Sunday, September 27, 2015

Scripture Sunday - Is Anyone Listening? Does Anyone Care?

Scripture Sunday

 

Psalm 121:2-4King James Version (KJV)

2 My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. 3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. 4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. Sometimes I wonder. Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
  • My wife’s mother is sick and my wife has to spend long periods of time away from me and the kids. Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
  • People don’t understand our ministry, some just plain don’t want to understand, and some are bent on destroying it. Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
  • We have two special needs kids that can be difficult sometimes. Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
  • As missionaries we are terribly under supported and are struggling financially. Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
  • I could go on and on but… Is anyone listening? Does anyone care?
It is easy to get discouraged in ministry. Hey, it’s easy to discouraged with just plain life!
Recently I was searching for another verse when the above verse popped up in my search results. It has been very encouraging to me during my present difficult time. God is always in control. He made Heaven and Earth. We have no need to fear (although I find myself fearing all of the time). When I feel myself falling into those old habits of fear I just need to remember where my help comes. My help comes from the Lord. He will not slumber! He loves me and wants to help me. All I need to do is go to the Father!
My Father is listening! My Father cares!




Thursday, September 24, 2015

Wow! Wow! Wow!–YWAM Publishing–A TOS Review Crew Review

 
 
 
 
YWAM Publishing Review
Okay folks. I don’t say “Wow! Wow! Wow!” for just any old review product. I reserve my “Wow! Wow! Wow!” for only the products that have made a significant impact on our homeschool and on my kids (and on me!). Well, I can heartily say, with tears in my eyes because it was that good, that the products that we reviewed from YWAM Publishing made a tremendous impact on my kids and me.
Let me give you some background to this first. I love missionary stories and biographies. I have read many of them in my lifetime. In fact, one of my favorites is a missionary by the name of Mary Slessor that served in Africa in the late 1800’s/early 1900’s. When the crew filled out the form to be possible reviewers for YWAM, we were given a choice of many “Heroes of History” and “Christian Heroes:Then and Now” and the YWAM Biography titled Mary Slessor: Forward into Calabar written by Janet and Geoff Benge was on the list. I debated and debated. I really wanted to pick that biography, but I thought perhaps I was being selfish. Maybe the biography of Davy Crockett would be of more interest to my kids. Finally I couldn’t resist and put Mary Slessor as my first choice and Davy Crockett as my second and prayed that God would give us the one that He wanted to give us. Well, I soon found out that God chose Mary’s biography for us and, of course, God always knows what he is doing. And boy, He sure knew what He was doing this time! Mary Slessor’s life has made a lifelong impact on my children!
We were very blessed to receive both the biography, Mary Slessor: Forward into Calabar and the accompanying Mary Slessor Unit Study Curriculum Guide. First let me tell you a little about the biography and then I will fill you in on the fantastic unit study.
Mary Slessor 
As I said above, I have read two or three biographies of Mary Slessor and also have told the missionary story of Mary Slessor to my Bible club kids so I knew quite a bit about her, her life, and her ministry. I wasn’t expecting to learn many new things. However, I was very pleasantly surprised with Janet and Geoff Benge’s version. Although it was written on a level that my kids could understand, it was also very informative and brought out a few new things that I didn’t know about this great lady.
Mary Slessor was born in Scotland in 1858 and, largely due to the “Missionary Record” that told about the happenings of missionaries around the world, and due to the life of David Livingstone, Mary, from a young age, aspired to be a missionary and work in the jungles of Calabar in what is now known as Nigeria, Africa. Her mother had always dreamed that one of Mary’s brothers would become a missionary and Mary’s dream was to go along as the brother’s assistant. When both brothers died before begin able to go, Mary thought that her dream would never come to pass. However, God has other plans. Mary was to be the one to do God’s work in Africa.
This excellently written biography, part of YWAM’s Christian Heroes: Then and Now series, chronicles Mary’s tough early years living with an alcoholic father and a Godly mother in the slums of Dundee to how she was saved at a young age and began working for the Lord when she was yet a youngster and then how she received the call to go to Calabar and become a pioneer and one of the first missionaries, man or woman, to roam deep into the jungles to reach the fiercest of tribes. There is a lot of exciting stuff – adventure, drama, sadness and laughter – that kept my ADHD/Autistic kid’s interest so I’m sure it will keep your children’s interest as well.
 
Mary Slessor 2
If you think that the biography is good, wait until you see the Mary Slessor Unit Study Curriculum Guide also written by Janet and Geoff Benge! It’s eight chapters, listed below, contain a wealth of topics to explore that all have to do with Mary Slessor’s life, Scotland, Africa and missions.
The Chapters include:
1. Key Bible Verses – Bible verses that your children can memorize that go along with the story.
2. Display Corner – Ideas for how you can make a display that reflects the story.
3. Chapter Questions – always four questions – a vocabulary question, a factual question, a comprehension question and an open ended question that seeks you child’s opinion or interpretation.
4. Student Explorations – A variety of activities for all ages.
5. Community Links – How you can use people from your community to enhance your unit study,
6. Social Studies – Naturally a biography like this lends itself to many, many social study projects.
7. Related Themes to Explore – How you can pull other school subjects into you unit study.
8. Culminating Events – Things you can do to wrap you study up or end your study with,
Appendix A – Books and Resources – This was one of our favorite sections – you’ll find out why in a moment.
Appendix B – Answers to Chapter Questions
We dabbled in every one of the chapters, but there were three chapters and the two appendixes that we used the most.
One thing that we did after reading every chapter was to do the chapter questions. They are very well done and provoked many interesting discussions. I was thrilled out how much vocabulary my kids were learning and I was very pleased with how much of the story they were absorbing and understanding.
We also used the Social Studies ideas a lot. My middle child, Joshua, loves Geography and really got into this part of it, and this was a great introduction for Jacob, my youngest. We used the pull out maps that came with the Unit Study and other maps from the the internet extensively as we followed Mary Slessor’s adventures.
We used many of the Student Explorations ideas to enhance our study as well. One of the suggestions was to study the life of David Livingstone, the missionary that inspired Mary when she was younger. We found a great video about his life that the boys loved and are now begging me to buy the YWAM biography of David Livingstone, also written by Janet and Geoff Benge along with the accompanying Unit Study Curriculum Guide.
I would say that the section that excited us the most was the Appendix that gave us a lot of Books and Resources to use. It was a plethora of information! The authors listed other biographies of Mary Slessor along with a small blurb about each one. We are planning on buying one or two in the near future. The most exciting things that we found, though, were the websites listed for further exploration. There is an actual recording of Mary Slessor speaking Efik, the native tongue in Calabar in her day! There were also actual pictures of her with many of the natives and other missionaries that she was involved with. We could see pictures of the people that were being talked about in the book! It added so much to our study.
So, how much did we actually like YWAM Publishing’s Mary Slessor: Forward Into Calabar and the Mary Slessor Unit Study Curriculum Guide? Let me tell you what happened at the end of the book. I, of course, knew what was going to happen. Me, being the usually softy teared up many times during that last couple of chapters. At one sad point I looked up to see Jacob with his hands clutched together and a worried look on his face and Joshua wiping his eyes. Joshua saw me looking and quickly said, “I’m not crying, Dad. My eyes were just itching.” Later, my big 14 year old boy admitted that he indeed was crying but only just a little.
These books made a huge impact on my children. As I am typing this, there are tears filling my eyes not necessarily because I am remembering the great biography, but because of how much my children learned and how much more excited about missions my children now are. We are full time missionaries ourselves, so they have an understanding and a love for missions already, but this brought it into a whole new realm.
Mary Slessor: Forward into Calabar and Mary Slessor Unit Study Curriculum Guide are two books that I think every family should have. I have a brand new respect for the job the YWAM Publishing is doing with their series of books Christian Heroes: Then and Now and Heroes of History. And speaking of those two series. Many of the other members of the Schoolhouse Review Crew reviewed books from both of those series and you can find what they had to say by clicking on the banner below. To go to the YWAM website itself, just click on any of the highlighted links above. You won’t regret it at all! Happy Homeschooling!
 

YWAM Publishing Review
 
 
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Thursday, September 17, 2015

Super Teacher Worksheets are Absolutely Super! A TOS Review Crew Review!

 

Super Teacher Worksheets 

Kids with high functioning autism are often known as little geniuses. They often become fascinated by a certain topic or thing and want to know all that they can about it. It is almost as if they are obsessed. As a homeschool dad with two such children I am constantly looking for supplemental material to go along with their interest of the moment. Thankfully, we have been blessed with a few wonderful things this year on the TOS Review Crew that have been been an awesome help to our kids. Super Teacher Worksheets and their Individual Membership is one of them.

I have gone to this fantastic site over and over again looking for things that I can use in a particular unit study or to supplement a subject and Super Teacher Worksheets has never failed me. I cannot tell you  how impressed I am with this extensive site. They have absolutely everything that you can think of. There is no way that I could even attempt to describe everything that is included so let me just highlight some of the ways that we have used it so far and some of the ways that I hope to use it in the future.

Super Teacher Worksheets 2

I absolutely love Super Teacher Worksheets because you could actually develop your own curriculum with it or you can use it as a supplement for something you are doing, or even for extra practice on subjects your child is weak in.

We have used it a lot with the unit studies we have been doing. Recently a unit study asked for maps of Africa, so, all I did was head on over to Super Teacher Worksheets and there they were! Ready to print out. They have world maps, regional maps and maps of several countries. They also have geography worksheets, games, flashcards, crafts, and a lot more that cover countries, geographical features, longitude/latitude…you name it. If it has to do with geography they have it.

That’s what Super Teacher Worksheets is all about. Don’t let the name fool you, though. As I mentioned above, it has a lot more than just worksheets, they have over 10,000 worksheets that cover geography, math, spelling, science, grammar, reading and writing, phonics, and more for all ages. They even have “generators” where you can create your own worksheets including, spelling, math, calendars, puzzles, and quizzes just to name a few. Super Teacher Worksheets literally has everything that you can think of.

Super Teacher Worksheets 4

We have also utilized flashcards for geography and math. It has been wonderful! I have so many things saved in the handy dandy on site “file cabinet” that is included where you can store things to be looked at and/or printed at a later time.

I really want to check out their spelling lists for Jacob and perhaps some of their animal cut and pastes and craft activities. Some of the phonics reading books that we can print out would be helpful for him as well. And speaking of reading, Joshua could use some of the reading comprehension sheets and maybe even the book report templates that are included with Super Teacher Worksheets.

And how can I keep everything straight? Well with Super Teacher Worksheets lesson planner and grade sheets of course! There are a lot of really neat teacher resources included in the membership as well.

Oh, and did I mention that they have Spanish translations of many of the worksheets as well! And for those of you who follow common core, most of the worksheets, games, puzzles, crafts, and so on are aligned to common core standards.

I could really go on and on about Super Teacher Worksheets but I could never really cover everything that they have to offer. You really need to check it out yourself. Just click on any of the highlighted links above. Don’t forget that other members of the TOS Review Crew reviewed Super Teacher Worksheets and you can find what they had to say by clicking on the banner below. Happy homeschooling!

Oh, and I really need to print out some math coloring pages for Jacob. And the pages that they have for the different seasons and holidays are really nice as well. Oh, and the…

Super Teacher Worksheets Review
 
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Friday, September 11, 2015

The Tinkel Times–Post Summer Newsletter!

 
Tim Hortons 1
Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.Mark 16:16
Recently, I watched a biography of David Livingston with my two youngest Joshua and Jacob. One of the Christian historians mentioned at the end that there is one thing that you can’t do in Heaven. You can’t evangelize and tell others about Christ. That is the one thing that must be done on earth and it is also the “Great Commission”that Jesus gave to his disciples in the gospels. As modern day disciples of Christ, I believe that God has called us to go and reach the world as well.
That is what our entire family endeavors to do – reach those in Livingston and the surrounding areas with the gospel. We believe that God called us to work in Livingston, TN. We can see the hand of God down through the ages leading us to Good News Ministries.
Although recent changes in our ministry have at times been frustrating, we are excited about what God is leading us to do in the future.
A couple of weeks ago we had a Good News Ministry board meeting to discuss finally purchasing insurance for the converted minibus that was given to us to use. I had gotten some very good quotes and was excited to finally make use of the bus to use for Bible Clubs and other ministries. Sometimes my zeal can get in the way of sensible thinking, however. That is why I have a committee of fantastic Christian men and women to keep me on the right path and give me good advice. They pointed out that, although we had a bit of money saved up in our ministry account, and we had a couple of regular donors, the amount of money saved along with the regular donations would only last a year or so. They again emphasized that I need to speak to more churches and individuals not only about supporting our ministry, but our family as well.
As full-time missionaries, Sarah and I have to raise our own personal and ministry support which means that we have to speak to churches and individuals about our needs and ask if they would prayerfully consider pledging a monthly amount to support our ministry and/or family. Although I have written about our need many times before, there is one thing that I have not actually done. I have not specifically asked every one of you to prayerfully consider what you can do to help us financially.
So, I am now asking all of you, my friends, whether you know me personally, or just online, to prayerfully consider if God would like you to partner with our ministry and with our family. Right now we have two immediate needs. We need about $100 more a month in our ministry budget to be able to afford to insure the bus and keep it insured for the long run. Also, my family is in desperate need of financial support. As a family, we need about $1000 a month more coming in to our household. Really we need more but $1000 would immediately help us make ends meet.
If we had 11 churches or individuals that would pledge $100 to the ministry and our support that would cover the immediate needs. Or if we had 22 individuals pledging $50 or 44 individuals pledging $25 then that would cover our costs. Would you prayerfully consider if God is calling you to partner with us for one of these amounts or another amount?
If you would like more information on our ministry or how you can help please contact us. All of our contact information is below. Perhaps we can get together with you or even speak at your church. At the end of this prayer letter, I have put the links to several recent blog posts that I have written that describe what we do and the individuals that we work with on a daily basis.
Thank you to all of you who have supported us over the years whether financially or prayerfully. We could not minister without you. Again, if you want more information or would like to come along side of us with support please give us a call, text us, shoot us an email, or even leave a comment to this blog post. We appreciate all of you.
Tim and Sarah Tinkel – Good News Ministries – 904 Lee Drive, Livingston, TN 38570 – Tim Cell – 931-319-2551
Address to send support for our ministry and bus fund – Good News Ministries - % of Don Maxson – 608 Big Springs Rd., Monroe, TN, 38573
The Tinkels do not receive any money from the above account, it is strictly used for ministry.
Address to send support for the Tinkel family – BCM International, 201 Granite Run Drive, Suite 260, Lancaster, PA, 17601
Please put on the memo line or on a slip of paper that the check is for Tim and Sarah Tinkel account number 642.
Ministry Blog Posts - Just click on the title or, if you are receiving this in the mail, go to my blog www.familiesagian.blogspot.com and click on the ministry tab in the right hand column.

Sunday, September 6, 2015

The Overton County Heritage Museum–A Hidden Gem of Middle Tennessee!

 

PicMonkey Collage

Quiz Time!

1. Who was the first white man to be killed in Overton County and who killed him?

2. What Overton County woman helped build the Atomic Bomb during World War II?

3. Name the only Tennessee state park in Overton County and tell who built it.

Most of you probably have no idea what the answers are to these questions now do you probably care. More than likely only those of you who are from Overton County are even remotely interested in the answers. The answer to those questions and a host of others can be found at the Overton County Heritage Museum in my adopted hometown of Livingston, TN.

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Every summer, our family goes on a ministry trip/vacation to Canada, New Jersey and other places between. It’s a time of ministry, relaxation, learning and a time away from video games. We read, talk, listen to books on tape and visit neat places that we otherwise wouldn’t be able to visit. We always have a good time together and learn so much but then, it is a big let down when we get back home. We usually fall back into our same old routines of being couch potatoes.

This year I was determined not to allow that to happen. I decided that we were going to go on a field trip every week and that we were going to try to pick someplace that was within an hour or so drive, something that was fairly inexpensive and that we were going to start off with things that were local. My first choice was the Overton County Heritage Museum.

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This small but excellent museum was founded in 2003 and is located in the old Livingston jail located at 318 W Broad St, Livingston, Tennessee 38570. It was amazing the things that we learned about Livingston and Overton County. From the Native Americans that lived in the area before the town and county were founded to it’s early days to present days, this museum has it all.

What was even more amazing were the things we learned about history in general. Remember, even if you go to a small town museum that only talks about that small town, you learn about what life is like in most small towns in that region. However, the Overton County Historical Museum was unique in the fact that when it talked about Overton County’s participation in the Civil War, it also educated my boys on the Civil War in general. And, not just the Civil War, but WWI, WWII, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The museum has clothing, weapons, musical instruments, tools and other artifacts from all historical eras. Do you know what a “Shaped Note” is? Do you know what years the Civil War was fought? Have you ever heard of Turkey Boots? All of these things apply to people and places out side of Overton County as well and you can find it all at the Overton County Heritage Museum.

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I would highly recommend you visiting this “hidden gem” of Middle Tennessee if you live within driving distance. It is open to the public every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 9am – 2pm. The Overton County Heritage Museum’s phone number is 931-403-0909 or 931-498-2551. They have an awesome bookstore as well with many books about the area for sale.

Perhaps you don’t live close to Livingston. Here is my advice to you. Don’t overlook your own area. Look around for small museums, state parks, antique stores, historic attractions, natural attractions, etc. in your neighborhood. Many folks plan the whole year to go to a National Park, major historical area, or major museum but never visit the museums or parks in their own areas. Look around for the unusual and out of the way places in your neck of the woods. You may find a “hidden gem” like we did!

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Quiz Answers

1. Robert Crockett – A Long Hunter – was killed by Indians in the area.

2. Lyda Speck (An awesome lady that I personally knew).

3. Standing Stone State Park in Hilham, TN was build by WPA workers (Works Progress Administration) as part of the New Deal during the Great Depression.

And, speaking of Standing Stone State Park. We visited that hidden gem yesterday and I’ll be writing about that next week!

Thursday, September 3, 2015

Canada! O Canada!

  Canada Collage
Canada stuff with Trish
Back home sharing some fun Canadian stuff with our special friend Trish
Most of you know we are full time missionaries. Sarah and I have both had a desire to be missionaries from when we were young. We prayed and prayed about where God wanted us to go. We were even willing to go overseas if God wanted us to go. Of course, God knows best, and, although we were willing to go to a foreign place, he led us to Livingston, TN where we work with low income folks.
Nevertheless, our international mission desires remained with us. Although we have always loved our ministry here, we still dreamed of taking short term mission trips to other countries. When God blessed us with two autistic sons, however, we thought going to another country was impossible. A long plane ride and another culture seemed out of the picture for kids who had a hard time even grasping our own culture.
However, again God had other plans. A few years ago we were sitting at BCM International’s (our umbrella mission organization) annual conference when some fellow missionaries came up to us and asked if we would consider coming to their camp for a week to teach Bible the next summer. We immediately said “yes”! And guess where their camp is located? Yep, you probably guessed from the title of this post – Canada!
Canada
Now I know that when you think of a foreign country the first one that comes to mind usually isn’t Canada, but, still, we were traveling to another country! A place where we actually had to apply for passports! We knew that Canada would be different. After all, it has a different currency, a different government, and it even had two national languages. However, we weren’t expecting it to be as different as it actually is.
Although out of all foreign countries Canada’s culture is probably the closest one to ours, there still are some major differences and many, many minor ones. I’m not saying you’ll suffer from culture shock if you visit Canada, but there are some common things from the United States that are hard to find there and there are some things that are uniquely Canadian as well. Enough little things to make it interesting to visit, and if you stayed there a long time, you might long for some things back home that aren’t readily available.
We can’t give any personal experiences of longing for something that can’t be found in Canada since, for the past three years, we have only stayed there for one or two weeks at a time. We haven’t been away from the states long enough to miss some of the things that can’t be found – like grits, biscuits and gravy, certain candy bars and snack foods. Nor have we been there during the winter time to experience the cold. We can, however, tell you what we love about Canada and look forward to seeing/doing every year.
Mill Stream 2015
Mill Stream 2015 2
Mill Stream Bible Camp
The first would obviously be beautiful Mill Stream Bible Camp where we serve for one week every summer. Over the past three years we have grown to love the staff and the campers as well as the camp itself. Sarah and I have worked in Christian camping for over 25 years. Christian camping is in our blood, and we love serving at camps. We can, without a doubt, say that this is one of the best camps we have ever served at. If you live anywhere within a days drive of Omemee, Ontario, Canada, then I would encourage you to look into sending your child to Mill Stream Bible Camp or sponsoring another child to go to Mill Stream.
Poutine 4
Poutine
Another thing that we love about Canada is the food! Mind you, Canadian food isn’t all that different than food found in the United States. You can still find the same general things. However, there are a few things that are different. I mentioned some of the candy bars and snacks before, but there are main dishes and even whole restaurants in Canada that we don’t have in middle Tennessee. For example, Tim Horton’s. If you are a friend of mine on Facebook then you know we love our Tim Horton’s coffee. They are a cross between Starbuck’s and Duncan Donuts but we think they are better (and less expensive). There are some Tim Horton’s locations in the U.S.A., but for some reason it all tastes better in Canada. We think it’s the milk and cream which is pasteurized differently in Canada. We also love poutine, a French Canadian dish that is really simple – fries, cheese curds, and gravy! You can mix it up and use different sauces and gravies as well as different cheeses and even different fries.
Victoria Beach 3
Victoria Beach
Victoria Beach
Finally, I can’t mention Canada without talking about their scenery. They have beautiful lakes, parks, zoos and, just general beautiful outdoors! There is enough difference to make it interesting. We have been blessed to be able to visit a couple of zoos – Peterborough Zoo and Toronto Zoo – the former small and the latter huge. The town of Peterborough is beautiful in and of itself with it’s wonderful lakefront, marina’s and, of course, the world’s largest lock lift! This year we also got to visit gorgeous Victoria Beach in Cobourg, Ontario. Cobourg is a quant town with a great historic shopping area and the beach is wonderful. On Lake Ontario, Victoria Beach is beautiful, clean and fun, with a splash pad and playground for the kids, a marina and lighthouse to explore, and a food stand which serves delicious food. We got poutine of course. And the beach is right by the shopping area with the quant shops!
We could go on and on about the country to our north and it’s wonderful people. We haven’t explored much of this vast nation, but what we have explored has been fantastic. If the rest of the country is as great as Ontario, then we hope that God allows us to explore it someday as well.
Have any of you been to Canada before? What are your favorite spots? Leave us a comment and tell us about them. Maybe next year, Lord willing, we can explore them as well!

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Mayan Mysteries - A Marvelous Way to Learn About History - A Schoolhouse Review Crew Review

Dig It! Games Review

We love history in our household. We talk about it. We read about it. We visit historical sites. We go to museums. We have a lot of really neat history curriculum. My three boys even hone in on historical facts from the video games that they play - and, oh, do they like to play video games. A few years ago we were chosen to review a great online game called Roman Town  from Dig-It! Games and Joshua loved it. It had everything that he loves about video games. When we found out that we had a chance to review another online adventure from Dig-It! Games called Mayan Mysteries, we jumped at the chance to review it. We weren't disappointed. Joshua loves Mayan Mysteries just as much as he loved Roman Town. So, what makes these games so special? What are all the things that Mayan Mysteries has that Joshua loves about video games. Let me see if I can describe them.

 
Dig It! Games Review

 
Well, the first thing that will keep Joshua's interest in a video game is a great story line. What's the story line? Well it begins like this. Someone has been stealing Mayan artifacts and excavation tools from archeological sites. Professor Alex Quinn has been called in to help. He needs to come immediately. Only there is one problem! Professor Quinn is watching his two 12 year old twin niece and nephew along with a friends for the summer. Who are the nice and nephew? Fiona Quinn - who loves archeology and Charlie Quinn - who love solving mysteries. And what about the friend? Who is he? Why its YOU of course. Professor Quinn has no choice but to bring you all along. So you all form "Team Q" and you're off to solve Mayan Mysteries!
 
 
Dig It! Games Review
 
The first thing you have to do is look for clues. Most of the clues seem to be popping up around and leading to different archeological sites. So, one by one you visit different Central American archeological sites where you are taught how to dig for clues and then, research what you have found. All along looking for different signs as to who the thieves could be. It really is fascinating to learn all about Mayan history and about archeology. Joshua has learned a lot. And, don't fear, this isn't any fly by night game with lousy graphics. This is professionally done and the graphics are fantastic!
 
Dig It! Games Review
 
What makes this game so unique, however, is that you aren't just learning fantastic information about the Mayan culture and about history, but you are also learning problem solving skills through solving the mystery. In this game the mystery is who is who the thief is. Well, you kind of know at the beginning who the thief is because he/she purposefully leaves clues for you to find. Kind of a taunting type thing. The clues seem to be coming from someone named "Ladrone". Unfortunately Ladrone means "thief" so that doesn't help much. However, I'm sure you and Team Q can decipher everything.
 
Dig It! Games Review
 
What would any game be without achievements that you have to accomplish. This game has several of them. You receive achievement points by finding artifacts and clues, solving puzzles and by answering questions that reinforce things that you have learned.
 
This game really has everything that kids like about video/computer games. However, it is hard to even call it a game because it is really a fantastic learning tool and can easily be added to your homeschool curriculum. Your kids will wonder why they never had as much fun learning before this! I know Joshua loves it and sometimes doesn't ever realize he's learning. To find out more about Mayan Mysteries and about Dig-It! Games. Just click on any of the highlighted links above. Oh, and do you remember the other game that I said we reviewed from Dig-It! Games several years ago - Roman Town. Well, some of the other crew members got to review it as well as Mayan Mysteries and you can find what they had to say by clicking on the banner below. Happy game playing...umm...I mean learning!
 
Dig-It! Games Review
 
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