Archive for Curriculum Supplement
Art Ditto by Birdcage Press ~ A TOS Review
Posted by: | CommentsIt never ceases to amaze me what one creative, motivated momma can accomplish when she has three young children, and wants to teach them that learning is fun! In this case, the woman is Wenda O’Reilly. Her first game was published by Birdcage Press in 2000. There are now more than 30 award-winning games available!
“Classic card games with an educational twist.”
I recently had the opportunity to review Art Ditto. It is a memory game, but it is so much more, too!
There are 48, 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″, high-gloss, heavy-duty tiles of famous museum-quality paintings. The paintings depict birds, boats, cats, flowers, horses; and music. They are gorgeous! There are also 8, 5″ x 10″ cards that can be used for collecting art sets. Designed for ages 4+, it is a wonderful game for family play with multiple ages. You’ll find it on the website for $24.95, and possibly in your local art museum’s gift shop.
Because Art Ditto is a memory game, it promotes visual processing, matching, memory, taking turns; and sharing for young children. The pictures are vibrant, and hold a child’s attention. This game is not just for wee ones, though. The cards list the subject of the painting, the artist; and the name of the painting and the date. The text is written in four languages! English, French, Spanish; and German. (I do wish there was a pronunciation guide included, because it took me some time to look up the proper pronunciations so I could read them aloud.) This game could easily be used, with older students, as a supplement to their art studies, history; and language.
I played it with a 4 year old. Just me and my granddaughter. She loved the art! We spent at least 15 minutes just enjoying the paintings, and discussing what we saw in them. 48 cards seemed a bit overwhelming for a memory game, though, and it took us forever to match them; so after the first game, we chose themes ahead of time. One time we chose the tiles with flowers and tiles with the color green on them, another time we chose tiles that had something “living” on them, and so on. Each new game, we mixed up the set of tiles and played with the smaller set, making it quicker and a little more enjoyable for her age. It’s a game that can easily grow with her, and future grandchildren.
My Crew mates reviewed several of the products that are available at Birdcage Press, and if you click the banner below and follow the link you’ll find them there.
Blessings,
Disclaimer* I received the game, Art Ditto, in exchange for my honest review as a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew. I receive no other compensation for my reviews on this blog. The opinions expressed are my own.
Thank you for your comments. I enjoy hearing from you!
Contents of this blog are copyrighted; they are the property of Knee Deep In Grace and may not be used without written permission.
What’s Black and White, and…
Posted by: | CommentsWhat’s black and white and red all over? Remember this one? Okay, so it’s really what’s black and white and read all over? A newspaper, of course!
What’s blue and red and eats rocks? That’s simple. A blue-and-red-rock-eater! Now, what’s pink and green and eats rocks? A pink-and-green-rock-eater, you say. No way, I say, they only come in blue and red!
What’s fun, educational, motivating, interactive; and affordable? No riddle here, it’s ZooWhiz! The “online, curriculum based motivational learning system” with more than 17,000 educational activities for children ages 5 to 15. Affordable? Yes! It’s Free, with a limited Keeper Account!
Want a Free Keeper Account? Follow the Keeper Account link above, click Create a Free Keeper on the bottom left; and let your child choose a [Zoo] Keeper from a variety of pre-designed avatars. These are all they have to choose from, at the moment, but my kids are hoping they’ll have a little more freedom in the future to design their own avatar Keeper.
Choose a Keeper
Once they’ve chosen their Keeper they sign in with their first name, or a code name if they’re anything like my son, and a parent’s email address to get permission to use ZooWhiz. You can then use that same email to create a Free Parent Management Account, which will be connected to your child’s account; giving you the ability to keep up with his progress.
ZooWhiz is lively and engaging, with graphics that are bright, crisp; and bursting with energy!
Learn and Earn generates activities that move your child to practice math, reading, grammar, vocabulary, punctuation, spelling; and phonics according to the Age Floor you select for him, and earning coins for every correct answer given. Two chances. Answer the question correctly on the first try and you earn 20 coins. If you miss it and try again you’ll still earn 10 coins with a correct answer. Miss the answer and 10 coins are taken away and the correct answer is supplied.
The coins can then be spent in the Arcade, on games, or in the Biodome at the Zoo Animal Shop. Keepers can choose from and collect many different animals, viewing them and learning more about them from a detailed flash-card-type graphic. My children choose animal collecting 9 times out of 10, over playing games in the Arcade, and it is the highlight of the ZooWhiz online program! It should be noted though, that the website says, “Create a Free Keeper Account and start building your very own zoo.” This idea is compounded when you select the Biodome tab under Information for Kids, the opening tagline reads, “Enter the Biodome to choose your animals and build your very own zoo.” As Keepers students build collections of animals, but there is no Zoo to build. There is no place to organize or view the animals in a zoo-like setting, and there is no visiting or care giving. My students, ages 8, 11, and 14, were all truly disappointed in this aspect of the program. Milestones keeps track of student progress, and seeing progress is something we all need!
Click the graphic to see a full Animal List
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ZooWhiz is all about “reinforcing learning and rewarding effort!”
My 8-year-old says it is all about “fun, fun, fun!”
When you discover, as I did, that ZooWhiz is an outstanding supplement to your current curriculum, you can choose to upgrade to a Premium Zoologist Account. Currently, a 1-year subscription is just $14.95. Seriously. I don’t know how long this dramatic savings will be available, but what-a-deal compared to the regular price of $59.95! The Premium Zoologist Account entitles you, as the parent, to more management, anytime access; and detailed customization to your child’s age or learning pace. The Premium Kid’s Account opens more games and an exciting choice of animals to collect, including rare, endangered, dinosaurs and mythological creatures. My son earned and saved 5000 coins to add a Sasquatch to his collection! That’s a lot of learning and this seems like an ideal place to slip in a “well done, Son!”
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ZooWhiz has a website full of information.
I included several links to it throughout this post and I hope you’ll make use of them.
You can email your Questions and Comments through the Contact link,
or if you’re in the United States call – 1.866.215.4620.
You can also write to: P.O. Box 658, Armidale, NSW, 2350, Australia;
or instantly connect on facebook.
My Crew mates are eager to share their ZooWhiz experiences with you, too.
You can read their reviews when you click the banner below and follow the link to the
Blessings,