Footsteps2Brillance Review & Giveaway

I was given the opportunity to check out the Footstep2Brillance learning app. The app is an academic language program for students. Boogs and I really enjoy reading together, but I am always trying to find ways to encourage his love of reading independently. Footsteps2Brillance has been a great tool to encourage Boogs to read by himself.

The app is very easy to use. Boogs has his own sign-in and password screen. He was then able to access 18 interactive books. Boogs had such a great time pressing on different parts of each page in the books to see the animation of the objects. At first, he mainly spent his time doing that or playing the games that came with each story. After the first week, he became interested in really trying to read each story. If he got stuck on a word, he merely tapped that word and it was read to him.

The app is versatile. It was easy to download and can be accessed on our iPhones, iPad, and computer with the same login.

Footsteps2Brilliance™ is generously giving away a subscription to one of  Keitha's Chaos' readers! This prize is valued at over $249 USD. Enter my giveaway below:
                                

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you can't wait to buy it, Footsteps2Brillance has offered a special price of $99 for my readers. Click HERE to purchase now. It will make an excellent Christmas present for your young reader.

Footsteps2Brilliance™ is an award-winning app created by educators to give your pre-K though 2^nd grade child a head start towards school success. Our comprehensive and engaging program will accelerate vocabulary acquisition, comprehension, creativity, and multiple-choice test taking skills in your child.

The Footsteps2Brilliance™ collection consists of a library of 18 beautifully written and illustrated e-books, over 200 interactive games, and parent-friendly reports.  Innovative features include:

- 1,000 most important words a child needs to become a strong reader and writer

- Auditory support and rhyming to help with reading fluency
- Three levels of game play for independent learning
- English/Spanish toggle switch on every page
- Interactive animations and music that make the stories come to life
- Create-a-Book feature enabling your child to author books.

Having fun while learning with the Footsteps2Brilliance™ app can happen anywhere … in the car, on a family vacation or at home! Our app can be accessed through any smart device, including iPhones, iPads, Android phones and tablets, Kindle Fires, Google Nexus tablets and traditional computers.

Getting Crafty

Holiday preparations are in full swing. Boogs and I have been getting crafty to prepare for them.

My nieces and nephews prefer to receive money or gift cards for presents. I found this cute idea for giving them "Holiday Dough" HERE on Pinterest.

 Boogs worked on several projects this week. I can't show you what this is because he is making a few of them for different family members.

 I love his concentration and attention to detail.

 Of course we had to get in some handprint and footprint crafts.

 We already had a Christmas get together with my side of the family. Boogs gave these as his gifts. The big handprint is mine. I made it to tease my mom. Last year I gave her a footprint manger from both Boogs and I. She hung both of them up on her freezer.

I am almost finished with this year's batch of Snowman Soup, just need to add the marshmallow and staple on the topper.

This year's Christmas cards have been made and I have sent out a few. I just need to finish addressing a few more. I still need to decide what to bake for Christmas cookies this year. Any suggestions?

My first giveaway is featured in this post, please check it out.     

Lunches December 3rd - 7th

Boogs' lunches are inspired by the books we read at bedtime the previous evening. Each night, Boogs reads one book to me and I read a book or a chapter of a book to him. I usually post his lunches once a week. Click on the "lunches" label at the end of this post to see lunches from previous weeks.

The Hat by Jan Brett

We love to read and re-read Jan Brett books. When I took our holiday/seasonal books out of the attic, Boogs wanted to read this book first. He loves the detailed illustrations, especially the ones of Hedgie with a stocking stuck on his head. Boogs said if he saw Hedgie he would not laugh at him. In the Laptop lunchbox: pb&j Hedgie with cheese stocking stuck on his head, pita chips hollow log with hummus, salad, and grapes.

 A Very Marley Christmas by John Grogan

Boogs thinks Marley is hilarious! We listened to an "edited for kids" version of Marley & Me on cd.  Boogs asked me to start the cd over again as soon as it ended. He loved hearing about Marley chewing up and eating everything in sight. Boogs was incredibly excited when he saw this Marley Christmas book at the library. In this book, that crazy dog gets into one mess after another. He gets tangled in Christmas lights, pees on the Christmas tree, "helps" decorate, and makes many other messes. In the lunchbox: ham & cheese Marley tangled in candy strings of Christmas lights while wearing an over-sized fruit leather Santa hat, cheese tree that Marley is using the bathroom on, red and green grape ornaments, okra chips, and tomato & snowpea lights.

Boring lunch day: ham and salad in a Ziplock container with salad dressing in an ELB Mini Dipper, he had an orange that is not pictured.

Boris Ate A Thesaurus by Neil Steven Klayman

 We have been discovering so many cute books about reading and words. This book is another great one. When I read the title to Boogs, I asked him if he knew what a thesaurus was. He looked at me like I had lost my mind and replied, "Easy, it is a dinosaur!" That made me giggle. The librarian in this story asks the class the same question. Boris yells, "It's a giant, green monster!" The illustration on the page shows that Boris was thinking of a tyrannosaurs rex.  This book is about synonyms which Boris thought meant cinnamon buns. He got so hungry that he devoured the thesaurus. From then on, every sentence Boris spoke had 3 synonyms. While I was reading the first set of synonyms, Boogs sighed and said, "That is so redundant!" He keeps me smiling. This is a such a cute story. Boogs wanted to make sure I knew that the "mortal" of the story is: Books Are For Reading, Not For Eating! In the Laptop lunchbox: hummus & pita bread thesaurus being eaten by a cheese Boris with carrot hair, blueberries with a "Bee A Reader" pick (thanks, Beth), pumpkin seeds of knowledge, salad, and an applesauce covered in synonyms.

This lunch is linked to Lunchbox Dad's Throwback Thursday Link-Up.

This week has felt very busy and my lunch making skills have been a little off. It must be because of our Elf's nightly adventures. Boogs bought a school lunch one day and took a regular lunch one day this week. 

Be sure to check out the wonderful sites I link to on my sidebar! If you want to see more book inspired lunches, click on the "lunches" label at the end of this post or go to My Story Themed Lunches board on Pinterest. I would love for you to leave a comment to let me know you stopped by.     

Our Silly Elf

Cutesy has been enjoying a bit of potty humor this week. First, he decorated the tree with Boogs' underwear. Now look what he has done!

Cutesy wrapped the toilet in gift wrap and put out our Santa bathroom decorations. Cutesy was so smart to wrap the lid separately so the toilet could be used.

 Boogs could not believe that Cutesy did this, but Cutesy was sitting right there with the evidence.

 Boogs enjoyed reading another joke today.

Cutesy found a few friends and read a couple of holiday books with them. After school, Boogs commented that Cutesy must have spent the whole day reading with his friends.

Cutesy hitched up a few "reindeer" to pull his "sleigh".

  

Want to see more of Cutesy? Visit my Cutesy the Elf pinterest board or click on the "elf" label at the end of this post. Don't forget to check out my side bar for all of the wonderful sites I like to link to.

Cutesy the Elf's Underwear Tree

Cutesy the Elf picked a great place to hide this morning. Boogs searched the house for him.

I finally asked Boogs if he wanted to hang the ornament he made at school on the tree. That is when Boogs noticed that his underwear was all over the Christmas tree. Boogs gingerly plucked all of the underwear off of the bottom half of the tree and said that Cutesy's lastest trick was "disgusting".

I was surprised that Boogs had still not noticed Cutesy on the tree. He really laughed when he finally found our elf.

Want to see more of Cutesy? Visit my Cutesy the Elf pinterest board or click on the "elf" label at the end of this post. Don't forget to check out my side bar for all of the wonderful sites I like to link to.

Teacher Gift

Boogs is in 1st grade. We decided to do the same type of teacher gift this year that we did for his kindergarten teacher last year.

12 Days Until Christmas Break Gift Basket

At Boogs' school, the teachers are asked to fill out a "favorites" page at the beginning of the year. We used that page to help us pick out what to put in Ms. D's basket. Then, Boogs helped me wrap everything.  

A note on the baskets said, "It is not quite time for the 12 days of Christmas, but it is time for the 12 Days Until Christmas Break Countdown. To help you make it through the long last days until the holiday break, we put together a little basket of treats. You can open them all at once or pull one out each day until the break begins. Thank you for all you do to make your classroom a special place for your students."

Here is what is inside:

* Colorful binder clips
* Butterfingers candy bar
* Chinese Checkers game for the classroom
* Stickers for classroom
* M&Ms
* Pen & Notebook with Ms. D's initial on them
* Christmas socks
* Christmas themed scrapbooking stickers
* Lotion
* Fold-out photo album 
* Package of colored Sharpies
* Starbucks Gift Card  

One of the items in the basket has a tag on it that says "Open Me Last". We put a note in there which revealed that the basket was from Boogs.

Last year, the kids had fun trying to trick their teacher into believing the basket came from different people each day.

Cutesy's Latest Adventures

Cutesy has been busy around our house the past couple of days.

Cutesy made Boogs a lunch for school. I posted this picture on Friday in my weekly lunch post but I also wanted to keep it with Cutesy's elf adventures.

Cutesy brought back Boogs' very own Christmas tree with a few new ornaments.

Cutesy was captured by Playmobile people, a lion, and a dragon. You can see a little note with Cutesy. This was the day that Cutesy started bringing a joke a day for Boogs. You can find and print the jokes HERE.

Cutesy brought a gingerbread house and a joke for Boogs.

I love that Boogs reads the jokes as soon as he finds them. Then he makes up some of his own. Today's joke: What do snowmen eat for breakfast? Frosted Flakes.  Boogs' joke: What do gingerbread men eat for breakfast? Same answer, Frosted Flakes because you frost the gingerbread men's face and clothes on.

Yee-haw! Ride 'em cat-boy!

Want to see more of Cutesy? Visit my Cutesy the Elf pinterest board or click on the "elf" label at the end of this post.