The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine is having an amazing sale on subscriptions during their annual Black Friday Sale November 26 – 30. For those 5 days only, they are drastically reducing their one-year subscription price for the print magazine to $7.95! That's the price you would usually pay for just one issue at a bookstore!
This is their lowest price ever on the magazine and they want all of you to take advantage of this offer and share the info with your friends. I've never seen it priced that low before!! This is not for renewals, but only for new subscriptions. If you do have a subscription already, you can buy a gift subscription for someone else instead. It really is an amazing price, and I'm sure your homeschooling friends would like to know about it, too. Spread the word!
Please don't miss out. Your one-year subscription will pay for itself time and time again as you receive practical tips and Biblical encouragement to keep going strong in your commitment to homeschooling and to the Lord. Since it's a quarterly magazine, they even have a monthly subscriber's only E-Newsletter called Teacher's Toolbox that will give you seasonal teaching ideas and a free E-Book download! It's like joining a unit study of the month club! The free E-Books alone are valued at almost $250/year. It's really perfect for people who are homeschooling on a shoestring or just wanting to add in some little extras to your teaching.
Plus during the Black Friday Sale, they have all kind of bonus gifts when you spend $50, $75, $100, or $150. Some are electronic downloads that you can download immediately, while other are physical products mailed from various vendors directly to your home.
AND, their Win Big contest is going on so if you just happen to be customer 67,000, you will receive a prize package valued at almost $500 which includes a $150 gift certificate to the Schoolhouse Store! Who couldn't use that? And you can qualify to win it no matter how much or how little you spend!
Mark your calendars for November 26 - 30th and do a little shopping from your seat, not your feet at the Schoolhouse Store's Black Friday Sale! And don't forget The Old Schoolhouse Store always has free shipping.
Trigger Memory Systems sent the TOS Homeschool Crew members Times Tales Deluxe to review. This is another product I've seen advertised for years, but haven't had a chance to try out. We were glad to receive it, since it looked like such a fun way to learn math.
When I first opened it, I was confused. That's what happens when you don't read the instructions first. A quick glance at the introduction explained the code names for the different numbers. And then it all made sense! The Times Tales stories provide a mnemonic-based memory peg to help our children remember the most difficult multiplication facts: 3x6, 3x7, 3x8, 3x9, 4x6, 4x7, 4x8, 4x9, 6x6, 6x7, 6x8, 6x9, 7x7, 7x8, 7x9, 8x8, 8x9, and 9x9.
I explained it to my 9 and 11 year old girls and had them read through the first section of number stories. Both of these daughters have not fully memorized their times tables. One of them skip counts to figure out multiplication problems, and the other one is just very slow to remember the answers. I confess that I haven't pushed the matter, as long as their answers were correct. After they read the stories, the girls spontaneously returned to tell me about them.
A few days later, I had the girls read them again, and then I asked them to tell the stories back to me. My 9 year old daughter already remembered the number stories, told them to me, and then told me the multiplication fact that went with each story. My 11 year old daughter didn't recall the stories as easily, after just two reading sessions, but she did remember most of them. We reviewed the discussion questions and worked with some flash cards. We'll be enjoying using the flash cards and games as we continue with the program. Now, the girls need to keep reviewing the times tales, so they can remember the times tables more quickly.
Times Tales Deluxe ($29.95) comes with a teacher's guide, discussion questions, multiplication flash cards (both with the visual clues and just numbers), division flash cards, tests, games, and activity pages. The first half of the book is the new 3's and 4's supplement to the Original Times Tales, which comprises the second half of the book. If you bought the original Times Tales, you can now purchase the Upper 3's and 4's Supplement to complete the curriculum ($12.95). There is also a mini-flip book which has the multiplication stories on it, for your children to easily review in the car, or anywhere.
I am impressed with the Times Tales Deluxe product. It provides a fun, easy way to remember the more difficult multiplication facts. I have read so many books that talk about making learning fun, and using games to teach ... but I usually fail to follow through. I lack the creativity, or perhaps it's more a lack of determination, to create the games myself. Trigger Memory Systems has done that work for us. They also have articles, hints & tips, games, creative learning ideas, and other resources linked from their main page. And of course, it's totally non-consummable and can be used with each of your children ... key features I always look for in a product.
Right now, Trigger Memory Systems is offering a special. If you order their Times Tales Deluxe OR the Zone Cleaning for Kids chart, you get one Bedroom Cleaning for Kids chart FREE. You just need to enter FREEFLIP in the comments section during your order process. Not in the coupon code section, but the comments section.
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For Today...
Outside my Window... blue skies, sunshine, clothes on the clothesline, a travel trailer parked awaiting company.
I am thinking... that online window shopping is more fun than housework.
I am thankful for... children who love their younger siblings, baby smiles and giggles.
From the schoolroom ... girls reading and finishing up lessons before we turn our attention to housecleaning for company.
I am wearing... long black knit straight skirt, grey and white striped long sleeve tshirt.
I am creating... shopping carts full of gift ideas at too many different websites ... must simplify!
I am going... to hang one more load of clothes up to dry.
I am reading... the Fall issue of The Old Schoolhouse magazine, and Dr. Sears' book, The A.D.D. Book.
I am hoping... we have an enjoyable Thanksgiving with my family, and that Steve and I get some good deals on Christmas gifts this Friday.
I am hearing... pencils marking, pages turning, children playing on the computer.
Around the house... messes waiting to be picked up, laundry waiting to be folded, 2 racks of laundry drying, and happy children.
One of my favorite things... babies who look into your face and smile, as if to say you are the most important person in the world.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... clean house, cook, welcome my family, enjoy Thanksgiving with them. Oh, and move in my old dryer from the garage since my "new to me" dryer quit working.
Here is a thought I am sharing with you... find joy in the little things, be thankful for each and every blessing (no matter how trivial), look for the gift in each day.
Do your Christmas shopping from home, supporting small businesses ... shop with your fellow bloggers! Click on the button below to find other bloggers with home businesses.
And if you have a home business, stop by the HSB Front Porch to add your name to the Mr. Linky.
I've heard about the Trigger Memory Systems Clean N' Flip Charts for several years, and I'm glad I was finally able to see them and try them with my children.
When we received the Clean N' Flip Charts, my children said, "We don't need those. We know how to clean the house." I looked at them and said, "Then why do I always have to point out things you missed or need to re-do?" Well, a few days later we were able to put it to the test. I informed the children that I wanted the entire house cleaned, and vacuumed! My 11 yo organizer quickly ran for the charts and put herself in charge.
The children raided my laundry basket stack and went to work. They cleaned the living room together, following the system. Then they moved into the dining/school room, and the kitchen. They even picked up their bedrooms! As a room was cleaned, the assigned person went in and vacuumed the room. My 7 yo son emptied the trash in each room, as well. He's been keeping an eye on the cans and emptying them ever since then ... a miracle since my children usually pile the living room trash can so high it overflows onto the floor.
And the best part was ... I didn't have to say anything. I didn't have to follow them around or point out things they had missed. There weren't toys lingering under chairs or in the corners of the room. It was clean. My children are known to respond to a direction to pick up by saying, "What? It's clean already. Why do we have to pick up?" Then I have to point out the mess to them. So, it was a blessing to have them truly clean the house, without any effort on my part.
As an added bonus, my 13 yo daughter has decided to try to do the laundry for me. She still wants me to watch her load and start the washing machine, but the Laundry for Kids chart gave her confidence that she could do it herself. Now I just need to simplify my array of laundry products for her.
I'm sure that it won't always be this easy. In the future there will likely be feet-dragging and complaining again. But the Clean N' Flip charts do work. They break the task of cleaning down into easy to follow steps for our kids.
I have friends who have made their own "how to clean a room" charts. They've printed them and laminated them, or put them in page protectors in a 3-ring binder. They've then taught them to their children, and actually used them. I know it can be done. But I am full of good intentions and not always the follow-through. It can also be difficult to discern how to break it down into steps without being too detailed, or leaving things out. Trigger Memory Systems has done a good job of dividing the jobs into easy clear steps ... and they followed through with creating the system, so I don't have to.
There are three sturdy write-on/wipe-off spiral bound flip-charts: Zone cleaning for Kids, Bedroom Cleaning for Kids, and Laundry for Kids. Zone Cleaning for Kids covers the living room, dining room, kitchen, and bathroom. A set of all 3 is available at a savings for $29.95, or you can buy them individually: Bedroom Cleaning for Kids or Laundry for Kids flip charts are $7.95 each, and Zone Cleaning for Kids is $17.95.
Right now, Trigger Memory Systems is offering a special. If you order their Times Tales Deluxe OR the Zone Cleaning for Kids chart, you get one Bedroom Cleaning for Kids chart FREE. You just need to enter FREEFLIP in the comments section during your order process. Not in the coupon code section, but the comments section.
(Psst! I did the math for you. If you buy the Zone Cleaning for Kids, and the Laundry for Kids, then get Bedroom Cleaning for Kids free ... it is even less than the cost of their 3-pack. Or if you don't think you need the Laundry one ... just buy Zone and get Bedroom free ... for $18. That's a great price! Maybe your kids need some stocking stuffers ... or better yet, maybe MOM needs some stocking stuffers. Speaking of which, these would make a great Mother's Day gift.)
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We pray the Lord will bless your visit here with us. It is our wish that you will find the modest clothing styles and veilings you are seeking. If you have a special request, please don't hesitate to contact us! May The Lord Bless Your Journey to Follow Him!
