Happy Father's Day From Disney's Brave

Father's Day is the day we pay tribute to all the great Dad's out there, those with us, and those who are with us in our memories.

 


 Happy Father's Day!

 PS - Disney - Pixar's movie BRAVE is out June 22nd!

Looney Tunes Click N Learn Phonics Program: A Great Foundation For Parents and Children (Review and Giveaway: 14 winners)

One of the things I thanked my own Mother for recently was getting me into a school that taught Phonics. I started learning Phonics in Kindergarten, and feel very strongly that it gave me an edge with both spelling and reading (I STILL use the skills I learned with Phonics today!).  My husband jokes with me that whenever he is stumped on a word and doesn't want to look it up, he just asks me, and just between us, I use those very Phonics skills I learned so long ago to spell those words for him. ;)

That is one of the reasons why I was so excited to introduce my boys to the Looney Tunes Click N Learn Phonics program.  It is available online, so anywhere we go, I'll be able to work on the Phonics Lessons with our son as long as we have access to a computer and the internet.  And the best part???  They LOVE the program and consider it a cartoon game.  So I am providing my boys with the very same spelling and reading tools that helped me so  much.

It took only a minute or so to set up my son's account, and he got to choose Bugs Bunny as his Avatar (which is one of his favorite Looney Tunes characters).  He immediately wanted to check out what the characters were up to, and he loves that they are helping him learn.

PARENTS - I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO CHECK THIS OUT!  PHONICS CAN HELP YOUR CHILD THROUGHOUT THEIR ENTIRE LIFE!

There are 100 lessons, each made up of 4 parts with Looney Tunes short cartoons mixed in.

     1. The Letter Zone: Kids learn letter sounds and shapes, and learn to find them on the keyboard.  They will learn 61 different Phonics sounds
     2. Listening Zone: Kids learn about Phonics Word Blending.  They learn to listen to the beginning, middle and end of the word.  The robot guide will cover 188 different words, sounding out the different parts, and children will work with 357 individual words.
     3. Reading Zone: Kids will learn to read and spell sight words (those that are highly used in daily communication), word families, word endings, Silent-E rule, making sentences, and more.
     4. Speed Zone: Kids use this section to recap and test what they have learned in the lesson (identify letters, sounds, words)

I wanted my 5 year old son to enjoy using this program and he DOES, which is great, but the unexpected benefit of this program and his enjoyment is that our 2 year old is also trying to engage in it along with his older brother, and I'm amazed at how quickly he is catching on to what is happening in the program.

This phonics program is highly customizable, and you get progress reports where you can see exactly how your child is doing.

As a parent, I can't emphasize enough how much I approve of Phonics being given as a tool to our children.  It enables them and increases their chances of success in school and beyond - I can personally attest to that.


Looney Tunes Click N Learn Phonics  
 by Click N Kids, IncFacebook / Twitter Program has varying rates starting at $9.95
 Education

Edition Reviewed: Online Phonics program - I received access to the Looney Tunes Phonics program as part of the Karma Media campaign so I could share the information with you in the form of my honest review!

See what other Karma Media bloggers are saying about the Looney Tunes Phonics program:


Giveaway Details:  14 winners will each receive a LIFETIME License to the Looney Tunes Click N Learn Phonics website.  Enter below:   a Rafflecopter giveaway

Summer Fit Learning Program: Makes it Fun and Easy to Prep Kids For The Coming School Year

Summer Fit Learning has created a great line of workbooks that you can use throughout summer with your child or children in order to prepare them for the coming school year and keep them physically and mentally active even when they aren't in school.  Each book emphasizes physical activity, reading, writing and math skills that are appropriate for each age (Pre-K through 5th Grade).

 I was really excited to join in the MediaGuests blog tour for the Summer Fit program, and Logan and I chose to try out the K-1 workbook even though he is going into Kindergarten.  He has a great grasp of his ABC's, basic writing, and his numbers, so I wanted the chance to give him a few challenges.

The workbook has a whole section just for parents, providing tips on using the workbook, the importance of fitness and safety, healthy eating and good nutrition, core values and the actual Summer Fit Exercise Program (which includes aerobic, strength and sport exercises). I loved the detailed description of each exercise and activity.

The workbook also provides an area for each section where you can write what the incentive for completing the weekly program (there are 10 weekly programs).  Kids get to check off the activities as they do them, and write their values for the day/week.  Then there are the actual work-pages, which include tracing and coloring, working with numbers (tracing, counting), working with upper-case and lower-case letters, working with patterns, drawing, shapes, feelings, and other fun activities.

The end of the book includes a section for parents with the answers, and a certificate of completion.

We have only done the first few days of workbook pages, and the incentive for completing week 1 is a fun outing.  So far, his favorite parts of the workbook are the coloring and matching activities.  There is a great variety of activities which keeps the learning fun and entertaining.

Check out this fun You Tube video on the Summer Fit Learning program:

 Summer Fit: K-1 Kindergarten to First Grade 

 by Summer Fit Learning Available for Pre-K through Grade 5  ~ $12.95

Edition Reviewed: K-1 Workbook - Review copy received through the MediaGuests blog tour for my honest review

Check out Summer Fit Learning on Facebook - they post great information all the time!

They also have a great sample book online with samples from each workbook

Rock N Learn's Multiplication RAP DVD (Review and Giveaway w/ 7 winners)

If you interact with kids in any capacity, you will want to take note of Rock N Learn's fun music learning videos and cds. Our family was sent the Rock N Learn Multiplication Rap DVD to check out and it is great.  The characters are fun, they emphasize the importance of learning and having fun in school, and the songs and raps are catchy - things that a lot of kids love.  They will dance and sing along with the characters on the screen.

The kids love this DVD, which is great as a parent, because I know they are having fun AND learning.  I can feel great about letting them watch this DVD, and they don't even know that it is "good-for-them."  I can't wait to check out other Rock N Learn DVDs.

Not only is Rock N Learn Multiplication RAP available on DVD, it can also be purchased as an Audio CD and Book, and now an iBook.  The Multiplication RAP iBook is the first iBook release by Rock N Learn, and it is available on iTunes for $9.99 (you can purchase individual songs as well).

Another great thing about these is that they get kids interacting and learning on so many levels by encouraging reading (words are shown on the screen), hearing, and speaking (talk along with the characters).

Check out this sample clip from the Rock N Learn Multiplication RAP dvd (found on the Rock N Learn You Tube channel):



Rock N Learn has a great line of educational materials including DVDs, Audio CDs, workbooks and now the addition of iBooks.  They have over 50 products covering early childhood learning (preschool, kindergarden, grade school), languages, language arts, math, science and social studies.  They even have one for dealing with money and change (which my kids need!).

Use coupon code JQ7711 and get 25% off your entire purchase of DVDs and CDs at www.RockNLearn.com (US only).






Multiplication RAP  DVD
 by Rock N Learn
DVD ~ $19.99Audio CD and Workbook ~ $12.99Replacement Book ` $3.00iBook ~
Edition Reviewed: DVD - Review copy received through Karma Media in order to share my honest review with you.

Stay in touch with Rock N Learn: Sign up for their E-Newsletter, Follow them on Twitter, and Like them on Facebook.  They have also created a website www.worksheets-for-math.com to provide parents and teachers free downloadable study materials.

Giveaway Details:  7 Winners will be chosen, and they will get their choice of the Rock N Learn Multiplication RAP on DVD or App.  (Open to residents of the US)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out what other Karma Media bloggers had to say about the Rock N Learn Multiplication RAP DVD:

Camping With Kids: What Are Your Must-Have's?

Our family has started camping in the backyard as a way to get ready for "REAL" camping.  After having NOT done any camping for about well, ... 20 years or so... I find that I'm forgetting a LOT.

The first weekend of backyard camping with my husband and two young boys (ages 2 and 5) found that we needed a bigger tent.  I love my 3 person, 4 season backpacking tent, but we were sardines... so we went to Sears and got the Coleman Oasis 6 person tent.  It is a VERY basic tent, but we love it.  It provides extra space and  is a cheap way to get into camping ($90 instead of the $204 tent we originally chose).

So, we have our tent, air mattresses (and pumps), coolers, storage tent, and a few other hiking type supplies.  What items do you consider to be must-haves when you go camping?

Review and Giveaway Eco-Orbies: The Eco-Friendly Water Bead With SO MANY Uses (10 Winners, US though June 8th)

From the first moment I saw water beads at the fair I was entranced. Here were these really neat little tiny "seeds" that were smaller than a seed bead or sesame seed, and when put into water, they grew to the size of marbles! They felt neat and looked really GREAT in a vase with flowers or with an ornamental bamboo shoot growing in them.  I could just never bring myself to buy them as they were so expensive.

Now I've found a company called Eco-Orbies who creates the same water marble in great colors at a fraction of the cost, and they are eco-friendly and made here in the US.  They come in nine different colors: Pink, Coral, Blue, Green, Clear, Purple, Orange, Yellow and Black.  You can buy them in a 5 gram package (multiple packages can be used together to create great patterns), and when added to water, they make about 2 cups of water beads.

I received two colors to try out for a Eco-Orbies campaign with Karma Media: Blue and Magenta.  The boys and I were so excited, we forgot to take a "before" picture to show how small they are, but here is the finished Eco-Orbie:

Now, I LOVE these colors together, and they have been out on my table for a little over one week.  In that time, they have been played with, sorted, have nourished cut flowers, and a few have floated in the fish tank. ;)

Visitors have enjoyed looking and playing with these little gems.  Who said sensory objects were only for toddlers?  I think we've had more adults play with these (and found them relaxing) than the kids.  

Possibly the neatest thing I've discovered with these Eco-Orbies is that you can use a few sprays of your favorite perfume or essential oil to have a gentle and pleasing smell instead of a candle.  Each time the water beads shrink, I can add them to water and re-hydrate them and add a new scent.  I love this feature!

Hydrating the water beads (also called water pearls) is EASY and fun to watch.  For each package, put two cups of water in a bowl (I used a large glass measuring cup so the kids could watch as the tiny beads grew), add the beads and let them sit.  It should take about six hours to fully grow. 

When you are done, DON'T throw them out!  Let them dry on a cookie sheet and store them for later use. They take up almost no space at all and can be used over and over!

Other great uses for these Eco-Orbies: they are safe for beta and gold fish tanks, they can be used with dirt to grow wheat germ and herbs, they can be added to the garden to provide extra nourishing water to the roots, they can be used in vases for flowers instead of marbles, they can be used for event centerpieces, in classrooms for projects or sensory time, use as gifts, use in a pot or glass to add color to a desk or bookshelf, for growing/germinating seeds, and even for growing plants without dirt.  For more great uses, see the Eco-Orbies website. 

Eco-Orbies (Various Colors Available) Water Beads  
 by Eco-Orbies
 5 gram package (makes about 1 qt of water beads)  ~ $4.00Find Eco-Orbies on Facebook

Edition Reviewed: Blue and Magenta Eco-Orbies - I received this product through Karma Media in exchange for my honest review.

Check out what other bloggers have to say about Eco-Orbies:

Want to win some great Eco-Orbies yourself? 10 lucky winners will each win a package of Eco-Orbies!  Open to residents of the United States, through June 8th.
a Rafflecopter giveaway