Reviewed by Suzanne L. Cottrell Columnist EdNews.org
Eastern New Mexico University

Software Review Corner

Below are some reviews of software published and produced by Super Duper

Publications. Further information can be procured at www.superduperinc.com or by calling 1-800-277-8737 or by writing to Super Duper Publications Dept SD 2005 P.O. Box 24997 Greenville, SC 29616-2497

Review of Hooray for HHH! Homonyms, Heteronyms, and Homophones

Produced by Super Duper Productions

Hooray for HHH! Homonyms, Heteronyms and Homophones is an instructional book filled with reproducible worksheets for teaching students about confusing English words that either sound alike, or look alike, but have different meanings.There are many activities helping students use homonyms in sentences and pictures to help students note the difference in the meanings of the words.The pictures are kid friendly and inviting.The worksheets offer practice without being overwhelming.The second section of the book offers a definition of heteronyms and several worksheets for practicing these words with the same spelling, but different pronunciations and meanings.The final section of the book is about homophones, words that are spelled differently and have different meanings, but sound the same.Again, practice is offered including inviting pictures and sentences completion activities as well as multiple choice questions.

This book is accompanied by a CD ROM that includes all the pages from the book.These pages can be enlarged to help students who need larger print and can be printed for classroom use.The CD ROM is easy to use.When inserted into the CD ROM drive, the information comes up on the monitor immediately.Navigation is simply through the use of mouse clicks.The program does require Adobe Acrobat Reader, however, and instructions for downloading are provided on the CD ROM.

Review of "Say and Do" Social Scenes for Daily Living Skills and Feelings

"Say and Do" Social Scenes for Daily Living Skills and Feelings is a collection of sixty lessons that allow students to practice problem solving skills in the area of social skills.Each lesson contains a picture of a social situation with an explanation of a problem.As a part of each lesson, a description of the appropriate behavior and the inappropriate responses are given.Also included are questions for discussion with the class and activities that support student problem solving.The students are encouraged to use different skills necessary to understand and use daily living skills in order to plan for appropriate behaviors in social situations.This is an excellent opportunity to develop oral language skills in the area of expressive language in addition to problem solving skills.

This book is accompanied by a CD ROM that includes all the pages from the book.These pages can be enlarged to help students who need larger print and can be printed for classroom use. The CD ROM is easy to use.When inserted into the CD ROM drive, the information comes up on the monitor immediately. Navigation is simply through the use of mouse clicks. The program does require Adobe Acrobat Reader, however, instructions for downloading are provided on the CD ROM.

Review for Say and Glue Phonological Awareness Fun Sheets

Say and Glue Phonological Awareness Fun Sheets is a book that includes phonological awareness activities.One section is on rhyming with nonsense words and includes pictures to cut and glue into a background setting as the child hears the teacher say a nonsense word that rhymes with the picture to be glued.Another section includes Rhyming sentences in which the student glues rhyming words in picture form.The activities all include cutting out pictures and gluing them into place.Other activities include blending words, segmentation, syllable counting, letter sounds, and manipulations of phonemes.The pictures are cute and inviting.The book also includes certificates of achievement so the students can be rewarded as they progress.

This book is accompanied by a CD ROM that includes all the pages from the book.These pages can be enlarged to help students who need larger print and can be printed for classroom use.The CD ROM is easy to use.When inserted into the CD ROM drive, the information comes up on the monitor immediately.Navigation is simply through the use of mouse clicks.The program does require Adobe Acrobat Reader, however, instructions for downloading are provided on the CD ROM.

Review of Read Between the Lines!

One of the most confusing aspects of learning language can be to understand the idioms used within that language.English is no exception.Read Between the Lines! is a book that provides a fun and practical way to teach students about idioms.Included in the book are 198 different idioms organized in themes to make them easy to learn and recall.The units teach idioms within the context of conversation and use fun, kid friendly drawings to depict the meaning of the figurative language.The book is written at a third grade or below level of reading and accompanying each lesson are activities and worksheets that require the students to generate sentences using the idioms in order to develop understanding and written language skills.Students will laugh and have fun learning at the same time.

This book is accompanied by a CD ROM that includes all the pages from the book.These pages can be enlarged to help students who need larger print and can be printed for classroom use.The CD ROM is easy to use.When inserted into the CD ROM drive, the information comes up on the monitor immediately.Navigation is simply through the use of mouse clicks.The program does require Adobe Acrobat Reader, however.

Webber Pronouns Interactive Fun Deck

Webber Pronouns Interactive Fun Decks is an uncomplicated program that allows young children in grades kindergarten through second to practice using pronouns correctly.The students are presented with pictures and sentences and asked to choose the correct verb to complete the sentence.The graphics are kid friendly and the ease at which the program is navigated makes it perfect to use with young children in a center setting.

The program offers varying levels, allowing the students to choose from a partial deck, full deck in sequence, and a full deck in random order.The partial deck includes ten cards that the students move through.This is a good way to limit the time spent at the computer.The full deck is fifty-two cards and can be done in sequence or in random order.A record of the student's progress is kept for teacher review and can be printed at any time.The teacher can also print the decks of cards so the students can practice away from the computer.

The installation of the program is simple.The hardware requirements for Windows machines are Intel Pentium II or equivalent, Windows 98 or higher and 128 MB RAM.The program runs from the CD drive, however the records of student progress are stored on the computer hard drive.

Overall, this program is a good way for students to practice verb usage independently.It allows for the teacher to track progress and monitor the student's usage.Students will enjoy the interactive practice and the elimination of worksheets.

Webber Verbs Interactive Fun Deck

Webber Verbs Interactive Fun Decks is an uncomplicated program that allows young children in grades kindergarten through second to practice using verbs correctly.The students are presented with pictures and sentences and asked to choose the correct verb to complete the sentence.The graphics are kid friendly and the ease at which the program is navigated makes it perfect to use with young children in a center setting.

The program offers varying levels, allowing the students to choose from a partial deck, full deck in sequence, and a full deck in random order.The partial deck includes ten cards that the students move through.This is a good way to limit the time spent at the computer.The full deck is fifty-two cards and can be done in sequence or in random order.A record of the student's progress is kept for teacher review and can be printed at any time.The teacher can also print the decks of cards so the students can practice away from the computer.

The installation of the program is simple.The hardware requirements for Windows machines are Intel Pentium II or equivalent, Windows 98 or higher and 128 MB RAM.The program runs from the CD drive, however the records of student progress are stored on the computer hard drive.

Overall, this program is a good way for students to practice verb usage independently.It allows for the teacher to track progress and monitor the student's usage.Students will enjoy the interactive practice and the elimination of worksheets.

Reviewed by Suzanne L. Cottrell, Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, New MexicoSuzanne L. Cottrell is a graduate student in Education and works part time at the New Mexico Educational Software Clearinghouse which is housed at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico..