Imagination Station Blog Tour

I am participating in a book tour for the new Imagination Station series of books.  We have been reading these books aloud for the past several weeks and have thoroughly enjoyed them.   I want to tell you all about them today.  


If your child has enjoyed The Magic Treehouse Series, they will most certainly like Imagination Station, published by Focus on The Family/Tyndale House.  If you're a fan of Adventures in Odyssey, you will love this extension of the popular audio series. 


The books are the adventures of cousins Beth and Patrick, who (while visiting Whit's End) find the Imagination Station.  Each story is based on what Beth and Patrick would do because of their faith in God.  The books teach about history THROUGH A LENS OF FAITH.   


Currently there are 6 books available, with more coming soon.    

For review purposes, we received the complete set of books - what a treat!   It included:

#1:  Voyage With the Vikings
#2:  Attack at the Arena
#3:  Peril in the Palace
#4:  Revenge of the Red Knight
#5:  Showdown with the Shepherd
#6:  Problems in Plymouth

In our history studies this year we have been learning about the Ancients and have just started Medieval times... The first two books (Voyage with the Vikings and Attack at the Arena) were of particular interest to us.  I read them aloud to my six year old.   They are recommended for ages 7 and up, but I think children as young as 4 or 5 can listen to them.  Composed of 15 short chapters, the books can be read in little chunks here and there, although my son was begging me to read several chapters at a time!  My son is able to read them by himself, but I wanted to hear them, too!   


My daughter, 10, also enjoys the books and has been reading them on her own... these are books that can be passed down to several children, or enjoyed with multiple ages at the same time.  I love those kinds of resources!  


Each book follows the same sequence of events -- Beth and Patrick start out in Whit's End in the Imagination Station and are given a different challenge.  The Imagination Station takes them to the particular period in history and Beth and Patrick must face adventures and challenges to solve the mystery.   The historical information presented is accurate and memorable.   These books are a wonderful supplement to our history curriculum!  


At the end of each book there are a few little written puzzles to complete to come up with a secret word.  Once your child has this word, they can then go to the Imagination Station website and enter this word to unlock a free Adventures in Odyssey episode.  My son loved this!   You can also see previews of each book and much more! 

If you'd like a chance to win a set of the books, you can visit my friend Kathy's blog, where she is hosting a giveaway.   

Disclaimer: I received the above named products from Tyndale House Publishing  in return for my honest review. I have not been compensated in any other form.  

Read-Alouds for My Six Year Old

I know I have said this before, but I still feel that I'm largely guilty of not doing enough read-alouds that are specifically geared to my first grader.  Yes, he listens with his big sister to larger books like The Bronze Bow and Carry On, Mr. Bowditch, but he also still LOVES a good picture book.   In an effort to read more to his level, I'm searching out material for him.   This week I'll share with you a little of what we've been reading. 





I can't remember if it was Amy at Hope is The Word, or another blog I was reading, but I remember someone speaking fondly about James Herriot's Treasury of Inspirational Stories for Children.  This is a wonderful collection of animal stories.  At first glance I wasn't sure my little guy would be interested, but from the first story (about a little kitten named Moses) he was hooked!  This book now sits on our coffee table and is one of his favorites.  We are about half way through the treasury.  

The next book simply came from looking through the shelves at the library.  As it turns out, this is also one of the books we did not get to in the first volume of Five in a Row.  We've read it a couple of times this week and we'll be sad when it has to be returned.   Papa Piccolo is a great book to read for fun, but it also has a great moral.  It will teach your children about sharing and being compassionate to those who might be different, weaker, or younger.  There are so many wonderful tie-ins with this book, too... you could jump off into geography, social studies, and several other areas.  The setting is Venice, Italy and the illustrations really are exquisite.  

The last book I wanted to share with you is A Pirate's Life for Me.  This book was recommended in The Story of The World Activity Guide.   It's a great book about the everyday life of a pirate.  We have been talking about pirates and how they kidnapped Julius Caesar, so it goes right along with our history.   The book covers things like they moldy food they eat, how they bury their treasure, and how they let a ship know they will be attacking.   It also highlights some famous pirates, so your children will see that yes, pirates were (and are) real.    

There you have a smattering of read-alouds for a six year old boy.... what are you reading aloud in your homeschool this week?

Visit Hope Is The Word for more Read Aloud Thursday posts! 

A Book in a Day ~ Read Aloud Thursday

One of our read-alouds this week was completed in one day.  Granted, it was only 88 pages, but still - one day is pretty good.  

The Cat Who Went to Heaven ties into (once again) our Story of The World history studies. It is broken into short sections with a poem at the end of each... something about the book kept my children enthralled. My daughter described this book as "so simple, but so beautiful to listen to".  Don't you love it when your children recognizes beauty?  THIS is why I homeschool!

This fable (which dates back to 1930) is a story that all ages of children will enjoy - my six year old loved it, and I even think middle and high schoolers would enjoy this one.  

The synopsis from Goodreads:


In ancient Japan, a struggling artist is angered when his housekeeper brings home a tiny white cat he can barely afford to feed. But when the village's head priest commissions a painting of the Buddha for a healthy sum, the artist softens toward the animal he believes has brought him luck. According to legend, the proud and   haughty cat was denied the Buddha's blessing for refusing to accept his teachings and pay him homage. So when the artist, moved by compassion for his pet, includes the cat in his painting, the priest rejects the work and decrees that it must be destroyed. It seems the artist's life is ruined as well -- until he is rewarded for his act of love by a Buddhist miracle.

In last week's Read-Aloud Thursday post I told you about I Once Was A Monkey and some of the themes in the book which showed my children some commonalities between Christian values and Buddhist values.   The Cat Who Went to Heaven did more of the same, and in one section my daughter and I even got into a good discussion about forgiveness. A quote from the book:

Nevertheless, he led the man out of the forest to the edge of the fields and bade him farewell, showing compassion even to his betrayer.  (p. 68)

 I love it when a book makes us think deeper about serious things.   


I always make sure to point out to my children that Christianity is the ONLY religion that has a risen, resurrected savior - Jesus Christ.  It is a big world out there, and I want my children to know about the many people who make it a diverse and beautiful world, too.   Learning about Buddhism has been so interesting and enriching for us.  


What have you been reading aloud this week?  Leave me a comment and let me know - this is a big part of the way I choose books to read-aloud!   


*I'm (of course!) linking with Amy at Hope is the Word for Read Aloud Thursday!