Big Truths for Little Kids

Big Truths for Little Kids – Teaching Your Children to Live for God
Written By Susan Hunt & Richie Hunt
Published at Crossway

About the book

These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Deuteronomy 6:6-7a

Your children are a blessing from God. A gift that brings an abundance of joy and the privilege of teaching them God's ways. When they're young their potential to learn is amazing. And because actions and beliefs go hand in hand, the lessons they learn from you now will shape their lives forever.

This wonderful book, with its easy-to-use story format, can help you teach the basic truths of the Christian faith to your children. They'll learn right along with Caleb and Cassie that God's ways are the best—and that even as kids, they can live for His glory every day.

Who are Susan Hunt & Richie Hunt?

Susan Hunt is the women’s ministry consultant for Christian Education and Publications. She is also a mother, grandmother, pastor’s wife, author, and the former director of women’s ministries for the Presbyterian Church in America. Hunt has written a number of books, including Spiritual Mothering and Big Truths for Little Kids.

Richie Hunt is the children’s and youth minister at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church in Dallas, Georgia. He has served in children’s and youth ministry for almost 20 years and is a husband and father.

My Thoughts

This book is interesting to instill devotion time for little ones.  

Before each stories, a series of questions and answers are written so you can ask your child to evaluate his level of understanding of the Bible truths.  At this point, you will have to encourage your child to memorize the answers to these questions.   Personally, I would prefer that the memorization encouragement would be more linked to the Scriptures – as my kids are learning to do in AWANA.  

The goal of this book, it to read a store each day.     Once you have read the devotional story with your child, you can discuss it with the suggested questions in the Let’s Talk section.   These questions will help your child to take the time to think about the story and how it glorifies God.   Ultimately, it will help him/her to see how this story can apply in life in general.

At the end of the devotion, a Let’s Pray section highlights a specific scriptures and a way to pray about it.   I would also encourage your child to memorize the scripture depending of the age he/she is.    If the child is 3 or 4 I would shorten the Scripture but for kids age 5 and up I don’t have any problem to help them memorize the whole scripture depending of the length of it.

Each stories have some illustrations helping to visualize the context and the characters.   I am a bit disappointed that these illustrations are not in color.   I think it would have made the book more interesting for little kids.   

This book is an interesting introduction on how devotions can be done for children.   It will give them a good starting point on how to do it in the future.

Big Truths for Little Kids  - Teaching Your Children to Live for God is available at your favourite bookstore, even amazon.ca.

Disclaimer: Thanks to Crossway for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes . I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

Monopoly Zapped

Monopoly Zapped
From Hasbro Canada

About the Game

Take an app-enhanced trip through the whirlwind world of property trading with MONOPOLY ZappED! Get the app free from the APP STORE and play your IPAD and gameboard together. (IPAD required, not included.) Use the app to buy and auction property, and transfer MONOPOLY dollars to your iPad with touch-banking cards. Are you raking in the cash? Own the most assets when a player goes bankrupt, and you win! Experience MONOPOLY mayhem with this IPAD edition! Requires IPAD, not included.

For 2 to 4 players.

Game Board comes with Rubber Pads, 6 tokens, 28 Property cards, 32 green houses, 12 red hotels, 2 dice, 4 MONOPOLY Touch-banking cards and instructions.

Download the free app –Adult Assistance Required.

Our Thoughts

For as long as I can remember the Monopoly game has been part of my life…   When I was younger, the game we had at home included wooden hotels and houses.    This game is long gone but Monopoly is an icon in many families still today.    We have numerous Monopoly games in our home – one based on Star Wars, one based on Marvel Comics, Junior Monopoly as well as one for the Wii.   We also have a version based on homeschool and the apps for the iPhone/iPad.    But earlier this year, I had the opportunity to review the Game of Life Zapped Edition and I knew that it was a matter of months before the Monopoly Zapped Edition would be on the market.   So when I realized that it was available on the Hasbro website, I asked if I could review it.   They agreed and within a week or so I had received my copy of Monopoly Zapped. 

The app that you need for this game is free but  you definitively need an iPad or iPhone to play the game as it interacts with you through the game.

The game has been somewhat modified to allow you to manage your money via a bank card, deal with millions of dollars when purchasing as well as paying your opponents.   The app will interact with you when you land one a Chance, Community Chest, or Get Out of Prison.  You will have to present you bank card to add/deduct the money as well.  There are more features in this app to help you have a different experience with Monopoly.  

We gave the game to my oldest son for his birthday.    He was looking forward to try it out…  Unfortunately, we were in the midst of packing as we will be moving sometime later this summer and he had to wait a bit.   But just before I left for a week in Calgary in early July, we decided to make a Family Game Night and took the Monopoly Zapped out of the box. 

We had a blast discovering this new edition of a legendary game.   Only four players could play around the board so the adults teamed up with the younger kids.    I think it would make the game more fun if more people could play it. 

Throughout the game, you will encounter challenges to see who will have to pay the penalty.  Fun interactive games are included for you to pick an opponent and battle to see who will win.    Real dice are included in this game and it is somewhat disappointing that this functionality has not been included in the app.   It would have been fun to have a complete virtual game with the board I think.   The fact that the dice are not part of the app, makes it hard for the device to know exactly where you are located on the board.   You also have houses and hotels that are transparent making me think of a more 21st century style of building – all glass surrounding it.    Though this version of Monopoly is partly virtual with the help of the app, you still need to track your moves, pay your opponents, and manage your own money via the bank card. 

The game is definitively different than the regular Monopoly and will bring some fun interactions at the same time.   My daughter ended up in prison at some point  and in the possibilities in how to get out of jail, she could try to jump over the fence and get in the car.    With a flick of her little fingers, she was able to send Mr. Monopoly above the fence and he left the jail with a cloud of dust behind the car.   We had a good laugh when we saw what happened.   It is a great game to bring along while you go camping or to the cottage.    I would recommend it to anyone who doesn’t have a normal edition of Monopoly but is interested in the game.     

The new Monopoly Zapped can be purchased at your favourite toy store.

Disclaimer: Thanks to Hasbro Canada for sending me the above mentioned products for review purposes . I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

Awesome Science Explore Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest with Noah Justice

Awesome Science – Explore Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest with Noah Justice
Available through New Leaf Publishing Group

About the DVD

Join 14-year-old host Noah Justice as he explores the fascinating Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest in Arizona. In this third episode of the Awesome Science DVD series, Noah unveils amazing evidence that confirms the biblical record of Genesis. In this 30-minute segment, viewers learn how a large meteor was not what killed off the dinosaurs, and that millions of acres of petrified forests were created during the Flood.

Awesome Science is a high quality DVD series produced by a family that homeschools and works on the series together. Kyle Justice, Noah’s dad, has produced video which has appeared on networks including National Geographic, ESPN, and the Outdoor Channel. Noah is the field guide and host for this exciting production, which includes Explore the Grand Canyon, Explore Yellowstone, and Explore Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest, all releasing March 2012. Each episode offers a study guide which is sold separately. The series can be used in any Christian education setting including churches, schools, and homes.

5 x 7 • 30 Minutes • DVD

My Thoughts

This is my third DVD from the Awesome Science series that I had the opportunity to watch with my kids.    Earlier this year, we were able to watch Explore Grand Canyon and Explore Yellowstone.   So when the opportunity arose to review the DVD titled Explore Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest, I jumped on it because I  particularly like the Biblical account in these scientific dvds. 

Once again I was impressed with the information found in this DVD.   Not only will the young Noah Justice will explain how a petrified forest can be formed and how the Meteor Crater in Arizona was made but he brings evidence with other sources of information.  In the case of the petrified forest, he will explain in details how the Flood account must be considered to explain this phenomenon by using Mt. St. Helens as an example.  When Mt. St. Helens burst back in 1980, it created a similar situation with the trees found around it.    When it went active again in 1982, it happened during the time of the year where snow was present.   This time, it created various layers which help to explain the Teepees found in Petrified Forest National Park.

Using evidence from the Bible as well as scientific facts, Noah Justice will help you and your kids to understand how things happens many years ago and how you can defend your belief about it.    Noah also does an interesting scientific demonstration on how a meteor crater could happen on Earth.   My kids really like to see him shooting a bullet inside the ground to demonstrate how a crater would formed without leaving much pieces from the meteor.

The Study Guide is specifically designed to enrich your experience while watching the DVD.   It includes bonus activities, fill in the blank and true/false questions as well as discussion questions.   My only disappointment is that this study guide does not fit in the DVD case which I would personally prefer.    

Other DVDs from Awesome Science are/will be available:  Explore Grand Canyon, Explore Yellowstone, Explore Yosemite and Zion National Parks, Explore Mt. St. Helens, and Explore John Day Fossil Beds.   Please note that the last three titles will only be available in the Fall of 2012.  Also available is the Study Guide that goes hand-in-hand with the DVD.   It is available at New Leaf Publishing Group.

The DVD Awesome Science – Explore Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest with Noah Justice should be available at your favourite bookstore.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find the DVD on amazon.ca but they do have the Study Guide.

Disclaimer: Thanks to New Leaf Publishing Group for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.