Making Literature Fun - Review

Ever wish you could get your kids to reach for a book instead of the remote?  Susan Evans' one hour audio workshop, Making Literature Fun, is bursting at the seams with ideas to:

- make literature come alive for your children 

- improve your child's reading level

- quiet your children for reading

Raised in Guatemala, Susan earned her Bachelor's degree in English in the United States, and has taught in public schools here and in London, England, where she was also a middle school Drama director.  In this live recording, Susan describes how to evaluate and choose good books; how to create experiences to help children internalize what they've read; gives examples from her own homeschool experiences with her four children.

Ms. Evans discusses the pros and cons of "watching the movie" versus "reading the book".  She encourages regular reading aloud by both parents and students.  I was reminded to change my tone of voice to indicate different characters in the book I'm reading from, and to remember to read with more dramatic effect.  When I began to do this during our current reading of "War Horse", my 9 year old son suddenly started really listening, and would beg for another chapter.  As suggested, I felt perfectly comfortable making him wait for the next day, and sure enough, his anticipation was peaked and he sat and listened attentively.  A number of books are recommended by name in the course of Susan's presentation.  She supports re-enacting as an enriching supplement to good reading and she shows how to link the great books your children are reading to the other subjects they are studying.

In everything she does, Evans gives praise and glory to her Creator, and emphasizes and encourages a close, personal relationship with God as the foundation to excellent parenting and homeschooling.  I love the relaxed, refreshing style in which she presents her information.  Her voice has a pleasant tone and unhurried cadence.  I came away from the audio with the feeling of having just had an uplifting discussion with a friend, rather than a talking down from a stuffy professional.  I immediately began applying many of her suggestions in my own homeschool, with happy results.

In addition to Making Literature Fun $5.50, Susan Evans has a number of other excellent audio and video products available for download.  All of her products are backed by a 60 day money-back guarantee.  The MP3 files were a snap to download and add to my Ipod.  For less than the price of a Teacher's Manual, you can breathe new life into your homeschool and equip your children with a love of reading for life.  Now go out and make literature fun!

I received a free copy of Making Literature Fun to listen to and post my thoughts.  No other compensation was received for this review.

Kid Scoop

Teaching children to read is one thing.  Getting them to read is another.  This is where Kid Scoop's Reluctant Reader Solution comes in.  Recommended for grades 2-8,  Reluctant Reader Solution includes a 12 month online subscription to Kid Scoop newspapers, plus 365 fun activity sheets that can be used individually, or as provided in 60 mini-unit studies. 



The online version of the newspaper is kid-friendly, with lots of graphics and color.  Students can page through the articles online, print out activities and get drawn into the stories.  Kid Scoop also offers fun online learning games for kids as well as lots of tips for parents and teachers to use the newspapers to help foster love for reading.

The downloadable activity pages are organized into mini unit studies of about 5 pages each.  They can be used chronologically, by season, holiday or event, (St. Patrick's Day, Mother's Day) or by theme (baseball, backpacks, skin protection).  There are even more thematic lesson resources on the website, offering everything from bugs to financial literacy to the Philippines.

For only $97, students and parents can take full advantage of Kid Scoop - The Reluctant Reader Solution, including 12 full-color issues of Kid Scoop News online, and 365 Kid Scoop Worksheets.  With Kid Scoop's unconditional money back guarantee, you just can't lose.

See what other Homeschool Crew members are saying about Kid Scoop - The Reluctant Reader solution.

We received one week free access to the online newspaper Kid Scoop and one free download of The Reluctant Reader solution with over 365 fun activity pages in 60 mini unit studies for  review purposes.  No other compensation was received for this review.

See N Read - Reading Tools That Rock!

See-N-Read Reading Tools are simple, effective aids to reading.  Just lay the small, gray plastic guide on your page and line up your text in the window.  See-N-Reads can benefit anybody, from beginning readers, to adults struggling to get through all the fine print in a contract.  My son was so excited about the See-N-Read tools that he usurped them all for himself.  His favorite is the document size See-N-Read, I suspect because he doesn't have to move it so much.  A fringe benefit of See-N-Read is that it can also act as a bookmark in between reading sessions.  My son is now sitting down to read, just so he can "play" with his See-N-Read. 

When I finally did get my hands on the See-N-Read Memory Mark, I found it just as beneficial for myself.  The gray tint surrounding the reading window filters out distractions on the page and helps me stay focused on what I'm reading.  Memory Mark has the window cut out, so I can mark passages of text that I want to highlight, or otherwise make note of. 

For such a simple tool, an amazing amount of research went into See-N-Read.  I didn't understand alot of the 20-page research packet that came with our tools, but I did gather that they were tested extensively in schools, and that several reading experts and teachers had alot of good things to say about them.  I know this - they work GREAT!

See-N-Read also has a PC version, that you can easily download and bring up on your computer screen.  I didn't think I'd like it, but I was pleasantly surprised.  After a few fits and starts getting it to the right size for what I was reading, and to a convenient size for my screen, I found it to be a great help to reading all the "fine print" stuff - EULA's, Terms of Agreement and so forth.  I found it also came in handy for reading lengthier blogs and articles, as it can be easy to lose one's place, staring at the computer screen.  My son really enjoyed using it for reading his e-books on the computer.

With all the work and testing and research that went into developing See-N-Read, it is surprisingly affordable.  The small sizes are only $2.99 each or 3 for $8.99, document sizes are $3.49 each or 3 for $9.99.  See-N-Read also offers larger quantities for special prices and combinations of several or all products for a special price.  The eSee-N-Read program is $29.99 and is available for immediate download.

See what other Homeschool Crew Members are saying about See-N-Read.

We recieved one set of See-N-Read and Memory Mark tools and a free download of eSee-N-Read for this review.  No other compensation was recieved.