"Mama, Mama! There's a Mentura DVD in the mail! Can I open it, please, please, please?" These words have become common around our house in the last two months! Mentura (www.mentura.com) is a new company that rents thousands of educational DVD's in a very clever way. Matt Nolin, the founder and president of Mentura, started the company because he noticed that his son with special needs learned better through watching movies than through most other teaching methods. The goal was to have hundreds, and later thousands, of titles available for parents and schools to use, along with great teaching guides that further the educational experience. As the old saying goes, "A picture is worth a thousand words!" The same is true for movies. Because watching movies involves at least auditory and visual stimuli, and often some kinetic stimuli for kids who bounce and move while they watch, memory retention is often better no matter what learning style your kids utilize best. Seeing and hearing information in an entertaining way can produce much better results, or an excellent compliment to just reading something in a book.

How it works - you can sign up for a monthly membership for three, four or six DVDs at a time ($24.95, $29.95, or $34.95 per month, respectively), or for a yearly membership ($199.00 per year for three DVDs at a time, $249.00 for four DVDs, or $299.00 for six DVDs at a time). Let's say you want to shoot for the moon and take out a year membership for six DVDs. You would log on to the Mentura website, set up an account, and provide payment. Then you would set up your DVD Queue, or list of movies that you would like to check out. Mentura would send the first six movies on your list, all in DVD format, for you to enjoy for as long as you like. When you are finished with a movie, simply slip it in the enclosed, postage-paid envelope, and mail it back to Mentura. When they receive a movie back, they will mail the next DVD on your queue, and so on. There are no postage fees and no late fees! This is great for homeschoolers because you can plan ahead and have the movies you need at the time you need them, and for as long as you need them.

We have tried Mentura for two months and can't say enough good things about the company! My kids and I have always enjoyed watching movies, especially great science and history movies. We checked out all kinds of different videos - everything from a movie about spies during WWII and several IMAX movies covering all kinds of science and social studies topics to several movies of interest to my preschooler and even some for sheer entertainment! DVDs can be used as part of a study or as a wrap-up and review (and reward) when finishing a certain topic.

The thing I liked best about the idea of using movies for our homeschool is that it allows me to present information to both of my special needs kids in a way that helps them learn the best. My eight-year-old is several grades ahead and is extremely detail-oriented. He wants the nitty-gritty information about science and history. My three-year-old son has Down Syndrome and takes longer to learn new information. He likes being exposed to lots of different things in many different ways, picking up a little bit here and a little bit there. Through watching movies, both boys were learning in their own ways. An IMAX movie about sharks, for example, provided lots of in-depth information for my older son, while providing opportunities for my younger son to understand what a shark is, where it lives, what it eats, etc. We can stop the tape, watch something again and again, discuss what we saw, skip parts, etc., to our heart's content!

Movies touch not only the senses, but also the emotions, in a way that is hard to do with many traditional learning activities. This emotional response furthers the learning process - and it makes kids want to learn! The range of topics provided by Mentura would provide enough material for just about any study and any level of learning. They have some wonderful preschool and early learning movies, all the way through advanced science, history, and math. There are also learning guides available for hundreds of Mentura DVDs, all written by teachers. The learning guides provide vocabulary words, discussion questions, lessons and activities, additional resources, website links, etc., often for several different age groups. This would make it easy to create a unit study around a movie, or use the movie and learning guide as a supplement to a unit study. I think any kids (and parents) would love this great service, especially kids with special needs who benefit from learning the same material in many different ways!
-- Product Review by: Dr. Anne Margaret Wright, The Old Schoolhouseâ„¢

Here's another Mentura, Inc. review!

Many great companies are started to fulfill a need. This is exactly why Mentura, Inc. was created. The founder, Matt Nolin, has a son that learns best visually. Finding educational videos to fulfill his needs, however, was a challenge. Mr. Nolin decided to start his own company to meet the need.

Mentura, Inc. originally began as Classroom Visuals and carried educational videos. Later the name was changed to Mentura, Inc. and the format was changed to DVD. For the price of membership, which can be monthly or yearly, you rent wonderful, educational DVDs. Loads of new DVDs are added each week to their already impressive selection. Every age, from preschool through adult, can find a DVD to meet their needs. You can also download learning guides for many of the DVDs to make each viewing a truly educational experience.

You choose the DVDs from their large inventory and they are mailed to you in a pre-paid return envelope. You can keep them as long as you like with no late fees. As you return the ones you've viewed (no shipping expenses on your part), the next one is automatically sent from your preference list. They also rent DVD players. Choices include art, biographies, English, math, music, preschool skills, foreign language, science, history, sports, and much more. DVDs strictly for entertainment, such as recent blockbuster movies, are also available. There are thousands of choices!

My children and I have enjoyed learning new things in this way. For many children, seeing is believing! This company is first rate!

Publishers' Note: We as the publishers of TOS Magazine have been receiving Mentura DVDs for months. This company is a Godsend. First, we are the kind of family who, when we do rent shows from the local video store, are always LATE in returning them. This results in late fees every time. Mentura is great. You keep the DVDs as long as you want. Never will you see a "late fee" - you return them at your own convenience. Not only that, you don't drive to a store to either pick up or return. When you receive your DVDs in the mail, an envelope (postage paid!) is supplied for you for the purpose of returns. It's paid for! When we are done, we seal them up in the envelopes supplied, and one of our kids walks it to our mailbox. That's it! Mentura has gazillions of titles from which to choose. I'd say the largest percentage of what they offer is indeed educational. There are some that are not, like a few modern day movies and cartoons, but most are definitely great for the home school. Would I rent everything they offer? No, of course not. Use discernment. This has, however, been one of my favorite review assignments. Our kids are enjoying the weekly "education DVD nights" we do with them. Loads of creation materials (Answers in Genesis and others) shows, Nova, Sesame Street, History Channel - the list goes on. Watch classrooms with your children that instruct math, English, science, EVERYTHING. We're thrilled with Mentura! I don't plan to ever let my membership expire!