Meadowlark Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 I keep hearing about it and am intrigued. I can't seem to figure much out from their website. Can someone explain it to me, and how you use it? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbmamaz Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Its a library of educational videos. Sort of like the filmstrips you used to have in school. Depending on what level you buy, there are different brands/series available. You can search by topic, grade level, etc. I used it to supplement what we were learning by finding videos for the boys to watch. You cant stream it to your TV unless you have a laptop you can connect to your TV, though. Its not particularly easy for kids to navigate, though, so they dont use it independently as much. Mine tended to watch 'edutainment' like Magic School Bus and Horrible Histories Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brookspr Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Wow, a homeschool subscription is $265??? That seems high to me. We have a hard enough time squeezing in videos from the library and ones we find online through educational websites. I don't know that I would get my money's worth from that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 I tried a sample . I think Homeschool Buyer's Co-op has a better deal than that and I know they offer a 30 day free trial. I did the free trial. I didn't care for it. A lot of the videos are older and so they look very grainy on the computer. So much so that many of them weren't pleasant to watch. The sound was not great either. I don't think it's worth it. You can get a ton of free educational videos even on Youtube (that have a much better video/audio quality). I agree. I get it for free and rarely use it. I use youtube, netflix and amazon streaming (all of which I can stream on the tv with my roku). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mavy Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 I actually really like it, but will only get it if Homeschool Buyers has a deal again. We are doing project based homeschooling, and it is great to have the videos there and ready. We have had no problem with video quality. I also like that Spanish is getting done this year thanks to Elementary Spanish on Discovery Streaming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 We had it back when there was that G3 deal. I did find a few cool things on it, but they were so minor. Totally not worth it at all. Every time I tried to find relevant content for us, it seemed like 90%+ of what's on there is older, cheezy looking educational filmstrip type stuff. And I didn't find it user friendly at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Korrale Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 We have it and use it daily. We don't have cable, and can't get free to air TV. So this is our TV. We paid $99 for the year and that worked out cheaper than netflix I have a TV hooked up to a cheap computer tower which I use for TV watching. Yes, many of the shows are dated and the quality is low. Old VHS quality. But my son doesn't know any difference so it worlds for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xixstar Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 We really like it and got the HSBS deal. I debated after my trial because he video quality but my kids don't mind that. They love delving into topics and we can find so much stuff to flesh out everything we are learning. And even if the videos are dated in appearance, they still offer great information. I have even appreciated some of the organic chemistry videos as a supplement for my school work. We only have amazon prime for other viewing options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Used it last year because of great discount through HSBC. This year went with Discovery Science, not Discovery Streaming, since I needed a lot of help with science and I can screen the videos so that it is only recent videos that pop up. Discovery Science, Discovery Health, etc. are more for a teacher and are structured so that you can set up folders for your students, organize lesson plans, etc. and also include on-line activities, support material, even lesson plans in some instances. Discovery streaming was more for general purposes and didn't have as many bells and whistles. I like that they break up some of the wonderful programs they have aired so you can easily find and access just the segment you want instead of having to watch an entire 30 minute or one hour show if you only need specific information. I screen the videos ahead of time, put the selections I want into "folders" for the kids and they can access them when we get to that part of our day. Some older videos don't have very good quality, but because I usually only use the recent videos and can select for that, video quality usually isn't an issue. I can also screen for grade range and subtopics so it makes it easier for me to get to the exact part of a topic I wish to reinforce. Science is not my strong suit so this has really helped me. Would I get it if I hadn't gotten a great discount? No, but for the price I paid and how easy it is to screen and select material, I have found it useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Satori Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 This has been an essential resource for our homeschool that we use in several subjects every week. We actually use it every single day for our Spanish program, and rely on it to supplement everything we learn in science and history and at times every other subject. The quality has never affected me, there are 5 streaming settings to choose from, we just choose the highest. We're not huge tv watchers here, although the few times we watch Amazon/Netflix streaming, it is in HD on our tv. But we are more computer people than tv watchers, so we're content with watching non-HD stuff on our computer monitors just as well. Outdatedness is not a concern either, there are just as many amazing, modern videos and I find more everyday. But I use this resource for the educational aspect anyway, so dated videos that show their time do not bother me as long as it does the job of teaching the concept. I've used Discovery Education Streaming for many years now and yes, at first it was difficult to navigate and find good stuff. They have revamped the search interface in the past few years. I log in with my teacher account, find stuff to watch, assign it to my daughter for a particular day or week, and she logs in, views what she likes, and then "Marks Complete". She can search through her own simplified student interface as well. I made this page on my blog about DES options a few years back. I know much more content has been added, maybe I'll update that list. Anyway, through the Homeschool Buyer's Coop, Discovery Education Streaming has been invaluable for our little homeschool. If we didn't get the discount through them, I would probably find a way to swing the cost every year, but I'm glad we get it as a discount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatHomeschoolDad Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 DD did a a several years of an excellent Spanish course on disc streaming -- I think it was put out by Arizona State. We use the service all the time, but I do supplement with vids from other sources. I usually download Youtube content to avoid the, ahem, sometimes questionable suggestions in the right nav. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Korrale Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Discovery Science, Discovery Health, etc. are more for a teacher and are structured so that you can set up folders for your students, organize lesson plans, etc. and also include on-line activities, support material, even lesson plans in some instances. Discovery streaming was more for general purposes and didn't have as many bells and whistles. I like that they break up some of the wonderful programs they have aired so you can easily find and access just the segment you want instead of having to watch an entire 30 minute or one hour show if you only need specific information. I screen the videos ahead of time, put the selections I want into "folders" for the kids and they can access them when we get to that part of our day. Some older videos don't have very good quality, but because I usually only use the recent videos and can select for that, video quality usually isn't an issue. I can also screen for grade range and subtopics so it makes it easier for me to get to the exact part of a topic I wish to reinforce. Science is not my strong suit so this has really helped me. Would I get it if I hadn't gotten a great discount? No, but for the price I paid and how easy it is to screen and select material, I have found it useful. I wondered about the difference between discover science and streaming. I have streaming and it has all those bells and whistles I believe you mentioned. All the folders. lesson plans, student assigning. And it does the segments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 I wondered about the difference between discover science and streaming. I have streaming and it has all those bells and whistles I believe you mentioned. All the folders. lesson plans, student assigning. And it does the segments. I don't think I worded my response very clearly and I am sorry. I was in a hurry. I was talking about the interactive stuff. When we had Streaming, I don't recall there being on-line interactive computer games and lessons, and computer graphics demonstrations of concepts, and items like that. I only remember access to videos. And I seem to have a better interface with Discovery Science. Maybe I am wrong, though. It has been over a year and we have used other things, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Korrale Posted October 25, 2013 Share Posted October 25, 2013 Ok. :) I think you are right about the lack of interactive games like that. I don't recall see them. And I do agree that the layout of discovery streaming is not really user friendly. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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