Rock N' Learn Review and Giveaway!!!

REVIEW WRITTEN and GIVEAWAY BY 

Brae Craig at 

I am NOT a VOLCANO (and other such stories) Blog

*****My readers may receive a WHOPPING 25% off their ENTIRE PURCHASE at http://www.RockNLearn.com when they enter the coupon code JQ7711!!!!!!!!*****

What an excellent deal! Please take advantage of this offer! 

I am very proud to be the newest reviewer of Rock N' Learn educational videos!!! 

About 5 days ago, I received Rock N' Learn's new "Letter Sounds" video in the mail, specifying it's target audience as ages 4-7. I thought this was perfect, since I have children ages 4, 5 and 6! Awesome!!!

As is my usual habit of watching things before I let my kids watch them, I put this into my player after they were asleep. 

I have to admit here that I was a bit disappointed. I expected catchy songs (you know, "rock" and learn...kind of implies it.) and lots of music, and some kind of story line. There was SOME music, but it was actually quite tame, a bit quiet, with slow rhythms, and there wasn't much of a story. I wasn't really sure if my kids would get the kick out of it I had hoped. 

HOWEVER, after my oldest two got home from school the next day, I put on the video, and to my surprise (AND DELIGHT!) they ALL enjoyed it very much! 

(This is a picture of my 1 year old, who, clinging to my legs as I made dinner, heard the video and crawled over to the banister, where he stared at the video, and even bounced a little, dancing along.) 

The Rock N' Learn video included several  themes.

1. Letter sounds - there were a couple different versions of these.

One was a really long, and fairly monotone song, which I didn't care for, but my children seemed mesmerized by. It said the name of the letter, and then, to a rhythm, made the sound of the letter repeatedly.

Second, a character in the show would read a sentence that was displayed on the screen. In the sentence, every word began with the same letter. There was a 30 second time clock that gave the kids a chance to shout out what the beginning letter was. My kids, who all read by this point (on age appropriate levels) LOVED this part. It gave them a chance to exercise what they knew already, and gave a semblance of interaction with the video.

Third (and my favorite), there  was a part (Pictured below) that showed the letter (upper and lower case, which I LOVE because too many videos only show capital. I hate that.) and a picture of an item that begins with that letter's sound. The very BEST part was they also showed a little video of a mouth saying that letter and it's sound. To me, this is the best because it's a very natural way to learn to speak. When babies are learning to talk, they don't just listen to your voice, they watch your mouth to see how you form your words. Don't believe me? Next time you talk to your baby, watch his eyes! You'll be surprised!

Also, I think this is especially cool with kids who mispronounce their letters. Vision trumps sound every time, and they will be drawn to look at the mouth. A child who says the "w" sound for L, or the "th" sound for the "s" might very well figure out how to correctly pronounce a sound by watching this type of thing!

2. Rhyming words - Through the act of a gameshow, the characters on this show changed the first sounds of words to show what rhyming means, and how to do it.

This is something my 4 year old was really interested in. She is reading 1 vowel words already, but rhyming is something they are studying in her preschool class. She loves doing it, and sometimes she gets a bit confused.

3. Blending words.

This section took 2 or 3 syllable words and separated them into sound parts. For example: Clock. 3 squares would appear on the screen, and the narrator would say Cl (Cl would appear in the first box)  ah (and an o would appear in the box) ck (and the ck would appear in the 3rd box) Then the boxes would disappear and the word would blend together.

I found this a  PERFECT section for my 5 year old. He is in Kindergarten now, and reads wonderfully- if he's not in a hurry. If he's in a hurry, he won't sound out his words, and just guesses. It can get infuriating for a mom when he would rather be playing with his Bat Cave he got for Christmas!!!

4. Spelling

In this part, the narrator would say a word, for example, Golf. She would say "Golf. G- ah-l-f. Golf" - then the 30 second timer would appear again, and give the children a chance to spell the word before the narrator did it. I really liked this because, in breaking it down into sounds, it does teach spelling.

This was for my 6 year old. She's in first grade, and reads on about a 12 year old level. She's still learning, though, the 6 year old age appropriate skills, and doesn't always know how to spell things. The English language can be very confusing. I like that this type of program can better arm her with the ability to think about separating the sounds of a word before she tries to spell it.

Of course, I looked at the website, and I am impressed. Rock N Learn also offers videos on Shapes, Math, Sight Words, Science and Social Studies, and even caters to age specific groups. I would really like to try Math and sight words, as those are things that two or more of my kids are studying at any given time.

I was disappointed at first, but I'm glad I didn't let that get me down- because after seeing how much my kids enjoyed this video, and taking time to realize how well this can benefit them, I really do like the product and I do recommend it.

Now, for the best part of all!!!

Enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win YOUR CHOICE of any CD or DVD on www.RockNLearn.com!!! Don't forget, our readers can also receive a 25% discount off of their entire purchase by using the coupon code JQ7711 at checkout! Contest ends at 12:01 am on January 16!


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Touchy Topic Tuesday- Education vs Trade. Is a degree SO important?

Touchy Topic Tuesday

Education vs Trade: Is a degree SO important?

Months ago, I engaged in a facebook conversation about education now-a-days, how expensive it is, how those going to school now will spend the rest of their lives paying it off, and how sad it is that, despite it's impossibility to afford, it's so necessary that even a person with a physical TRADE skill can't get a job without it. 

I had intended to write this as today's Touchy Topic anyway, but, in googling the subject of Trade Skills vs. Education for blog fodder, I came across an article that encompasses EVERYTHING I intended to say about the education part anyway, and I feel the need to share it. 

"Education in America- Read the Fine Print talks about education being almost entirely out of reach for American middle class people, based on it's astronomical cost, and the problems that exist inside the educational system anyway- the things they AREN'T teaching, that we SHOULD be getting in order to be successful in THE WORLD.

On top of all that, I have further ideas to explore.

Back in the 80's, when I was raised, I recall multiple television shows and movies that continually made fun of college. Why would anyone go to college? It was a ludicrous idea to many people- at that time, Trade schools were booming, and people were learning valuable skills using hands-on techniques. Artisans. Those who worked in bakeries, who built buildings- stone masons, electricians, carpenters, contractors, and so on, people who built instruments, roads and many other things, were finding great opportunities and were widely respected.

By the time I graduated from high school, an explicit value was placed on college education. Well, SOME college education. A couple of years, maybe an associates degree or so was admired and hireable. Now, a decade later, there is so much value placed on education, that a person simply can't be hired without the maximum amount. Bachelors degree? Not good enough.

It's something that my husband and I have battled since we got married. I was 22 when we tied the knot, and I went to school for 3 years, goofed off a bit, and escaped with an Associates degree. My husband, at the time, didn't have a degree, but had his associates degree by the time he joined the United States Air Force a year after we got married. He was 23, and he was behind because of the two years he spent serving an LDS mission in Kingston, Jamaica.

The military promised free education, and was the main draw for us to join. What we didn't know was that they would leave him ZERO time to actually take classes. It wasn't until our 3rd year of active duty that he was able to enroll.

Upon our separation from the military, Brandon found it infinitely difficult to find a job. Due to his training and type of job WITH the military, he met all qualifications for jobs in leadership experience, working with hazardous materials, and so on. Most of the time, he exceeded the requirements. What he didn't have was a Bachelors degree. He spent two more years, under employed, working days going to school at night, and recently received his Bachelors degree.

We thought it would be easier for him to get hired now that he HAS the BS, AND two more years of experience. In two years, the requirements have jumped to a Masters, and requires even more experience. Disappointed, my husband has set his sights higher- to an MBA with an emphasis on advertising. Two more years and we should be set, right? Like, what are they going to do next? Add another degree? Triple the experience required? It's the end of the line.

Often, it feels like that light at the end of the tunnel is really just a train.

This isn't the first experience I've witnessed, though. My dad is a drywall contractor. He has been my whole life and throughout my childhood, he made an excellent living. He is actually quite the artist. My dad is a perfectionist, and what he does is always good work. On top of that, he can do anything. And that's not just a little girl goo-goo eyed for her perfect daddy. He really can. Tile, plumbing, welding, heat/air, appliances, carpet, remodeling, electronics- anything. You name it, he can do it, and he can do it, and well. Any engine hums happily after a visit to my dad. Yeah- he can fix your car too.

My dad has near FORTY YEARS of experience under his capable belt.

Just after I started college, my dad's company, where he was partner for over 20 years, paid employees, made an excellent, trusted name for himself, went out of business. He has struggled, since, to provide for my family- marrying off two girls and a son, paying for my brother's mission, and my youngest brother's diabetes, which happened right in the midst of his company going under.

Now, my dad is the best handyman West Jordan has EVER seen. He gets work by word of mouth, and does pretty decently. But he can't get licensed as a professional contractor the way he once was, nor can he be hired with another contracting company. Know why? Education. He doesn't have any.

My dad never went to college. After high school, my dad spent years as an apprentice, learning a TRADE.

Education for him is so expensive, and- get this- he makes too much money to qualify for government grants and student loans! Nevermind that he makes less money than my underemployed husband does. Nevermind that he has dependent children. It's so far out of his reach that it's hopeless to even try. And it becomes a vicious cycle.

Ivory Homes, a pretty big-time building company here in Utah- one my dad actually worked for before the creation of his business, Venture West, in his younger days, won't hire him, despite his excellent resume (he built most of the western Salt Lake Valley) and vast experience. The problem? Once again, the issue is my dad's lack of a degree. They would rather hire some 25 year old kid who spent the last 6 years sitting in a desk, getting his masters, who doesn't know a bazooka from a knife (don't worry, they're drywall tools), than they would my dad- who has no degree...but obviously knows what he's doing. I mean, if this were Hell's Kitchen, my dad would win.

Heck, even home owners are getting picky about it all- they, too, would rather hire someone based on college education as opposed to experience and referral- since that's all the business my dad gets is word of mouth.

Now, this isn't just all about me and it's not, by any means, a pity party. We're all happy, and we're on our feet, and we're making it just fine. But I know there are others out there. In the first job Brandon worked when we moved out here to Utah after the military, he met more than a handful of welders and carpenters and electricians who are in the same boat as my dad.

And we come back to the question: Is it REALLY that necessary in ALL cases? A surgeon? You bet, if I am about be operated on, I want to know that my doctor spent hours in classrooms learning all about my body and it's organs and functions so that, when he gets in there, knows how to fix it and put it back. A teacher? Uh, yeah. I want to know that the person who is teaching a subject to ME has actually spent time studying the subject. But some of these hands on jobs, these artisan trades, are only perfected through experiencing them. Through labor and apprenticeship. It doesn't matter how many years you spend in a desk, reading a book, doing math problems...there's a huge difference in knowing, in theory, how to weld a pipe, than there is in doing it.

I am not by any means disparaging education. I actually find education VERY important. I expect all my children to go to college and get degrees that will help them support their families and give them satisfactory lifestyles. I don't think, at all, that some education could hurt my dad, and as absolutely brilliant as he is, he'd do very well with it. But, considering what he knows about his trade- and believe me, that's inside and out- he wouldn't use a lick of his education, really. At least not anything that he doesn't already know.  And it's getting more and more expensive every year. Kids fresh out of high school can't afford it now, how can a person of middle-age or beyond afford to go back to school when there is so much resting on their shoulders? And what the heck is wrong with people and businesses who can't recognize when education matters less than skill?

**********************

What do you think? How do you feel about the cost of a decent, University level education these days? How do you feel about skill vs. degree? Do you feel that there is a time and a place, or is it really absolutely necessary for every person to have a high education? Are you or someone you know stuck in this same predicament?  Let us know!!!


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