Thankful for New Life

We were excited to announce the coming of the newest member of our Crew to our family and friends on Thanksgiving Day!  Baby is due to arrive in early June! Pin It Now!

To 'Unknown' - A Response to Your Comment

You may remember that a few weeks ago I posted a review on the book Children in Church.  I also wrote about our conviction to be more intentional in the discipling of our children and how we had been wrestling with the decision of whether or not to let our children participate in the middle school youth program at our church.  We did pray about this for some time and decided that we felt that God was leading us away from participating in the older youth programs and instead moving towards worshiping together as a family on Sunday mornings.  You can read the full article and review at this link.

Recently, I received a comment from 'Unknown' who is a youth ministry leader.

____________________________

'Unknown' wrote...

I too appreciate the thought you have put into considering the spiritual health of your children.

As a youth ministry leader, I would like to offer some food for thought: As parents we often become overly protective of our children - and rightfully so at times. Your points on the environment within youth ministries is a painful reality. But three points I'd like to voice for consideration:

1. Children's ministries allow for youth to connect with God on a youth level. The communication methods used in most children's churches are tailored so that kids can meet with God at their own development level. What seems like foolish games for us, actually has a method behind it for learning retention and psychological well-being. Putting a child into an adult setting can often become great family time, but highly ritualistic for the child and can lead to a sense of spirituality without full understanding because the "language" used to explain the theology shared is not the "language" children speak (as it is tailored to a more mature adult audience).

2. There is power in multiple perspectives and techniques. You know what your children need on a certain level, but as parents, we are not perfect either. Sometimes we need to allow our children to be exposed to other Christian viewpoints. Not to woo them away from the Truth, but help balance them in light of our own spiritual misunderstanding, strongholds, and shortcomings.

3. No church ministry is perfect. Segregation does not help progress within a learning environment, but stifles it. If you are finding the problems you mentioned going on in your local church - I would suggest you engage, not segregate your children. Be the voice of reason. Become involved. Lend your voice of wisdom from God to help other leaders focus the children. The more leadership for children, the better, and most children's church leaders would be thrilled to find someone who is not just a parent who wishes to engage the well-being of their own kids, but also the well-being of others children whose parents are not discerning the same issues you are.
The Enemy divides! The Lord multiplies! Believe me, it will be more than worth it. 

 _____________________________

I really do appreciate that people take the time to read my articles and respond to them (even if they don't agree with me!)  Sometimes I am able to take the time to respond ... my crew does keep me pretty busy :) ... and I wanted to respond to this commenter.  I am afraid, that often tone is difficult to translate when writing, so before you begin to read my response I want you to know that I was not offended by these comments and I mean no offense with my comments.  I truly believe that "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." (Prov. 27:17) and enjoy a good healthy debate among believers.  So please don't mistake my passion for the subject matter to be anger.  That's simply not the case.

Also, before you read my response I want to clear the air about what exactly my concerns about the middle school youth program were.  Just in case you did not read the prior article, here is an excerpt,

"It's not that I don't trust that my church youth group leaders are fully committed to the Lord and to serving our youth.  It's just that, I remember middle school.  I remember that kids were catty.  They were obsessed with boy-girl relationships.  They were mean.  Let's face it, I was one of those kids in middle school.  I realized that a large portion of my child's Sunday morning church experience was going to be "socializing" among this peer group.  And I'm not trying to sound judgmental...please hear my heart...but let's face it, we all know that a large portion of youth group is also geared towards fun and games.  They're kids.  They like to have fun.  I get it, really I do.  It's an outreach tool.  But what I couldn't seem to reconcile with myself, was if it was all worth it.  I knew that there was nothing that even loving, caring youth workers could do about eliminating the negative influences that would undoubtedly be presented to my kids by their peers. "  

I also followed this up later in the article to let you know how our thoughts on the matter had progressed through prayer and study...

" I want you to know that this conviction of mine to bring my children into church worship with me is no longer so much about being concerned about the negative influence that they may receive from peers.  It is much more about a call from the Omniscient God directed to my husband and me to bring up our children "in the training and instruction of the Lord"(Eph. 6:4).   Consider this quote from the book (Children in Church):

"We knew we could probably do an adequate job of teaching our children about the faith if we kept them at arm's length.  However, to pursue the divine mission of nurturing and training the next generation, we needed to be willing to live out before them, moment by moment, our prayerfully faithful though oft imperfect desire to love and serve the living God." "

Finally, my response...


To Unknown,

First, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to read my article and to post your thoughts on the matter. I would also like to say that every point that you brought up are not new thoughts to us. We prayed for nearly a year about our decision to let our children participate in the middle school youth group on Sunday mornings. We fully considered every argument in order to decide what we felt was best for our family.

Now, I'd like to respond to your comments. You hinted at first that we were being "overly protective" (Presumably by not allowing our children to participate in the middle school youth program). Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that "overly protective" by definition means that one is protective of someone or something when there really is no danger or threat. However, in your very next sentence you admit, "Your points on the environment within youth ministries is a painful reality." That's just it. Having not grown up within the church myself and having not volunteered with the middle school youth program, I was very concerned that I was being overly protective. So I sought out counsel from many Christian friends, both of whom had grown up in youth group and those who have and currently volunteer there. I went looking for someone to tell me that my concerns weren't warranted. I couldn't find one. Every person, even those volunteering there and those with their children in the program confirmed that I had reason to be concerned. So I concluded that I wasn't, in fact being "overly protective"...I was simply being protective, which is my job as a parent to do.

As to your point that "Children's ministries allow for youth to connect with God on a youth level"... I think that it is presumptuous to assume that a youth leader (who sees my child only 1-2 hours a week) or a program director (who doesn't even know my child) knows better than I, his mother and primary teacher, how my child learns. Each of my children thrive with different learning styles and personalities and I am very aware of each of them. My husband and I believe that we, the parents, are mandated by Scripture to disciple our children. We don't just drag our kids into church kicking and screaming and expect them to "be quiet and listen". We look for ways to engage them before, during, and after the service. The book I reviewed, Children in Church, is very helpful in offering practical ways for the parents to help their children become engaged during the sermon including preparing their hearts for worship, helping them to draw (when they are very young)and take notes during the sermon, and discussing it as a family afterwards. Also, discipling our children doesn't just happen on Sunday mornings...it happens daily as we have family worship, devotionals, and prayer time...as we discuss spiritual matters as we go about our day and study God's word within our school curricula.

You also said, " the "language" used to explain the theology shared (in church services) is not the "language" children speak". Unfortunately, this is partially true...but also a serious problem. At what age do you think a person should be able to comprehend a sermon spoken from a typical bible-preaching pulpit? If not by middle school, then by high school?? Surely by the time they are an adult and in college? By the time they are married? Then why is it that the "youth" of our church continue to segregate themselves from the majority of the congregation well into adulthood...with high school groups, college age ministries, even "young married" ministries. These ministries aren't just stopping with an after church social or in-home bible study...they are tailor making entire worship services "speaking in their worship style and language". I agree with you that "Segregation does not help progress within a learning environment, but stifles it"! I agree with you that "The Enemy divides! The Lord multiplies!" which is precisely why I do not believe in the age segregation that takes place within the church. My 11 year old has accepted Jesus as His Lord and Savior. The same Holy Spirit that resides within me resides in him. I think he is perfectly able to comprehend preaching from the Word of God. And when he comes to something he is having trouble understanding, thankfully his father and I are right there next to him to help him understand.

You also said, "There is power in multiple perspectives and techniques. You know what your children need on a certain level, but as parents, we are not perfect either. Sometimes we need to allow our children to be exposed to other Christian viewpoints..." Oh, I will definitely agree with you that I am not perfect (in parenting and otherwise!) and I'm afraid, my children are the ones who know that the best! Once again, just because my children aren't participating in church youth group on Sundays doesn't mean that they are not being "exposed to other Christian (or non-Christian) viewpoints". We openly discuss what other people think and believe with our children and ask them what they think. When we made the decision not to participate in middle school youth, we sat down with our son and explained to him why. We gave examples of our concerns, we didn't try to shield him from it, but explained it fully. He understood and agreed with our decision. We participate in a variety of activities with other families (church related and non-church related) including Bible Bowl (a youth program complete with games and candy rewards), homeschool co-ops and field trips, and sports/extra-curricular activities. We are close friends with several families (all with different 'Christian viewpoints') whom we see on a nearly weekly basis. We consider them not only friends, but mentors for ourselves and our children.

Finally, I appreciate the encouragement to volunteer within our church's youth program. And I will say, that we very nearly did. My husband and I prayed specifically about this. We both felt that the only way we would allow our kids to participate in the youth group would be if we were volunteering. We felt that would only be responsible since God gave us, the parents, the responsibility of teaching our children about Him (Deuteronomy 6:7). One day we will stand before him and I don't think "Well, I sent him to Sunday School...I don't really know what was going on there, but that's not my fault," is going to fly. However, instead of convicting us to serve and participate there, my husband and I both felt a strong conviction to 'step it up' in discipling our own children and for us, that included Sunday morning.

We also felt a conviction and a burden to share this with others. Neither of us feel that youth ministry is "wrong". We know families that are doing a fine job of discipling their kids and still participate in all youth groups. But we know so many more who are not discipling their kids and I think this is largely due to the fact that church body is rather silent on the matter. Instead of telling parents to step it up and live out and teach their children about their faith, instead of encouraging dads to man up and lead their families spiritually in the manner of family devotions and worship within the home, the church body is often saying, "Don't worry about it...we got it handled. Just send them to youth group on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights." But that is not enough and it is not Scriptural.

I want to be clear. Even though we choose not to participate in the middle school and up youth program, that does not mean that we don't find value in it. I know that many parents simply won't teach their children about God. And if they won't, someone definitely should. But I do often wish that youth leaders would recognize that the parents should be the first to disciple their children (both because Scripture mandates it and because it makes sense-parents are with them more and know them and love them intimately). I wish that youth leaders would invest as much time into equipping parents to do what Scripture tells them and working with parents as they do in trying to reach kids "in their own language". Parents are the ones who truly know the language of their child's heart. We are the ones who are best fit to reach them when we are fully leaning on God and walking in His way, that's why God gave them to us!

As a youth leader I beg you, stop telling parents, "Back off, I got this!" Please instead encourage parents to step up and do what God designed them to do. If we can get parents to step up, I believe my concerns about church youth group will no longer be valid. It doesn't matter how many loving youth group leaders a church has, there will still be severe issues of sin that is prevalent among our teenagers and preteens today. But if the church can get the fathers to "turn their hearts back to their children" then we will see a real change and growth in our children.

Blessings,
Shanna Pin It Now!

The Toddler Diaries - Sensory Bags

 The Toddler Diaries is a blog series I created to showcase the toddler activities I attempt with my 5, 4, 3, and 1 year old.  I also rate our experience to let you know if I think it was worth the time (and the mess)!  Feel free to check out all of my Toddler Diaries posts.

Sensory Bags

 I've seen pins and posts about sensory bags and thought the idea looked intriguing.  It's a pretty simple concept that starts with a bag of balloons.

 Next, search your home looking for items to put in your balloons.  I chose the following:

rice

rotini noodles

buttons

yarn

paper clips

lotion 

 Next, fill your bags.  I made two of each item....so, two balloons with buttons, two balloons with noodles, etc. so that the kids could match the balloons according to feel.  I DID NOT use the same color balloon with any two of the same sensory item.  I wanted the kids to be able to match the bags by feel OR match them by color.  I also realized that a very full balloon of rice felt very different then a balloon with just a little bit of rice, so I did two of each.  Similarly, I made two balloons with a small ball of yarn each in them as well as two balloons with some yarn just randomly stuffed inside.

 L4 seemed to have the most fun with the sensory bags.  She could understand the concept of matching them by feel which was a little harder for my younger 3 year old to grasp.

Rating:  Educational activity that promotes good thinking skills.  However, the bags are slightly time-consuming to make and really don't hold our kids' attention very long.
Time Commitment For Me:  It took little more than an hour to find the materials needed to make the bags and fill them.
Toddler Time: 5-10 minutes.  This is the most disappointing part of the project.  I thought the kids would have more fun feeling the bags, trying to guess what was inside them, and matching them.  Unfortunately, it really doesn't hold their attention.
Additional Comments: We've actually had these bags for a couple months now, and I rarely pull them out.  Honestly, I forget that we have them.  I'm afraid these bags were just a little underwhelming for our toddlers. Pin It Now!

Teaching Kids to Sing

 The creators of Vocal Coach are Chris and Carole Beatty.  They have been teaching singing for over 40 years.  They offer both Vocal Coach Singer (great for junior high students through adult) and Teaching Kids to Sing (for ages 5 through 5th grade).

Our family was sent Teaching Kids to Sing which includes 2 instructional DVDs and 1 instructional CD.

The first DVD is broken into four sections:

Posture
Breathing
Tone
Warm Ups

The second DVD includes three sections:
Rhythm
Diction
Dynamics

The CD includes a total of 4 songs and 8 Warm Ups (each has a track with vocals and without).

The videos are recorded in what looks to be a typical music classroom.  Chris Beatty leads a group of students in vocal exercises and songs as he instructs both the students and us (the DVD audience).  Carole Beatty is also in the classroom helping the students as they learn.

My children in grades K, 2, 4, 5, and 6 all participated along with these DVDs.  At first they seemed hesitant to sing along with the lessons, but as they saw that everyone was singing (including Mom!), they quickly joined in.  I appreciated that kids were in the video (not only singing, but often answering questions) and I think that it made it easier for my kids to feel like they could participate.

E9 said, "I think the Teaching Kids to Sing videos helped me to learn a lot more about singing.  I know that I need to stand up tall when I'm singing now."

A10 said, "I like how they turned everything you learned into a song at the end of the lesson."

H6 said, "I liked it because they are teaching me to sing."

Our kids learned songs like "Upright Child of the King" to remember to use good posture while singing and "Breathing Rap" to help remember to use proper breathing.  The DVDs are not very long...maybe about 30 minutes each.  We chose to watch the lessons 2 at a time and then practice the songs and warm-ups in between. 

I think this is a great beginner program for anyone wanting their kids to learn the basics of singing.  It's so user-friendly...just pop in a DVD or CD and sing along! 

Teaching Kids to Sing 3 Disc DVD/CD Set is sold for $44.99.  Both this product and the Vocal Coach Singer were reviewed by the Schoolhouse Review Crew, so be sure to check out the blog for more info!


Disclaimer: I have been given the wonderful opportunity to review many homeschool products over the last few years. The only compensation that I receive for my review is the free product. I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in review groups and I have enjoyed trying out these products and giving you my honest opinion. Pin It Now!

Growing Up Wild

 Growing Up Wild is a collection of educational DVDs that takes you into the remote jungles of Indonesia and shows you the day to day life of the four Wild brothers. Each episode will share an aspect of missionary life and offer activity ideas that will cause your children to explore their world and connect with ours. -From the Growing Up Wild website.

Meet the Wilds!  Mom, Dad, and 3 Wild brothers.  The Wilds are an amazing family serving as missionaries in the remote tribal jungle of Indonesia.

We received Volume 1 and 4 of the Growing Up Wild dvds.  Each included 3 15-minute episodes as well as an activity guide for teachers.

Volume 1 included the following episodes:

1. Home Sweet Hut - Get an insiders peek at the Wild Family Hut.

2. Supply Trip - Living in the jungle means flying in supplies.

3. Sun & Water - Learn with the Wild's about how sun and water power their home and help them to live in the jungle a little more comfortably.

 Volume 4 includes the following episodes:

1. Amazing World Around Us - Amazing episode about the wildlife in the jungles of Papua.

2. Adventures in Culture - Learn along with the Wild brothers about the tribal culture...including nose piercing!  (My kids loved this episode!)

3. Tribal Calling (See why the Wilds and other missionary families feel called to tribal missions.)

 These dvds are a part of a 5 dvd series filmed by the Wild Family.  It took them 3 years to film and produce these films that they consider "a tool to influence an army of future missionaries that would take the Gospel to the remaining unreached people groups of the world."

Our entire family have truly enjoyed each episode of the Growing Up Wild dvds.  It has been particularly timely for us as we have been studying missionaries this year as part of our read-aloud studies.  It's been wonderful for our kids to get a glimpse into the lives of current day missionaries and to learn how this Christians are sharing the gospel "to the ends of the earth"!

As well as watching the episodes, we also enjoyed doing the follow up activities suggested on the teacher's guide which are a part of the DVD-Rom.  Some activities were as simple as watching a creation video that the Wild brothers enjoy. 

 One activity included making a Venn Diagram to show the similarities and differences between the Wild hut and our own house.  Our kids liked comparing our house to the Wild's hut, but that experience was quickly topped when they had the opportunity to make their own hut...

 It is far more crude then the Wild hut, but such a fun project!

The Growing Up Wild dvd series would make a great addition to your homeschool studies and would also be perfect for a Sunday School Class series.  The quality of the filming is excellent and the episodes are educational and inspiring. 

 You can purchase each Growing Up Wild dvd for $18.99 and you can read more reviews at the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.


Disclaimer: I have been given the wonderful opportunity to review many homeschool products over the last few years. The only compensation that I receive for my review is the free product. I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in review groups and I have enjoyed trying out these products and giving you my honest opinion. Pin It Now!

Pumpkin Spice Cookies - Been There, Pinned That

   Who hasn't fallen head over heels for Pinterest these days?  The other day my grandma walked into her kitchen and announced sadly, "My flipflop just broke."

   Simultaneously both my aunt and my husband...yes, I said my husband...nearly screamed, "I know how to fix that!"  I knew how to fix it too because, like them, I had seen it on Pinterest.

   So I thought I would ocassionally post the results of pins that I actually pin and use.  First up is some yummy "cookies" I made the other day after seeing them on Pinterest.  The original pin came from a blog called Runs for Cookies Recipes.

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

This recipe is so simple that even I could make it.  We did double the original in order to fit the needs of our super sized family....oh, and I added chocolate chips. :)

Ingredients:
2 boxes of Spice Cake Mix
1 large can of pumpkin
1 bag of semi sweet chocolate chips

Simply mix the Spice Cake mix and pumpkin together.  Really easy, but you'll be a little worried at first.  Try humming along with Dori from Finding Nemo..."just keep mixing, mixing, mixing...".  Seriously, mix for several minutes and it will eventually look like the above pic.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Place spoonful "lumps" onto a baking sheet and bake according to cake mix directions.  I got about 6 dozen cookies.

I have to admit, they were oh-so-yummy!  But I think they were far too cake-like to be called cookies.  I would consider them more like 'muffin-tops'.  Whatever you call them, we will be making them again and again! Pin It Now!

Primary Arts of Language by IEW

 The Institute For Excellence in Writing (IEW) is one of those curriculum providers that I have admired from afar for many years.  I have often passed their booth at homeschool conventions and thought, "When I am really ready to start teaching writing, I will check them out."  But if I'm honest, I felt a little intimidated by IEW and just wasn't sure if it would be the right fit for our family.
  

 Nevertheless, when I had the opportunity to review IEW's new Primary Arts of Language (PAL) program, I just couldn't pass it up.  The PAL program is designed to teach primary age students (grades K-2) how to begin with reading and writing.  I was particularly interested in this since I have a kindergartner this year.  E5 started the school year using a different program, but I was finding that it just wasn't right for us.  We kept trying to make it work, but I could tell that E5 would really flourish with something more hands-on and less like a workbook.  The more research I did on PAL, the more it looked like exactly what I was looking for.

 I have to say, at first glance the PAL program looks overwhelming.  Partially, that is because it is not just one program, but two complete programs designed to fit perfectly together.  I will briefly break the components of each program down...

   First up is the Primary Arts of Language: Reading Complete Package.  It includes:

PAL Reading Teachers Manual
PAL Phonetic Games book - This spiral bound book includes everything you need to create over 30 file folder games for your student to use with the reading program.  The games are printed on cardstock, making them durable for repeated use, and all you have to do is cut them out and assemble them into file folder games.
PAL Phonetic Farm Folder with Stickers - As students learn new multi-letter phonograms, they have the opportunity to put stickers onto their Phonetic Farm.  As well as a reward tool, the Phonetic Farm is also helpful for reviewing the sounds.
PAL Reading DVD Rom - Includes the following:

• Instructional Video by Jill Pike
• The Four Language Arts MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Nurturing Competent Communicators MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Poetry as an Integrator MP3 Audio by Anna Ingham
• Intro to the Blended Sound Sight Program MP3 Audio by Anna Ingham
• Primary Arts of Language: Reading Student Book (e-book)

 If purchased separately, these items would cost $98.  But the PAL Reading Complete Package is sold for $69.

  The second component of the PAL program is the Primary Arts of Language: Writing Complete Package.  It includes:

PAL Writing Teaching Manual
PAL Writing DVD-Rom - Includes the following:

• Instructional Video by Jill Pike
• Reading Comprehension MP3 Audio by Adam Andrews
• Dictation, Narration, and Public Speaking MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• The Four Language Arts MP3 Audio by Andrew Pudewa
• Primary Arts of Language: Writing Student Books (e-book)

 All About Spelling Basic Interactive Kit
All About Spelling Level 1 - Teacher's Manual and One Student Material Packet plus bonus e-audio downloads

I was thrilled that the PAL Writing package included All About Spelling.  AAS is a program designed by Marie Rippel that we have reviewed before and were already familiar with.  I have enjoyed using AAS with my older kids and knew that the E5 would enjoy this multi-sensory approach as well.

If purchased separately these items would cost $113.  The PAL Writing Complete Package is $89.

 For a more thorough introduction to the PAL program, watch this video from Andrew Pudewa:



You may also be interested in this webinar recorded to answer many FAQs about the program.

Finally, I wanted to share how a typical day using the PAL program works.  First, I will tell you that it did take me about a week to look through the contents of the program and to prepare the items needed.  Both the Reading and the Writing program contained an introductory video on the DVD Rom that I watched immediately and found very helpful. I then set about printing out the student materials and assembling them in two separate binders (one for reading and one for writing).  I also prepared all of the file folder games at once.  You may choose to prepare the games only as needed, but I knew it would be helpful to me to already have them ready and available when I needed them.

Also, I will mention that E5 has only been using this program for a few weeks and we are moving slowly but steadily through it.  So there are some components of the program that we haven't got to yet (namely All About Spelling) which will start later in the program.

At the beginning of the day, I will open both of my teacher's manuals (for the reading and writing programs) and set them side by side on my desk.  I refer to them both and move back and forth between them as directed. 

First, we will read the assigned poem.  The poems are repeated for several days and each day the poem will be used to teach new phonograms, spelling, or grammar rules.

Next we will move on to the class journal.  Our class journal is a simple notebook that I (the teacher) write in each day with the help of E5.  We will head each day's entry with the date which gives us a great opportunity to review calendar skills and capitalization rules.  Then E5 will help me to develop 2-3 sentences describing our day, which I will write.  Again, we review capitalization rules as well as punctuation rules.

Next we will move on to printing where E5 will review the letters he has already learned to write and sound out, as well as learn new letters using the PAL Letter Stories.  The letter stories are an adorable way to help students learn both the sound and construction of a letter.  For example, the letter 'c' is the happy letter.  He's happy be cause he is a c-c-cookie who someone has taken a bite out of.  (The letter 'c' looks like a round cooking that is open on one side because someone has taken a bite.)

Next, we will enjoy story time.  A new short story is provided each day in the teacher's manual, which I read out loud and then ask questions pertaining to the characters/setting, problem, climax, and clincher of the story.  I love that in kindergarten, E5 is already learning the elements of a short story!

Then E5 will get to play a few file folder games to reinforce the sounds and words he is learning.

E5 is always excited to get to this part of the day.  Not surprisingly, he loves playing games and I love a curriculum that includes learning games as part of their program! 

After playing games, we will have a work period...generally this is just a color, cut, and paste one-page activity that reinforces the sounds and words that we have learned that day.  E5 is a bit of an artist and has always enjoyed coloring and creating things.  He happily spends long periods of time working on art and craft projects and he shows no exception during the work period section of PAL.  He actually enjoys it.

Finally, we will add stickers to the Phonetic Farm which E5 will tell you is his favorite part of the day.  Exploring the Phonetic Farm allows him the opportunity to review the sounds we have been learning.  Sometimes we will have a spelling test or other end of day activities that PAL recommends.

Here is E5 with his sister, L4, who has also been following along with the PAL program.  They are playing the Color game together.  I love it when there is fun and smiles in my classroom!


Final Thoughts:  The Primary Arts of Language by IEW is a thorough program.  While I initially thought it seemed overwhelming, I found that there was a tremendous amount of help available within the program to make it easier for me to understand.  Once we delved into the program, I found it easy to use with each part of the day broken down step by step.  Generally, it takes us about 1.5-2 hours to move through the material for the day.  However, I think we, personally, are a bit slow.  This is new material for E5, he enjoys taking his time with coloring and playing games, and we also allow for a slower pace so that my 4 year old can follow along.

Also, I am happy to report that E5 has begun reading his first words using the PAL program!  He is not just memorizing, but beginning to sound out words.  Even though he is my fifth child to learn to read under my tutelage, I never ceased to be amazed and humbled at being a part of the process.  It is quite a blessing!

Primary Arts of Language was absolutely the right fit for our family.  I would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a beginning reading and writing program.  Several families reviewed this program, so feel free to check out other reviews at the Schoolhouse Review Crew blog.
Disclaimer: I have been given the wonderful opportunity to review many homeschool products over the last few years. The only compensation that I receive for my review is the free product. I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity to participate in review groups and I have enjoyed trying out these products and giving you my honest opinion. Pin It Now!