"Living Books" is a relatively new term to me. It wasn't a term that I heard growing up. But one that I have learned about over the past few years of homeschooling.
There are textbooks on most any subject. History, science, math, physics, astronomy. This is the way that I learned in school, growing up. I read the chapters and I took the tests. Sure I remembered long enough to take the test, but not much longer than that. Most details went in one ear and out the other.
I have been homeschooling my daughters since preschool, and my oldest is now in 8th grade. For the first few years, we used textbooks for most everything. That is how I was educated; it was what I knew. But over the years, I heard more and more mention of "living books".
Usually, textbooks are written to cover a variety of topics, barely touching the surface of one topic before moving on to another one. But living books are written by someone with a passion for the topic. Typically, the authors write in-depth, with emotion and an amazing amount of knowledge.
Pick most any topic of interest, and you will find a book about that specialty. Pick most any famous person, and you will find a biography about him or her . . . sometimes even an auto-biography is available.
By using living books, I have been able to learn so much, right along-side my daughters. I have loved learning this way. We don't just read a chapter about Pearl Harbor and move on. We read several full-length books and even watch a documentary or two. We don't just read a chapter in a textbook about Abraham Lincoln and move on. We read books about his childhood and books about his adulthood. We read quotes by Mr. Lincoln and quotes from people who knew him personally.
Along the same lines, we have learned much from unit studies, documentaries, hands-on activities, and even online courses. A favorite of mine is Pilgrim Story through Dayspring, online. Forget a passing overview of the Pilgrim's story. This course delves deep, even going back before the "pilgrim" time, explaining how the circumstances came to be in the first place. This is an impressive, interactive, multi-sensory way to learn. (And no, I'm not getting paid to say that. I just really love this course.) I hope that the company comes out with more courses similar to this one in the near future.
Textbooks have their time and place. They are pretty much a necessity for math and English. Well, not really. :) Even these topics can be taught through online courses and DVD tutorials and the likes. It is all about your child's learning style. How do they learn? How do they retain knowledge? For example, over time, I have realized that my two older daughters have very different learning styles. One daughter can sit still and listen and focus, and retain what she learned. My other daughter has trouble retaining auditory information. But give her something to do with her hands, and it makes an amazing difference. So while I read, I offer to allow her to doodle while she listens. She sometimes makes random doodles; sometimes, she draws pictures about the lesson. Either way, using her hands, helps her to listen and retain what she hears better than if she just listened without drawing.
Homeschooling is an adventure and my daughters aren't the only ones learning along the way. I am learning many lessons right alongside them. Some are educational lessons, such as history; others are life lessons, such as my daughters' learning styles.
Homeschooling is a journey, and I'm so thankful to be walking the path with my beautiful children.
God bless,
Kimberly
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Melissa & Doug Terrific Twenty Giveaway is Back!
I just love Melissa & Doug. Their products are so unique, awesome, and durable. I hope many of you took the time to enter the Terrific Twenty Giveaway. And I have some great news!
The Terrific Twenty Giveaway is Back!
So what are you waiting for? ENTER NOW!
Disclaimer:
As a "thank you" for hosting this blog post, I will be entered to win a chance at free products from Melissa & Doug.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
'Scandalous The Musical' on Broadway Soundtrack Giveaway
Website: http://www. scandalousonbroadway.com
Interview with Kathie Lee Gifford: http://vimeo.com/ serino/review/50083730/ b5bb349f9c
Facebook: https://www. facebook.com/ScandalousBway
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ scandalousbway
YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube. com/user/scandalousBway
Stream (3) Songs: http://www. scandalousonbroadway.com/ music#.UHbxvrTR1Hg
About Scandalous on Broadway
Two-time
Tony Award nominee Carolee Carmello stars as Aimee Semple McPherson,
the trailblazing media superstar whose passion for saving souls was
matched by her passion for making headlines.
My Thoughts:
I was offered a chance to go watch the musical free of charge, to give my opinion and review of the performance. I would have loved to go watch the performance. But, unfortunately, the distance was a hindrance. So, instead, I was offered a soundtrack from the musical.
I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the 3 songs that I was able to listen to on my CD. High quality, great music and vocals, entertaining lyrics. From just the 3 songs on the soundtrack, I'm not able to get a complete feel of the musical. But I am intrigued.
I will say that from the songs I listened to, I'm guessing the musical isn't what would be considered "G-Rated". But then again, I think it is assumed that most shows on Broadway are not "G-Rated", but geared towards adult audiences.
I have never heard the story of Aimee Semple McPherson, but after hearing the songs and reading the teasers, I would like to learn more about Aimee and her story.
GIVEAWAY:
One of my readers will receive a free copy of the 'Scandalous the Musical' Soundtrack. To enter, leave a comment on this post. For an extra entry, follow my blog and tell me that you do. I will accept entries until December 5, 2012.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the
products or services mentioned above for free in hope that I would
mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services
I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am
disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16
CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and
Testimonials in Advertising.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Vocal Coach Singer - A Review
Vocal Coach Singer
CDs - $119.99
MP3s - $99.99
Recommended for youth and adults
From their site -
"Learn to Sing Your Best with the Ultimate Personal at Home Voice Lessons! Vocal Coach Singer includes 7 professionally produced training CDs, 4 workout CDs, and a full-size instructional guidebook so you can quickly gain more power, clarity, and confidence in your singing performance. Plus you will receive 1 CD with printable lead sheets for every vocal exercise and your own singer’s journal.
Vocal Coach Singer is the most complete instructional singing system available with the equivalent of over $2,000 worth of personal coaching time. Whether you are a beginner or a professional, Vocal Coach Singer teaches and builds upon the fundamentals essential to an accomplished singing voice. From posture to performance our tested and proven techniques will help you deliver your songs with consistency and confidence!
With our easy-to-use step-by-step singing lessons, you'll hear AND feel the difference in a matter of days! This is the only course you'll ever need to not only learn to sing your best, but also maintain your singing voice for years to come."
_
They also offer a "Teaching Kids to Sing" set for ages 5 to 13.
_______________________________________________________________
Presented by VocalCoach.com
The coaches:
Chris and Carole Beatty
"Chris & Carole Beatty, creators and founder of Vocal Coach, have taught and coached thousands of singers, young and old for over 40 years.
Vocal Coach is built on their passion for training the singers of today and tomorrow through their time-tested, million-selling products as well as in the Vocal Coach Voice Studio in Brentwood TN."
______________________________________________________________
FREE RESOURCES
Our Thoughts:
Two of my daughters regularly perform in musical theater productions. As such, singing is a big part of their lives, especially when they are cast for solos. None of us have had any formal training in singing. So, this past year, I have been debating signing my teen up for voice training. I figure that this is something she is very serious about and something she wishes to continue with. So what was holding me back? The expense of a private coach and also the time commitment of having another "must be there" added to my schedule.
So when the Vocal Coach came up for review, I decided to give this a try before signing up for voice lessons. Why? This is something that we can do in our home, on our own schedule. And the expense, although somewhat pricey up front, is a one-time expense. An expense that pays for itself in the first month, based on the fees I have seen advertised for weekly lessons with a voice coach. So it was definitely worth a try.
I received the program as an MP3 download. It downloaded easily and ran well. Given the choice, I would have loved to see this program on DVD or as a video download. I am a very visual person, so it would have helped me immensely to be able to view the instructor and watch exactly how he was standing during a posture lesson or to watch exactly what shape his mouth was in when he made a certain sound, etc. And of course, it would have just made it easier for me to concentrate and focus in general. Maybe this is something they will consider in the future, for us visual learners.
Since we have had no formal voice lessons, most everything in the lessons was new to us. I appreciate how the Beattys start with the basics. You can't expect to sing well unless you have the correct posture. The posture lessons were fun, I thought. It made me feel a little silly, but no one was watching but my daughter. And I have found myself thinking about it and correcting my posture throughout the day.
Next up is voice warm-ups. You know...all those silly sounds that singers make when warming up before a performance. Wow, if I thought I felt silly doing the posture exercises, I felt SUPER silly doing the voice warm-ups. But again, it was just me and my daughter. So I had great fun with it and we were both laughing and having a good time with it. Of course, we found ourselves breaking out in a grand rendition of "Do Re Me".
Chris breaks it all down into bite-size chunks. Just a little at a time. And the benefit of this type of course is that you can rewind and practice as many times as you like. No extra charge for overtime, for causing the instructor to go over his time limit.
If you decide your child would benefit from some private training and feedback, Chris does offer online training.
I found it to be a little awkward at first. It was something new and different. And I wasn't used to the format. But they offer everything you need to get a good overview of the program and to make a plan for getting started. And it didn't take long to catch on.
My daughter says she would still prefer an "in-person" instructor. But for now, I plan to have my daughter continue with the program. Why? I am convinced that she can learn a lot from Chris, in the comfort of our own home and on our own time schedule. And if the time comes, when she takes lessons from an instructor in a studio...well, just think of all the money I will save, when they realize just how much my daughter has already learned from using VOCAL COACH SINGER. Because as I mentioned, this course pays for itself in the first month. Yet it could potentially save me months and months and months of one-on-one coaching .
I think the success of this program will greatly depend on your child. How serious are they about learning to sing well? Do they have the drive and determination to continue with the lessons and take the practices seriously, without an instructor prompting them. Will you remember to have them practice, without an actual weekly appointment scheduled on your calendar? Is your student a visual learner? Does he feel comfortable using computer files? These are all things to ponder in your purchasing decision.
I believe a serious student will greatly improve their singing ability, to not only sing well, but to sing correctly.
Disclaimer: I received this product free of charge, as part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew. The above is just my opinion. Please remember that opinions may, and do, vary.

CDs - $119.99
MP3s - $99.99
Recommended for youth and adults
From their site -
"Learn to Sing Your Best with the Ultimate Personal at Home Voice Lessons! Vocal Coach Singer includes 7 professionally produced training CDs, 4 workout CDs, and a full-size instructional guidebook so you can quickly gain more power, clarity, and confidence in your singing performance. Plus you will receive 1 CD with printable lead sheets for every vocal exercise and your own singer’s journal.
Vocal Coach Singer is the most complete instructional singing system available with the equivalent of over $2,000 worth of personal coaching time. Whether you are a beginner or a professional, Vocal Coach Singer teaches and builds upon the fundamentals essential to an accomplished singing voice. From posture to performance our tested and proven techniques will help you deliver your songs with consistency and confidence!
With our easy-to-use step-by-step singing lessons, you'll hear AND feel the difference in a matter of days! This is the only course you'll ever need to not only learn to sing your best, but also maintain your singing voice for years to come."
_
Vocal Coach Singer Includes:
7 Training CDs:
- Getting Started
- Complete Breathing
- Complete Warm-Up
- Complete Tone
- Complete Expanding Your Range
- Complete Diction
- Complete Performance
4 Workout CDs:
- Daily Workout High Voice 1 & 2
- Daily Workout Medium/Low Voice 1 & 2
Plus these great educational tools:
- Guidebook – Full-size Instructional Guidebook to Ensure Success
- Printable Lead Sheets – each exercise in our course, plus track lists
- Personal Singer's Journal (Getting Started Journal & Workout Journal) to Track Your Progress
- Vocal Coach Song Evaluation – Evaluation form to enable you to make more intelligent song selections
They also offer a "Teaching Kids to Sing" set for ages 5 to 13.
Teaching Kids to Sing 2-DVD/1-CD Set is the perfect way to teach your
children and their leaders about the child's voice. All the foundations
from Posture, Breathing, Tone, Rhythm, Diction and much, much more is
explored and demonstrated. The cast includes Chris & Carole Beatty
and a group of children ages 5 to 13. The CD contains all the music used
on the two DVD's in two versions: With vocals and track only. This
allows your young singers to learn, then perform the songs.
Presented by VocalCoach.com
The coaches:
Chris and Carole Beatty
"Chris & Carole Beatty, creators and founder of Vocal Coach, have taught and coached thousands of singers, young and old for over 40 years.
Vocal Coach is built on their passion for training the singers of today and tomorrow through their time-tested, million-selling products as well as in the Vocal Coach Voice Studio in Brentwood TN."
______________________________________________________________
FREE RESOURCES
Our Thoughts:
Two of my daughters regularly perform in musical theater productions. As such, singing is a big part of their lives, especially when they are cast for solos. None of us have had any formal training in singing. So, this past year, I have been debating signing my teen up for voice training. I figure that this is something she is very serious about and something she wishes to continue with. So what was holding me back? The expense of a private coach and also the time commitment of having another "must be there" added to my schedule.
So when the Vocal Coach came up for review, I decided to give this a try before signing up for voice lessons. Why? This is something that we can do in our home, on our own schedule. And the expense, although somewhat pricey up front, is a one-time expense. An expense that pays for itself in the first month, based on the fees I have seen advertised for weekly lessons with a voice coach. So it was definitely worth a try.
I received the program as an MP3 download. It downloaded easily and ran well. Given the choice, I would have loved to see this program on DVD or as a video download. I am a very visual person, so it would have helped me immensely to be able to view the instructor and watch exactly how he was standing during a posture lesson or to watch exactly what shape his mouth was in when he made a certain sound, etc. And of course, it would have just made it easier for me to concentrate and focus in general. Maybe this is something they will consider in the future, for us visual learners.
Since we have had no formal voice lessons, most everything in the lessons was new to us. I appreciate how the Beattys start with the basics. You can't expect to sing well unless you have the correct posture. The posture lessons were fun, I thought. It made me feel a little silly, but no one was watching but my daughter. And I have found myself thinking about it and correcting my posture throughout the day.
Next up is voice warm-ups. You know...all those silly sounds that singers make when warming up before a performance. Wow, if I thought I felt silly doing the posture exercises, I felt SUPER silly doing the voice warm-ups. But again, it was just me and my daughter. So I had great fun with it and we were both laughing and having a good time with it. Of course, we found ourselves breaking out in a grand rendition of "Do Re Me".
Chris breaks it all down into bite-size chunks. Just a little at a time. And the benefit of this type of course is that you can rewind and practice as many times as you like. No extra charge for overtime, for causing the instructor to go over his time limit.
If you decide your child would benefit from some private training and feedback, Chris does offer online training.
I found it to be a little awkward at first. It was something new and different. And I wasn't used to the format. But they offer everything you need to get a good overview of the program and to make a plan for getting started. And it didn't take long to catch on.
My daughter says she would still prefer an "in-person" instructor. But for now, I plan to have my daughter continue with the program. Why? I am convinced that she can learn a lot from Chris, in the comfort of our own home and on our own time schedule. And if the time comes, when she takes lessons from an instructor in a studio...well, just think of all the money I will save, when they realize just how much my daughter has already learned from using VOCAL COACH SINGER. Because as I mentioned, this course pays for itself in the first month. Yet it could potentially save me months and months and months of one-on-one coaching .
I think the success of this program will greatly depend on your child. How serious are they about learning to sing well? Do they have the drive and determination to continue with the lessons and take the practices seriously, without an instructor prompting them. Will you remember to have them practice, without an actual weekly appointment scheduled on your calendar? Is your student a visual learner? Does he feel comfortable using computer files? These are all things to ponder in your purchasing decision.
I believe a serious student will greatly improve their singing ability, to not only sing well, but to sing correctly.
Disclaimer: I received this product free of charge, as part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew. The above is just my opinion. Please remember that opinions may, and do, vary.
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