Time4Learning Review

So, this was totally different for me. Reviewing curriculum instead of books. I thought it would be pretty cool to get a free month and try out a computer based curriculum and I'm glad I did.

My son actually laughed. Daily. Over language arts!!! He doesn't like to do any school, unless it's science; Physics to be exact, although he loves creating different concoctions with Chemistry. But I heard him laugh. And I didn't have to be the main one getting him to do punctuation. I also didn't have to worry that I'm missing some key component of grammar.

I like the language arts and math portions. He liked the LA and math as well. It wasn't as hard to get him to do his school work during the days we used it. He retained-which is super-important. I gave 'em my credit card to continue the program.

We didn't care for the history or science portion. Partly because there was a bit of reading and he hates when he has a lot to read. If they pages would've been read to him, he would've liked it more. There were things I liked about it, but the current curriculum I use for those subjects work for us better. We didn't try the art.

I found the web-site very easy to navigate and want to figure out how to do the lesson plans. This trial period came when I was planning and catering my middle child's Bat Mitzvah, (for those who aren't Jewish, think of planning a wedding) so I wasn't able to give much time to learning the program. But it did turn out to be a life saver during this busy time, and was so simple to get started, many brain cells were saved.

Bottom line, we'll be using Time4Learning for our LA and math until he starts Cyber School this fall with the public school system. It's a stop-gap right now and if I weren't going with GCA, I'd continue with T4L. In fact, if I ever need it, T4L would be great to support concepts with public school.

If you want to know more, check out Time4Learning.

I guess this can be considered a paid review, but an unbiased one. The opinions are solely mine. Time4Learning had no input here.

Curriculum review

I've been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. My opinion will be entirely my own, so be sure to come back and read about my experience. Time4Learning can be used as a homeschool curriculum, for afterschool enrichment and for summer skill sharpening. Find out how to write your own curriculum review for Time4Learning.

Homeschooling

I've been homeschooling for ten years and that seems like a long time. This year I put my girls in school and it has been a crazy experience. It's amazing what so many teachers think of homeschoolers.

Some of the comments:
"We know your daughter has gaps on her math education but we haven't been able to figure them out." Maybe that's because she's fine. I mean, making all As in Math and understanding the concepts is a good indicator that there's not much to worry about, right?
"You're doing so well with your grammar work and improved so much since your mother didn't teach you to write." Really? So those papers from last year don't count? And how about when my twelve year old writes about Shakespeare's play and how much she loved Puck? How many other kids have read the classics by seventh grade?
"We didn't expect H to do well because she was homeschooled, but she's doing very well." Uh, yeah. I didn't sit at home eating bon bons while my kids poked knives into the wall sockets.
And so many other comments. I wish I would've been blogging about it since last August.

I still have my son at home and he's doing okay. In fact, that Physics and Biology program he's completing has been good for him. Not to mention Myth Busters and YouTube...what a great education.

Divergent Faction-of-the-Week Challenge

So, I completely missed Amity and I must say I'd probably have rocked that one. The next week was Candor, and to be honest, I don't know that I would've done well with that week, because I can't be honest with myself, so how can I be honest with others?

But, this past week was Erudite and I was at the beach on vacation. First, I need to say I never really liked this faction. From day one, when it was named something different, (and a name I really didn't think much of because of Barbie) I didn't like the faction. I saw annoying Steve Erkle from Family Matters every time I read the name. Plus, they were kinda bad anyway. Then, in a later version of DIVERGENT, I decided I really needed to read it again because I might see the faction differently. Embarrassingly, the final version of DIVERGENT is still on my shelf. Well, actually two of them are on my shelf and I haven't read it yet. (Sorry, V)

So, Erudite. I love learning. In fact, I get so obsessed with a topic that I'll study everything I can on the subject. And then poor Hubby gets the entire condensed version of whatever it is I'm obsessed with at the moment. I don't think I'd fit into this faction, not only because I didn't like it, but because while I love learning, I don't want to do it all the time.

Another faction fail.

Can't wait for Dauntless, since this is where the test puts me, and from the first mention of them jumping off the train, as Tris longingly looks at them, I fell in love.

Divergent Faction-of-the-Week Challenge: ABNEGATION

So, I did it. And let me tell you, it was so easy to be selfless and altruistic. :-) I wanted to see exactly what altruistic was, (and make sure I was doing it right) so I went to the dictionary:

altruism |ˈaltroōˌizəm| noun
the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others : some may choose to work with vulnerable elderly people out of altruism.
(from Webster's dictionary)


Not. Me.


I thought about not looking in a mirror all week, but that wasn't possible. I went without make-up, but I do that anyway, sometimes. I tried to do for others without thinking of myself, and yeah, I do that a lot but find I enjoy doing things for others because it makes me feel good, not very selfless there.

I don't need others to know the things I do, but it feels good when they do know. I take care of my grandmother during the day and I do it because I love her. Not because I'm selfless, but because it's the right and only thing a decent person can do. And yeah, what goes around comes around, so when I'm old, I'm sure someone will take care of me because I've put the time in.

I realized that there wasn't anything I did this week that could be considered totally selfless, because I got something from everything.

In DIVERGENT, I appreciated Tris' struggle with her brother's being so selfless, because it was just in his nature. It made her sympathetic to me, because I can understand wanting to be something I'm not. And feeling guilty because I wasn't.

In conclusion, I hope Dauntless isn't next week. Hear that Deb? Check out where this all started, with the lovely Debra Driza and take the challenge yourself.

PS: I haven't actually read the version of Divergent that came out last week, so if I say anything in these posts that aren't true to the book, forgive me. It was true to the book over a year ago, but we all know books change and my kids grabbed my copy before I could read it.

DIVERGENT Faction-of-the-Week Challenge!

It's my birthday for another 45 minutes and I thought a blog post would be fitting. I actually finished my third book and it is out with betas. I'm participating in Deb's Divergent love.

I love Divergent and just bought it this past week. Veronica Roth is so super amazing and talented. So in honor of her epic book I'm taking on the challenge.

I'm trying to fit into Abnegation, and like Tris, it may not be for me.

Whoa, it's been how long?

This is my super-de-dooper mutt. Isn't she beeyoutiful?

Wow. I was just reading my writing buddy's blog when I saw where she gave me an award, and I clicked the link...and realized I haven't blogged since October. Which means I missed two whole months. And gained three followers. Dude...that's cool. The followers part, not the non-blogging part.

But a lot of stuff has happened in my life, and I've been super busy. I think we all get super busy at certain times. The past few months have flown by, and I've actually been writing again. One of my writing goals is to query a new project by the end of February. Why? Because the last thing I queried was Feb. a year ago. And it still has at least one full out there, so, I need to write the synop and query a few other agents for it. But in the meantime, I've a great ghost story going, which I adore, and am still plugging away on the mountain mani I started a few months ago. Plus, there's the pregnancy mani and the murder mystery. Oh yeah, my first book, which went to only eight agents (I figured it really sucked and needed fixing) which I'm re-writing as a MG.

That's a lot of WIPs. So, my betas who have ME...get me some pages, women! And those two beta projects I have, well, I am working on them. Had a family thing come up and am out of town. Plus, there's the birthday party for the Hubmeister coming up in less than a week. Why am I writing this disjointed post? I need to see in black and white (okay, green and white) what I'm working towards. Maybe it'll hold me accountable, cause one of these days I'll have deadlines and my hobby will become a job. When I get my super-awesome agent and cool editor. And book deal. ;-)

I have a shelf full of books so I'll have to do a giveaway soon, so check back. I may actually post.