Families of the World: Philippines and Germany DVDs Review and Giveaway

Come spend time with four young citizens growing up in two of the most populous countries in the world in Families of Philippines and Families of Germany, the newest titles in the award-winning Families of the World series, venturing onto DVD September 20, 2011 from Master Communications.

The series – 27 titles and growing – enables future travelers to reach across the globe and visit other people and cultures, all from a child’s point of view. Always focusing on two children from differing households, one urban, one rural, and narrated by children, Families of the World DVDs invite viewers to follow two families’ daily routines, introducing both the similarities and differences that exist between them, as well as us.


The Southeast Asian country of the Philippines, known officially as the Republic of the Philippines, is an archipelago consisting of over 7,100 islands, has the fifth longest coastline in the world (over 22,500 miles), experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity and combines both Eastern and Western cultures.

In Families of Philippines, meet 13-year old Khim, a boy who lives on the rural island of Cebu with his grandparents, aunt and her two children. Living close to the coast, see the dozens of outrigger boats Khim points out as he explains how the fisherman collect the fish that he and his family eat nearly every night. Awaking early in the morning from his sleeping mat, Khim bathes, eats, and then makes the 10-minute walk to his public school, which boasts over 10,000 students. Studying plants, computers and other subjects, his favorite class is science. On the way home from school, he stops in the local video arcade to play games with his friends. Later at home, he completes his chores, which include feeding their goats, collecting firewood and cooking the rice for dinner. A fan of dance and karate, Khim is an active, happy boy!

Shahani, 7, lives in the capital city of Manila, a thriving city boasting many modern skyscrapers. Living with her mom, dad and older sister, the early riser (5 a.m.!), gets help from mom getting started in the morning before she’s off to school, where she wears a name tag to help the teachers with the over 5,000 students. During the 10 months she attends school, she studies English among other subjects. Mom shops for fresh fish and vegetables every day while Dad works as a children’s costumed birthday party entertainer and also teaches dance, which Shahani also studies (and excels – she won a local competition and was featured on television). Enjoying adobo stew for dinner and mango for desert, she and her sister welcome friends over in the evening for games and fun, then it’s off to bed for rest before her big test the next day!

Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a parliamentary republic consisting of 16 states, boasts one of the world’s largest economies and is the 14th most populous country in the world. The divided parts of East and West Germany were united in 1990 after the celebrated destruction of the Berlin Wall.

In Families of Germany, meet seven-year-old Sophia from the village of Reimershausen, who lives with her parents, sister Johanna and brother Simon. After a breakfast of bread, cheese and jam made from the fruit in their garden, she is off to school where she and her 19 classmates study English and biology among other subjects. Sophia studies guitar after school when she’s not helping out at a neighbor’s farm where twice a week she feeds cows and collects eggs from the chickens. Following dinner, she heads back to school for crafts and skits. During the weekend her family eats breakfast together, then enjoys activities – this particular weekend they are celebrating St. Martin’s Day, visiting Marburg Castle and attending her sister’s choral concert. A bedtime story from mom and dad and it’s off to sleep!

Ole is ten years old and lives in the capital city of Berlin with his parents, two brothers and two tortoises. It’s Halloween, so we get to tag along as Ole carves pumpkins, prepares treats for his neighbors before taking two trains to spend the day uptown, where we see conversation bikes, Segues and tour boats on the river. Upon their return, they head out for some trick-or-treating. The next day it’s back to school where Ole studies English and math while his dad, an engineer, works at a jet plane factory and mom teaches at an animal museum. After school it’s time for homework and dinner before heading off to handball practice. It’s been a long day, so bedtime is a welcome event!

Families of the World is recommended for ages 5-11 and retails for $29.95. The series features families in Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Egypt, France, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Mexico (includes Spanish and English soundtrack) and More Mexico, Panama, Puerto Rico, Russia, Sweden, Thailand, the USA, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam.

Each DVD includes a free PDF Teacher’s Guide, which features the script, copy-ready maps, discussion and activity guides, recipes, glossaries and more. To order Families of the World DVDs, call 1-800-765-5885 or visit http://www.familiesoftheworld.com./

What We Thought:

These DVDs are still a little advanced for Maggie but I think they would be great for school-aged children! Since we are planning on homeschooling Maggie, I'm looking forward to being able to use them as part of the curriculum when we study geography and sociology! I was thrilled to add these 2 DVDs to my collection and plan on sharing them with all of my homeschooling friends!

Buy Them:

Purchase Families of Germany (Families of the World) by clicking here, or Families of Philippines (Familes of the World) by clicking here!

Win Them!

One lucky blog winner will win both of these DVDs! Use the easy entry form below to enter. Good luck!



*I was not paid for this review. Thanks to the company for the complimentary review and giveaway items. Please note, this giveaway is not open to anyone who has won this DVD from another blog giveaway.*