Words of the Week, Volume One: A Vocabulary Program Based on Picture Study is an eighteen-week study designed for third grade and up, all the way through high school, depending on the child's previous experience. It is a 40-page spiral bound non-consumable book that has multiple options for use, from read-aloud for the child to copy work (on separate paper) suggested for the kinesthetic learner. Words of the Week retails for $13.95.

Each week the study introduces a word, has a color photograph that can be described with the word, and then has words with similar meanings. Five sentences, one for each day, includes a sentence or several sentences that use the word of the week and the synonyms for it. These sentences can be read, written, or discussed. No teacher book is available or needed, but a dictionary is helpful for pronunciation aid.

I used Words of the Week, Volume One with my nine-year-old fifth grade daughter. She copied down the sentences five days a week, then I requested that she use each in a sentence of her own to me at some point in the day. I'd listen for it and we'd cheer at her ability to broaden her vocabulary. It became a fun game that we both enjoyed – and she learned a lot! There's something about hearing my young daughter use words like “beguiling”, “imperturbable”, and “spoor” correctly that makes me smile. I knew many of the words, but not nearly all of them, but each is introduced clearly and simply, and the dictionary is close at hand should we need pronunciation help. It did not require my assistance unless she wasn't understanding something, which was rare. Each day she spent maybe five minutes copying down the sentence and coming up with a sentence of her own. While Queens Homeschool is obviously a homeschool curriculum company, this would easily be used by anyone wishing to expand their vocabulary – even me, long past high school!

We really liked this! I do think that my daughter is at the youngest age appropriate for this. My high school and junior high kids would also benefit from this study and for my nine-year-old to retain the words for future use, we might just start over once we finish it and use it again to help her remember the material even better. Since it is not consumed, I'm considering adding it to my older children's curriculum next semester as well. I seriously wondered at a book considered grade level appropriate for such a broad range, but it definitely isn't a stretch to consider it even into high school age groups. It will be a writing aid, broaden the vocabulary, and give them a helping hand in the world of language.

-Product review by Adrienne Falkena, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, November, 2017