The Classical Historian ~ A Mosaic Review

Today I have some neat history products from The Classical Historian!

Products Being Reviewed:

Ancient History Go Fish Game $11.95

The Socratic Discussion in History w/DVD $79.99

Take A Stand: Medieval Civilizations $18.95

32-Week Lesson Guide $24.99

Vendor:

The Classical Historian

Contact Information:

Website

Facebook

Other Products:

Games and Game Bundles $11.95 - $59.99

Complete History Curricula $168.99 - $256

The Socratic Discussion in History w/DVD & Take A Stand Bundles $99.99

California History books $14.95 - $24.95

Individual Products $11.95 - $99.99

Our Thoughts (and More Information):

We don't play games very often here but we really enjoyed playing the Ancient History Go Fish Game. It is actually 4 games in 1! You can play Go Fish, Collect the Cards, Chronology or Continents. The kids enjoyed playing Collect the Cards and Go Fish the best. The games are easy to play and the price is reasonable. The cards are sturdy and larger than your average card game cards (very nice)! There are 48 Jumbo cards, the games are for ages 3 & up, and for 2 or more players.

Take A Stand Medieval Civilizations is an 88-page paperback workbook that includes Reading, Discussing, and Writing. It is written by Jon De Gree and published by Take A Stand Publications. This little workbook can stand alone or be used as part of The Classical Historian's complete Medieval Curriculum. There are two parts. Part One includes Social Studies Essay Questions and Prewriting Activities from The Fall of the Roman Empire to The Age of Exploration. Part Two is Skills for the One-Paragraph Essay.

The Socratic Discussion in History & DVD includes a 77-page coil bound workbook and 4 DVD's. The workbook has 14 chapters including How to Use This Program, What is a Classical Education in History, The Thinking Tools of the Historian, Six Essential Thinking Tools of the Historian, Open-Ended History Questions, The Fall of the Roman Empire, Teaching with the Socratic Discussion, The Writing Process for a One-Paragraph Assignment, Advanced Thinking Tools of the Historian, The Writing Process for a Five-Paragraph Assignment, Grading Essays, The Essential Tools of Literary Analysis, Encouraging Family Discussion at the Dinner Table, and Evaluation. The DVD's include an Introduction to the Socratic Discussion Method and 3 DVD's that help you teach the Socratic Method in History.

The 32-Week Guide is 62 pages of Lesson Plans, so you don't have to figure it all out yourself!

I am very impressed! While the games are fun and educational, I really like that this program helps you help your child learn how to think and analyze history. I LOVE the open-ended questions and the how to write an essay part!

I know that budgets are tight (I know ours is) and that this program is on the pricy side. IF it were me considering this program I would start with the card games to supplement ANY history curriculum. Then I would purchase The Socratic Discussion in History w/DVD's. This can be used with ANY history curriculum and the thinking skills and essay writing process is excellent. Then if I could afford more I would add in the Take A Stand workbook and then the 32-Week Guide. If I was blessed with $170 to spend on a full history curriculum I would!

TOS Review ~ Scruble Cube

Can I just say, "WOW!" and leave it at that? This product has been a lot of FUN to review! So,

What is it? 

It is a cross between Scrabble and Rubik's Cube! It's Scruble Cube! Scruble Cube is an educational game that is played similar to Scrabble. You form words using the letters on the cube. Words can begin and end anywhere on the cube as long as they are in a straight line. You can manipulate the cube in a manner similar to a Rubik's Cube in order to form more words.

What's in the Box?*The Cube*Instructions*Getting Started Guide*Timer*Score Pad
More Details:*$24.95 (click here to purchase or learn more) *Ages 8+*1-4 Players*Multiple Variations of Play*Website has Lesson Plans (Language, Math, English, Spelling, Logic and Science)*Online forum to see/share other ways to use the cube is coming soon!*Instructions and Score Pad template are downloadable from the website.  What do we Think?
We LOVE it! Unicorn used the Scruble Cube and the Scruble Cube PDF Worksheet from the website for practice finding words, counting up the points and looking up the words in the dictionary. She really enjoyed this game and I liked that it involved dictionary skills! I like that the instructions were easy to read and that they included 2 variations. In addition, I like that the website provides additional ways to use the cube and to make it even more educational that it already is. 

Unicorn using the Scruble Cube and the Worksheet

One thing I do NOT care for is that it feels fragile. I would love to let my 5 year-old try to find words but I am scared to let her touch the cube. I would be very careful allowing young children (or rambunctious ones) to use this product.
Click here to read what my Crew Mates think about the Scruble Cube!
{Disclosure: I received a the Scruble Cube in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and all thoughts and opinions are my own.}

TOS Review {and Discount Code} ~ Pig Pile by R&R Games

Well, here it is! My first official review as a member of The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Review Crew!
Pig Pile by R&R Games
What is Pig Pile? 
Pig Pile is a fast-paced card game where the object of the game is to be the first person to get rid of all your cards and collect the most pigs.
How do you play Pig Pile? 
I will be honest...the rules are a little difficult to understand. Basically, each player has 6 cards laying in front of them (3 face up and 3 face down). These cards do NOT come into play until the draw pile is gone. Additionally, each player is dealt 7 cards as a starting hand. The remaining cards become the draw pile.
The dealer goes first. During each turn a player must play one or more cards into the pig pile (the discard pile) which is formed next to the draw pile. Discarded cards must be equal to or higher than the top card on the pig pile. The only exception is the Hog Wild card. If there are no cards or the top card is a Hog Wild card than any card may be played. To play more than one card at a time the cards must be the same or include a Hog Wild. At the end of a turn the player must draw a card from the draw pile. If a player can not play any cards then he/she must pick up all the cards in the Pig Pile and play goes to the next player (do not draw a card). Play continues this way until all the cards are gone from the draw pile.
Once the draw pile is gone, play continues as before except players no longer draw a card at the end of their turn. Once a player has played all the cards in his/her hand he/she now plays any of his/her face up cards. The card played must still be equal to or higher than the card in the Pig Pile. If the player can not play a card he/she must pick up the Pig Pile and one of his/her face up cards. 
When a player does not have any cards in his/her hand and has played all his/her face up cards he/she must play one of the face down cards (a Slop card). This is a blind draw. If the card is not equal to or higher than the top card in the Pig Pile he/she must pick up all the cards in the Pig Pile and play goes to the next player.
Special Cards and Plays ~ Hog Tied (#4) the next player loses a turn (if two are played then the next two players lose a turn). Ewe-Turn (#11) the direction of play is reversed. Hog Wash (#8) the Pig Pile is washed away (this also happens if 3 or more of the same card or Hog Wild cards are played in a row). With Hog Tied and Ewe-Turn the players turn ends. With a Hog Wash the players turn continues.
How do I Win?
The first person to get rid of all his/her cards gets 3 pigs. Play continues and the second person to get rid of his/her cards gets 2 pigs and the round ends. All other players get 1 pig except the person with the most cards, he/she gets none. The deal passes to the left and a new round is started. The game ends after 5 rounds or when all the pigs have been released from the pen. The player with the most pigs wins.
Are there Alternate ways to play?
Yes, there are quick start directions and directions for an easier version.
Other important information.
*The game is for  3-6 players ages 7 and up.*Pig Pile retails for $15.95. *Some other games from R&R Games include Pressure Point, Take Your Best Shot, Pants on Fire, Ticked Off, Smarty Party!, disorder, Thingamajig, Flea Circus and much, much more! 
My thoughts:
*Once we got the hang of the game it was fun.*The alternate version is easier to play and produces a faster game. *The game is geared for 7 and up but my 5 year old enjoyed playing as part of a "team". In fact, she is getting the hang of it and will probably be playing on her own soon. *The game is more fun the more people are playing. One night my sister came to visit and we were able to have 4 people play. You can play with 2 people but it is definitely not as exciting! *This game would be a great way to reinforce greater than, less than and equal to since you can only place a number that is equal to or greater than the top number on the Pig Pile.*My kids were disappointed that the pigs are not used more. *I was disappointed with the difficulty of the directions. I would like directions that my 11 year-old could read and understand.
To learn more about games from R&R Games you can go to their website www.RnRgames.com or call 1.888.8-RIDDLE.
Discount Code ~ CREW20
R&R Games was generous to offer a discount code! The code is for 20% of any purchase from their website and is good until the end of 2011.
Click here to see what other Crew Members are saying about R&R Games!
{Disclaimer: I received Pig Pile for free to review. I received no other compensation. All opinions are my own.}