Sunya Math Game ~ Review

To help my son get his addition facts mastered we've been playing Sunya The Magic and Wonder of Math and Science Adding & Subtracting from Sunya Publishing.

What is Sunya

Sunya (pronounced soonya) is a simple math concept game which aids children in learning their math addition and subtraction facts. It is intended for children aged 7 years and up.

We all know that everything seems easier when it comes in game form and this is a fine example of that.

How We Used The Game

There are two variations to the game we received to review. It can be played with a focus on addition facts or with a focus on subtraction facts, we alternated between the two during our time reviewing the product as my son is right in the midst of learning these.

There are also a couple of different levels in which you can play the game but given my son is on the youngest end of the recommended age scale we have chosen to stay with the most basic form of the game. Which for now has been more than enough for him.

To play the game it is as simple as building a number sentence on the table, dealing the cards to each player and in turn they need to try and create a new number sentence using their cards and the ones that are already on the table.

It's a simple concept, but one that gets the brain working. The deck also includes 'wild' cards and it is somewhat similar in nature to the game 'uno'.

Once we were familiar with how to play the kids could easily play the game together. This was a great way to end our school time each day, with a few rounds of Sunya!

The deck also includes fun little science themed fact and riddle cards that the kids got a kick of.

What We Didn't Like

The instructions for this game really make it way more confusing than it actually is. I'm still not quite sure why a simple card game needs a booklet to detail all of the instructions. Once we realised how simple it was we were off and running, but I do feel that instruction booklet could really do with some reworking.

What We Did Like

The simplicity and the fact that this is a simple game really won us over. As I said earlier it was so easy to include a few rounds at the end of our school day.

Sunya Publishing is still in its infancy and in fact the game is not yet available to the public. We were very lucky to receive an advanced copy. I recommend keeping an eye on their website so you know when it is released.

Details

Visit the Sunya website for more information.

I hope you have found this review helpful. If you would like to see further reviews covering the Sunya Game, from members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, please visit this link.

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Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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Times Tables Through Copywork

So you all know that it is 'Times Tables Year' for us here. My middle child is completely immersed in all things Multiplication and of course getting those tables down pat is on the priority list.

I recently shared a wide variety of multisensory ways to cover multiplication. This particular child needs as many hands on learning opportunities as possible so we are trying our best to hit as many of those boxes as possible.

I was searching through my files for something or other and stumbled across my original Addition Facts Copywork printable and truly, I had completely forgotten how useful that was for us.

I knew instantly that I needed to create a multiplication version. So a simple straight forward printable sheet, which includes two rows of each fact from one through to twelve.

These are so easy to add in to the routine. I simply printed off a bunch, cut them through the middle and have my child complete one or two each day. They literally only take a couple of minutes. So simple. The download link for these is below.

Pin This So You Don't Forget It!

Download the Times Tables Copywork via my box account.

Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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Math Mini Courses ~ Review

My daughter has been polishing up her math skills with Math Mini Courses from A+ Interactive Math.

We were given access to the Time and Multiplication mini courses in order to complete this review.

What Are Math Mini Courses

They are exactly that, mini math courses and are a great way to help with math learning gaps. If you notice that your child may be struggling in just one small area then a mini course directly related to that area may just be what you are in need of.

For example I knew my kids needed a little more practice with telling time so we've been using the Time Math Mini Course, along with Multiplication as that is where my daughter is at right now.

The Time mini course is 20 multimedia lessons, whilst the Multiplication mini course has a total of 13 lessons. Every mini course also includes an assessment at the end of each lesson.

Whilst the lessons can all be done completely online via the multimedia video lesson format, if you choose you can also print them out via pdf, along with worksheets, tests and report progress sheets.

How We Used The Mini Courses

My daughter chose to do these courses solely online, so she logged in, chose the course she was currently working in from the dashboard area of our account and launched the multimedia video lessons.

Each course is contained within a folder which needs to be expanded to see all of the mini lessons that are to be completed.

Once a lesson is opened up it begins immediately with a friendly voice over and simple animations to explain the concept through a brief video based lesson. Each lesson is only a few minutes in length and it moves directly into the assessment questions at the end.

On completion of a lesson the user or the parent is required to mark the lesson and the assessment quiz as completed, along with the scores in the quiz. The program does not do this automatically and lessons will sit uncompleted until their status has been manually changed.

This is a simple system to use and was very easy for my daughter to jump on and complete a lesson in a few minutes.

The time lessons cover the following concepts days, weeks, months, years, seasons, second, minutes, digital, analog, hour, half hour, quarter hour and five minute intervals, duration and units of time, converting digital and analog, elapsed time.

The multiplication lessons cover these concepts, introduction to multiplication, multiplying using objects, a table and tricks and multiplying with 2, 3, 4 and 5 digit numbers.

What We Didn't Like

My biggest concern with these lessons is that we continually forgot to mark them as complete and I don't quite understand why that wasn't built into the system as an automatic feature. It seems like it makes extra work that would be unnecessary if the system could simply mark it complete once the child got to the end of the lesson.

This process also wasn't shown to us so it was only by trial and error that we found we needed to mark lessons and assessment quizzes as completed.

What We Did Like

I love the concept of mini courses for math, it is a great idea and certainly one that would fill a need with many families. The courses are affordably priced, starting from just $9.99 US dollars which gives you access to the course for an entire 12 month period.

Given that our Time Math Mini Course only has 20 lessons we can revisit during the year to be absolutely certain all of the concepts have been learned.

I really like the multimedia component and the fact that the child does not need to complete worksheets if they don't want. But the worksheets are available for those that want them or need the extra practice.

Looking Ahead

My daughter will absolutely be completing both of her mini courses and will no doubt revisit them again over the coming year.

I've got my eye on a couple of the upper level courses for my son, especially the probability and statistics mini course. I think he would enjoy that one and it will help to hone his skills in that area.

Pricing & Details

As I mentioned above the mini courses are reasonably priced, starting from $9.99 US dollars. To see all of the math mini courses available visit the A+ Interactive Math Website.

To see more from them you can also follow along via your favourite social media outlet

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APlusTutorSoft
Twitter:      https://twitter.com/aplustutorsoft
Pinterest:   http://www.pinterest.com/aplustutorsoft


I hope you have found this review helpful. If you would like to see further reviews of the various Math Mini Courses, from members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, please visit this link.

Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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Math U See Digital Packs Review

Over the past few weeks we have had the pleasure of reviewing Demme's Learning Math -U- See. In fact we were given a 12 month subscription to their Digital Packs for the purpose of this review. I chose to focus on the Alpha Digital pack with my youngest son.

What Is A Math-U-See Digital Pack

Demme Digital Packs are made up of the video content of the lessons that Math-U-See users know and love. The pack also includes instruction manual PDF's, skip counting songs and digital manipulatives. No more losing blocks!! Twelve months access is included with each digital pack purchase.

How We Used The Alpha Digital Pack

If you've been a reader of my blog for any length of time you already know that we love Math-U-See and I mention it often as our go to math curriculum. We already own the complete primary years lessons on DVD but when the opportunity arose for me to take a look at the digital versions I jumped at it.

Given that we are regular users of Math-U-See not a lot changed for us to review this product. The big plus was that we could sit on the couch and watch the lessons on the iPad or in front of the PC. I didn't need to go digging for the DVD. The digital pack gave us the freedom to take our math anywhere.

What We Liked About the Alpha Digital Pack

The digital manipulatives are a great idea, as I must admit we often misplace some of our blocks. Having everything digital means I don't need to keep track of all the loose bits and pieces.

We own a few iPads, which means that all of the children can be working on their Math-U-See lessons at once, no need to wait until the DVD player is free. With 3 kids all using Math-U-See at times we've had a bit of a traffic jam at the DVD player.

Although we aren't a family that lives on the road this is truly where I can see a fabulous benefit. All the lessons, all the manipulatives, right their on your iPad. Just add in a student workbook and math is sorted.

What We Didn't Like About The Alpha Digital Pack

The only real downside for us is our current internet access isn't brilliant so there were some times in the day where we had to come back to our math lessons, but that is really a personal issue and nothing to do with the product.

One of my children especially loves to watch the lessons on the large screen and prefers using the DVD's because of that. Although with today's smart TV technology most of us could also stream these straight through the internet via our televisions.

If you have a good internet connection there really isn't anything to dislike about the digital packs and I'm certain that streaming math instruction such as this has been the answer to many homeschool families prayers.

Looking Ahead

We will continue to use the digital version of Alpha as my son really enjoys having it on the iPad. At this stage, given that we already own all of the DVD's I don't think I would invest in future digital packs.

I have, however made a mental note if ever we see ourselves traveling for any length of time. I really like that math can continue uninterrupted via the digital packs.

Details & Pricing

The Alpha Digital pack is $38.00 for 12 months access.

To see more from Demme Learning visit them via your favourite social media outlet

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mathusee

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mathusee/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mathusee 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mathusee

If you have found this review helpful and would like to see further reviews of the Math-U-See Digital Packs from members of the Review Crew, please visit this link.

Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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Multisensory Multiplication

It's pretty much a given that learning multiplication is an important part of any students math career. I also bet that plenty of you have nearly pulled your hair out trying to find ways to learn the times tables with your children.

Whilst some may argue that as long as the child understands the concept then there is no need for the rote memorisation of the times tables themselves. We live in an age where those answers, if need be, are very easy to come by.

I tend to agree with this sentiment, to a point, because if you do take the time to memorise the times tables it sure makes things a whole bunch simpler when moving onto other mathematical concepts.

The question I ask though, does learning the times tables really need to be so damn tedious and boring?

I think, absolutely not!

We are right in the thick of times table territory now so I've gathered all of my supplies together in the one place and I thought I'd share some of them with you.

Our little Monkey Multiplier is a simple device that can easily sit beside the child as they are working on problems.

If they are stumped on a times table problem simply point his toes to the two numbers you wish to multiply and the answer will appear in his hands.

Such a simple idea, but he's so cute to look at!

We've had this guy for quite some time and I really have no idea where I purchased him from.

Learning Wrap Ups are a great hands on tool for practice on the go.

At just 15 centimetres long they are small enough to take in the car.

To use you simply start at the designated starting point and wrap the string around the correct answer, slowly working your way to the bottom of the key.

When finished secure the string at the notch on the bottom of the key. Turn the key over and if your string matches the line markings on the back then you have each answer correct!

Timez Attack is another staple in our home. I attribute this little game to enabling my son to get his times tables down pat. We've never sat and chanted the times tables in a rote fashion. He simply played Timez Attack on a regular basis.

This computer game works on a simple premise of challenges through a castle environment. To get through the stages the player needs to answer the times table questions correctly.

I love these simple Twist & Check Card Games because they are a great way for me to easily get involved. Just by playing a few rounds I can tell quite quickly how we are going when it comes to grasping the tables.

The ones on the left from The learning Ladder are particularly good because you begin with the first pack of 'easy time tables' and then move on to the second pack.

Math U See is our spine when it comes to Multiplication. This is a no bells and whistles program but it is thorough, it teaches well and it gets the job done in a multi sensory way and we will never not use this program.

By combining the video lessons, the workbooks, blocks and all of our other multiplication tools we can generally find something that will appeal to the children on any given day.

Times Tales is a program that's been around for quite some time. I remember seeing the books when they first released them.

They now have them in a new animated version and I can't wait to see how they are received by the kids.

We also own a couple of different times tables song discs, although so far these are not something that have really had much use.

The children haven't overly enjoyed this type of learning and with everything else we have we really haven't needed them. I think this option will be purely a personal one, some kids will love them and others won't.

Check out you tube also as there are heaps of fun times table songs and videos over there.

Posters, again whilst we don't really use these a rote memorisation tool, when we are in the thick of times table territory I always hang a couple around the house.

My sneaky one is to hang a poster behind the toilet door.  One can't help but to sit their chanting the tables in their head ;-)

We also have a few different multiplication books and pull them out if and when needed, especially if we are looking for something different to do.

My daughter made this little treasure box some time ago as part of our Arthimetic Village program.

These are lovely little stories that cover all the basic math operations.

Playing with the counters in the treasure box is such a nice way to explore math concepts.

So whilst I do feel that getting those times tables down pat is an asset to your child's mathematical career there is no way that it needs to be boring.

How do you learn the times tables in your home? Have something different to share, please leave some details in the comments.

If you looking for more even more multiplication ideas be sure to take a look at my Math Pinterest Board.

Follow Our Worldwide Classroom's board Subjects: Math on Pinterest.

Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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This post is part of the 2016 Virtual Curriculum Fair. This week the theme is all about discovering patterns through math and science. Please visit some of my fellow homeschool bloggers as they share their posts on the theme. See their links below.

Chareen @ Every Bed of Roses - Thoughts on Math and Science

Kristen @ Sunrise to Sunset  - From Counting to Calculus

Laura @ Day by Day in Our World  - How We Approach Math in This Homeschool Year

Annette @ A Net In Time - Struggling with Math, Loving Science

Annette @ A Net In Time  - Lego Pulleys and Levers

Yvie @ Gypsy Road Hands - On Math with Special Needs Learners

Chelli @ The Planted Trees  - Chemistry Using Living Books

Lisa @ GoldenGrasses  - An Appalling Lack of Curiosity

Edie @ Carter Chaos  - Our Favorite Ways to Study Numbers

Tracey @ A Learning Journey  - Robot Area and Perimeter Art Project

Jennifer @ A Glimpse of Our Life  - Math and Standardized Tests

Jen @ Chestnut Grove Academy  - Discovering Patterns: Mathematics, Logic, and Science

Sarah @ DeliveringGrace  - Learning Multiplication Tables

Kylie @ Our Worldwide Classroom  - Multisensory Multiplication

Kym @ Homeschool Coffee Break  - Science and Stuff

Kemi @ Homemaking Organized  - Math in Our Homeschool for a Later Elementary Organized Reader

Joelle @ Homeschooling for His Glory  - Math and Logic - Our Steady Path

Laura @ Four Little Penguins  - Math and Science Love

Money & Magic Squares

You all know how much I enjoy making printable materials for our home school, but there are definitely many times when I need something quickly.

What a breeze it has been to scan through all of the printable items over at Kids Learning Is Fun, choose what I am after, click print and we are ready to go.

To have ongoing access to resources such as these is a definite blessing.

I thought I'd share some of the highlights each month so that you get a good feel for the items available over at Kids Learning is Fun.

I chose to print off the Australian Coin Posters (A4) and do some coin exploring with Little Surfer Dude. Fairy Princess sat in too, this was good revision for her.

Together we discussed each poster and the details about the coins. We sorted through our pile of coins and found various examples and proceeded to match the real life coin to the poster.

This was a great exercise to actually sit and focus on the coin details. Little Surfer Dude was very careful to note the numbers on each coin.

I used an old divided serving platter and taped one of each coin into a compartment. This is a simple sorting exercise for now, but one we can build on as time progresses.

I have placed this tray and the Coin posters on our shelves for him to choose whenever he wishes.

For Lego Lover I printed the Magic Squares file and laminated them. There is a huge number of magic squares contained within this, which means he always has variety! 

For these magic squares you need to use the numbers 1 - 16, only once and complete the grid.....certainly gets you thinking.

You can purchase these items straight from the Kids Learning Is Fun store or have access to these and hundred's more whenever you need them with a Premium Membership.

Easter Mulitplication Printable

I found a super cute Easter Egg addition printable which is perfect for independent work over at Mrs Lirette's Learning blog.

So I set about putting something similar together for multiplication.

This bilby is so adorable I need to find as many ways to use him as possible between now and Easter, don't you think ;-) !!

Simply print, grab a couple of die, roll and multiply them. Then write the number sentence in the space provided. I think we will laminate ours and use it with a dry erase that way it can be used several times before Easter.

Download by clicking here.

Australian Themed Skip Counting In Two's Printables

We are working on Skip Counting again in our house. 2's, 5's and 10's for now. This time around I decided to put together a few printable activities that I can laminate and use again and again.

This is one download which includes:

All Australian Themed-

• Skip Counting in Two's to Twenty Chart
• Four x Fill in the missing number charts
• One sheet of number cards to twenty
• Handwriting Practice for the skip counting numbers

Download this file from my folders on Box.net by clicking here.

The Introduction Of 'The Village'

Today K was introduced to 'The Village'.

I realise it has taken me awhile since I first told you about Arithmetic Village. The little wooden treasure box pictured above, is the reason why. I knew I could get them as I have seen them many times before, but do you think I could find one when I needed one, no! Finally on my recent visit to my local art and craft supply store they had them in stock (now I'm kinda thinking maybe I should've bought a few).

I knew having a 'real' looking treasure chest would add to the magic of Arithmetic Village and I wasn't settling for anything else. I wasn't wrong!

The first book in the series is a simple, rythmical introduction to the Village and its' characters. I knew that it would only take a very brief moment to read the story to K and I wanted to draw out the magic for as long as I could.

I filled 9 (nine) jewel sacks with 10 jewels in each and placed them inside the unpainted chest. I placed that next to me on my left, hidden under a towel. Next to the chest (but also hidden under the towel) I placed 1 (one) empty jewel sack and 10 (ten) jewels.

Choosing the perfect time of the day, where K and I could be alone for a few minutes was a challenge, but I was able to sneek it in when the boys were off busy doing whatever it is that boys do.

We sat together on the floor, her on my right, the hidden treasures on my left and the book in front of us. Together we turned to the first page and as I began reading blue jewels started falling from the sky onto the book.

K loves blue and loves all things sparkly and I knew she would enjoy these.

We continued to read, K held and played with the jewels and was enthralled with the gorgeous illustrations on the pages in front of her. When it came time for the jewel sacks to appear I placed the empty one I had to my left on the page.

Together we counted the jewels that had fallen from the sky, just to see how many there were and to our surprise there were 10 (ten), the exact number required to fill a sack, fancy that! She loved that and was eager to continue on and was so taken with the book that she had no idea I had more surprises waiting for her right by my side.

You see the villagers can't possibly carry an infinte number of sacks filled with jewels and to help them out they use treasure boxes that perfectly hold 10 (ten) sacks each filled with 10 (ten) jewels.

I slowly turned the page and at the same time the treasure chest emerged and I placed it on the page as I read. K's face was sheer delight, absolute magic, this is hands down, the BEST EVER moment I have experienced in our nearly 4 years of homeschooling....it literally took my breath away. I was so excited to be experiencing this with her and to be the one to show it to her, that will be one special moment that stays with us for a long time to come.

Her eyes lit up, her face glowed and her smile went from ear to ear....all that waiting for that one little treasure box was oh so worth it! She placed her sack of jewels in the chest and together we counted how many sacks the treasure chest held in total.

We finished the story, she couldn't stop caressing her little treasure chest and asking me, "Did you get this just for me mum?", "What about B and C, is it just for me?" To have something like this that was purely hers...I wish I could have read her mind.

Then I told her she could decorate it in anyway she wanted. You might have noticed in the page from the book that the chest was described as 'sparkly and gold'. Here I was thinking that we would end up with a very brightly coloured chest, but no, she was adamant that it had to be gold.

I suggested that we remove the hinges to make painting easier, but I don't think she believed that I would be able to get them back on, so instead we placed some sticky tape over the top of them.

She spent quite some time painting and decided that glitter glue would make up the 'sparkly' component and set to it with her supply of glitter glue pens. I did lend a little hand with her diamonds as she was getting a little frustrated with them but otherwise the finished treasure chest is completely K's handiwork.

It's outside drying as I type.

Even though K has some understanding of Place Value and Numbers, we will spend some time enjoying getting to know the village and its' villagers (exploring place value and building numbers) before we move on to the next book in the series.

Disclosure: I was given a copy of Arithmetic Village for the purpose of reviewing. All opinions on this blog are my own and were not in anyway influenced by the product provided or by the company.

Valentine Geometric Paper Quilt

Thanks to Mathwire we've been creating Valentine Geometric Paper Quilt's. Granted the only link to Valentines Day is the fact that we used red and pink paper, but they sure do look rather pretty.

I even got to join in on the fun. We each completed three 3x3 grids and put them all together to form a large quilt pattern.

These larger collaborative pieces are something that (often) homeschooled kids can miss out on so it was fun to work on something together and have a larger display on the wall.

In fact they worked together so well that they created a 'dinosaur' image within the quilt, can you see it?

What Valentines fun are you having in your home this year?

Happy Homeschooling,
Kylie

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Visit Our Worldwide Classroom's profile on Pinterest.   This posted is linked to   Dear Homeschooler Valentines Theme