Aug. 10, 2008 - Product Review!!!
I have been asked by TOS magazine to review 2 of their products, The Homeschool Planner and The Old Schoolhouse Magazine digital subscription. I am absolutely thrilled to review them, but a little nervous too because I’m not sure I will do them justice!
First, I will start with The Homeschool Planner… let’s just say… I was really surprised by it. I own LOTS of planners, really too many. I’m one of those people who is always looking for something to get me organized, but none of them seem quite right for our family. This planner is different from most. It does have the usual elements such as a calendar, phone numbers sheet, menu planners and lesson plan sheets, in the 2nd half of the e-book, but it also has so much more. In the 1st half of the e-book, there are quick guide such as Timeline of Inventions, Famous Composers, Kitchen Conversions Cheat Sheet (which includes conversions for old fashioned recipes too!), list of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World among other lists. For each month of the school year there are recipes you can try and short articles you can read written by some of the most popular authors such as Jeannie Fulbright, Amanda Bennett, and Terri Johnson. Even the forms in the 2nd half of the e-book are a cut above the rest because of the variety, the amount (there’s a LOT!!!) and the fact that there is a good balance of school vs. home forms. It’s also great that this was written by homeschool mothers so the planning forms are tailored to homeschooling and they don’t have to be adapted because they were not written for a classroom situation. A few of my favorites were Curriculum Key Chart form, Field Trip Planning form, a form for parent’s workshops, gift wish list form, and Garden Plans forms. And, I saved one of the best features for last… you can type on the forms and then print them out!!!
Now, about the digital subscription of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine… I wasn’t sure if I really needed this or not since I get a copy of the magazine through the mail. First, I would like to say, if you have never read TOS magazine before, you are really missing a real treat. TOS is the one magazine I don’t feel I could do without. It’s funny, my hubby and I have an unspoken agreement that he doesn’t complain about my TOS magazine, if I don’t complain about his Linux Journal even though money is really tight. Lol!!! He KNOWS how important my TOS magazine is to me. So… about the digital version… it is REALLY cool! My favorite feature is being able to click on the links and not have to type them all in. If you are a regular reader of TOS, you are already familiar with all the resources they introduce and provide. It can get quite tedious going through the magazine each quarter and typing in all the wonderful links that I want to explore. Well, with the digital TOS, you can just click it and go there. I also love being able to print out articles. TOS has regular unit studies in their magazine and it’s wonderful just being able to print them out. Another feature that could come in handy is the ability to share articles. If your friend is really in need of encouragement, you can send them an article from you magazine to help them through. Right now, they also have a whole bunch of freebies that come with the subscription. My favorite is Safe Eyes which is a computer monitoring program/ website that makes your computer safer for your children. While I am not going to give up my paper copy of TOS magazine anytime soon, I do feel I am really going to enjoy having the digital subscription as well.
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