Using My Noodle Again

Some of you may know that a couple of months back I decided to enroll on an adult learning course which was being held at my daughters school. It was a functional skills course covering English and Mathematics at level one. The course went well and I passed. It was a shock to the system at first being back in that classroom environment and doing homework but I am fairly confident in my maths and english abilities and found level one to be fairly easy to complete.

Last week I started level two. My oh my what a different kettle of fish level two is. I knew it would be harder and welcome the challenge of upping my game. Level two covers a lot more varied subjects and in greater detail. Even the questions seem to be worded differently to trip you up. But regardless of how challenging this course will become I am determined to stick it out, knuckle down and get a pass. A pass in this level would be the equivalent of a GCSE A*- C. Now thats got to look more appealing on the old CV rather than a big blank space under qualifications.

Aalliyahs school work has got a lot more difficult and is even receiving extra study support in Mathematics as she is on the verge of pushing through to a level 6 which is fantastic! As you can imagine she brings home some pretty mind boggling homework. Just the other day she asked for my help with some fractions questions and I may aswell have been looking at one of those magic eye illusion pictures where you have to try and find the hidden picture. No matter how many times I read and reread the question, nothing stuck. I guess another big reason I chose to go ahead with level two was to build my confidence and knowledge so that I may be able to assist Aalliyah with her studies which is something I would normally shy away from.

My brain is totally fried today! The amount of information I took in has left my brain feeling numb I dont even want to think about numbers for the rest of the day. I want nothing more than to get in a nice hot bath and crawl into my not so comfortable bed until morning. Yes its like sleeping on a cactus and I'd give anything to be drifting off to sleep on a luxury memory foam mattress but I am so drained after this mornings lessons I could sleep on a rock.

*This post is in collaboration with Zleeps.co.uk

Sneaky Snacky Squirrel - Review

Sneaky snacky squirrel is another fantastic game from Learning Resources. Designed to help build up fine motor skills , easy enough for children to play from approximately 3 years old, but fun enough to still be enjoyed by children of any age and even by the parents too!

In a nut shell (pardon the squirrel related pun) the object of the game is to fill your piece of tree stump with one of each colour acorn. Players take it in turns to spin the spinner and follow the given instructions.

The first thing that struck me with this game was the box. I was so impressed with how funky it looked! Every single board game in Aalliyahs bedroom (and there's ALOT)  has a bog standard square box but this was so quirky and fun. I love the fact that the box was tree shaped, something so simple but immediately catches the attention of children and in my case the mums too!

I must admit when I quickly read the back of the box, I did have my reservations on weather or not the game would actually be as fun and or entertaining as it sounded and was worried it would be for a much younger audience. I do love being proved wrong...

Me and Aalliyah both had a whale of a time playing, and it didn't get boring even after the 6th or 7th time round. Aalliyah loved the squirrel shaped tongs that you had to use to pick up the acorns and loved the fact that I kept landing on the windy spot, which meant I had to put all my acorns back and start from scratch.

Overall I was extremely impressed with this game. I love the fact that it is so simple to follow and yet can entertain children of all ages. This game will fast become one of Aalliyahs favourites to pull out on rainy days.

If you fancy buying the game for yourself, why not head over to Learning Resources. Click on the following link where you will taken directly to there site where you can purchase Sneaky Snacky Squirrel as well as check out other products in their fantastic range.

Click Here To Buy Sneaky Snacky Squirrel

Learning Resources Hot Dots Hands On Review

Learning Resources offer a fantastic range of learning aids and toys, with their main customer base being teachers and other workers in the education field. They manufacture a varied range of items which have been specifically developed to aid in children's learning and development.

As a parent I think it is extremely important that my child learns through play, so when we were given the opportunity to review something from Learning Resources Hot Dots range, I was delighted.

We were askled to review a Hot Dots pen and set of accompanying flash cards which were the Hot Dots Junior - Numbers and Counting set.

The pen is very easy to use. Easy to hold onto - even for little hands, and with only 2 buttons, not overly complicated for children to operate. One button switches the sound on and off while the other alternates between sound effects and sound effects with voice (For when you get an answer right or wrong)

The cards are brightly illustrated and feature a question and a multiple choice answer selection. Each answer has a corresponding dot next to it, which when you place the pens nib and push down onto it will let you know if you have got the correct answer or not. To do this it will either light up green or red and will actually speak and tell you if you right with phrases such as "Err No!" and "Good Job!" They come in a handy little box making them easy to carry around and perfect to take with you anywhere.

This innovative new idea, is a fantastic way of letting children check there own answers and with so many different card sets available, which cater for a range of different ages and levels, the fun never has to end.

Take a look at the following video which shows how easy the set is to handle, use and understand.

As I mentioned before there are a wide range of card sets available which covers topics such as Spelling, Vocabulary, Numbers, Counting, Telling the time, Mathematics and more. Click on the link below to be taken to the Learning Resources site, where you can view the full range of Hot Dots Accessories.

Buy Hot Dots Now

Fancy winning a Hot Dots pen and set of Hot Dots Junior cards? Head over to their Facebook competition now by clicking the link below, but hurry as the closing date is Friday 16th November. Good Luck :-)

Win A Hot Dots Set

Overall I was really impressed with the pen and cards. They are a fantastic learning aid for children at all levels and I would definitely recommend them to teachers and parents alike.

Please note: I was not paid for this review and it is all of my own honest opinion.