Time4Learning is not what I expected it to be. Somehow I thought I would be getting lesson plans to teach Bear. But it's not like that. The lessons are all taught by the computer games and activities.
Call me backwards and archaic, but I really don't like that.
I don't mind her playing games on the computer, but the teaching part - I want that to be a personal experience for her.
However, I want to like Time4Learning because it looks like a lot of work and thought went into its conception.
Here's what I like.
First, it's great that I can place my daughter in a more advanced level. The program is very flexible that way. Bear can be in first grade language arts and kindergarten math without a problem, while still having access to the preschool activities.
It's good that the directions to the student are spoken slowly and clearly.
Here's what didn't work for us.
Because I placed Bear in a more advanced academic level, the games/activities involve more complex mouse moves. For example, in the language extensions section (first grade language), there are science and history lessons. I watched one on pollution. For the activity, you answer riddles and are given a puzzle piece. Each time you get a piece, you get a bit of information about the type of pollution. I thought that this was a good way to sneak in the tidbits. However, you have to be able to click and drag to get your puzzle piece to the right spot on the screen. This is something that is painfully slow with Bear. It has some worksheets to go along with it which is nice, but I felt that the worksheets were not that interesting or relevant. They seemed more like fillers.
Another point I don't like is how often the directions are repeated. It led to the boredom of Bear who announced, "No more of that!" during a phonics instruction. The intro was way too long and Bear knows inside out that N is for Nut, Nest, Nod, and then that G is for... So to listen to that over and over to get to the point that N+G is the sound "ng" was a bit much.
I want to like Time4Learning, but at this point, I can't justify letting Bear sit in front of the computer for it when she could be doing hands-on activities with me, or playing outside and getting fresh air.
That's not to say it wouldn't work for another family. It just doesn't work for mine. Perhaps when we get to higher grades it would be a better fit for us.
Great thoughts on online learning and I really appreciate your openness and thoughtfulness in this post!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like Bear is getting a great education.
ReplyDeleteTime4Learning gets used by many families in many ways. I hope nobody uses Time4Learning instead of doing outside and hands-on activities with their kids!
Often Time4Learning is used in lieu of textbooks and workbooks for the academic portion of studying language arts and math. In terms of media consumption, there are many children who want to be on the computer (or TV or video game machine) and Time4Learning serves as a way to make that time educationally meaningfully. The preschool activitiesfor instance, is often used by parents who want to take advantage of their kids interest in computers but don't want to have them out and about on the net.
Thoughtful review, interesting read, thanks. Its great when reviewers really consider how it would affect their situation.
I like your review, and I agree that I wouldn't consider this to be comprehensive learning solution, but I still think that it's pretty good as something complementary. What is attractive to me is that each activity is short (at least in K Math). I can give Anna 15 minutes after dinner and cover one topic. I do agree on the repetition and long introductions and wish that I could configure the program to enable "go on" button during the intro.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you 100%
ReplyDeleteI agree that T4L is not for everyone.That being said ,I personally love http://www.time4learning.com ! & so do my kids age 3 & 9 yrs
ReplyDeleteI really like how it taught my kids and how it really made sure my kids understood their lesson,Not to mention the grading & record keeping.
For us we just skip lessons we already mastered and I help with anything that may be a bit complicated for my youngest or oldest to do.
We have been using this program for about 2 yrs now and haven't had many issues ..I think that for this program to work for your family it would depend on how you are wanting to home-school and what type of learner your child is.Luckily T4L always does a 2 week money back guarantee so never hurts to try it and get your own thoughts of whether you like it ;)
Just wanted to add a different perspective :D
My 13Dd has been using T4L for two years. At first she didn't want to use it because she thought it was going to be too kiddish. It wasn't, and she LOVES it. She especially likes the Think Alouds. I like that she can go up or down a grade level as needed, it keeps the records for me, I can track her progress, there are worksheet for use as needed, they have an awesome forum board, they offer Art as an elective... I also like that you can pay quarterly and get a discount or use the "on hold" for months you won't access the site and don't want to pay for a month you won't use. I realize T4L won't work for everyone, however, I am so thankful that it is available for my child and many others. She is not very hands-on, so this is a very good fit. We do supplement the math with Teaching Textbooks because she is a bit behind and needed something extra. We also supplement with lots of field trips and I jump on the wagon when she shows interest in a particular subject. Right now, she is very into astronomy so I have supplemented with Answers in Genesis.
ReplyDeleteJackie
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Jackie,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. It's good to see how T4L works for another family and another age group. We may give it another try when Bear is older.