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Orphs of the Woodlands – The Perfect App for Your Homeschool {Review}

 

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree: The Perfect App for Your Homeschool {REVIEW}

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tanglegate Review

I’ve written before how I’ve tried to include more technology into our homeschooling, but I sometimes struggle with which apps, websites, and curriculum… not knowing which to trust as worthwhile for our kids and which ones will be easy to implement.  I found an app recently that fits the bill and has been a true blessing to our family.  My 11-year-old struggles with being engaged with reading time because of dyslexia which causes it to be a challenge to read as fluently and with the understanding he wants to have.  This new app has been helping him more than I knew!   My son has been improving his reading comprehension with the new interactive book, Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree, from Star Toaster.

orphs of the woodlands star toaster

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree is a cute book and game filled with adorable little animal characters.  It is an easy download found in the App Store.  I quickly downloaded it onto my iPad.  I had no idea what to expect, so I was blown away when I realized it is a very cute “book” with chapters and pages that are easy to read on the tablet but it is so much more appealing than an ordinary book for my son.
orphs
You need to get supplies for your orphs to help them survive!  Each time you do a job and complete it, you will earn more gold stars to help the orphs.  You will always know how many stars you need and how many you have at the bottom of the screen.
While the student is reading their chapter they will notice highlighted links.  Some of these links are their “job training” which they can check up on after the complete their current chapter.  Once they complete certain job training they can also complete all the “help wanted” on the same page of the app.  Each click under help wanted is an opportunity to earn more stars.  Each click is one quiz question.  If the child gets the question right they get a certain number of stars in their bank.  The goal is to complete tasks to help the orphs.
orphs of the woodlands

Language Arts

Because it includes interactive links, my son is learning vocabulary words which might have posed a challenge without this interactive feature. He is also getting ahead in his grammar.   So far this App has covered similies, nouns, common and proper nouns, plural nouns, and types of sentences.  Also, in addition to “vocabulary” in the form of definitions of unknown words, it also features other vocabulary study tools.  For instance, they include lessons on compound words and homonyms.  Though I’m ecstatic with the amount of language arts that is covered in this app, this is more than a language arts program.
orphs of the woodlands

Character

Studying character is also part of this program.  My son is being taught certain key ideas which reinforce what I’m teaching in our home.  Some of these ideas include: learning to listen, writing it right, and helping others.
 www.suchatimeasthis.com Review (4)

Math

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree also includes math lessons!  Some of these were a little young for my son (who is in 5th grade), but I’m sure younger kids would benefit from this.  Some of the lessons include counting by fives, hundreds and using tally marks.

orphs of the woodlands star toast

Science

I was very impressed with the amount of science included in this app.  My son has studied predicting the weather, understanding lightning and thunder, what flying squirrels are, hedgehogs, rats and squirrels, the water cycle and much more!  He’s a science loving kid and he really loved this part!
 
There is a progress list which is easy for parents to check on their child’s work.  It shows the lessons completed and “jobs completed” within the program, starts earned, pages read and goals achieved.  This is a quick glimpse to make sure your child is completing this if you are using this as part of their schooling.
I want to stress how much I encourage you to try this app.  It is such an easy and low-cost way to help your student with their reading skills, grammar, math, science and so much more.   We love Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree and will definitely be looking for other interactive book apps by Star Toaster in the future!

Orphs of the Woodlands at Tanglegate Review
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To read more reviews of Orphs of the Woodlands at Tangletree, please click below:
Orphs of the Woodlands at Tanglegate Review

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Comments

  1. Hi Sasha! We’re so glad that you enjoyed “Orphs of the Woodlands”. Thank you for your kind review. Your words encouraged all of us at Star Toaster, and we appreciate the time and energy you put into reviewing our program. We’re hard at work on the next story which we hope will be out soon!
    P.S. Love your layouts!