Creative Problem Solving

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

One of the reasons we homeschool is that we want our children to be able to think for themselves, to be able to problem-solve to find a solution. That's why we love when we get to review for The Critical Thinking Co.™. We want to develop those critical thinking skills in our children to prepare them for life, not simply teach them facts from a book and how to pass a test. We strive to give our kids the tools necessary to make clear, reasoned judgments by teaching them to identify and evaluate evidence to guide their decision making through life.

The Critical Thinking Co. is "committed to developing students' critical thinking skills for better grades, higher test scores, and success in life." They offer many books and curricula to prepare students, not by teaching through drill and memorization, but instead by teaching in a way that empowers the mind. In the past, we've used a variety of their products from a critical thinking detective book to a phonics program to an analogies software. This time, I was excited to use Creative Problem Solving Level 1 with my little ones.

I often say that my kids got my husband's engineering mind. He is able to see a problem and find a viable solution. At home, at the store, with gadgets, everywhere--he's able not only to recognize an issue but also to figure out how to fix it. The kids naturally have inherited that cleverness, and I want to encourage their ingenuity and allow it to grow.

The Creative Problem Solving book is perfect to bolster that process. It is designed for grades PreK-2 and makes finding solutions fun for little ones. In fact, the first day we used it, one of my boys told me, "Mom, thank you! This is so much fun!"

Unit 1, The Magic Pencil, gives kids 28 challenging situations in which they need to creatively solve a problem. For instance, they need to draw a way to protect a boy from the school bully, stop a bee from stinging a child, help a turtle win a race, save a special tree from being chopped down, and more.

My boys (ages 5, 8, 10) have been working through this unit. I am not exaggerating when I say that it is one of their favorite things! I knew my 8-year-old would love it (after all, he is my child who will sit and doodle all over his pages, drawing elaborate machines that accomplish tasks), but I was pleasantly surprised just how much the other boys like it, as well. In fact, when they are finished with their challenge for the day, they often draw their own scenarios for each other to finish, like helping the mouse get over the wall to get the cheese and helping the astronaut get safely back to his ship. Not only is Creative Problem Solving encouraging them to use their imaginations to solve problems, it's inspiring them to let their creative juices flow in deeper ways, also. In fact, they were having so much fun with these simple exercises, that their 12-year-old artsy sister even joined in on the fun. She puts much thought into her solutions and enjoys adding minute details.

The other units of the book build on The Magic Pencil concept. There are sections creating creatures to survive in specific locations, choosing super powers to help in proposed difficulties, drawing aids to meet the needs of aliens, inventing gadgets, determining the steps to take in an emergency, and more.

I like the Enigma unit which shows various random drawings and asks the child what it might be and then to draw it. There are also mind riddles and puzzles at the back of the book. Many pages have lines for writing why the student chose what he drew and why he thinks it will work.

I appreciate that the pages are open-ended. Sometimes--many times--there is more than one way to solve a problem in life. It is no different in these scenarios. One child drew ropes connecting a broken branch to another branch like a swing so a sloth wouldn't fall and get hurt, another drew a connecting piece like the branch was repaired, and another drew people on the ground holding a giant blanket.  Some of the stories are silly (who honestly needs to worry about a flying shark who shoots teeth with  a tranquilizing potion?), but that only adds to the fun! The more unlikely the situation is, the more creative the child needs to be. 

Here's what my kids think of the book:

"I love it! I love all the pages!"

"I like it! Drawing the pictures is really fun!"

"I think it's pretty cool that you can solve the problem using anything that will work."

"I like that it's creative and every answer is different. I like finding the funniest way to do it."

Creative Problem Solving is designed to be a stand-alone activity book that students can complete on their own. I chose the paperback book because I like physical copies, but there is the option of an eBook, as well. Honestly, that would have been easier than photocopying the pages in the book (the Critical Thinking Co. does allow reproduction within one home), but the perforated pages of the paperback make it easier to remove and send through a printer. Since the kids have already asked for additional copies to rework certain pages, that is probably the better option for me.

Creative Problem Solving Level 1 has been a huge hit with our family. I love that my kids are strengthening their critical thinking skills and having fun while doing it.

Happy kids. Happy Mom. The perfect supplement.

You can connect with The Critical Thinking Co.™ on the following social media sites:

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You can read more reviews of this book or learn about one of the other materials reviewed by my Crewmates on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.

Beyond the Stick Figure

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Most of my kids enjoy art to some degree, but my daughter is the true artist of our home. She is always looking to improve her skills and widen her abilities, so I'm excited when we get an art-related review for her. While she can knit and sew and embroider and cross stitch and create with clay and spark her creativity in a dozen other ways, she has been focusing specifically on her drawing  and painting skills.

She was eager to get pen to paper--or rather, brush to paper--with Beyond the Stick Figure Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses, a brand new set of classes from Beyond the Stick Figure Art School.

Beyond the Stick Figure is taught by Sally, a trained artist from England. After pursuing her dream of a career in art, she moved to the States, got married and had kids, and started homeschooling. It was while teaching her own children that she realized that the ability to create art wasn't given only to those with a gift, but could be taught to anyone. Just like learning to read or to play an instrument, art techniques should also be taught incrementally. Piece by piece, skill upon skill. Anyone can be an artist! 

She started these classes as a way to share her passion and help budding enthusiasts learn the skills they need to succeed.

There are 4 types of courses included:

• Drawing
• Pen & Ink and Watercolor
• Acrylic
• 3D Design

The drawing course is divided into 3 units with multiple steps broken into days. Remember, Sally's goal is to train artists by teaching them skills incrementally. She begins the course with encouraging the students to find shapes in the world around them: circles, dots, and various lines. Drawing takes place on day 6 when the students begin practicing the shapes they've found. On day 12, the shapes are combined to draw a flower. The remaining 3 days of the unit cover primary and secondary colors and learning to overlap shapes.

The second part eases the students into learning to draw things that look realistic. Each day, the student focuses on a small shape in a box. For instance, the first one looks something like a triangle coming out of the side of the square. The student practices that shape in each box on a 4x4 grid. The 33 lessons in part 2 are similar in style. 

The third and final part of the drawing course is 5 days and teaches how to combine those random shapes into a flower. It reminds me of those grid pictures that you find in activity books, where the child copies the picture by drawing each portion in the corresponding boxes. It is neat to see how all the pieces come together.

 

As I mentioned, my 12-year-old loves art and is already fairly skilled. I had a difficult time getting her to work through the drawing lessons. She was bored and could not be motivated. Because of Sally's philosophy of teaching step by step, you cannot move to further lessons or mediums without completing them in order. We ended up doing what many homeschoolers do and adapted the lessons to fit our needs. We sat down one day and clicked through all the lessons in all the courses. Once my girl saw the acrylic videos, her excitement rekindled. 

The acrylic course, like all the others, is divided into 3 parts and walks through 3 projects step-by-step over the course of many days. My daughter loved creating these artworks! She learned how to blend her colors to create an ombré sky, how to finger-dab realistic wispy clouds, how to use a toothpick to make a grassy meadow, how to use color to create perspective, and more useful skills. She even took a simple cloud painting and made it her own by adding a hot air balloon. I love watching her abilities blossom.

Sally's videos are calm, slow-paced, and filled with instruction. Each one is short (I don't think I've seen one that's longer than 10 minutes) so it's easy to find time to add art into your day. One complaint that my daughter has is that she can't make the videos full screen. Sometimes she would like to have a bigger visual instead of the small image on the computer. Also, Sally is soft spoken and has a bit of an English accent. Even with the volume all the way up, it can be difficult to hear and understand in a busy household. It can be tricky to keep 4 boys quiet while their sister is trying to create a masterpiece! Otherwise, the videos are easy to understand and it's fun to see how she pronounces some things differently than we do. 

There are downloadable pages of drawing guides included with a few lessons along with a checkup at the end of each unit to evaluate your students' work and help keep them accountable. 

A purchase of Beyond the Stick Figure Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses will give you lifetime access to all of the classes for everyone in your family. There are over 180 lessons that are good for anyone ages 5-95. If you can draw a stick figure, you can learn to draw your own realistic masterpieces.

Beyond the Stick Figure Art School can help you learn the skills needed to become a true artist.

You can connect with Beyond the Stick Figure on the following social media sites:

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You can see more art projects by reading the reviews on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.

Creating a Masterpiece

If I had to describe my daughter in two words, I'd choose reader and artist. We often receive review products to satiate her book obsession (or at least attempt to keep up with it, ha), but lately we've been using a program that appeals to her crafty side.

She told me recently that she wanted to get better at drawing. She's used some books and a couple drawing videos for kids, but she's reached a point where she is ready for lessons that are more complex. I was happy that she received a one year subscription to an online Drawing Program from Creating a Masterpiece.

Creating a Masterpiece was established by master artist Sharon Hofer. Her mission is to help students of all ages to produce "beautiful, masterpiece quality artwork." Her step-by-step teaching videos have helped thousands of students gain confidence as they learn the skills to succeed in creating fine art.

With over 20 years of teaching in the classroom, Sharon has much experience, not just in creating her own artwork, but in conveying those skills to others, as well. Her courses cover a wide variety of  mediums including acrylic, balsa carving, copper tooling, faux metal working, glass mosaic, oil pastel, silk painting, wood burning, and more. Along with the core program, students can choose to learn about artists and recreate their work through the art history course. For those who would like to learn visually through text instead of video, there is also a collection of step-by-step art books covering both a range of history and specific projects and techniques.

The drawing program that my daughter is using is divided into 4 sections:

• Beginning, 8 projects
• Level 1, 7 projects
• Level 2, 6 projects
• Level 3, 8 projects

A subscription to the course allows access to all projects in every level for your entire family. Each lesson shows a picture, the type of medium used, and the name of the piece.

Students will learn how to plan, develop, and enhance their projects through Sharon's guidance. As they progress through the levels, they will be able to apply their techniques more intricately as they hone their skills. They will learn things such as incorporating value, both two- and three-point perspective, showing movement, blending, highlighting, and more. Sharon teaches not only how to preform the technique, but why to do it, as well.

Clicking on a project will take you to a new page that lists a description that may include interesting facts, a supply list, and the number of lessons. The lessons link at the bottom will produce another page with even more information including the teaching videos, suggested color swatches, supplies, helpful tips, and simple sketches of the highlights of the lesson.

I have been so impressed watching my daughter draw with this program! The lessons are self-paced, so she's been working through them as the desire strikes. The realistic drawings are so beautiful that I plan to have her make one specifically to hang in our house. Sharon does a fantastic job teaching. She's calm, encouraging, and pleasant.

My husband also enjoys sketching (that's where our girl got her talent) and sometimes watches videos of drawing to relax. I admit, I never really saw the appeal until I watched a few of Sharon's videos myself. It's almost therapeutic. She claims that drawing is a skill that anyone can learn. Watching her do it makes me a believer.

One thing that pleases me is that my daughter has started to recreate her drawings, not by re-watching the videos, but from looking at her completed projects or simply from memory. I love that she's truly learning the techniques.

Something that she learned from the Moonstruck cat project was to "work small" to keep it simpler. She's been putting that into practice the last few days, trying to control her lines better in a smaller space. I love watching her advance her skills as she continues to practice.

Here's what my girl had to say:

The lessons are easy-to-follow and fun. I like that the projects aren't just pencil.

My daughter is enjoying learning techniques using pencil, colored pencil, and charcoal with this Drawing Program. I'm excited to watch her skills improve as she continues with this course.

You can connect with Creating a Masterpiece on their website and Facebook.

You can see other homeschoolers' drawings by reading the reviews on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.

Grapevine Studies Review

Homeschooling 5 kiddies makes for some busy days. We like to school together as much as we can, because it simplifies the lessons, encourages family time, and helps us learn from each other. When we had the chance to review a Bible curriculum from Grapevine Studies that could be used with all the kids, I knew it would be a blessing.  The past many weeks we've been studying using the following books:

New Testament 1: Beginner John to the Apostles
New Testament 1: Level 1 Birth of John to Jesus' Ministry
New Testament 1: Level 3 Birth of John to Jesus' Ministry

Grapevine Studies is a Bible study curriculum that helps teachers simplify planning, engage students, and grow disciples. Their mission is "to provide believers with the tools they need to know God's Word and to disciple others." Its method teaches students to "stick figure through the Bible," meaning draw a simple stick figure scene to remember the facts of the story. The lessons are introduced with a timeline and then expound on the characters and biblical events on that timeline. The process for the preschool/kindergarten level is Hear-Draw-Review, while the older students will learn through Read-Draw-Review.  

Our kids' ages are 10, 7, 6, and 3, so even though we were studying the same topic, I chose books according to their levels. I picked both the Beginner and Beginner Traceable books for my two little ones, the Level 1 and Level 1 Traceable books for my middle child, and the Level 3 book for my oldest. Of course, the baby is too young to be completing lessons, but that didn't stop him trying to be included by grabbing things off the table and jabbering over our voices, ha.

Every morning, we sit at the table together to complete the lesson. Since we are using the ebooks, I printed the pages and created a notebook for each child. (Having your own notebook is so much cooler than having your own textbook, by the way.) There are corresponding teacher books for each level that walk you step-by-step through the curriculum. I couldn't teach from all the teacher notes, because that would take a long time and defeat the purpose of learning the class together. I chose the level 3 book to use as my guide. The problem with using 3 different levels is that they don't match up entirely. I know, that should seem pretty obviously, right? The Beginners level has quite a bit less information than levels 1 and 3. It is missing the timelines and has fewer details and drawing spots for the stories, in order to keep things simple for the little ones.  

We received both the traceable books and student (blank, draw-your-own) books for the younger levels. I gave my kids a choice as to which one they wanted to use. They all chose the traceables. There are differences in those, as well. Simpler pictures for the little ones and gaining a bit more detail as the levels get higher.

The problem that we ran into was that the oldest was able to be more creative since he had blank boxes to draw. In one of the pictures, John the Baptist was drawn with a large tummy, so from then on, the kids referred to John as a Sumo Baby. The younger kids stopped following the pre-drawn figures and added extra details (the curriculum encourages this, as well).

Also, since the Beginner level doesn't cover all the details, their are portions when they didn't have any pages to complete. My two little guys drew on the margins of other papers or added blank pages in the notebook to create.  


I encourage this creativity and am thankful that I had printed through only lesson 3 when I assembled their notebooks. At that point, I asked the kids if they wanted to continue with their current books or switch to level 3. They wanted to swap, which made the lessons go even smoother since all the pages matched. And the kids were able to be as creative as they wanted. It was a win-win situation.

Along with the stick-figuring sections, there are other forms of learning through the books.  There are memory verses and review questions at the end of each lesson, such as

Who was the king when Zacharias was a priest?
What happened as a result of Zacharias' unbelief? (This one always brings giggles.)
What did Gabriel tell Mary?
How did Joseph respond to what the angel told him?
What do we know about Jesus as He grew to be a man?
How did Jesus respond to temptation?
How are we to treat our enemies?
When did Jesus pray? 

Character even cards are included for the higher levels. The students draw their favorite part of the lesson, write the memory verse, and add key facts to remember. My kids loved this review time.

The level 3 book pushes the student even more in his Bible study. Looking up words in a Bible dictionary, finding verses in a concordance, comparing and contrasting characters, identifying biblical locations on a map are some of the things covered.

Even my younger ones enjoy these further studies. They may not understand the deeper themes, but I love that they're learning and picking up bits up information as they listen to their older siblings. 

My kids are enjoying using Grapevine Studies for our Bible class. Every morning when I say it's time to start school, they rush to grab their notebooks. Our lessons are filled with laughter as the kids draw their pictures and show them off to each other. Stick figuring through the Bible is such a simple, yet fantastic idea. The curriculum is easy to use, even if you're working with different age groups, which makes it great for a family study. Even though we found it best for us to use the same book for all the kids, it's written in a way that you could use the appropriate level for each student. More important than having fun though is that my little ones are retaining what they've learned. You can ask them about the temptations of Jesus or what happened when He was baptized or what happened because of Zacharias' unbelief. They can tell you. That means the curriculum is working. That is the most important of all.  


You can connect with Grapevine Studies on the following social media sites:

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Some of my Crew Mates have been using other studies offered by Grapevine Studies. To read these reviews, visit the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.

 

Drawing Around the World Review

Geography has never been my thing. Oh, don't get me wrong, I still got an A in the class in high school, but I didn't enjoy learning it and I certainly didn't retain the knowledge for very long after I received my tests back with the approving grade. Over the last few years though, I've gotten a desire to freshen up my geography knowledge--and maybe truly learn it the second time around. 

My oldest 2 kids (ages 9 and 7) have an interest in geography, specifically pertaining to the Unites States of America. They play games about the states, try to recognize them by their shapes, and put together puzzles of the map. I thought that Drawing Around the World: USA from Brookdale House would interest them.   

The Drawing Around the World series (includes the USA book and the Europe book) was designed to teach children to draw large sections of geography from memory. With the USA book, students study one or more states a week by tracing, locating on a map, and labeling. The day the state is introduced, the student also fills in a chart with various facts about it.

• Capital
• Abbreviation
• Statehood
• Bird
• Flower
• Industry
• Interesting Fact   

To find the state facts for the chart, students research the information by checking one of several free online resources. Once they have completed this course, they will have a familiarity with the states, recognize them, be able to draw them, and understand their positions relative to one another.  

The suggested weekly schedule is as follows:

Day 1    

• Study the New State.
• Complete the State Fact Table.
• Locate and label each new state onto the dashed, black and white map.
• Draw all states studied thus far.

Day 2    

• Locate and label each new state onto the dashed, black and white map.
• Draw all states studied thus far.

Day 3  

• Locate and label each new state onto the dashed, black and white map.
• Draw all states studied thus far.

Day 4   

• List, from memory, the states studied thus far.
• Using the blank textbox, draw, also from memory, all of the states you have learned.

We school 4 days a week (Monday-Thursday), so this schedule works perfectly for us. I had intended to use this curriculum with only my oldest child, but his younger sister was so excited about it and asked to join in. How could I say no? Every Monday, we sit at the table together. The kids trace the state and draw it. Then, we fill out the facts sheet together. I look up the information and write it on a white board so it's easier to copy. It's much easier to write 96,810 sq. mi. and 9,895,622 people (those are Michigan's stats, by the way) when you can see it. I also find pictures of the state birds and flowers so the kids can visualize those, too. The interest fact is the favorite for each state. We learned that the first free public library was opened in New Hampshire, that Ben & Jerry's leftover ice cream is fed to hogs in Vermont, that it's illegal to cross the street while walking on your hands in Connecticut, and more fun stuff.


This is what my kids think about using this curriculum:

"I like that you get to trace the state and draw it yourself. And I like learning the capitals!"

"I like that the lessons are short and I like learning the capitals."

I like that my children are learning geography in a fun simple way. I do have mixed feelings about it though. The book itself is really just the same few simple pages over and over: a blank chart, a map of the US with the states drawn with dashed lines, a blank map with Canada and Mexico shown but the US left out, and a blank page to draw the states. I just feel like it needs something more. I also think it would be good to have a spot for the states' nicknames. The 282 pages is a lot to print out. For just a few dollars more, it would be worth it to purchase the printed book, instead of the e-book. Although, then you'd have to buy one for each child. See, mixed feelings.

My kids are enjoying this book, and we will continue to learn the geography of the USA. If you think this might be good for your faily, too, you can view sample pages of the products on the site.

You can connect with Brookdale House on the following social media sites:

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If you'd like to see how other homeschool families used this curriculum or one of the others offered by Brookdale House, please read the reviews on the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.