Beyond the Stick Figure Art School Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary 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.

My family had the privilege of trying the Beyond the Stick Figure Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses from Beyond the Stick Figure Art School for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

Beyond the Stick Figure Art School is a online art school taught by Sally, a homeschooler of 8 and graduate of Loughborough College of Art and Design in England. She has multiple courses to pick from in her shop from making a bouquet for Mother's Day to the Complete Drawing Course Plus 3 Bonuses! These are great do at your own pace art courses that you can have a lifetime membership to.

Beyond the Stick Figure Art School Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses are art instruction courses online. These step-by-step lessons will take you from drawing stick figures to making realistic art.  These are a total of 55 drawing lessons, 15 pen and ink lessons, 52 water color lessons, 24 Acrylic lessons, and 30 bonus lessons in 3D Design. These courses will teach you techniques and skill that masters of art know and practice. By the time you are done you will be drawing, painting, and sculpting with confidence. These art classes are easy to use and great for the whole family! This program is designed to be used as a daily program for one year, however it is very flexible and can be used to fit your own schedule.

 Here is the basic layout of the courses:

Drawing

• Drawing Part 1
• Drawing Part 2
• Drawing Part 3
• How Am I Doing?

Pen & Ink

• Pen & Ink Part 1
• Pen & Ink Part 2
• How Am I Doing?

 Watercolor

• Watercolor Part 1
• Watercolor Part 2
• Watercolor Part 3
• How Am I Doing?

 Acrylic

• Acrylic Part 1
• Acrylic Part 2
• Acrylic Part 3
• How Am I Doing?

3D Design

• 3D Design Part 1
• 3D Design Part 2
• 3D Design Part 3
• How Am I Doing? 

Zari drawing circles and circles in back of circles.

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

The Beyond the Stick Figure Art School Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses series of courses are incremental. Each lesson builds on the last and each course builds on the course before. So you have to begin at the beginning and work your way through. Each lesson needs to be marked done by a checkbox after it is completed so that the site will know exactly where you have left off at if you need to leave and come back. Otherwise the site will give you an exclamation point with a message saying, "Please go back and complete the previous topic." and won't allow you to move on. These courses can be done at your own pace and you can come back to sections and repeat them if you like. Each lesson has a video to watch that explain the art you will be doing in more detail and what supplies you will need. Some have files to download as well that make up a workbook. In my opinion the workbook is optional, but might have some ideas if you get stuck. There is also a supply list at the very beginning to let you know everything you will need for all the courses all at once. I just wish the supply list was broken into separate lists for each course.

Click to see the materials list better.

We started with the Drawing Courses and worked our way through the lessons. Even though these lessons are for one per day, we worked through a few in one day because I knew we wouldn't have time otherwise, even then we only got done with Part one of drawing. I have been super busy with the FFA teacher planning and implementing an online plant sale for the high school because I am on the Alumni and Supporters board as the Vice President. Anyway, the drawing courses that we did get through was very easy and basic. We loved that we could use copy paper and cut it into fourths so it wouldn't be too much white space to fill. In part one we learned: how to see like an artist, about shapes that artists use and finding them in real life, to practice the shapes on paper in different ways, about primary and secondary colors, and about perspective and overlap.

How finished lessons look online. The Next Topic button used to be the yellow Mark Complete button.

Looking ahead at the other courses was difficult because you have to mark each lesson as completed to do so, even when they are not. Also, there are no written descriptions of each lesson. You instead have to watch the videos to see what they are all about. This is a huge downside to these courses...especially when trying to review them. The titles of the lessons like, Drawing Part 1 Day 1, etc., in each course leave something to be desired as well.

Yellow "Mark Complete" button and how it changes.

Unless the previous lesson/topic has been marked as complete you cannot move on.

I did; however, find short descriptions on website to help tell you more about the other courses and so I put them into my own words. The drawing course goes from learning to draw shapes to drawing realistically. The pen & ink course will teach pen and ink techniques that are inspired by the art of E. H. Shepard in the classic Winnie the Pooh books. This course will have you doodling realistic scenes, etc. The watercolor course will build upon the pen and ink lessons to give them color. This course will have you go from total beginner to painting with watercolor like a pro. The acrylic course will let you learn how to paint with acrylics to create gorgeous paintings. The 3D design course teaches how to make things with clay. You will learn how to sculpt and build a real slab pot too.

Here is the art we did for Drawing Part 1.

This is an amazing jam packed homeschool art curriculum. It is very well rounded and covers a lot of ground. I am excited to do more lessons with my kids. I recommend this for ages 8 and up as the lessons get progressively more difficult and I do not believe younger kids will be able to keep up. This would be great for kids that want to learn to draw, learn to paint, or learn to sculpt.

Follow Them on Social Media:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beyondthestickfigure/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/britladyinamerica/ 
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/beyondthestickfigureart/ 
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCROy5BkqT_cZvQu1dTPRYzw
• Hashtags: #hsreviews #stickfigurefriends #artforhomeschoolers #artgenius #everyoneisanartist

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Purchase the Beyond the Stick Figure Complete Drawing Course PLUS 3 Bonus Courses for only 10 easy payments of $37!

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Fermentools' Starter Kit Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary 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.

My family had the privilege of trying the Starter Kit from Fermentools for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

Fermentools was started by Matt Gross in 2013 to produce a product that turns any wide mouth mason jar into a fermenting vessel with a custom designed airlock system. In 2019 Alex and Cassie Deputie joined the Fermentools family to expand upon the vision that started the company. They along with their 7 children use fermented foods and nutrition to maintain health, even since Cassie was diagnosed with chronic health issues in 2005. The Deputie family run Fermentools together and assemble, package, and ship every kit and product that is ordered from their website. All of their products are made and sourced in the USA.

Fermented foods are really good for you because of the probiotic nature of the end product. Probiotics are live microorganisms, good bacteria, that provide health benefits when consumed, generally by improving or restoring the gut flora. Having good gut flora is extremely beneficial for our: immune systems, digestive systems, skin, and absorption of nutrients from the foods we eat. It is generally great for overall health.

 Fermentools Starter Kit comes with all you need to start fermenting foods and beverages. Fermented foods and beverages should be created in an anaerobic environment away from air. This is helped by submerging the food underneath the brine (salt water solution) with a weight. The Fermentools kits come with glass weights that are the perfect size for a wide-mouth jar to keep the food under the liquid so that mold will not grow. This environment is necessary for lacto-fermentation to happen and produce a pro-biotic rich preserved product. The airlocks that Fermentools uses help keep the oxygen and external air away from the submerged food trapping in carbon dioxide and lactic acid. Carbon dioxide is produced and the more of it that is, the more air is pushed out and kept out of the container via the airlock. With this kit you can make sauerkraut, fermented veggies, pickles, beverages like Tepache, sodas, Kombucha, etc.; fermented hummus and other condiments, sourdough bread, fermented legumes, dairy like yogurt and cultured butter, fermented fruit, Kimchi, and Curtido. They also have these recipes and more on the Fermentools' website.

Fermentools’ Starter Kit Includes:

• Himalayan Powdered Salt – This ancient Himalayan sea salt has over 80 trace minerals and is ground fine enough to easily mix with cold water.
• 1 Soda Lime Glass Fermentation Weight – Made to fit inside your standard widemouthed Mason jar perfectly, are 2 ¾ inches in diameter and 10mm thick, and won’t react with your food like other weights on the market.
• 1 Rubber Canning Gasket – These are durable rubber gaskets from Tattler canning lid company and last up to 10 years when used for canning....probably longer for fermenting.
• 1 Stainless Steel Lid – Made from 304 food grade surgical stainless steel, the corrosion resistant lid will last a lifetime and is dishwasher safe. This lid is far superior than regular canning lids and has a hole with a 10° extrusion to make a tight seal on the stopper.
• 1 #2 Rubber Stopper with Hole – This is made from natural rubber and is used with the fermentation lid and air lock.
• 1 #2 Rubber Solid Stopper – This is made from natural rubber and can be used when removing the airlock to seal the container until a regular lid can be installed after fermentation is completed so that no air will enter the vessel.
• 1 Three Piece Air Lock – This is to help air escape with the help of carbon dioxide buildup. The CO₂  helps push the oxygen through the air lock and out of the vessel.
• Instruction Guide with Basic Sauerkraut recipe – Goes through what's included, how to use, fermentation process, and other tips...along with a simple Sauerkraut recipe and some variations.

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

We received the Starter Kit and thought the craftsmanship was wonderful. This looked like a very nice kit that will last a good long time. I was very happy with the products and excited to start the fermentation process. I have never done this before and since it was my first time making fermented foods or beverages, except for making Milk Kefir, I was also a little nervous. I have a lot of friends that do this on a daily basis, so I was also in good company...even though if I needed their help I could only ask them by phone or online since we were still social distancing because of COVID-19 restrictions. I also was excited to share this process with my kids, as this was a great learning experience for both them and me. Fermentation is also a great way to preserve harvests and since we have a large garden and orchard I have wanted to do this for a while.

The veggies going into my ferment.

We made carrot, purple cabbage, radish sauerkraut with the Fermentools' Starter Kit. I shredded 4 carrots, 10 radishes, and a small head of purple cabbage. It was very colorful looking.

Shredded veggies for my ferment.

After adding the 1 ½ tablespoon of the Himalayan powdered salt, my daughter Zari massaged the vegetables with her clean hands in a large mixing bowl for 10 minutes until they became softer and more liquidy. We could have used a masher tool instead, but she wanted the tactile experience. I liked that there was a conversion chart right on the salt that tells exactly how much salt you need for the brine you would like.

Zari mashing the veggies and salt to make the brine.

Then we packed the large wide mouth canning jar that we had with the veggie mixture and brine until we only had about 1 inch of space between the food and top of the jar. We then added the glass weight so that the veggies were all submerged under the brine and unexposed to air.

From top clockwise: placing glass weight, rubber gasket, fermentation lid, and canning ring.

Next we placed the rubber canning gasket on the outer lip of the jar making sure it was clean and dry first so it would create a good seal. We then added the stainless steel lid, writing side up, making sure the gasket didn't slip into the jar. We found a wide mouth canning ring in our supplies at home to place around this and tightened it down. After that we stuck the rubber stopper with the hole in the hole in the lid that came with the kit.

Last fermentation steps: place stopper with hole and fill airlock 1/2 way with water and place in stopper.

Last, we filled the airlock 1/2 way with non-chlorinated water and placed it in the rubber stopper hole. Then we placed the whole contraption into one of our cabinets because it had to be in a dark, moderately warm place. Typically you wait 3-14 days depending upon how fermented you like things, usually about a week is good. We did a whole week and the carrot, purple cabbage, radish sauerkraut was really good.

The pluses of having this kit verses not were numerous. I did not have to have a large crock to ferment with. I did not have to take the time to 'burp' the jars every day myself so that they wouldn't explode. I also did not have to worry about mold because of air getting in. I was also thankful that the Starter Kit from Fermentools was so easy to use.

There are so many yummy looking recipes on Fermentools' website that I want to try! I will definitely be trying out more recipes with this kit! I recommend the Starter Kit from Fermentools highly!

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• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fermentools/ 
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• Hashtags: #hsreviews #fermenting #easyfermenting
  

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You can purchase the Starter Kit or other Fermentools products here. You can get 15% off with coupon code CREW2020 until June 30, 2020.

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Preborn Prodigy CDs Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary 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.

My family had the privilege of listening to three albums from Preborn Prodigy for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

Preborn Prodigy is a company that was founded by Sara Bumgarner; a wife, mother, grandmother, and owner of Sara’s Health Foods. With music, scripture, and prayer these albums were put together to give blessings to children from the womb and beyond. These CDs impart prayers and blessings from in utero and beyond and help children grow with an understanding of the promises found in God's Word helping them strengthen their relationship with God. These are available in physical CD format or as a digital download on iTunes, Amazon Play, Google Play and CD Baby and other digital providers. Besides English it is also available in Hebrew, German, Chinese, Spanish and Afrikaans.

The first CD, Preborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings for the Unborn Child, is an album that is designed to be listened to while your little one is still in the womb. This special album communicates positive and scriptural messages and imparts prayers and blessings to the unborn baby. These messages are set to soothing music. Total length of CD is 55:52.

Track Listing and length:

1. Health & Delivery 5:01
2. Protection & Provision 11:25
3. Spiritual Growth &Dedication 8:48
4. Identity & Destiny 18:57
5. Spirit, Soul, & Body 4:34
6. Salvation 3:41
7. Blessing & Lullaby 3:46

The second CD, Newborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings Newborn to 99, is an album that is tailored for baby to listen to. This special album communicates positive and scriptural messages and imparts prayers and blessings to the newborn baby. These messages are set to soothing music and help baby with their true identity and purpose as they begin their journey here on Earth. Total length of CD is 54:45.

Track Listing and length:

1. Sciptures and Declarations 5:01
2. Protection & Provision 11:25
3. Spiritual Growth &Dedication 8:49
4. Identity & Destiny 18:48
5. Spirit, Soul, & Body 4:34
6. Salvation 3:41
7. Blessing & Lullaby 3:47

The third CD, Math Prodigy, is the first volume in the Math Prodigy series. This album is an unique education tool designed to present the fundamentals of math to young children with ease and understanding. This is set to beautiful, soothing music and has a total length of 57:71.

Track Listing and length:

1. Introduction to Math 10:11
2. Addition and Subtraction 8:05
3. Multiplication and Division 14:04
4. Fractions 9:01
5. Decimals and the Order of Operations 16:50

How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

The three albums we received were:

• Preborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings for the Unborn Child
• Newborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings Newborn to 99
• Math Prodigy

Preborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings for the Unborn Child and Newborn Prodigy: Prayers and Blessings Newborn to 99 are loving reminders of what promises God gave us. Both albums are very similar in message, but are tailored to different audiences. One is for the unborn child and one is for the newborn baby. When I listened to the first one it reminded me of a relaxing meditation because of how the woman, Sara Bumgarner, is talking in a calm voice with lovely music in the background. I love that when God or Christ speaks in the album it is in a different voice, a males, voiced by Joshua Smith. The music is beautiful and is done by Emily Smith. I love the positive affirmations and scripture that it says. This album tells the unborn baby that they are loved, protected, safe, special, important, and wanted. That they have purpose, a destiny, and are created by God. It is all very uplifting and heartwarming. In my opinion, these spiritual truths need to be lovingly taught to all of God's children and what a wonderful way to start than in the womb with these teachings. I believe that even in the womb the unborn can hear the outside world, their parent's voices, and music. Even though they may not yet understand these messages they can still listen to them and feel the peace that they bring. The second album is just as lovely, but is designed for babies and young children. I love playing the second album for my daughters when they sleep or at while they play quietly. The life giving messages on both CDs; however, can be applied to all ages. These would be great for baby shower gifts for the pregnant mother.

Math Prodigy is done with the same calming music and narrator. This time though the narrator introduces the young child to math. The narrator talks about real-life examples and careers in which math is used and basic rules for each subject with examples with help memorizing. It does not include the full tables of addition or multiplication, but helps explain the basic concepts of math well.

Even though I do not plan on having more children of my own, I am planning on gifting these to my oldest when he is married and has children of his own. These are all lovely and I love the calming music that is in the background of each. They are meditative. I love how they are put together and I highly recommend them.

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• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/prebornprodigy/ 
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prebornprodigy/
• Hashtags: #hsreviews #pregnant #pregnancy #baby #newborn #babybump #momtobe #babyshower #maternity #pregnantbelly #pregnantlife #motherhood #mom #unbornbaby

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You can purchase these three albums from Preborn Prodigy.

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Math-U-See Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction Review #ComplimentaryProductReceived

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary 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.

My family had the privilege of trying the Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction from Math-U-See for this review to use in conjunction with our own curriculum at home. This is a Homeschool Review Crew Review. All opinions expressed are my own or those of my family.

The Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction Set has everything to teach older students who are struggling with math because they have gaps in their foundational skill set, specifically with single-digit addition and subtraction facts. This is generally targeting students age 8-16. With the use of proven methods and manipulatives from Math-U-See, AIM strives to give students the confidence to learn better methods to succeed in addition and subtraction and thus excel in more complex math continuing on in their education. Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction has 22 lessons.

• Accelerated – The opportunity for students to move quickly through a skill set they have not yet mastered, without extra distractions.
• Individualized – Each student is different, as are their learning preferences. Using as many approaches as possible, the program creates an environment for a student to master the skills they still need at their own pace.
• Mastery – In this program, mastery means that a student can recall all the math facts using as little mental energy as possible to remain engaged in the process of problem solving.

Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction Kit

Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) Contents:

• Resource Guide Step-by-step guide that includes the techniques, components, and instruction for presenting fact strategies and practicing for mastery. Includes 22 lesson plans.
• Integer Blocks Proven Math-U-See manipulatives illustrate strategies and are integrated within the instructional materials.
• Colored Pencils Pencils aligned to the color of the integer blocks to help students transition from using the manipulatives.
• Fact Check Cards Set of cards used for planning instruction and assessing mastery.
• Math Facts Strategy Posters Individual posters illustrating the Math-U-See addition fact strategies.
• Digital Pack Set includes code to redeem 12-months access to the AIM for Addition and Subtraction Digital Pack. This gives you access to all the online and downloadable activities and resources. This includes the AIM for Success Videos that highlight the key concepts and components that make up the AIM program.

Lesson 1 and 2 in the Digital Tool-Box.

Getting to and using the Digital Pack that comes with the kit after it has been purchased is easy. Once you have purchased the Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction and it has arrived at your home you will receive a Digital Access card inside the box. This will give you access to the Digital Tool-Box online, just follow the directions to sign up. This gives you access to lesson videos, instruction, solutions, and printable resources. There is a pull down menu for Math-U-See and Accelerated Individualized Mastery on the left. Pick Accelerated Individualized Mastery. On the right hand pull down menu select Addition and Subtraction. Once you select a lesson you can play the Streaming Instruction Video and/or click on the pull down menus underneath each video with printable PDF links for a Lesson Summary and Lesson Solutions. There are also Additional Activities and Resources that you can also print out.


How We Used This and Our Thoughts:

I used this program with my daughter Zari, who is 9 years old. She uses her fingers and tallying to add and subtract and I would like to get her away from these ineffective strategies so that it doesn't become a stumbling block later. Zari and I are familiar with Math-U-See and how the program works because we had tried the Primer kit when Zari was in preschool. Now that she is in 3rd grade I believe the Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction will get her back on the right track for math and help her become more positive in her skills.

First Zari did the Before AIM Assessment so that we could see where she was with her single-digit addition and subtraction facts. This assessment is an important step to know whether or not your student will need the Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction kit. It is something I recommend doing with your child before purchasing. In this assessment 64 addition and 64 subtraction facts are asked verbally to the student in a stress free environment. Students being assessed can take a break after 2 minutes. If the student scores higher than 109 then AIM probably isn't for your student.  However, if the student scores below 108 then AIM will help the student with their math fluency. Zari was assessed as needing this instruction so we proceeded onto the lessons.

This is what I did before most lessons:

• Watch lesson video
• Read lesson instructions
• Study example problems
• Gather lesson materials

These are the sessions of most lessons:

• Session A: Present Lesson Instruction (Lesson 1 only has this)
• Session B: Demonstrate Understanding
• Session C: Transition Math Facts to Visual Memory
• Session D: Assess for Mastery

Zari doing the activities and resources in Lesson 1.

Zari loved the activities and resources parts of the instruction the most. In Lesson 1 her favorite was the matching game where we matched up pairs of numerals to integer block after she colored them the correct colors to match the real blocks with the colored pencils that came with the kit. I thought she did very well with the activity sheets too in getting to learn the colors that went with each block and numeral, 1-10. After mastering them we moved onto lesson 2.

Lesson 2 was all about addition with 2. In Session A Zari practiced counting by twos to ten. Then she practiced counting by odd numbers to 9 and took a break. Then in Session B we used the Build, Write, Say method to solve problems. She builds the equation with the manipulatives, writes it out in numerals and signs, and then says the equation out loud. After doing these we took another break. In Session C I assess whether she can draw, write, and say the math facts from this lesson and if not we work on those. Last, in Session D we use the fact check cards to see whether Zari can recall the facts covered in this lesson. If she can I color one star for each fact known and repeat until all 3 stars are filled in. After this we went onto the Digital Tool-Box and did one of the activities, Sum Solitaire. Zari did very well with this lesson, mastered all the facts, and so we moved onto the next one.

I think that Zari is having fun doing these lessons and learning addition and subtraction without counting on her fingers. The instruction of the Math-U-See Accelerated Individualized Mastery (AIM) for Addition and Subtraction is outstanding and well put together. I highly recommend it if your student needs this to succeed in math. Have them take the Before AIM Assessment to find out.


BUY IT
You can purchase AIM for Addition and Subtraction for $39. Please have your student take the assessment to see if they need this before purchasing.


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• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mathusee 
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/mathusee 
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/mathusee/ 
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mathusee
• Hashtags: #hsreview #MathUSee #HomeschoolMath #AcceleratedIndividualizedMastery 

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