I first heard of The Cat of Bubastes when I was planning a unit study about Egypt for the girls a few years ago.  We didn’t read the story back then, but after listening to it I was a little disappointed in myself for not taking the time to read it to them earlier.  This is a testament to just how well the story was produced and shared through this medium.

The program is written “to be self-explanatory, self-paced, self-contained, and inexpensive.” I can say that all four of these components are true about the program.  There are 172 lessons in the book which are written clearly and concisely, and doesn’t leave much room for misunderstanding the purpose of the program.  

There are 14 lessons within the program.  Each lesson is divided up into smaller sections. Each lesson has at least two hands on activities in the textbook.  The activities range from creating something physically to challenging learners’ mental capabilities such as creating their own mnemonic device. Within each lesson, there are also critical thinking opportunities titled “Think About This” and a comprehension section called “What Do You Remember?”. The suggested lesson plans are found in the beginning of the student journals.  The textbook and the journals work together to complete the program.  It would be rather difficult to use one without the other.  The textbook provides the content for the lessons while the student journal provides the opportunity for interaction with the subject.

The journal pages are duplicated providing the user with a bit of comfort since the format is the same throughout.  There is a sample page which serves as a reminder on how to journal within the nine designated prayer areas since the blank pages do not have directions on them nor do the spaces specifically say what should be written within instead each space has the initial of the idea that should go within it.   For instance, L/V is the label for the musical note shaped space where lyric or verses are to be shared.  In this space, my daughters can write about a lyric or Bible verse that has caught their attention. 

The Can Do Cubes can be used alone or with a different spelling program.  The cubes are used to teach spelling with a systematic synthetic approach so that learners will have solid foundation in phonics and the alphabetic code. 

Foreign Language for Kids by Kids include lessons for all learning styles. There are stickers included to allow for children to move around and label items around the house in Spanish.  There are flashcards to help review the words that have been learned from the video.  The flashcards are actual images from the video so this helps to put the video into the child’s hand.  She is able to recall what the scene represented during the video. There are also several games included within each level.  Each level only has one video, but the information from the video is used over a course of 11 lessons for level one, 18 lessons for level two, and 20 lessons for level three. Each level has a certificate of completion to be given to the student.