Review: Zeezok Publishing Review

I love all the reviews I get to do for the Homeschool Review Crew. However, every once in awhile, I stumble upon something that is really fantastic ... superior ... and just simply outstanding! Something that makes me SO excited to have the opportunity to review these products. And this is one of them. For the last seven weeks, we have been reviewing Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades from Zeezok Publishing.  "Next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world." Martin Luther

I didn't grow up loving music or even listening to it that much. But I married a man who has a great appreciation for music and different genres. We have had our four children in piano since they were all five years old. I have been taking lessons for the last years. And our oldest son (Isaac) has a very special talent for music that is in his DNA. He feels music and sees music and plays music in a very special way.  I was therefore extremely excited to have the opportunity to review this musical product. This product comes with a main "textbook" (shown in the picture below as the bottom book) and then a bunch of different books featuring all kinds of different composers:

Here are the different books that come with this curriculum and are pictured in the picture above:

• Frederic Chopin, Early Years
• Frederic Chopin, Later Years
• Robert Schumann and Mascot Ziff
• Adventures of Richard Wagner
• Stephen Foster and His Little Dog Tray
• The Young Brahms
• The Story of Peter Tchaikovsky
• Peter Tchaikovsky and the Nutcracker Ballet (not pictured)
• Edward McDowell and his Cabin in the Pines

This series is structured to be a thorough music appreciation program with an introduction to music theory. Each composer is allotted four weeks, however, you can make this shorter or longer depending on how thorough you want to be. It is a physical product but includes an online component. I used this program with my two fifth grade boys. There was no way, during this review period, that we could even touch the surface of this program as there is simply SOOOO much there.  This post will simply be an attempt to share just a bit of how the program works for you. We finished the first composer (Chopin) and started on the second (Schumann).  We started off by having the boys read a chapter of the first book in the series: Frederic Chopin. Here is Isaac reading below:

After that, they would go to their Music Appreciation book and answer questions that went with what they read. I decided to let my boys work through it together for this review so that they could both give me their opinion on the product. If you wanted to use this program with two kids, you would simply need to buy a second workbook. (They can share all the reading books.) Here is a picture of just one of their completed workbook pages:

The Chopin section was around 60 pages. At the end of the unit, there is a quiz. Now take a moment and check out the QR Code at the top left of the page! If you use your phone and click on that, the quiz will pop up right on your phone for you to do the quiz!

The "Answer Key" for each unit is at the end of the section. I like this! The kids can check their answers themselves!

And the QR codes are numerous throughout this book. They are all over the place and let you listen to different music by that actual composer. 

I wanted to take an opportunity to show you how many different activities (geared for ALL learning styles!) there are available in every single unit. Each section of the book runs relatively the same but with TONS of variety. For example, in breaking down the section on Brahms, the student would: 

• WEEK ONE
• Read Chapter 1: This is in the separate book. 
• Answer Comprehension Questions: These are in the actual workbook. 
• Character Qualities: Read about Brahm's character qualities.
• Tidbits of Interest: Read about some tidbits of interest covering Brahm's life. (At the bottom of this page, there is an "App Alert" which allows you to see what Brahm's view would have been from the Alster Pavilion)
• Brahm's Journeys: Study Brahm's journeys as a well-traveled man (this includes some questions about map-reading -- another great addition!)
• Family Life: Read about his family life.
• Life at 24 Bacon Alley: This section allows you to read about what his life would have been like where he lived. (At the bottom of this page is a bonus "Journal Entry" that you can use with your journal if you choose to add this part to your study. This particular entry asks you to list adjectives in your journal that describe how his home may have looked, smelled, sounded felt. This activity gives your student an opportunity to understand what an adjective is.) 
• Number Sequencing Challenge: I love things like this which they include! It relates to the unit but allows the students to use a different type of learning and stretch their brains in different ways. This particular example discusses how Johannes enjoyed playing with lead soldiers even as he neared thirty. The activity asks your student to come up with their own formation using number sequencing!
• Do You Have an Ear for Music?: This section discusses some musical terms like absolute pitch, relative pitch, good inner ear and more. 
• Components of Music (Part 1): This section discusses contextual elements that shape the development of music (like time, location, culture, history, current events, social and political climate.) The second section discusses style of music. 
• WEEK TWO
• Read Chapter 2:
• Answer Comprehension Questions:
• Character Qualities:
• Tidbits of Interest:
• The Great Fire of 1842:
• Brahms and the Piano:
• German Semolina Pudding:  A recipe for a sweet milk pudding that was one of the gifts neighbors brought to help Hannes recuperate more quickly.
• Brahms and His Books: An encouragement to kids to start reading. This includes a list of books from different genres; it explains and gives examples of different types of genres of books. (There's an App Alert! here which provides a reference list of literary genre definitions.) 
• Components of Music (Part 2): This one gets into dynamics, tempo, symbols, articulation, and phrasing. This provides an opportunity for students to compare and contrast the expressive elements used in musical scores. 
• WEEK THREE
• Read Chapter 3:
• Answer Comprehension Questions:
• Listen to music tracks 1-3 on the Music Appreciation app:
• Character Qualities:
• Tidbits of Interest:
• From Hamburg to Winsen: In addition to showing pictures of these locations, there is another "Journal Entry" here where the student can  identify adjectives and adverbs in the phrases included in descriptions of cities. 
• The Three B's of Classical Music: Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms! (This section has a connection to a lapbook and another journaling option.) 
• Creating Your Own Music: An opportunity for your student to compose their own piece. Super fun!
• Music and Technology: An entire page showing how technology can help people create music.
• WEEK FOUR
• Read Chapter 4:
• Answer Comprehension Questions:
• Listen to music tracks 4-10 on the Music Appreciation app:
• Character Qualities:
• Tidbits of Interest:
• Brahm's Life (1833-1897):
• Ginger Cookies
• "Good Evening, Good Night"
• Through the Influence of Many
• German Requiem
• In Memory of Johannes Brahms
• Brahms Word Search and Riddles
• Time to Evaluate

Guys, I could go on and on and on about this product. Really! It is just absolutely CHOCKED full of learning opportunities. You can use this in multiple ways such as:

• Just use the workbook and books (like we did!)
• Add the journal for a writing aspect.
• Add the lapbook for another aspect.

You can purchase this program and really use it for a combination of a ton of different subject areas like history and literature and grammar and music! There is so much available. So many opportunities!! For more information, please check out Zeezok Publishing at: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram. WE LOVED THIS PROGRAM!!!!!!! Feel free to email me at: wkitsteiner@gmail.com for personal conversation with me about this great program from Zeezok Publishing: Music Appreciation Book 2: for the Middle Grades.

Also, please check out reviews from my fellow review team members by clicking on the link below: