www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com
developed;a;2-day;seminar;for;educators
and eventually started teaching student
classes.;Both;the;educator;seminar;and
student classes were eventually recorded
for sale, which allowed for a greater reach.
The Schoolhouse Crew had a mixture
of products for review this year from
IEW,;including;Teaching;Writing/Student
Writing;Value;Packages;($249),;which;in-
clude both Teaching Writing: Structure
and Style DVD seminar as well as Student
Writing Intensive;(Levels;A,;B,;and;C),
and Teaching the Classics DVD Seminar
&;Workbook;($89).
Teaching Writing: Structure and Style
DVD seminar is geared for educators,
whether homeschool or classroom-based.;Andrew;presents;his;more;con-densed;version;of;Dr.;Webster’s;teachings
on;structure;and;style;in;composition.
The DVD shows Andrew in a seminar
format;with;responses;by;participants.
Along;with;presenting;the;material,;the
educator is also walking through ex-amples;of;how;to;put;it;into;action.;Six
DVDs contain the nine structural mod-els;and;multiple;stylistic;techniques;for
a;total;viewing;time;of;approximately;10
hours.;Also;in;the;package;is;a;2-hour
“refresher” seminar titled Tips & Tricks
for Teaching Through the Nine Units, as
well;as;three;discs;of;student;workshops
to;help;with;implementation.
Completing;the;package;is;the;TWSS
Seminar Workbook, which serves as the
syllabus for the seminar and contains
charts,;word;lists,;sample;lesson;plans,
and more. Student Writing Intensive
comes in three levels to cover from grades
3;through;12;and;provides;the;ability;for
students to learn directly from Andrew as
he taught the material to a live class. Level
A;is;suggested;for;grades;3;to;5.;Level;B
is;suggested;for;grades;6;to;8.;Level;C;is
for high school students. While some
of;the;topics;presented;for;educators;in
the Teaching Writing: Structure and Style
seminar are covered in all three levels,
some are reserved for the older student.
Along with the DVD courses, the set includes a student notebook containing student handouts, a student binder, and daily
lesson;suggestions;for;the;teacher/parent.
The final product reviewed by se-
lected Schoolhouse Crew members is
the Teaching the Classics DVD Seminar &
Workbook by Adam and Missy Andrews.
This literature seminar for educators uti-
lizes short stories as the models and the
Socratic;approach;as;the;method.;Through
the presentation,;the;authors systemati-
cally;prepare;you;to;teach;character,;plot,
theme,;and;other;elements;of;fiction;and
literary analysis. The set has a total of 4
DVDs;as;well;as;a;spiral-bound;syllabus
containing;samples;used;for;analysis.
Read the rest of the reviews here.
PreScripts Cursive Letters and
Coloring
PreScripts Cursive Words and
Drawing
PreScripts Cursive Sentences and
Art Lessons
PreScripts Cursive Passages and
Illuminations
Classical Conversations
www.ClassicalConversationsBooks
.com/ prescripts.html
910.673.0100
Classical;Conversations;is;perhaps;best
known for its nationwide network of
communities to help parents provide
their children with a Christian classical
education.;Begun;in;1997;with;11;stu-
dents,;it;has;grown;to;more;than;36,000
students;in;35;states,;5;countries,;and;3
continents. The organization has recent-ly;published;a;new;handwriting;series
called;PreScripts.;The;four;spiral-bound
books in the set combine instruction in
cursive;writing,;copywork;from;the;Bi-ble and history lessons, and art lessons.
Each consumable book stands alone, so
your students may jump in wherever
you;feel;they;are;ready;and;proceed;at
their;own;pace.
PreScripts Cursive Letters and Coloring;is;intended;for;ages;3–7;and;costs
$11.99.;This;book;has;120;pages.;Stu-
dents;will;finger;trace;large;letters;fol-lowing directional arrows and then
trace;and;copy;letters;with;a;pencil;or
crayon. Art lessons involve tracing lines
and;coloring;in;shapes;and;images.
PreScripts Cursive Words and Drawing;is;intended;for;ages;5–10;and;costs
$12.99.;This;book;has;144;pages.;Stu-
dents;practice;tracing;and;copying;let-ters,;short;words,;and;Bible;verses.;The
art;lessons;begin;with;practice;making
circles, dots, curves and lines and then
combines those elements to form sim-ple;figures;like;a;rooster.
PreScripts Cursive Sentences and Art
Lessons;is;intended;for;ages;7–12;and
costs;$12.99.;This;book;has;144;pages.
Students;practice;writing;longer;sen-tences about history from medieval
times to modern day. The art instruction covers concepts such as depth,
point;of;view,;light;and;shadow.
PreScripts Cursive Passages and Illuminations;is;intended;for;ages;9–high
school;and;costs;$12.99.;This;book;has
144 pages. Students copy paragraphs
from;important;historical;documents.
They;can;enhance;each;paragraph;by
practicing;the;art;of;illumination.
Read the Crew reviews here.
Mayan Mysteries (App and
Online Game)
Dig-It! Games
www.dig-itgames.com/Mayan_
Mysteries
Sometimes;playing;video;games;is;edu-cational—especially when;you;play the
new;game;Mayan;Mysteries;from;Dig-It!
Games. With this new game your child
will;take;an;educational;journey;back;in
time through a mysterious Ancient Mayan civilization.
Dig-It!;Games;was;founded;in;2005;by
a;professional;archaeologist;and;former
middle-school;teacher,;Suzi;Wilczynski,
who;sought;to;develop;educational;games
that promote independent learning,
creative thinking, and cultural awareness.
With;the;help;of;Robert;J.;Sharer,;an;ar-chaeologist;and;professor;of;anthropology
