Tot Tray Wednesday #2 + SPARKBOX! | Lone Star Signers

Well, last week was a big learning experience for me! My biggest takeaway was that there were TOO many trays available at one time. There were ELEVEN different activities to choose from, and it was overwhelming to both girls. Toys were constantly on the floor, which led to a big sweep with a trash bag on Friday morning. (Don't worry, the bag ended up in the closet, not the dumpster.)

I actually started #toyrotationTuesday on Monday evening, since we had a delivery from Sparkbox Toys earlier in the day! (More on that in a minute.)

Week 2:

Signing Class Theme: Celebrate! (graduation)

Recommended book: Hippos Go Berserk

(affiliate links used for your convenience)

Tot Trays (not really "themed" this week):
1. Color stacker (from Sparkbox toys)
2. Pegs from the Lauri Toddler Tote
3. Animal puzzles (with Fisher Price animals)
4. Wooden number puzzles (1-5)
5. Nuts & bolts activity card
6. Fraction puzzle (from Sparkbox toys)

Additional toys:
Mirror blocks (from Sparkbox toys)
Doll & accessories
Artificial flowers--great for poking into floral foam
Little People Klip Klop Stable
As always, unlimited access to books!

And now, a little bit about Sparkbox Toys!
(Note: this is NOT a sponsored post! I am a satisfied customer, and I am sharing this new service because I think it's a great idea. Referral link has been used.)

For a long time, I have been jealous of Austin's Toybrary--when was San Antonio going to get a toy rental service?! I'm a big fan of shopping consignment for my girls, most of the toys in our home are purchased used from our nearby consignment store, a big sale like Just Between Friends, or from my local mom's group. Our typical strategy is to play with toys for awhile, and when the "shine" has worn off, we resell for something "new."

I first heard about Sparkbox ("the Netflix for toys") on April 12th. The whole concept is great: developmentally-appropriate toys delivered straight to our door! I've been wanting to find new ideas for Kate's learning time--something to keep her engaged while Addie and I are doing lessons together. Nine days after hearing about Sparkbox, our first package arrived! (And it would have been sooner, but we missed our UPS driver on Friday evening and he didn't return until Monday afternoon.)

Here's what I love:
1) The service recommends four toys for Kate based on her age.
2) I am able to change out toys based on our needs. (Do we need a toy that makes noise? No, even if it IS educational.) Toys can be sorted by age, skill, and more!
3) Most of the toys are items not found in local stores, which means I get a "sneak peek" at the latest and greatest toys!
4) I'm able to choose items that I know Addie will enjoy, too.

I'm on a Montessori kick right now, so I specifically chose wooden toys this first go-around: a color stacker, a robot-puzzle (open-ended for creative play), a fraction puzzle (love the vibrant colors!), and mirror blocks. The toys arrived clean and wrapped with coordinating educational cards, filled with ideas for extending the learning play! My girls could not wait to start playing on Monday, and Tuesday was no different. The color stacker holds the most interest for every child who has seen it, followed closely by the mirror blocks. I've already started Kate's "wishlist" for upcoming boxes (similar to the Netflix queue). I can tell we're really going to enjoy this service!

Want to know more about Sparkbox Toys? Visit the FAQ page! 

Ready to sign up? Use my referral link, please! 

The website says you get a free month's delivery with each new subscriber! :) If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I'll do my best to find an answer for you.

Our Favorite Signing Time DVDs | Lone Star Signers * San Antonio, Texas

**The ENTIRE Signing Time Collection for just $1.00?! 
Read down to the end for details!**

All of our signing classes come with a Signing Time/Baby Signing Time DVD of the family’s choosing. When a family asks me which DVD I think they should pick, here is what I tell them.

If your family is brand new to signing, I recommend that you start with Signing Time volumes 1-3 or Baby Signing Time (4 volumes) based on the age of your child. Both sets cover the most popular words/signs that a young child will use first and will give your family a strong foundation for signing success.

If you and your child have been signing for some time, these are my five favorites to watch with my own children (affiliate links used):

1. My Day

Signing Time Vol. 10: My Day - Preview from Signing Time on Vimeo.

2. My Neighborhood

Signing Time Vol. 11: My Neighborhood - Preview from Signing Time on Vimeo.

3. Sing and Sign


4. ABC Signs

Signing Time Vol. 5: ABC Signs - Preview from Signing Time on Vimeo.

5. Move and Groove

Signing Time Series 2 Vol. 3: Move and Groove - Preview from Signing Time on Vimeo.

Keep in mind that the San Antonio Public Library carries the entire Signing Time and Baby Signing Time series. For a limited time, you can also sign up for the Two Little Hands digital subscription service at just $1.00 for the first month! (NO commitment, cancel anytime!).

For a limited time:

Try the All-Access Digital Subscription NOW for just $1.00!

Signing Time

Baby Signing Time

Potty Time

Rachel & the TreeSchoolers

Which Signing Time/Baby Signing Time DVD 
is YOUR favorite?

Review: Rachel and the Treeschoolers | Lone Star Signers

Are your children filled with wonder? Our girls are 2.5 and 5.5, and there are an infinite number of questions asked around here each day! I love to watch my girls learn—and I am so thankful when I find a terrific learning resource like Rachel and the Treeschoolers.

We LOVE Signing Time, and we have come to love and trust Rachel Coleman and the rest of the Two Little Hands team. Rachel and the Treeschoolers is a completely different program than Signing Time, but the heart is the same—the same sense of humor, great music, and positive values.

When Two Little Hands launched their Kickstarter campaign for new episodes of Rachel and the Treeschoolers back in August, our family was thrilled to get involved. And so were lots of other families—Rachel and the Treeschoolers surpassed their original $50,000 goal by $169,188! Episodes 2-6 were fully funded, and we received our digital copies of episodes 2 and 3 (Plants and Flowers & Incredible Insects) in November.

Here are five things I LOVE about Rachel and the Treeschoolers:

Social skills are included in every episode!

Young children are able to relate to the treeschoolers characters. Each episode focuses on a different character’s “struggle,” and Rachel walks the characters through understanding and supporting their friend. In the first episode, Atticus has a fear of thunder, and in episode three, Hue the firefly feels like he’s not special because he’s a bug. These challenges are great discussion-starters for our family: "How would you help a friend feel better if..."

The show is packed with creative learning segments!

Rachel is a great host of the show—energetic and FUN! (She's been educating preschoolers for over ten years now, after all.) The show has a quick pace for short attention spans. My favorite segment is the game show portion—the kids don’t even realize all the learning that's happening!

My children continue to be exposed to ASL!

We LOVE American Sign Language, and I love that Rachel casually signs throughout each episode. It’s NOT the focus like Signing Time, but if you are signing with your children already, they’ll benefit from seeing ASL in a new context.

Rachel and the Treeschoolers is purposeful about educating children!

I love that the show doesn’t talk down to my daughters—they are learning advanced vocabulary like photosynthesis and thorax! In fact, Rachel and the Treeschoolers was labeled as “too educational” by TV executives. If my children are having screen time, I would love for them to be LEARNING!

The music is great!

Granted, this is my husband’s area of expertise, but I enjoy listening to Rachel sing. Adam continually comments on the great harmonies and production value. Our girls sing all day long, so I appreciate that the music isn’t annoying.

Our girls watching Rachel and the Treeschoolers on the iPad--no Internet required!

Interested in learning more about Rachel and the Treeschoolers? Visit their website today to view clips of the shows and request FREE copies of the Activity Guides! And if you’re interested in purchasing the first three episodes, you can save $15 during the month of March with the code ts15.

***

Important note: I am not being paid for this review. I purchased Rachel and the Treeschoolers myself because we believe in and support Two Little Hands Productions. However, this post does include affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, I will make a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you!

Signing Time Christmas: YOU can make it happen!

So I had a different post all ready to go for today, but Signing Time just announced their new Kickstarter campaign for a TWO-Disc Christmas set to be released November 2014! Check out this video, and then go back the project! Merry Christmas!!

One Activity, Many Ways: Brown Bear, Brown Bear | San Antonio Baby Sign Language Classes

As many of y'all know, I teach three classes of basic American Sign Language every week. My classes are family-centered, so I have a wide age range of children who attend each session--from four months to nearly 12 years old! (Play & Sign classes are geared toward children ages birth-five and we love having older siblings attend! Sign language is great for ALL ages. :) )

After 20-25 minutes of whole class instruction, we break out into leveled centers. My goal is to have at least one center for each discipline: ABCs, colors, math, literacy, and fine motor. Many of my centers overlap disciplines (which is ideal!) and I try to buy/make things that can be used in multiple classes.

(After about 10 minutes of center time, where families get to work together and practice their new signs, we all come back together for review, ABC time, games/parachute time and bubbles.)

Two weeks ago, we used the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? in our pet/animals class.

This book is PERFECT for learning signs for colors and animals, since the text is repetitive and the illustrations are so unique. (We LOVE Eric Carle!)

I had downloaded a great Brown Bear math/literacy packet from Kinderkids over on Teachers Pay Teachers--over 100 pages of great ideas printables for preschool-2nd grade for just $1. Definitely worth it!

As we were playing with one of the activities this morning (after reading another book about a bear), I realized I wanted to share all my ideas, in case any of my students' parents were looking for busy bag activities for home.

This activity is awesome and SIMPLE. I printed off the bear/numeral pages and the number word pages (in black and white--I thought they were plenty cute without color), cut them out, and ran them through our laminator. I also printed off a recording page (tucked in a dry erase sleeve from the Target Dollar Spot to save ink and be reused many, many times) and a helper page for my early readers, who may need additional support with the number words.

Ages 4-7: Children can play a matching game for the numeral/word cards and then write down the word on the recording sheet. (I put the "helper" page on the backside in case the child wanted to check his work independently.) 

Younger children can sequence the numeral cards without having to worry about the word cards at all. (Of course, I think number words are some of the MOST IMPORTANT sight words to learn early--it's not like you can "sound out" the words eight or one.)

 

Older children looking for a challenge can arrange the word cards in ABC order. This was super hard for me to do, since my brain is wired to put these words in number order! :) 

And of course, don't forget to practice counting in ASL!

Disclosure: Affiliate link used for Brown Bear Amazon link. If you purchase the book through the link, I will make a teeny-tiny profit, which I will turn around and use to buy awesome products for my classes from Teachers Pay Teachers and Target. All items mentioned in this blog were purchased with my own money--Teachers Pay Teachers, Kinderkids, and Target have no idea who I am. :)

DVD Recommendations, Part 2

In my last post, I shared part of our Signing Time DVD collection. Here are the rest of my recommendations!

I highly recommend to everyone that asks--check your local library system to see which Signing Time DVDs they carry! You get a variety of options with absolutely NO cost. Our San Antonio Public Library carries all of the Baby Signing Time and regular Signing Time DVDs, so I make it a point to purchase the items I can't borrow from the library! Here are all those "extras" that we love:

Signing Time: Sing and Sign: 

Sing & Sign features Rachel Coleman signing thirteen of the most popular Signing Time songs from beginning to end. You’ll have lots of fun while you learn the ASL concepts in each song.

Sing & Sign features three viewing options for each song:

• Learn to Sign: Rachel shows you how to sign each song all the way through, and explains why you might encounter different ASL interpretations of the same song. 
• Sing & Sign: Watch the words on the screen and follow along with Rachel as you sign each song from beginning to end. 
• Original DVD Versions: View music clips of each song, taken straight from the Signing Time series. It’s like watching all your favorite music videos back-to-back!

We LOVE this DVD! There are so many secondary signs to pick up...plus it covers lots of our favorite songs from Volumes 1-6, which eliminates the need for us to purchase those. :)

Signing Time: Story Time:

Story Time is a hands-on approach to reading, featuring six original stories that incorporate signs for bugs, family members, activities, animals, vehicles, feelings, colors, fruits, and more. First, Rachel will teach you how to sign key words from each story in American Sign Language. Then she’ll read the story to you while signing those key words. Listen, watch, read, and sign along with Rachel as the words to each story appear on the screen.

Our older daughter is an early reader, and I strongly believe that the Signing Time series played a huge role! One of the best tips I share with parents is to turn the captions on when children have their rare TV time. Story Time is one of our favorite DVDs--Counting Sheep is adorable!

Signing Time: Practice Time ABCs:

In Practice Time ABCs, host Rachel Coleman teaches you the alphabet in American Sign Language and quizzes you on what you've learned. Using clear, simple instruction, Rachel demonstrates each sign, and then sums up all of the letters in the Alphabet Song, so you can sing and sign along! Once you’ve mastered the alphabet, Rachel leads you through a series of interactive fingerspelling exercises.

This is a GREAT DVD for older preschoolers and early readers. Fingerspelling is such a fantastic tool for learning to spell, especially for visual and kinesthetic learners.

Potty Time (DVD + CD):

Potty Time teaches the potty routine along with signs that children of any age can use to talk about growing up, using the potty, and celebrating successes of all kinds. Signs are especially useful for potty training infants and toddlers. The Potty Time DVD and Music CD help children feel good about their growing bodies, learn the potty routine, and celebrate successes of any kind!

This DVD came out right after our first daughter learned how to use the toilet independently, so it's taken us a couple of years to be able to watch and enjoy this with our second daughter! :) Kate is in the beginning stages of potty training, but she definitely has a head start after watching this DVD a couple of times a month. It has so many positive messages that any child can benefit from, plus very helpful/practical signs.

Rachel and the Treeschoolers (DVD + CD), Episode 1: A Rainy Day:

Rain interrupts the TreeSchooler’s plans to play outside. The lightning and thunder scare Abacus Finch. Rachel and the TreeSchoolers show Abacus that understanding something can make it less scary. This episode teaches the following skills, concepts and values:

• weather concepts 
• problem solving 
• word rhyming 
• sign language 
• storytelling 
• persistence 
• kindness 
• courage 
• sorting

This is the first of Rachel Coleman's new series and it's adorable. It's definitely light on the signs, but it's nice to have a familiar face introduce new ideas about weather--and the songs are great, too! New DVDs are expected later this year!

Starting tomorrow (June 3rd), all DVDs on the Signing Time website are just $10! This is an annual sale, so be sure to stock up--we won't see prices this low until next year!

Click here to start shopping!

*This post does contain affiliate links. I I have purchased each of these DVDs for my own family; these opinions are entirely my own. Please view my disclosure policy for more information. *

Which DVD Should I Buy?

Last summer, Signing Time had a $10 DVD sale (that's 50% off regular prices!) and our family stocked up!

It's taken 3.5 years to build up our collection, and today I want to share some of our favorites with you.

**But first--here's a little about Signing Time, from SigningTime.com:**

The award-winning Signing Time DVDs will help you and your child learn basic American Sign Language (ASL) vocabulary words. Signing Time truly makes learning sign language easy, entertaining and fun for children of all ages. The format of Signing Time includes an adult (Rachel Coleman, co-creator) to model each sign, supported by footage of Alex and Leah (real kids, cousins in real life, Leah is deaf and Alex can hear, and Leah is Rachel's daughter), as well as footage of children and families demonstrating each sign in the proper context. Two to four thematic songs are sprinkled throughout each volume to help bring together all that you've learned.

The recommended ages for Signing Time are ages 1-8, although all ages love it and find it a fun and easy way to learn basic ASL signs. (If we can make it simple enough for small children to learn, older children and adults will learn in a snap!)

Each DVD is approximately 30 minutes long plus approximately 15 minutes of bonus material and special features such as interviews, bloopers, sign variations, and behind-the-scenes segments. All products are close-captioned and also contain English subtitles as an optional backup for captioning.

Baby Signing Time, Volumes 1-4: 

Baby Signing Time is designed specifically for babies 3 - 36 months old. This two-volume series sets your baby's day to music as you learn signs and songs for everyday events in baby's life such as eating, washing hands, sleep time, family members, pets, and more. The format of this program is a combination of original songs, animation, and real signing babies age 2 and under demonstrating each sign.

Baby Signing Time makes signing easy and fun and is a great product to start with if your child is under three years old. If you already own the Signing Time series, adding Baby Signing Time to your collection is a good idea if you still have young children in your family. It provides more reinforcement (and new songs) for those beginning signs. Baby Signing Time also makes an excellent gift for expectant mothers and new babies and is one of Signing Time's best-selling products.

**After Baby Signing Time, there are 26 Signing Time DVDs. There are two different series of Signing Time, called Series One and Series Two, that contain 13 volumes each, making 26 total. Series One is the original 13 Volumes of Signing Time (the series that started it all!) which were released from 2002-2006.**

ABC Signs/Leah's Farm:

These award-winning DVDs will teach your child over 20 ASL signs for farm animals, plus all of the letters of the alphabet! Features the song "Down on Leah's Farm" as seen on Nick Jr. Please note that these two DVDs are packed in one case.

Leah's Farm is a classic; one of my girls' top 5 for sure! They love learning all the animals and it ties in so well with many adorable children's books (Old MacDonald, Barnyard Dance).

ABC Signs is terrific for preschoolers--we bought it for our older daughter when she turned 4, but our younger daughter enjoys it, too. The song "A is for Alex" moves quickly and is a terrific exercise for signers looking for an extra challenge. :)

The Zoo Train:

Like Leah's Farm, The Zoo Train is another favorite at our house. Our girls love learning all the animal signs! 

ASL signs taught in this DVD: Rhinoceros - Kangaroo - Camel - Gorilla - Crocodile - Elephant - Penguin - Giraffe - Bat - Seal - Panda - Hippopotamus - Zebra - Tiger - Lion - Monkey - Starfish - Shrimp - Lobster - Crab - Octopus - Dolphin - Whale - Shark.

My Neighborhood:

This was our second Signing Time DVD purchase! I love that it covers the vocabulary that we use almost everyday when we go to the park and run errands, plus the signs for important people in our "neighborhood" (police officer, firefighter, doctor, nurse).

**Series Two reinforces signs that have been learned in Series One, and builds your ASL vocabulary with many new signs. Brand new learning modules such as "Counting Time" and "ABC Time" are segments within each volume that reinforce either the theme or signs being taught, and provide the opportunity to practice other skills within a signing framework.** 

Move and Groove:

Move and Groove was the first Signing Time DVDs I ever purchased, long before I was a Signing Time Academy Instructor! I LOVE that it gives my girls a chance to get up and move--during a hot Texas summer, it's important to have ways to burn off energy indoors. This DVD does the trick!

**So those are the Baby Signing Time and Signing Time DVDs that our family owns! Check back to hear about the rest of our collection...and what we plan on purchasing next!**

*This post does contain affiliate links. I I have purchased each of these DVDs for my own family; these opinions are entirely my own. Please view my disclosure policy for more information. *

Product Review: Signing Time Series One, Volume 11 (My Neighborhood)

Alex, Leah, their frog Hopkins, and host Rachel Coleman teach ASL signs for playground activities, vehicles, places to go and people to see in your neighborhood. Created for ages 1-8, yet fun for all. Available only on DVD. Close-Captioned. Approximate run time: 30 minutes, plus special features.

My Neighborhood includes the following original songs, written by Rachel Coleman:
* Signing Time Theme
* Down at the Park
* Watch Me Go
* My Job
* In My Neighborhood
* Every Day

ASL signs taught in this DVD:
Playground - Roller Skates - Picnic - Kite - Swing - Slide - Climb - Sand - Helicopter - Bus - Boat - Motorcycle - Slow - Fast - Store - Buy - Stamp - Mail - Library - Story - Office - Work - Restaurant - Firefighter - Police Officer - Doctor - Nurse.

And if you pay close attention, you’ll also see and learn these additional signs:
Time - Teach - Come - Sign - Sing - Dance - Laugh - Play - Where - Friend - Meet - Find - Not - Different - Share - Love - Day - Now - Favorite - Spot - Go - Do - Much - See - City - School - Watch - Need - Mailbox - Can - Good/Behave - Read - Book - Hard - Visit - Eat - People - Same - Family - Careful - Safe - Help - Hurt - Every Day - Special - Diaper - Potty.

***

If you're just starting out signing with your little ones, I definitely recommend the Baby Signing Time series and volumes 1-3 of regular Signing Time. But what do you watch once you've seen all of those and mastered the signs your family uses regularly? Well, I have been watching Signing Time DVDs with my daughter(s) for over three years now. It's safe to say that we each have our favorites, and Signing Time: My Neighborhood (Series 1, Volume 11) is definitely my favorite!

As a stay-at-home mom, this DVD covers so many of the signs related to our everyday errands: playground, library, post office. My toddler loves the "Watch Me Go" segment with all the transportation signs and my preschooler loves the Special Helper section. (We use the signs whenever we see a firefighter or police officer while we're out and about. There really are helpers everywhere!)

I love to help families find just the right DVD for their situation. If you have any questions, please comment below or e-mail me!

This post does contain affiliate links. I purchased this DVD for my family long before I became a Signing Time Academy instructor after checking it out from the library MANY times. :) The opinions stated in this post are entirely my opinion.

Product Review: Practice Time ABCs DVD

In Practice Time ABCs, host Rachel Coleman teaches you the alphabet in American Sign Language and quizzes you on what you've learned. Using clear, simple instruction, Rachel demonstrates each sign, and then sums up all of the letters in the Alphabet Song, so you can sing and sign along!

Once you’ve mastered the alphabet, Rachel leads you through a series of interactive fingerspelling exercises. Rachel fingerspells dozens of words and you get to practice “reading” what she’s signing. This exercise is an excellent way to reinforce early reading skills with young readers!

Next, Rachel will ask you to fingerspell the words you see on the screen. She then shows you the correct answer so you’ll know if you got it right! This exercise builds your signing confidence as you practice the essential skill of fingerspelling. Each practice segment is randomized so that each time you view the DVD it will be different from the last!

Practice Time can be used as a companion to the Signing Time videos or on their own. Created for all ages. Available only on DVD. Close-Captioned. Approximate run time: 30 minutes, plus special features. Practice Time ABCs features the Alphabet Song.

* * *

We ordered this DVD for our 4 year old during the last $10 DVD sale. Addie has been signing since she was 18 months old and has a large sight word vocabulary from watching Signing Time DVDs, where a child is shown a picture, the sign, and the written word. She started reading independently a few months ago, but we are still focusing on individual letters and their sounds for Kindergarten next year.

We've watched it several times and we both really enjoy it. It's fun like all the other Signing Time DVDs, but also slightly more advanced. I love that Rachel signs as she talks--I'm learning new signs just by watching with Addie! The best feature for us is that the practice segments are random--Addie tends to memorize things watching them a couple of times, so this will help me accurately determine whether she knows a sign/letter being shown. It's definitely going to compliment the Signing Time ABCs DVD that her grandparents bought her for her birthday!