Puddle Jumping: TOS Review - Here to Help Learning

Even though her mama writes for a living, my daughter has somehow slipped through the cracks on getting solid writing instruction. So, needless to say, I was thrilled to get a chance to review an online subscription from Here to Help Learning writing program. We focused on Flight 1 Paragraph Writing but also had access to:
For Grades 1-3:
Flight 1 Paragraph Writing
Flight 2 Paragraph Writing
Flight 3 Paragraph Writing

For Grades 4-6:
Flight 1 Essay Writing
Flight 2 Essay Writing
Flight 3 Essay Writing

What is Here to Help Learning Flight 1, 2 and 3 Paragraph or Essay Writing?

Included was 32 writing lessons presented on six different learning levels. Flight 1, 2 and 3 Paragraph Writing are intended for Grades 1-3, and Flights 1, 2 and 3 Essay Writing lessons are intended for Grades 4-6. The videos were presented by learning level and were presented with a flight theme. Each contained a Pre-Flight checklist video, Flight check in, Take Off, Full Throttle and a Flying Solo lesson video that basically took the writing lesson and broke it down into manageable segments focusing on different aspects of the writing process. Each lesson also provided a PDF download to print out which included the lesson plan for the teacher and the worksheets for the student.

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The product also comes in a DVD format, but I received access to the online videos from the Here to Help Learning site.

How Did We Use It?

I sat down with my daughter, who is borderline 3/4th grade but hasn't had a lot of paragraph writing instruction, so we started with Flight 1 Paragraph Writing, and it seemed to be a perfect fit. Even though, the way the lessons are set up, it looked like she should be doing Flight 3 paragraph writing or Flight 1 Essay writing, her actual writing ability left us wanting to start from the beginning. I prepared a 3-ring binder to hold her worksheets, and then began by watching the online video lessons and following the instruction.

I was happy that the lesson plans were included and described everything I needed to do with my child as part of each lesson. I started printing them out with each lesson and then decided to save toner and keep them online where they were easy to reference if needed.

One of the most refreshing aspects of the curriculum was that it started with a Scripture:

The lessons all have a flight theme, with the instructor introducing and concluding each lesson in a flight attendant's uniform, as if she is giving flight instructions. There are a lot of references throughout the lessons to flight-related themes. For instance, the captain comes on screen and is a Basset hound. This makes it humorous and engaging.

Each lesson directs the child to the notebook to complete the assignments.

The writing process is presented in a fun hands-on way with actions and hand movements presented in the video that goes along with each step.

There were fun games to play throughout.

Even on a couple days when she wasn't feeling well, she still managed to complete a lesson.

What Did We Think?

The instructor was very energetic, and the presentation was clever and effective. The flight theme was a fun, consistent component leaving my daughter and I joining in on phrases, such as, "Attitude is a little thing that makes a BIG difference." Introducing the dog as the pilot was hilarious and even caught the attention of my high school sophomore. I really liked how each lesson is broken down into segments that make sense and move the writing process along. My daughter's first assignment that she completed, she wrote just the facts. But, by the second or third lesson, she was going to town with adjectives and more interesting sentences.