide the eggs and off they go!  They have even taken them to bed with them for a little temporary night light. )

The kids want to put together an Egglo Easter egg hunt for our neighbors....and we are going to.  I just downloaded the sample scavenger hunt available on their website in the Egglo All Year Round section to use for that one.

This would be a fantastic family tradition to start, like we have.  But, it would also be a fantastic program to start at your church too.  It may take a little shift in mindset to get on board for a nighttime egg hunt with flashlights, but once you get the first one under your belt, you won't want to go back to the old way.

Seriously, there is something about the way they gleefully run around the yard looking for the little glowing eggs that is amazing....not in the, "I can't wait and see how much candy I can get kind of way", but in the joy of discovery, "Look!  I found it!" kind of way.

An, I see the light of Jesus....kind of way.....





It is just such an easy and fantastic visual message of Jesus and his love for us on the cross and it really solidifies the message that Jesus is the best light we can have.

You can get a dozen Egglo glow in the dark eggs for $9.99.  The Egg-Cellent Adventure book is also $9.99.  The Scripture Scrolls are $4.29 for a pack.  There is a program guide  that takes all of the thinking work out of putting on your Egglo hunt.  It costs $14.99 and has 60 pages of step by step guidance/instruction, activity, snack, and decoration ideas and printables to make for a super memorable event.

Take a look and see how other TOS crew members handled their Egglo egg hunt.  This is a really cool product.  Really.