TOS Review ~ Medieval Machines Pack (Pitsco Education)

Do you like hands-on learning? Ever wondered how to make history more hands-on? Do your kids like science projects, building things? Well, Pitsco Education may have just what you are looking for! We received the Medieval Machines Homeschool Pack from Pitsco. 
What you get for $21.95:~Instructions and materials to build a Trebuchet~Instructions and materials to build a Catapult~Clay~32 page Siege Machines Book filled with a brief History of the machines and 6 Science and Math Experiments for the Catapult and 5 Science and Math Experiments for the Trebuchet (there are also Additional Resources, Standards Addressed and a Bibliography). Don't forget the section on SAFETY!
What is NOT included (*Trebuchet; ~Catapult):*Glue (bond or Insta-Cure)*Hobby Knife*Needlenose pliers*Safety goggles*Felt-tipped marker*Sandpaper*Ruler*Scissors~Glue (Bond or Wood)~Toothpick~Piece of Waxed Paper 15"~1-2 facial tissues~Pencil

While this is geared for the Intermediate/Middle school level, I think both older and younger children can learn a lot from it. My children are on the younger side (3, 5 and 11). My 11 year-old helped daddy build while the 5 year-old watched. All three children enjoy watching the clay "fly" through the house! The 5 year-old asked to see which one made the clay go farther (she wanted them to "race"). We didn't use many of the experiments in the book because they are written above the level of my children but we are saving it and the machines for when they are ready! We did, however, lead the children in discussions that were related to the experiments in the book and did some modified (age-approipriate) experiments.

Other thoughts:

~The kids LOVE it! They love watching the clay "fly" and seeing how far it will go. The also enjoyed seeing how it was built.

~Daddy and Unicorn said the directions were easy to read and follow. It only took about an hour to build each one. (That is start to finish including drying time).

~I loved that it was a fun and easy way to bring Daddy into a homeschooling project! I was able to take pictures (see below)!

Pitsco has many other products. Check out their website for find products in Aerospace, Race Cars, Engineering, Math, Physical Science, Robotics, Structures and Sustainable Energy. They also sell materials and tools and classes.

Click here to see what my Crew Mates are saying about Pitsco Education.

{Disclaimer: I received the Medieval Machines Pack from Pitsco in exchange for my honest review. No other compensation was received and all opinions are my own.}

Thankful Thursday ~ December 8

I am joining up with Brenda at Garden of Learning for Thankful Thursday.
Today I am thankful that ALL my children slept past 6:30. In fact, I think the first one was up at 6:45, the second one about 10 min. later and the last one woke up at 7:30! This is a VERY RARE occurrence around here. These children are usually ALL up between 6 and 6:30! They also all slept through the night and the youngest had a dry pull-up! These things NEVER happen around here, let alone all on the same day!
Oh, what a beautiful Mornin'Oh, what a beautiful day.I've got a beautiful feelin'Everything's goin' my way!~Oklahoma (the musical)
Also linked up to: 

Brag Time Thursday ~ Linky

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Brag Time Thursday ~ Kids in the Kitchen!

Yep, I finally let the kids in the kitchen. ;) (and I figured out how to do the slideshow thing)!

Workbox Wednesday ~ Linky!

Today we are still taking it easy. We are reading the Friend and memorizing the Articles of Faith for Religion, a lesson in Artistic Pursuits for Art, and Day 7 of Discover Christmas. Also, Unicorn is doing lesson 38 in Teaching Textbooks 4 and playing Fractazmic (review coming soon) for Math and Ladybug is working her way through Reading Eggs and Ooka Island for Reading. Monkey participates when he feels like it and is also looking through books.

Terrific Tuesday ~ MyMemories

Here it is! Another freebie courtesy of MyMemories! Don't have their fabulous software (they just came out with Version 3)? Purchase it and save $10 using this code STMMMS80543. With the code you also get a $10 coupon for the MyMemories Store!

Click image to download or click here!

TOS Review ~ Artistic Pursuits

When given the opportunity to review Artistic Pursuits the question wasn't "should we or shouldn't we?" it was "which book should we choose"! I have been wanting to try their curriculum for some time now but I prefer to "try before you buy" anything that cost over $15. 

Since I have a preschooler, a kinder/1st grader and a 6th grader I choose to go with the Book One of the K-3 series. This was a perfect choice as the 6th grader has had very little exposure to art. 

In a Nutshell:

~Grades K-3 (but my 6th grader is loving it)

~$42.95

~3 sections: What Artists Do (10 lessons); What Artists See (7 lessons); Where We Find Art (15 lessons)

~88 pages

~Soft bound, printed on heavy-weight paper

~Little teacher prep

~Reusable

~Other products cover Preschool through High School

The book starts with a page on "how" to teach the lessons in the book. Then most lessons are 3 pages long. The first page is the explanation page (click on the image for more information). 

The second page show a piece of art and has questions to help students examine the artwork.

The third page gives an "assignment", a list of materials and a student example.

In addition to purchasing the book, you will need some art supplies. A Materials List is included in the front of each book and on the website. We searched around the house and found many of the supplies. We picked up additional supplies at a craft store. Materials are also available for purchase through the Artistic Pursuits website. The website is also full of additional supporting information. Click here for their contact information.

Pros:

~Very through

~Child friendly

~Well-written

~Lots of examples

~Covers art history, technique, and various styles and mediums

Cons:

~price $42.95

Click here to see what my Crew Mates are saying about this and other Artistic Pursuits products.

{Disclaimer: I received a copy of Artistic Pursuits K-3 Book One in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and all opinions are my own.}