2020 Homeschool Review Crew Awards

This was my first year as part of the Homeschool Review Crew, and it has been a lot of fun. My family has had the opportunity to read some wonderful books, use amazing curricula, and try great products.

As the review year has come to an end, crew members have voted on their favorite products. There are many categories that cover a wide age and grade range. Top vendors are given a Blue Ribbon Award. A link to the crew’s official voting results is available below.

As we only reviewed products that best fit our family, I asked my kids and husband to list their three top favorites. My kids did some review items together, but many involved just one or two of them. They chose to provide individual lists. I’ve included the links to our reviews.

Sam’s Favorites

1. Economics Online Course Bundle from Boundary Stone.
2. Everything You Need to Ace Computer Science and Coding in One Big Fat Notebook wasn’t a book assigned to Sam. He began using it after our initial review when he saw how much his brother was enjoying it.
3. Python for Beginners: Learn Coding at Home from Homeschool Code Academy

Jacob’s Favorites

1. Sculpture Technique Construct by Artistic Pursuits Inc. is wonderful for an active hands-on learner.
2. First Form Latin from Memoria Press.
3. Photography course through Schoolhouseteachers.com has been his absolute favorite. He now enjoys taking my camera from me, and usually gets a better shot.

Johanna Favorites

1. History On Horseback: The Early Years from Sonrise Stable Books.
2. Beyond The Stick Figure Art School.
3. Ferment Tools Starter Kit was fun to use. Having dad help make sauerkraut made it especially interesting.

Dad’s Favorites

1. Venturing With God In Congo from Conjurske Publications. Although dad hasn’t read the book himself yet, he really enjoyed the evening discussion while the kids read through it.
2. Bible Unearthed from Drive Thru History Adventures. Dad was able to watch several episodes with us, and thoroughly enjoyed the depth of the lessons and the humor we have all come to expect from Drive Thru History.
3. Ferment Tools Starter Kit. Not only did he help use this product, but he also wrote a bit of the review.

Mom’s Favorites

1. Math-U-See Accelerated Individualized Mastery.  This was a tough and necessary curriculum. There were a lot of heart lessons along with academics. I highly recommend this program for older students struggling with math.
2. Economics Online Course Bundle from Boundary Stone is another program that held heart lessons. My son learned to persevere through some lessons that didn’t come as easy as he was used to.
3. I loved the time reading with my daughter History On Horseback: The Early Years from Sonrise Stable Books. We enjoyed sharing the stories and fascinating history.
4. I know I only gave everyone else three choices, but I have to add another. We began the review for Beyond The Stick Figure Art School just as we were encouraged to stay home due to the pandemic. We enjoyed the lessons and found creating abstract art to be quite therapeutic under the circumstances.

Being part of the Homeschool Review Crew has been a wonderful experience. I’m looking forward to the opportunities that will come in 2021. Check out the final results for all of the crew blue ribbon awards.