If I loved Kinderbach online
(which I did!)
then you can consider me over the moon for the Kinderbach app!
The first two weeks of lessons are FREE! Which means you can take it for a test drive to see if you love it as much as we do! I have no doubt you will!
Enjoy your Pad,
…danielle
I have a bad habit.
I print things out. With the best of intentions.
The get stacked neatly on my desk. Other paper work gets stacked neatly on top of that. Before long, my pile is too big to manage so I hide it in a drawer. Where I promptly forget all about my good intentions (among other things lost in the paperwork abyss). Eventually, I’ll get around to cranky-cleaning stuff out. Clutter makes me cranky.
Which is how I stumbled across one of the most adorable (and FREE) printable mini-books. Evah!
by Katie Yeh of www.playingwithwords365.com
Otherwise known as my fave Speech Therapy website. 
I had printed it out who knows when ago. And then stacked, stashed, and forgot all about it. Until I could take the stuffed drawers no more and found it again!
I am trying to change my forgetful (thyroid brain) ways. So this time, I promised myself I was actually going to put it together! I kept moving it to the top of the stack until I finally put it together!
Aren’t you proud of me?
I even got a little creative and added our own faces to the pre-made figures.
But only because I knew it would make Trevy giggle. His giggle is my addiction. Truth be told though, it made Bristel and me giggle as we glued them together too!
I also laminated the pages and people (using painter’s tape to make them moveable). But again, you don’t have to.
I’m just one a those crazy home school mommies…I laminate everything. 
Trevy is very into books and his family right now. One of his ABA targets is family members. He has mommy and daddy down pat. Brother and sister…not so much. Which is cute…buuuut… I’m predicting we’ll use this book quite a bit over the next few weeks.
In fact, I can’t wait for him to come home from school so we can snuggle up and read it together!
And of course, I had to share this sweet little book just in case you have a little one who is working on recognizing family members too!
…danielle
Independence.
My goal for Trevy in all things.
With Toby and Bristel, I didn’t have to actually teach them how to dress and undress. The just learned how on their own. Their little bodies have always obeyed their little whims. And maybe Trevy would (in his own time) learn how to dress himself too? But part of my role as his mommy and cheerleader is helping him along. In practical ways. By studying his abilities and areas that need more guidance. I know that he struggles with motor planning, for instance. Meaning, he might know what he wants to do but he can’t quite figure out how to make his body do it. His brain and his body aren’t in sync all the time.
Which is why I loved the idea of this Dressing Skills e-book (just $4.99) by Your Therapy Source!
From their website:
Summary:
Dressing Skills is a 24 page booklet that provides visual directions of how to:
- put on a shirt
- put on pants in standing
- put on pants in sitting
- put on a coat
- put on a coat with the flip method.
The pictures and step by step directions are either 3" by 5" images or 2" by 2" images. Using task analysis, each dressing skill has been broken down into simple steps. Create visual sequences for the children to follow along each step of the task. Also included is a tip sheet on how to teach dressing and a small book to read entitled "I Can Dress Myself".
Lots of practical step x step tips for mommy (or daddy or grandma or…). Ideas that help me understand how to help him motor plan. Can you believe I didn’t really know that developmentally children learn how to strip before they learn how to dress? I mean, I certainly remember how frustrating it was to keep my 2 year old daughter in a stitch of clothing. But it never occurred to me that she was instinctively developmentally moving towards self dressing.
Click me to download sample pages from the book.
Also included in the e-book is this adorable little mini-book printable. If you have a Bristel (crafty sibling), it’s a great way to incorporate them too! Bristel did all the cutting and pasting plus the wording is SO easy that she can read the book to her brother! She loves anything involving playing teacher. He loves anything involving her playing with him! 
I have a Dressing Skills tray in his trays right now! Using a doll to practice dressing skills on was a fabulous tip from the book!
The best news is that Trevy is making progress! He can’t dress himself entirely independently yet…but he’s getting there!
I definitely recommend the Dressing Skills e-book to any parents who are working towards independent dressing!
…danielle
**disclaimer: I was given a free copy of this download and though a review was not expected or required in return, I enjoyed it so much that I decided to review it!**
***double disclaimer: learning to remove clothing prior to being potty trained may or may not provide opportunities to paint walls or spray furniture. Based on my real life Trevy adventures. ***
It has been my joy and privilege to be a part of the TOS Crew this year. Our family has enjoyed the blessing of exploring many wonderful resources. I’ve loved sharing our experiences and thoughts here. With you guys. 
Especially because I know how overwhelming the curriculum quest can be! I hope that my reviews have been helpful. I’m looking forward to continuing with the Crew this year too!
Each year the TOS Crew votes on their favorite products. As the 2011-2012 Crew year comes to a close, we are once again presenting awards to our vendors. The awards are known as the TOS Homeschool Crew Blue Ribbon Awards.
Favorite Reading Instruction Product: Reading Eggs
Favorite Writing Product: Write Shop
Favorite Language Arts Product: Progeny Press
Favorite Social Studies Product: TruthQuest History
Favorite Science Product: Amazing Science
Favorite Math Product: Math Mammoth
Favorite Online Math Product: Math Rider
Favorite Foreign Language Product: Visual Latin
Favorite Fine Arts Product: Artistic Pursuits
Favorite Christian Education Product: Apologia: Who Am I?
Favorite Preschool Product: Before Five in a Row
Favorite Elementary Product: All About Reading
Favorite Middle School Product: Write with WORLD
Favorite High School Product: Excellence in Literature
Favorite College or College-Prep Product: Excellence in Literature
Best Online Resource: Reading Eggs
Best e-Product: Heritage History
Best Homeschool Resource: Apologia: Educating the Wholehearted Child
Best Book, Novel, or Magazine: Apologia: How to Have a HEART for Your Kids
Best Children's Book: Amazing Animals by Design
Best Game or Toy: Northstar Games: Wits and Wagers and Say Anything
Best Hands-On Resource: Pitsco Education
Best Resource I Didn't Know I Needed: eMeals
Best Customer Service: K5 Learning
Most Adaptable Resource: Creek Edge Press
Most Family-Oriented Resource: Northstar Games: Wits and Wagers and Say Anything
Kids' Choice (favorite of CHILDREN ages 0-12): Reading Eggs
Teens' Choice (favorite per the TEENAGERS): Pitsco Education
All Around Crew Favorite: Visual Latin
Each winning vendor has received this wonderful award to display with pride:
Congratulations to our winning vendors! We hope you will sail with us again! Many Crew Members are blogging about these awards as well. Click below to see what they have to say!
Powered by Linky Tools Click here to see the Crew Blog Posts...
…danielle
If you’re local and a fan of FREE too…
you’ll want to check out this link for a listing of this year’s Free Fun Fridays!
…danielle
It was a HUGE blessing to review Kinderbach earlier this year with the TOS Crew.
I fell head over heels in love with the program!
Know what else I’m head over heels for?
My iPad, of course!
And I’m super excited to share that I have had the privilege of being on the Beta Tester Team for Kinderbach’s app! It has been a cool experience just learning a little about the app building process. But even more than that…
it’s exciting to have access to all that Kinderbach online offers right on my tablet! Because everyone knows that piano lessons are way more fun snuggled on the couch with the iPad center stage!
For me, one of the most wonderful things about an app verison of Kinderbach is that it becomes completely Trevy friendly. Trevy was diagnosed with catastrophic epilepsy at 7 months old and at 2 1/2 he had the majority of his left hemisphere removed (read more about his story here). As a result he has significant delays and is unable to use a typical mouse. But he’s a touch interface jedi master! Having Kinderbach on the iPad makes a HUGE difference in his ability to enjoy and learn from the program! Which in turn makes for a sappy, smiley mommy.
I can’t wait for the Kinderbach app to be fully released (word on the street is sometime this month!)!
…danielle
**Disclaimer** I was given special partial access to the Kinderbach app during the build process in exchange for my honest and timely review on my blog. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I received no other compensation.**
We decided to be crazy and visit Mickey Mouse again.
Then we decided to be REALLY crazy and pile into our Highlander for the 22 hour (if you go straight through) journey from coastal RI to sunny FL.
(Mulan gave Trevy a juicy forehead kiss to carry with him)
Trevy did AH-mazing! Which is not to say that there weren’t any pinching, kicking, hitting, throwing, screaming, slapping, biting and/or licking episodes along the way. We’re thoroughly convinced that we really need to upgrade to a mini-van. With bucket seats. And maybe a built in straight jacket. To protect poor Toby who took the brunt of Trevy’s wrath on the ride. But overall, he did much better driving than our last trip by air!
(with Uncle Byron at Cracker Barrel in Richmond, VA)
Even so…
we’re exhausted. And finding it hard to get back into the swing of things.
I know it’s totally cliché…
but seriously…
I need a vacation to recover from our vacation!
…danielle
