Benjamin Franklin Download N Go Review

My boys and I are really enjoying the Download N Go (DNG) Unit studies!  We had never done anything quite like them in our prior 3 years of homeschooling.  When the opportunity to work through the unit studies and review them presented itself, I didn’t hesitate.  We had finished 3 years of a “traditional text-book” curriculum that was driving my son (and myself) up the wall.  Who wants to do 20-30 writing papers a day?  It was insane.  So this year we decided to do a more classical/eclectic approach to our schooling.  We do have a couple of text-books but mostly we read, do activities together and work on the computer for a couple of subjects.  The DNG units seemed to fit right in with our new way of learning.

For those of you who are not familiar with Download N Go, they are a series of unit studies that take 5 days to complete.  Amanda Bennett, the creator of DNG, has done all the leg work for you so all you have to do is open the PDF file, print the necessary pages and work through the unit.  Amanda also offers GREAT book lists to correspond with each day.  There is also a lapbook tie in to the unit studies.  Now don’t let lapbooking scare you!  It’s really quite simple!  Amanda has even put links in the front to help guide you in the adventure of lapbooking if this is new to you.



“Well done is better than well said”, Benjamin Franklin.

There was so much we learned about Ben Franklin this past week!  He was an inventor, musician, statesman and more!  Each day we learned a different thing about him.  I was so surprised at what I didn’t know about him!  (and I was homeschooled!)  There is so much that I didn’t know that was amazing.  (I will leave that to you to find out by purchasing the Benjamin Franklin DNG.  It is on special for $6.25)  I am so glad that my kids are getting such a wonderful education at home.

My boys LOVED watching the videos.  (they are 8 & 3)  Some of them were really “electrifying”.  **wink**  It is so fun watching their eyes light up and enjoy learning.  I am now planning a trip to Philadelphia (since we don’t live too far from there).  We love how several of the DNG unit studies have tied in to when we travel.  There is so much to do that I would love to spend more than a week on these units, but it is nice to feel that sense of accomplishment when it is completed.  It encourages the kids to do more and to finish so we can move onto the next unit study!

Here is what was covered each day.

Day 1: Who Was Ben Franklin?
Day 2: People and Places in Ben Franklin’s Life
Day 3: The Accomplishments of Ben Franklin
Day 4: Lessons to Learn From Ben Franklin
Day 5: Remembering Ben Franklin




So, to end this review, I will give you another quote from Ben Franklin.  “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” Benjamin Franklin

Here is some more links for you on the DNG Unit Study of Benjamin Franklin.

DNG Blog

DNG Benjamin Franklin Blog Tour

Purchase Benjamin Franklin Download N Go here for $6.25 until November 22^nd.

Take a peek inside the Benjamin Franklin Unit Study

**legal info**  I was provided a copy of this product for my honest review.

Expedition Australia Review

G’Day Mates!  Here is my family’s review of the Download N Go Unit for Expedition Australia!  For those of you who are not familiar with Download N Go, they are weekly unit studies that have a tie in to lapbooking.  (it’s not as scary as it sounds)  We have had the privilege of reviewing titles for Download N Go (which I’ll refer to as DNG forth going) for the past 3 months.  It has been a blast and a great way to take a break from the everyday routine.  We just add math and some phonics/language work in and you have a complete day!  We love doing this because it brings us all together.

Amanda Bennett, the author of the DNG unit studies, collects all the information for you and puts it in one central location.  This is such a GREAT help as we are a very busy family with 3 boys.  No more struggling to come up with a plan.  Everything is done for you!  She also comes up with some great additional reading.  The library is an invaluable resource.

We are also find lapbooking to be fairly easy as well.  At first it does seem intimidating but once you do a couple, it is really quite simple.  Amanda includes several links about lapbooking in the beginning of each DNG so that if you are not familiar with it you can quickly become acquainted with lapbooking.

So now onto Australia!  Might I say that now my children want to become world travellers!  Each day we learned about a different city, animal, new words in Aussie style.  It was great!  There was so much covered each day.  My oldest son loved how we learned how an Australian might say something we say here.  Some of the words had us laughing so hard we were crying.

The images of Australia are just simply exquisite.  We discovered how the country of Australia has a diverse set of climates.  From its vast deserts, to its beautiful seascapes, Australia is a BEAUTIFUL country.

Amanda chose some wonderful videos and awesome websites to go with this unit.  Each day covered something different and the content was beautiful.   We enjoyed learning about their culture, music, lifestyle, the natives, and some very cool stuff in between.

Here is what was covered each day.

Day 1: Where on Earth Is Australia?

Day 2: Some of the Special Places in Australia

Day 3: A Bit of Australian History

Day 4: Cool Things to Know About Australia

Day 5: Fun and Games in Australia

Take a peek inside the unit!



We also had the opportunity to talk to a dear friend of mine who happens to live in Australia.  Andrea and her family live in Melbourne.  She was so sweet to take the time out of her day to talk to us.  Jonathan asked her several questions about Australia, the land, language and her family.

DEAL ON Expedition Australia & a Contest!

So this weekend into Monday, Expedition Australia is on sale for $5.95 till 9PM Monday, November 8^th.   There is also a contest on the DNG blog!  The contest is for a giveaway of 2 Australia Political Maps from National Geographic!  Take a chance to go to the DNG Blog and enter the contest there.

**NOTE** If you are affiliated with TOS or DNG, you are not eligible to enter.

I was given a copy of this item for my honest review.

Take a look at the blog specials page too!