In August I was given a premium membership to VocabularySpellingCity.com for a candid, personal, online review. My opinions are my own and in no way have been influenced by anyone. Now that we have had a little time with the program, I would like to tell you a little bit about how we are using it, and what my thoughts are about the site.
 
The opportunity to review this program came at the perfect time for me to use with my 7th grader. I am using a new Literature and Composition Curriculum with her this year and it includes vocabulary for each new piece of literature she is reading. Thus, our main use of VocabularySpellingCity.com is for learning vocabulary. This is a feature that only comes with purchasing the Premium Membership. I know, I know, something to purchase, it makes me cringe as well. But I was pleasantly surprised at how affordable this is for a homeschooling family like ours.
 
As the parent I have my own Teacher Log In where I can add students, create assignments for them, and track their progress. I especially like the ability to group my lists together. That way when my 7th grader is looking for a certain book and chapter grouping she only has to look through the lists I made for that book, and not all the lists I have created. As a student, my daughter logs in with her own user account and from there she has access to all the lists I have created for her, as well as any assignments I have created for her. The assignments are right at the beginning of her page as soon as she logs in so they are easy for her to find and complete. As far as the number and variety of activities for her to choose from, she has been very pleased with the selections. There are less for the Vocabulary training than the Spelling, but still plenty to keep it varied and entertaining.
 
One of the main reasons I enjoy using programs like this, especially for my older children who can, and need to be more independent, is because it allows me to set it up and then walk away. I create the vocabulary lists, and set the assignments, and then I am done! Then it is my daughter’s responsibility to log in and complete her assignments. When she is done, I am not even tasked with the job of grading it because the program does it for you!
 
I haven’t really found anything that I am unhappy with about this program. There are endless possibilities of predone lists to chose from, or the ability to create your own. It has an extensive list of activities to choose from for kids from young to old. You can have them do the activities on the computer, or if you would prefer, many of the activities can be printed and then completed. I would say the definite bonus to paying for the premium membership is twofold. First, if you are looking for an easy way to reinforce vocabulary words and usage then the Premium Membership offers you that option. Second, the Premium Membership offers you the ability to create student accounts for assigning, and tracking.