IXL Learning Review

Vendor: IXL Learning

Product: IXL Full Annual Membership

Price: $159 for one child for the core subjects

Age: Pre-K through 12th

About: IXL Learning is an online comprehensive K-12 learning. IXL full annual membership is $159 for one child.  This includes the core subjects of; Math, Language, Science, and Social Studies. When you get access you get access to all the grade levels as well as subjects.  This is really great for those that have kids that may be in different levels for each subject that are in.  I used this for my 5 year old.  He is just getting into school and learning.  He is also ADHD and Autistic.  This means he doesn't hold his attention well for many things. The best part is you can download this as an app on your iPhone/iPad or your Android for them to play. I also have a touch screen computer so it was very easy for him to navigate the lessons himself. 

So we used this about every other day for 15-30 minutes, depending on how well we could get him interested.  It is easy for a kiddo to navigate the work but does need help getting into each topic. For a little kid like him it reads out the questions and answers so they know which one they want to pick. I think it is much easier on a mobile device or touch screen for him. So glad they had the option of an app. Plus makes a great busy time while in the car. I looked over the older levels too and they are all self explanatory.  I just found these are to practice skills already known, there is no teaching of the skill.  You get "rewards" for doing well as you progress through each topic. I think this is great for public school or homeschool kids to get some extra practice in areas they are working on in their everyday lessons.  It is also a good starting program for the pre-k age kids to be able to learn letters, shapes and etc. The platform is colorful and inviting and the lessons are quick so you don't get burnt out easily.

Below is a video of him doing shapes. Excuse any background noise :) but this can give you an idea how one of the lessons work. Each lesson after builds up to being harder or more information so they keep progressing. I like how it reads him the question then he can push each answer to see what it says before he submits the one he thinks is correct. The lessons keep him interested and then he likes when they give him an award. He likes to keep track off how well he has done on each thing. The wards fill a box up with several and he wants to get the entire thing filled with his awards.  This helps keep him motivated to continue going.

Be sure to check them out on social media...

Facebook: facebook.com/IXL
Twitter: twitter.com/IXLLearning
Pinterest: pinterest.com/IXL
YouTube: youtube.com/IXL

Also check out what my other crew members had to say about the program as well.

Cleaning Time

Got a big family and having a hard time keeping up? When you have lots of kids at home, like me, then it can get overwhelming to keep up on the house work. By the days end it will look like a few tornadoes have went through your house. It is really hard for me to sit down and try to do stationary work when I know the house is horrible and needs to be picked up.  So I made picking up a game with the kids.  Some 5 minute pick ups!

Each day pick some times when your house gets a bit messier.  Like ours is right after breakfast, during school when the little are left to destroy, after lunch, and before dinner. During these times if I will set a 5 minute timer and we all clean it helps keep up on things.

The little kids can help too.  When it is just 5 minutes no one gets overwhelmed with a long boring time of cleaning. It also helps keep the end of the day from having lots to do. Assign kids to certain areas and when your times come set the timer and they go clean up as quickly as they can. You can play music or contests on who can get the most done. Pair your littles with your bigs so they can help teach them how to get better at it. 

America’s Incredible Pizza

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Valentines!

Oh boy the season that bring the holiday you either love or hate!

I personally love Valentines Day!  Yes, I think you should show the ones you love that you love them everyday and not just a given day of the year.  However in the whirl wind of life sometimes it is hard to always take out some extra special time for your spouse or your kids.  I think this day helps us to slow down and remember what God has given us and that we should cherish it.

Ephesians 4:2-3 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace
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So the question is what do you do to make Valentines Day special in your home?

14 Love Notes

Each day starting today I will make a note and place it someplace that the love of my life will find.

This blog has some good ideas!

Since I want to make my kids feel special as well as my boyfriend I plan on having a big breakfast with the kids favorite foods.  

Color the eggs pink/red

Cut french toast into heart shapes

Make pink/red pancakes

Then for dinner the kids will have their dinner and be off to watch a movie and my boyfriend and I can have a dinner with just us.

Valentines Day themed work

Math Worksheet

Check out my Pinterest section for several more fun Valentine themed school work.

Also check out this site for a fun Valentine's Day Bible Lesson
Ministry to Children

1. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)

2. "No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us." (1 John 4:12)

3. "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalms 37:4)

4. "To love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." (Mark 12:33)

5. "We love because He first loved us." (1 John 4:19)

6. "Place me like a seal overe your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy as unyielding as the grave. It burns like a blazing fire, like a mighty flame." (Song of Solomon 8:6)

7. Therefore be imitators of God as well-beloved children." (Ephesians 5:1)

8. "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and truth." (1 John 3:18)

9. "And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)

10. "My lover is mine, and I am his." (Song of Solomon 2:16)

11. "Dear friends, let us love one another for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God." (1 John 4:7)

12. "And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." (Colossians 3:14)

13. "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or clanging cymbal." (1 Corinthians 13:1)

14. "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." (Romans 5:5)

15. "Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

Homemade Biscuits

Made these wonderful beauties today!  Boy oh boy were they good.  

Maybe even almost a KFC biscut copycat?!

Ingredients

3 cups flour
2 tbsp. sugar
3 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. baking powder
1 1/3 cups milk
2/3 cup shortening

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a mixing bowl and mix together well.
Make a well in the middle of your flour mixture.
Pour your milk into the well.
Dump in shortening to the flour mixture.
Blend well with a fork until all ingredients are incorporated.
Dump onto a floured surface.
Knead until smooth, only about 10 times.
Pat down to about 1/2 inch thick and cut out biscuits.
Place biscuits onto the baking sheet. Place them close together for softer biscuits and farther apart for a crispier texture.
Bake for about 10 to 14 minutes, or until tops are lightly brown.

Butterfinger Pie - My style!

So there is this wonderful dessert I love to make!

Ingredients

6-8 Fun Size butterfinger bars

4-6 TBL butter

1/2 package of Saltine Crackers

1 package of Graham Crackers

1 package of Instant Chocolate Pudding

1 cup Vanilla Ice cream

1 cup Milk

1 tub of Cool Whip

9x9 cake pan (or bigger if you want a thinner crust)

First crush (or use food chopper) the Saltine Crackers and Graham crackers, and 4-6 of the butterfinger bars ( I use 6 because I LOVE butterfingers) and mix all together.

Then you want to add 4-6 tablespoons of butter.  Add about a tablespoon at a time and mix it in (same method as making a cheesecake bottom) until it is course and will stick together.  To much will make it be hard once it is refrigerated.  Then you want to pat it all down at the bottom of your cake pan.  I like to make mine go up the sides too.

Next you mix the instant pudding with 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of vanilla ice cream until smooth.

Pour this mixture over the crust and put in the fridge for about 10 minutes to set up.  This also allows time for your cool whip to defrost if you are like me and forgot to do it at the start of the recipe :)

Lastly once the pudding mix has set up it will make it easy to smear on the cool whip.  I love cool whip as well (who am I kidding, if it is sweet I love it!) so I put the whole tub on it, you could do less if you wanted.  Then take the remaining butterfingers and crush them and sprinkle on top!

*The first time I made this I did not have a food chopper so I left the butterfingers in the packages and beat them with the rolling pin or meat mallet!  I also put the crackers in baggies and wrapped with a towel and bashed them as well.*

Now enjoy your yummy goodness and tell me if you like it as much as I do!

Place Value Game

Learning through games is so much more fun then sitting with books and worksheets!  I found a cool game to work on place values that is kind of like a pacman game.  The kids have to use the arrow keys to navigate the numbers and "eat" the number that is in the place value that it is asking for.  Check it out!

Hooda Math