Thursday, August 27, 2009

Grapevine Studies: Old Testament Overview (A Review)

Earlier this year I applied for and was accepted to be a member of the TOS crew. This is a group of mainly homeschooling moms who will for the next year be reviewing products for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. You never know what you are going to get with this type of opportunity but I have been excited to receive some awesome products that are making up a big part of our curriculum this year.


My first review is with the company Grapevine Studies and their product,

I don't know about you, but I love curriculum's that draw in an array of subjects and this Bible Study does just that. Students get 50 lessons which encompass Bible History, art, science, math, memory verses, and review questions/answers. The ages recommended for this study are 5-7 but I have a four yr. old who is doing this with my 6 yr. old and I am even going to print out some extra sheets for my almost 2 yr. old because he likes to 'draw' too! You could even engage an older child by having them read the actual Bible account to the younger children and since the art is stick-figuring, the older child could also share in the teaching of that!

Grapevine Studies offers several ways of purchasing this curriculum. The Teacher Book and Student Book may be purchased in physical or e-book form. I am personally using the physical form of the Teacher Book and the e-book form for the student worksheets. I am not always crazy about e-books but in this case I like it because my boys are making their own 'history book' that can be read aloud later on to younger siblings or used to show family members what they are working on. The prices are as follows:

Beginner Old Testament Overview Student: $19.95
Beginner Old Testament Overview Student e-book: $19.95
Beginner Old Testament Overview Teacher: $29.95
Beginner Old Testament Overview Teacher e-book: $15.95

The only additional resources a teacher needs are a Bible, something to draw on such as a dry erase board or a chalk board (even just a piece of blank paper will work!) The student mainly needs a pen or pencil! It's that easy! Depending on the child and the time frame you can keep the lessons really simple or make them more involved by adding colored pencils, looking up words, looking up bible verses, etc. Reviewing could be done in the form of questions and answers, daily devotionals, or a child teaching lessons back to you on the dry erase board (most children and even adults like drawing on these!). I'll be honest and say that with 3 boys six and under and one baby on the way that many days I have really appreciated the 'short and to the point' approach this curriculum offers!
Grapevine Studies offers many other products for all age levels. They also offer a free weekly newsletter that during the summer featured a freebie e-lesson each week. The website frequently features free or low cost e-lessons! They have a free one right now on Ruth here. There is a sale page which happens to be offering some discounts on the very products featured in this review. I have also been given a discount code to share with you which will take 30% off of your order! Here it is: crew9. When you place an order, there is a box at checkout that says 'Enter your coupon number' where you can type crew9.
So dear readers, take some time this week and go over to Grapevine Studies and let me know what you think. Have any of you used products from this company before? I would love to hear from you!
April

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