The Curriculum Choice

Are you concerned with the clothing styles that are available for young girls today? Do you find it a constant struggle to find clothes that you deem ‘appropriate’ for your preteen daughter? Do you find yourself explaining time and time again to your daughter why she can’t dress like all her friends? Do you long to spend more time with your daughter one on one? If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, I urge you to take a look at Secret Keeper Girl: Eight Great Dates for You and Your Daughter Kit 1: Beauty.

This incredible bible study, written specifically for mothers of daughters between the ages of 8-12 and teaches the truth of God’s word in a fun and memorable way. Designed to teach young girls the importance of purity, by focusing on modesty this study teaches each participant that they are a masterpiece created by God! Oh how I wish I could have learned these important truths when I was a young girl!

SKG is set up to be a series of 8 dates for you to embark on with your daughter. These ‘dates’ include special treats like facials, manicures, a tea party, shopping and a trip to a local art museum while sharing a key scripture on each date and incorporating important biblical truths each step of the way. Each date is written exclusively to moms and daughters, except the final date which is a special father/daughter date that is sure to be a highlight of the study.

If you’re beginning to think that this study is purely fun and lacks substance, let me assure you that is not the case. Each study is written to discuss the concepts of modesty and purity in a tone and language designed to increase understanding of the importance of finding who we are in Christ and not in superficial beauty, clothes or make-up. Your daughter’s confidence will be boosted just to have mom’s undivided attention and you will be blessed by the conversations that will be sparked by this study.

The Secret Keeper Girl kit includes the following:

An easy to use Guidebook for moms that includes ideas for each date and discussion questions to use on each special date
A CD that you play at the beginning and end of each date that features author Dannah Gresh and Rebecca St. James
A Diary for your daughter to record her own thoughts
Fun Stickers for your daughter to decorate her diary

This exciting study for young girls will teach girls (and moms):

The importance of dressing modestly
Easy tips for determining if your clothing is indeed modest
The source of true beauty , ‘The King is enthralled with your beauty…’, Psalm 45:11

Though the author has suggested free and low cost date ideas, some of them will cost a bit of money so it would be wise to look ahead to each date and budget appropriately.

I realize that some mothers could be overwhelmed because they have several daughters that would truly enjoy spending time alone with mom. These dates could easily be adapted to fit your situation. Though these lessons are ideal for mothers and daughters, there is no reason that a young girl wouldn’t benefit from this study f it were to include a grandmother, older sister, aunt or close family friend. In fact, this study could easily be used in a group setting for church groups, or with your own homeschool group.

Attending one of the SKG Bod Squad Events is a super fun way to jump start the fun. Each event includes games, a modest fashion show, and special Truth or Bare fashion tests.

So, if you’re looking for a fun, yet ‘meaty’ enough study for your 8-12 year old daughter, where you can create special memories along the way, why not consider Secret Keeper Girl? You can buy your kit for $19 at Pure Freedom.com or slightly less at Christian Book Distributors . Your daughter will thank you and as a mother of two boys trying to raise children that remain pure in body and mind until marriage, I’ll thank you!

Tonya Prater and her husband have homeschooled their three children ages 16, 15 and 13 for the past eleven years using every homeschool method ever invented before settling on what seems to resemble the Charlotte Mason philosophy with an unschooling flair. After traveling for the past four years with her husband’s job, they finally took a huge step of faith and became a Full-time-RV-Living-Roadschooling-Family. You can read about the day to day happenings of their journey at Live the Adventure . You’ll also find Tonya writing at The Homeschool Classroom and the HSB Company Front Porch.

Other related titles:

Please, Baby, Please

Army Wives: The Unwritten Code of Military Marriage

I have to admit, when I find a book or resource that works wonderfully for my family, I love to tell everyone about it. That’s exactly how I felt when I found this book. I was so excited by the results I saw right away that I literally carried this around in my purse so I wouldn’t forget to show it to my friends on homeschool outings.

Are you curious to know what has me so excited? Allow me to introduce Vocabulary Cartoons, SAT Word Power, written by Sam Burchers and published by New Monic Books, Inc. Though there is an entire line of these incredible teaching books to choose from, my focus will be on the one designed to improve SAT scores because that is the book that we have used. However, from viewing the website, it looks as though all the books in the Vocabulary Cartoon series are written using the same format.

Written directly to 7^th-12^th grade students, Vocabulary Cartoons SAT Word Power claims that your child can learn hundreds of SAT level words effortlessly, but just how is that possible? And the question you want to know is does it really work? In my experience of using SAT Word Power with my 13, 14 and 16 year old children, I would say, yes it certainly does.

How the book works

These books use mnemonics, a nifty devise that aids in the memorization process. It could be a phrase, a rhyme or an acronym that allows you to remember something by associating it with something you already know. Confused? How about an example? Do you remember learning the colors in a rainbow in elementary school? My teacher helped me learn them by introducing the mnemonic, Roy G. Biv. I already knew my colors; I just needed to learn the colors that made up a rainbow in order. Remembering the mnemonic she gave me I was easily able to picture the colors red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet by associating each letter in the name Roy G. Biv with a color. R= red, O= orange, Y= yellow; okay you get the point. Another mnemonic you’re probably familiar with is the phrase, Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492. The catchy rhyme makes this little tidbit of information easy to remember, doesn’t it?

Vocabulary Cartoons use the same principle but takes it one step further. Not only are the vocabulary words linked with a word that you would know by association, they also introduce a silly cartoon drawing so you really see the picture in your head. Are you familiar with the phrase ‘A picture is worth a thousand words?’ Never underestimate the power of a picture. In my opinion, this is invaluable for visual learners like my children and this aspect of the book is what really drives home the meaning and makes it stick.

How we use these books

Since I enjoy learning new vocabulary words as much as my children, we use this book together. I’ll read the subject word, followed by the definition, the link word or association word, show the kids the goofy cartoon while reading the silly sentence that describes the picture and then I’ll read the three sentences at the bottom of the page which you can see from the insert above, use the word in different contexts.

After we learn our new word, we will review the words we learned previously. I do this by saying the vocabulary word and asking them to share it in a sentence of their own. The book does have its own review system in place. Every ten words you’ll find a chapter quiz with matching and fill-in-the-blank questions that we choose to do orally. My children love this book and will often pick it up between sessions so they can try to stump each other with the new words they’ve learned. If you’d like to take a peek at the words included, you can do that here. http://www.vocabularycartoons.com/images/stories/i_word_list.pdf

Time to wrap this Review Up

According to the publisher, Vocabulary Cartoons boost verbal standardized test scores and students learn 72% more words with 90% retention.

While I can’t attest to the claim that this book will raise SAT scores, since my children have not taken the SAT, I can say that they have learned a new word, effortlessly, in minutes each day and have retained what they’ve learned.

Vocabulary Cartoons, SAT Word Power sells for $12.95 and can be purchased through the publisher’s website http://www.vocabularycartoons.com/index.php or through Amazon.com. I encourage you to check out this book and others in the series, you’ll find something for learners of all ages.

I’ve been impressed with the results that I’ve seen; whether my children ever take an SAT test or not, vocabulary is important to reading comprehension and communication skills, written or verbal. I’ve found this book particularly helpful for my right brain children and look forward to beginning the second book in the series.

Written by Tonya, slightly Charlotte Mason, mostly unschooling, always traveling homeschool mom of three teens. You’ll find Tonya blogging at Live the Adventure.

Other related titles: