George Washington DNG Review

If you read my review of the Ben Franklin DNG, you know how much I love anything history. So once again I was extremely excited to have the opportunity for our family to review the new George Washington Download N Go.

What an interesting man and a wonderful role model!



Download N Go is a comprehensive unit study geared to K-4 students but could be easily modified to older or younger students. Everything you need is included –websites, videos, activity pages, lapbook components. Planning and Preparation is so easy because all the work is done for you. There is also an extensive book list included on each topic. Each unit is very reasonably priced and available for immediate download.




These are a few of the books/videos we used this week.

This unit was jam packed with information, as well as, some beautiful activity pages filled with quotes and pictures from George’s life. I printed every single page to be included in our lapbook/notebook! Click on the picture below to view some sample pages.




Each unit is broken down into 5 days/objectives. Here are just a few of the things you will be learning with the George Washington Download N Go.

Who was George Washington?
People & Places in George Washington’s Life
The Accomplishments of George Washington
Lessons to Learn from George Washington
Remembering George Washington

We spent time this week learning about our nation’s capital, what our president does, finding out more about several national monuments. While this unit covers a lot of history, we also talked about character traits and leadership skills. Math, Geography, and Art Appreciation are a few of the other topics that are included.





We even took time to throw George Washington a little birthday party!

Here are a few shots of our completed lapbook. It turned out so nice and we had a great day of review when we put it all together.

If you want to learn more about Download N Go units or any of Amanda Bennett's other unit studies (which are fabulous by the way) Check them out here.

See what other bloggers have to say about this unit at the DNG George Washington Blog Tour.

***Disclaimer Statement: We were provided a copy of this product, free of charge, for the purpose of writing an honest review her on my blog. The opinions expressed here are those of my children or myself.***

Ben Franklin DNG Review

I don’t know who was more excited, me or the kids, when we found out that the next DNG unit we would be reviewing would be Ben Franklin. Oh yes, it was me!!!! I love all things history. What a fascinating man and once again Amanda Bennett has not disappointed!




If you read my blog regularly you probably already know how much I LOVE these units and how they work but just in case you are not familiar with Download N Go let me tell you a little bit about how they are set up.



Each DNG unit is geared to children K-4 but could easily be expanded to use with older children. Everything you need is here…websites, activities, videos, and lapbook pieces! All the work is done for you! There is also a very extensive list of books to go along with your studies. Prep time for the teacher is minimal. Mainly printing and putting books on hold if you so choose. Just as the name suggests, you just download & go!


I spend about 30 minutes over the weekend looking over the unit, printing, putting books on hold, and cutting lapbook pieces. (I always cut them out ahead of time and sort them by day. Some might think there is a lot of printing but you can print as much or little of the materials as you decide. I print all the lapbook pieces and some activity pages and the rest we worked on orally together.



Now more about Ben… husband, father, inventor, innovator, printer, statesman, liaison…a great American.



Day 1: Who Was Ben Franklin?


Day 2: People and Places in Ben Franklin’s Life


Day 3: The Accomplishments of Ben Franklin


Day 4: Lessons to Learn From Ben Franklin


Day 5: Remembering Ben Franklin



Each day is filled with interesting videos, activities, and information on this important American. We studied about his many inventions, as well as, his contributions to society. We learned so much about how one person can make a difference in our world. Such an important lesson for our young people to learn.

These are some of the titles we used this week.

You can view some sample activity pages here.

Although we didnt try the famous kite and key experiment, we did do several experiments this week. We also learned the difference between an innovator and an inventor. Ben Franklin was both!

We worked on our powers of observation --

They observed each other for 2 minutes and then each one had to change 3 things and see if the other noticed. I was surprised at how well they did with this one. Who knew how observant you can be while your acting so silly. *wink*





We then took five minutes to write down everything we heard, saw, smelled, tasted, and touched.

We spent some time observing clouds.

We learned about air pressure in this one. The cup is full of water (notice we did this over the sink just in case) and the air pressure was stronger than gravity. You remove you hand and the water doesnt spill.

I found this book at the library and it was full of great ideas to use along with this DNG unit. Many of the experiments we tried came from here.

Here are some shots from our completed lapbook. I really enjoy having this “souvenir” from our studies. What a great way to review and the boys are so proud of them. Just as a side note, I have started using pocket folders most of the time. I keep everything in there all week and then on Friday we glue everything in its place. I think they are much easier to store this way as well.

The front

inside front pocket

inside back pocket

Our Certificate of Completion is glued to the back cover.




I would gladly recommend these Download & Go Units to anyone. You can order them individually for $7.95 each. These are just a few of the titles they offer!

You can also check out the DNG Blog for all the latest information and specials.

The Ben Franklin Blog Tour can found here.

Ben Franklin is currently on sale for only $6.25!!!


***Disclaimer*** I was given a free copy of this product, in exchange for, a honest review on my blog. The opinions expressed here are of myself and/or my children.

In 1492...

Columbus sailed the ocean blue

We learned all about Columbus this week.
These are a few of the books we read about Columbus.

We also made our own Nina, Pinta, & Santa Maria.

Our Santa Maria was the only one to safely reach the shores of the New World. The Nina & the Pinta were a little top heavy!