Chara Games - Unauthorized {Review}

This review was originally published September 2017 on our Gypsy Road site.

In 2014, Patrick and Katherine Lysaght founded Chara Games.  Their goal was to design and develop games with Christian themes.  So far, they have three games : Commissioned, 3 Seeds, and Unauthorized.  Each of the games approaches a serious topic from a faith-based point of view.   In Unauthorized, the game is about the underground church.  It is a game of Church versus State, and anyone can win!

Unauthorized is a card game for 6-12 players, aged twelve and older.  It can be played in about half an hour, and there are numerous outcomes, so it can be played several times without boring the players.  Each player is assigned a role, either as a Pastor, Police, or general townsperson.  The idea is to influence the loyalty of each player to either the church or the state – and player loyalties change turn on a dime!  The loyalties are determined by ‘experience cards’ that bias the character toward one side or the other. 

There are four rounds of play, and it’s anyone’s game!  The church wants to get the majority loyalty, but keep their supporters out of jail.  The state wants to crush the church.  If nothing else, this game is a good conversation starter about the church versus state issue, underground churches, and what it would be like to live in an oppressive society.  The game includes twelve role cards, ninety-seven experience cards, thirty-seven reference cards, and a full color, twelve-page rule book.

I have to admit that this game was a little complicated for us.  For starters, you need a minimum of six people to play.  Since we were only able to scrounge up four people, and one was a ten year old child, it led to some confusion.  The child struggled to follow the game.  The adults struggled to keep their multiple characters straight.  Each of us was one of the main players (Pastor or Police) plus an additional townsperson.  It was an interesting game – and we did more talking about the themes than actual game-playing – but it was really difficult with so few players.

To help learn to play, we watched the video that the company created.  I would recommend it to any first-time players.  It walks you through the rules, explains the rationale and end goals, and explains the characters and experiences.  It’s fairly cut and dry to determine a winner.  In order for the church to win, they must have the majority of loyalties AND have one person that isn’t in prison.  And if the church doesn’t win, then the state does. 

It’s interesting, on a social psychology level, to see how the loyalties play out.  During each round, the players have a chance to make a decision to stick with their loyalties or change them.  To truly play the game well, you need to focus on long-term strategies for your ‘team,’ but also stay aware of the undercurrents of each round.  It’s not unlike the real world, where trust and truth are easily mistaken.  I would recommend this game for high schoolers, college students, and adults.

See what others are saying about Chara Games at the Homeschool Review Crew.

Carole P. Roman Books {Review}

This review was originally published September 2017 on our Gypsy Road site.

Being a Charlotte Mason-style family, we read aloud all of the time!  I love finding a good book about what the kids are interested in and curling up on the couch for an evening together.  When we saw some read-alouds coming our way to review from Carole P. Roman, we were excited…new books!

We received : If You Were Me and Lived in…Viking Europe, IfYou Were Me and Lived in…Australia, The Crew Goes Coconuts, and Being a Captainis Hard Work.  We later received If You Were Me and Lived in...the Mayan Empire.

The first two books were written as part of a series to help children understand other cultures and historical eras.  They’re told from a child’s point of view, are fairly easy reads, and are full of fantastic facts and illustrations.  The books cover food, clothing, daily routines, family, celebrations, jobs, and school.  Each book ends with definitions and ideas for further learning.  The second two books were from the Captain No Beard series, which is appropriate for younger children than our own, and focuses on character through imagination play.  Of the books we received, the first series was definitely the favorite!

If You Were Me and Lived in…. series

This series is most appropriate for children aged 8-15, and was our children’s favorite series.  They enjoyed the historical book more than the cultural one, but history is something of a passion in this family, so it’s not a surprise.  I felt that the historical book was written a just a little bit higher reading level than the cultural book, and in my opinion, the country books could be appropriate for even younger children.  These books are great conversation starters among older children!

If You Were Me and Lived in…Australia is good for elementary-aged children.  It teaches about both the culture and (basic) history of the country in an accessible way.  There are colorful illustrations, and any new words have the pronunciations right beside them.  The children enjoyed learning about how children live in a different country.

If You Were Me and Lived in…Viking Europe was hands-down the favorite – not only because it was historical, but because it was about Vikings.  What do Vikings do?  They fight.  With swords.  And the boys are all about some swords these days…  The book is written at an upper elementary or middle school level.  It could be read aloud, but the children actually enjoyed taking turns reading this one quietly, and then I later found them discussing some of the things they had learned.  It has good illustrations, pronunciations of unfamiliar words, and a glossary.  One thing we thought might be interesting to add is a timeline…to show how the Viking landscape has changed through the years.  We enjoyed reading this book together, and even pulled out our Viking Unit Study from a few years ago to accompany it!

If You Were Me and Lived in…the Mayan Empire was the second favorite favorite – as it was both historical and about an ancient civilization.  We learned about Mayan culture, careers, family life, and food...among other things.  We were surprised to learn about the caste system, and how your father's career determined your career.  The illustrations are very beautifully done, and it gave us an opportunity to pull our our Mayan Unit Study and revamp some past learning!

Captain No Beard series

This series is most appropriate for children aged 3-8, and our children are considerably older than that, so these books were not as big of a hit as the other series.  That said, I do think that younger children would enjoy them.

In Being a Captain is Hard Work, the captain learns that he must listen to the other crew members in order to be a better leader.  I have to be honest here and say that this story did not go at all like we thought it would…it seemed at first like a parable for trusting God, and then at the very end, turned into the captain needing to listen to his crew.  It was a strange twist for us.

The Crew Goes Coconuts tackles the issue of bullying and acceptance.  In each of these books, the animals are anthropomorphized, and we find out at the very end that they were just playing dress up and imagination.  It reminded me a bit of the Backyardigans.

Each of these series of books has its strengths.  They are geared toward different audiences, with different end goals.  I think that anytime you can incorporate learning into a read-aloud book, you have a much better retention rate…whether that be for understanding character and moral issues or for better comprehending the cultural and historical aspects of a place.  I am sure that we will be looking into more of the If You Were Me and Lived in… series in the near future!

See what others are saying about Carole P. Roman books at the Homeschool Review Crew!

MarshMedia {Review}

This review was originally published June 2017 on our Gypsy Road site.

Remember back in school, when they would separate the boys and the girls into different classrooms and you would spend a week on ‘health education?’  The videos that you watched probably came from this company – MarshMedia.  They produce health education videos for elementary and middle schoolers – and now they’re expanding into the homeschool market, so you’ll have access to the same materials that the schools do.

The first thing I want to address is ‘using the same materials as the public schools.’  I realize this goes against the homeschooling grain, but these are well-made, informative, basic videos that, while not being outright religious, are not in any way inappropriate for the Christian household.  They are straightforward with a Joe Friday approach.  (For you younger folks, that’s Dragnet : “Just the facts, ma’am.”)

Their videos cover many relevant topics, including health, puberty, safety, nutrition, hygiene, and more.  There is even a video in their collection about what to do during a school shooting.  Granted, that’s not one most homeschool families would need, but it could be used as a jumping off point for what to do if you’re in the mall / Walmart / Disney World and someone opens fire.  …..and isn’t it just a little sad that we even have to discuss this with our five year olds today?  I digress.

MarshMedia is opening up their video collection to homeschoolers – they will be able to subscribe on a month to month basis to the entire collection of videos.  Each one is only 10 to 15 minutes long, so it would be feasible to watch every single one in a month, if you were inclined to do so. 

There are videos geared specifically toward boys, specifically toward gears, and for both genders.  We opted only to watch the ones geared toward boys during our month.  As a mom who knows little to nothing about actually experiencing boyhood puberty, it was nice to let someone (or the video, in this case) else take the lead on teaching them the things they need to know. 

Here are some of the highlights we found :

• Meet the New You for Boys – This is an introduction to puberty for younger students who are not ready to learn about reproduction, but who should be aware of changes that may begin to occur soon.  This video is geared toward elementary school, and its visual nature made it easy to understand.  (And by visual, I mean drawings, not real photographs.)  Since children are going through puberty considerably earlier than when we were kids, I like that they’ve made one at this young level.
• Growing Up : Boys – This video was geared toward 5^th-7^th graders, but it seemed to be more toward upper elementary school to us.  My husband watched this one with the boys, more to answer any residual questions they may have (there were none, of course), and he agreed that it seemed aimed a bit lower than middle school.  It covers puberty, hygiene, self-esteem, and the basics of reproduction.  This video set off some very interesting conversations about tree and animal reproduction on the farm…
• I Know How to Act – This video focuses on social behaviors, including friendship, dating, leadership, and other social behaviors.  It features students from a typical classroom alongside students with special needs, and helps each group to better understand the other’s actions.  One thing I would have like to see more emphasis on is the digital world which has swept up our youngsters, and how to navigate it.  However, maybe this is one that is currently in production.  If not, they should definitely make a Part II to this video that focuses on social media.  (hint hint)
• A Boy’s Guide to Growing Up – This video was designed for the boy with special needs, specifically for children with mild to moderate disabilities.  As a mom of one with special needs, I really appreciate that they’ve made a line of videos for these children.  Students with disabilities still need to learn and understand the nuances of growing up, but it can be difficult to break it down in a way that is clear and developmentally-appropriate.  The videos do just that.  You can see their entire special needs collection here.

Just the Facts :

• Various videos aimed at separate genders and separate age groups, from Kindergarten to 8th grade
• Videos for special needs children
• For short attention spans - only 10-15 minutes each
• Available as a subscription on a month to month basis
• Streamed directly from online
• Also available in Spanish

See what others are saying about MarshMedia at the Schoolhouse Review Crew!

Drive Thru History - The Gospels {Review}

This review was originally published April 2017 on our Gypsy Road site.

Has your family ever watched Drive Thru History® videos?  Do you have boys?  Kids?  Teens?  Adults that act like kids?  😊  Then you’re going to love Dave Stotts and his videos!  Recently, we watched DriveThru History® – “The Gospels”, which, as the title would indicate, is all about the Gospels of the New Testament.  Now, if you’ve seen Drive Thru History videos in the past, I’ll start off by saying that these have a different tone to them, but they’re no less as educational and entertaining…they’re just a little less goofy.

The Gospels DVD set has 18 episodes in the series - each is half an hour long – and an accompanying study guide.  Our boys are in both the elementary and middle school range, and while they have all enjoyed Drive Thru History in the past, it was really the older ones who enjoyed this particular series.  It is geared more toward middle school, high school, and adult viewers.  That’s not to say that the younger ones didn’t like it, but some of the material was over their heads, and since it wasn’t as goofy as previous series, it was less entertaining to them.  (Mom’s note : I feel like there was less humor and silliness because the film crew didn’t want to have something come out wrong, or just sound blasphemous.)

Our one son who is very much into archaeology and ancient history really loved the series.  He learned “how to cross-reference history books with the Bible” (his words), and was very excited by that!  While the main focus is Biblical history, and the life of Jesus, there is also a lot of timeline work and archaeology incorporated into this series.

The series centers around the life of Jesus, as told through Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  The film crew visited a multitude of sites throughout Israel, Palestine, and the surrounding regions to delve back into time and connect the past with the present.  My husband and I, who both love to travel but haven’t made it very far overseas, both appreciated and enjoyed the virtual field trips and the beautiful cinematography of the footage….it really makes it feel as though you’re walking beside him in the Holy Land. 

The 118-page study guide covers each of the episodes separately, and includes stunning photos, discussion questions, inspirational quotes, and ideas for further study.  If you’ve been wanting to incorporate Bible study into your curriculum, but (a) the kids aren’t into it; (b) the material you’ve previously used seems dry; or (c) it’s just not at all engaging….then you should give Drive Thru History a shot! 

If we were allowed to teach religion in the schools today, this would be the perfect series for middle and high schoolers.  It's informative and engaging, and the narrator is just goofy enough to keep you asking what will happen next!  The cinematography is well-done, and the history is presented at an age-appropriate level for children to understand and adults to want to learn by their side.

The episodes include :

• The Historical Landscape
• The Announcements
• Jesus is Born
• Jesus Grows Up
• Jesus Starts His Ministry
• Jesus Returns to Galilee
• Jesus Begins His Miracles
• Jesus Teaches with Authority
• The Sermon on the Mount
• Jesus Travels the Sea of Galilee
• Jesus Travels North
• A Final Trip to Jerusalem
• Jesus Arrives in Jerusalem
• The Last Supper
• The Trial of Jesus
• The Crucifixion of Jesus
• The Resurrection of Jesus
• Who is Jesus?

 See what others are saying about Drive Thru History at the Schoolhouse Review Crew!

Apologia Science Marine Biology {Review}

This review was originally published September 2017 on our Gypsy Road site.

When you think of Oklahoma, ‘ocean’ is not the first thing that comes to mind, but did you know that Oklahoma used to be completely underwater?  When you dig down into sedimentary rock, there are so many layers of marine animal fossils!!  It’s really quite something!  These days, there’s not much ocean to be found, so we try to visit the beach as often as possible on our travels.

With our most recent trip to Cabo San Lucas, our upcoming trip to the Outer Banks, and the boys’ high level of interest in marine biology, it seemed a natural fit for us to look into Marine Biology 2nd Edition Advantage Set, the newest edition from Apologia Educational Ministries.  This high school level course includes 16 modules – each designed to be completed in two weeks – for a full year science credit.  Each module includes vocabulary, comprehension questions, a study guide, tests (and answers), and lab experiments.  With the exception of the dissection kit (used in several of the labs), everything that you need is right here!

Peek inside the textbook with the photos below!

The student book and test booklet provide opportunities for reinforcing what is learned from the text.  Each chapter has its own section, just as you would expect a workbook to that accompanies a text, with several pages dedicated to it.  There are comprehension questions, vocabulary work, and diagramming pages.  This is a good way for me to send my son off to his room to work on biology, but still know that he's done the work and is understanding and retaining it.  He liked the diagramming parts best, and often ended up doodling more sea creatures in the blank spaces found on some of the pages!  The test booklet is similar to the student notebook, but with fewer pages dedicated to each section / chapter.  Again, it is a good way to see just how much the student understands AND it is a written record of the work he has done.

Peek inside the student book and test booklet with the photos below!

Most of what you’ll need for the lab experiments, dissection kit excluded, are items that can be found around the home or at any grocery store.  The earlier modules don’t require the dissection kit, leaving you plenty of time to order it and have it arrive before it’s needed.  I liked seeing the boys work together with these hands-on projects.  Even though only the oldest is at high school level, they both worked together on the labs…and without bickering!  Here they are putting salt water through the desalinization process (a lab you’ll find in Module 1).

The companion Marine Biology 2nd Edition Audio CD is a big help for those with various learning styles.  It reads the text aloud (helping with some of the big words!), which will be perfect when my next child comes into this course, as reading remains a difficulty for him.  He will be able to follow along with the book as it reads aloud.

The modules included are :

• The Oceans of Our Planet
• Life in the Sea
• The First Four Kingdoms
• Marine Invertebrates I
• Marine Invertebrates II
• Marine Vertebrates I
• Marine Vertebrates II
• Marine Ecology
• The Intertidal Zone
• Estuary Communities
• Coral Reefs
• Continental Shelf Communities
• The Epipelagic Zone
• The Deep Ocean
• Ocean Resources
• Effects of Humans on the Sea

Things we liked…

• The modules are short and easy to digest.  They also include many full-color illustrations, which are nice for visual learners.
• The provided daily schedule outlines the whole course over the year, making it easy to pull out the book and go!
• The appendix, glossary, and bold print sprinkled throughout the text help the student pull out things to focus on, and find topics of interest to learn more.
• The study guides and tests – with answers for the teacher – help to reinforce concepts and are valuable feedback tools for the teacher.
• The hands-on lab experiments don’t require a lot of supervision and greatly reinforce concepts.  Plus, they’re fun!
• The multimedia CD is perfect for the audial learner.  Coupled with the labs, this course appeals to all three learning styles.

We had never used Apologia before for science classes, but I feel like it’s a solid curriculum.  The boys enjoyed using it, and it’s written with many real-world applications in mind.  We will probably investigate more of their high school level courses for future credits.

See what others are saying about Marine Biology at the Homeschool Review Crew!