Mango Languages

One of the things that weighs heavily on my mama heart is the fact that I took my little girls away from their first language.  I know I can never compensate fully for that, but I can help them retain a familiarity with the tones in spoken Chinese (both main dialects) and hopefully, when they are older, it will be easier for them to relearn it, if they choose to do so.

This was the reason I was so anxious to review a language program this year, and why I was so glad to have been chosen to be part of the team reviewing Mango Languages.

Mango Languages is an online language learning program.

We received a homeschool membership for review.  Mango's homeschool membership is new, but their library memberships have been around for years.  Our membership included access for myself and 4 students for 12 months, for all 60 languages currently offered by Mango.


Yes, SIXTY languages!  I was really impressed with the variety offered.  Mango is super flexible, and allows you to learn more than one language at a time, if you're feeling exceptionally bright!

Brianna chose to take Spanish.  She's planning to take Spanish in high school next year at a campus school, so she figured this would give her a leg up.

She is even taking some notes so she can communicate with international players of one of the games she likes online!  This was before we realized that there were files with the conversations written out for us.  The files are available for most languages, and would be very helpful for travelers.  I printed out the first 20 pages in the German file for Eli, on his request, so he could study offline, instead of just on the computer.

Mango is suggested for ages 6 and up.  Hannah is 6, so I had high hopes for her and Mango.

Unfortunately, it turned out to be too advanced for her.  Having had a front seat to foreign language acquisition through immersion with Hannah and Katie, I have witnessed what we call, "The Noun Phase," twice now.  This involves a lot of pointing and labeling things.  Come to think of it, that's pretty much how toddlers learn to speak any language.

Mango doesn't offer a lot of nouns.  Mango is conversational in nature.  "Hello, my name is," and "Do you speak English?"

Hannah really struggled with repeating the conversational phrases, and seemed to have almost zero retention after several lessons.  I had her go back to the beginning and start over, thinking she'd just been clicking through too quickly, but eventually, I was forced to admit this program was not working for her.  I was disappointed, because I really wanted it to.  I think she's too young for it right now.

Eli and Josiah both chose to learn German.  My maternal grandmother grew up speaking German in the home, so I learned a tiny bit from her, and it was fun to have them commenting on the weather in German.

Josiah liked the program.  My DIY kids have German heritage on both sides of the family, and he liked getting the chance to learn the language of his ancestors from the comfort of our own home.  Josiah is a homebody, so this online program is a really good fit for him.

Eli was initially excited about learning a new language.  Then he realized it takes work.

Fortunately, he was a good sport about it and soldiered on, even after the novelty wore off.  At the end of each chapter is a quiz.  When I found out he got a 10% on one of his chapter quizzes, I had him go back and repeat the chapter.  He scored much better the second time around.

One of the features I like is that it knows where you left off, and it automatically starts you there.  But the best part for me was that I don't have to know a language well (or at all) in order for my kids to be able to learn it.  Since it's all on the computer, Mango Languages is a great way for your children to learn the correct pronunciations of a language that you may not be proficient in.  I enjoyed hearing the native speakers say the lines and listening to my students repeat them.

Their subscription prices are reasonable:

1 subscription is $18/month or $125/year total
2 subscriptions is $28/month or $175/year total
3 subscriptions is $38/month or $225/year total
4 subscriptions is $48/month or $275/year total
5 subscriptions is $58/month or $325/year total
6 or more subscriptions is a special group rate that will depend on the number in the group.

Although I didn't get have time to focus on furthering my own interest in foreign languages during this review period, I hope to at least take the pretest for a couple languages and maybe get the chance to brush up a little while we have the subscription.

You can connect with Mango Languages via Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

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Splish Splash, it's a Shower Dispenser!

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial. 

Today I'd like to share this dispenser from ToiletTree Products with you.  Wall mount dispensers are the perfect way to eliminate clutter in your shower.  Having a herd of boys who knock bottles over and leave them dripping down the drain, I also find this to be a way to save money!  Not to mention, using a dispenser is a way to avoid the risk of someone slipping on spilled products and getting injured.  

You can use this dispenser for liquid soap, body wash, shampoo, or conditioner. It also comes in double or triple configurations, so you can keep all your necessities right in the shower without spills or clutter.  The wide opening top makes refills fast, easy, and spill free. The clear chamber allows you to see when it's almost time to refill. The dispenser is made using long lasting, quality materials that will not rust or discolor over time.

Each unit comes with a mounting bracket, which attaches to any surface using water resistant double sided tape and and non-damaging removable silicone. This makes installation quick & easy with no drilling required.  The dispenser lifts off the attached mounting bracket for an easy cleaning or refill.

ALL ToiletTree Products come with a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee, and these helpful dispensers are available in either chrome or white and chrome finishes.  The single well dispenser currently retails for $24.95 with free shipping.  

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

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Egglo Entertainment Glow In The Dark Easter Eggs

This was a fun review!  Our family was provided with glow in the dark Egglo Eggs, The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Book, and other materials from Egglo Entertainment.  With Easter coming up fast, you'll want to hear about this neat group of products.  

Although designed to be used in a Sunday School setting, it's easy to adapt them for other activities.  The program guide offers lots of ideas for how to use them at church, such as decorating and creative snack suggestions.  The Empty Tomb snack has a healthy and a junk food option, which is nice.  Consider passing this info on to the Sunday School director at your church for a one of a kind outreach to the community!  Wouldn't a nighttime Easter egg hunt be a big draw?  The program guide even has invitations you can print.  

These eggs are durable.  Check out the egg smashing video for hilarious proof of durability.  The eggs open lengthwise instead of like a traditional plastic egg, and one of the things I particularly liked about these eggs while I was filling them was the fact that they go together easily without a "one right way" only.  --It may seem like a silly thing to like, but I like things as idiot proof as possible right now, and I'm okay with one cross being upside down on the closed egg, if it means I don't have to fiddle around with it while I'm filling quickly.  (Because you know I was asked to fill these up over and over again!)   In the photo above, you can see all the materials.  Here are the prices:   *Glow in the Dark Egglo Eggs ($11.99) *The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure ($12.99) *The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure (book audio download) ($2.99)  *Egglo Treasures Scripture Scrolls ($4.29)  *The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Program Guide ($14.99)  Obviously, the kids were most excited about the glowing eggs.  The Egg-cellent Easter Adventure Book, however, kept their attention while I read to them.  These materials are geared for ages 4-13, but personally, I found them to exceed that range, with both my 3 year old and my 14 year old enjoying them.  

Jack likes to see the pictures while I read, while the older kids are content to imagine the action.

It's a tale of 3 children who go on a magical adventure and find glowing eggs with scriptures and riddles inside them.  They even visit Easter Island.  

After their adventure, and the scriptural truths the kids discover, they are changed enough that their parents notice and comment about it.  

Our personal experience was that the eggs didn't charge as much as I hoped.  I spread them out on the floor of my closet, turned the light on, and shut the door so the kids wouldn't mess with them.  I "turned" (okay, so I sorta kicked them around a little) them after a couple of hours and then left them to charge longer.  We used them after they'd been in there about 4 hours.  They were not as bright as I was expecting them to be.  

Next time we use them, I will try charging with a desk lamp and having the eggs very close to it.

Katie loves to come up and color while we do school.

The program guide contains a section of coloring pages!    There were quite a few of them, and the kids liked choosing which ones they wanted to color.

The kids were quite curious about the little plastic scrolls we received.   

Turns out, they are the perfect size for Playmobil play!

"Hear ye the Word of the LORD!"

Egglo's glow in the dark Easter eggs and other materials are a beautiful way to illustrate that Jesus is the LIGHT of the world!  These would make a fun neighborhood outreach, too.  

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What We're Reading

The one downside of reviewing books is being introduced to authors and series' that you just have to read more of!

Kids books:
I reviewed Badge of Honor last summer, and my kids enjoyed it so much that I surprised them with Tunnel of Gold, which I mentioned here.  This, of course, led to us getting Canyon of Danger, which we just finished, and now we are looking forward to River of Peril, which comes out next month.

A blog I follow mentioned Travels with Gannon and Wyatt: Egypt, and since we'd been studying so much about Egypt this year, and it was geared toward Jack & Eli's age group, I decided to get both the Egypt book and the Botswana one, too. Eli read them and enjoyed them, and I'm currently reading Botswana aloud to Jack. It's pretty good!  I even found a handwriting page about African Animals, and had Jack trace the words while I was reading to him one night.  Don't tell Eli, because I want to read it aloud, but I just got Great Bear Rainforest, the next book in the series.

I am going to be reviewing a book selection service soon, and while I was browsing their site I came across a series I think Hannah is almost ready for. The Year of the Baby,The Year of the Fortune Cookie, and The Year of the Book look really cute.  It's nice to be able to find books with Asian characters for her.  They're recommended for ages 6-9, so I think I'll get them for Hannah's birthday (she'll be 7) in April and see what she thinks of them.

Zulily.com recently had a book that looked interersting.  I picked up China - Everything You Ever Wanted to Know and it's chock full of tidbit sized facts in a fun to read presentation.  It's part of a series that includes other countries and cities.  I think we might need the Rome one next year!

Mama books:
I used my Tyndale points to get It Happens Every Spring. If you've heard of Gary Chapman, you probably think of The 5 Love Languages. Yeah, same guy. This book was really good, in a wholesome way. I wouldn't have a problem with Brianna coming across it and reading it, like I would some of the books I've read recently. I don't think she's really ready for it yet; it's mostly about married couples, but there's nothing objectionable in it. One of the things in it that struck me was that one of the characters is a homeless developmentally delayed adult. It made me think about what happens to kids like Luke when they're grown. Especially ones who, for whatever reason, don't have a family.


I have a couple of great books coming up for review soon, but I won't spoil them for you.  Let's just say, I've been reading and enjoying!

Curriculum:
I won Asia: Its People and History from a blog giveaway.  I'm looking forward to getting it and seeing what it says about China.

How about you?  What are you reading these days?  Any great books I should know about?

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Unpuzzling Luke

I didn't realize how much I was holding on to the doctor's words from Luke's previous visit to the MIND Institute last July.

What the doctor said:  Luke doesn't meet the criteria for an autism diagnosis at this point.  That may change as he gets older.  

What I heard:  It's not autism.

This week was Luke's follow up visit at the MIND Institute, and one of the first things Paul said when they got home was, "He now meets the criteria for autism."  I felt like someone punched me in the gut.

He also mentioned that this may make additional therapies available to Luke, and he should qualify for respite care when he turns 3 this summer.  "More therapies" does not excite me, as we already have 4 therapists coming to our house, but I imagine those will all transfer to school based services when he starts preschool in the fall.

Luke's MIND doc re-assessed him.  He was previously assessed to be about the level of a 5 month old, overall, with some lower and some higher areas.  He's now at the level of a 7 month old overall.  Which means in 8 months time, he's gained 2 months worth of skills.

I still think there's more to come, diagnosis-wise.  We still don't have lab forms yet for his next round of testing.  I'm very interested in the results of the copper testing.  I'm hoping that meeting this criteria doesn't cause his healthcare people to say, "Well, he's autistic, let's just leave it at that."  I do think that the other syndrome that was brought up at UCSF is a good fit for the way Luke presents, and I would not be surprised if that were his eventual diagnosis.  But I'm concerned that with a dx of autism, the powers that be might decide not to bother with genetic mapping, because it's so expensive.  I think we could be many months from the answers in that respect.

I'm finding it a little ironic that the organization Luke's MIND doctor recommended for additional information about our nonverbal child is called Autism Speaks.  I am not ready to be the mom with the puzzle piece bumper sticker.

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