Hello Book Bums families!
Welcome September! Here in Cincinnati we've been enjoying some cooler weather that has us thinking about fall. This week in the newsletter we share autumnal events celebrating apples, pumpkins, and literacy too. Read all the way to the end for a great handwriting workshop offer from Book Bums.
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Word of the Week
bucolic (byoo-koll-ik) adjective/describing word - relating to the countryside, pastoral
My niece reserved a country barn for her wedding because she loves the bucolic setting.
Literary Calendar
- September 3 is the birthday of Canadian author and speaker Malcolm Gladwell.
- Famous for thinking about things in new ways, he has written several best sellers including Blink and Outliers.
- Learn more about him and check out his work here .
From our Bookshelves
The snippet for this book reads, “With insights from her own journey and powerful biblical examples, Jo offers practical advice to empower and equip women to transform their communities. If you've ever longed to uncover your true potential, own your voice, and boldly advance God's goodness in the world, now is the time to start. Get ready to rise!”
Well, who wouldn’t want to read this book?
I attended Crossroads’ women’s conference, Ignite, a few months ago. It was there that I discovered Jo Saxton and her book Ready to Rise.
The conference was just what I needed to ignite something deep within my heart. I found Ready to Rise that awakened a dream I’ve had inside of me, and I found a coach who’s pressing me to determine what’s holding me back while also encouraging me to step up.
I mentioned last week that I love observing the becoming. I shared that there’s nothing so gratifying as a good “before” and “after” story to inspire me to action.
I should take a picture of myself, because I’m praying that this is my “before” and I’m working toward the “after.”
Tips for Raising Readers and Writers
September is National Literacy Month. Last year, there was call to action in the U.S. Senate entitled the Read to Rise Resolution. This resolution addressed the alarming decline in children’s reading abilities in our nation. The aim was to promote children's literacy development by equipping families with tools to support early literacy development and foster emergent literacy skills. That sounds a lot like what we do here at Book Bums! In fact, the International Literacy Association (ILA) is an organization to which I belong because I greatly value their mission to connect research with practice, a long-needed and far too often missing link in literacy education.
The ILA created some fun things for families to do to promote literacy during the month of September such as:
1. having kids create video book talks to share on social media (or not)
2. challenging kids to play their Finding Readers in the Wild BINGO game
3. sharing tips for families to enjoy reading together—including links to applications that might be really enjoyable for your family. Click here to check it out.
Tips for Families
Well, it’s beginning. I’m seeing all the fall things. Mums have made their way into the garden centers, and pumpkin spice is coming soon to coffee cups near you. I’m here for it!
Right now, I’m sitting outside, enjoying a flat white, and joyfully working on the newsletter. There’s a cool breeze and there’s not a drop of sweat to found. (Halleluiah!)
In the spirit of I’ve had enough of sweating, thank you very much, I’m adding all the FALL FAMILY FUN links I can find for you here, so you can plan some fall-themed fun for your family.
Niederman Farm Craft Show
September 6, 9:00-3:00
September 7, 11:00-3:00
Niederman Family Farm Fall Festival
September 19-October 26
Enjoy a 4-acre corn maze, hayrides, pumpkin picking, and fall treats like cinnamon-sugar donuts.
Liberty Township Fall Festival
September 27, 11:00-3:00
Enjoy fall family fun at its finest in Liberty Township, Ohio! This annual fall festival has tons of activities for all ages to enjoy. Make a free craft, play on inflatables and listen to live entertainment. Don't forget to stop by the local vendors and food trucks for more fun!
Great Pumpkin Fest at Keehner Park
October 4, 2:00-6:00
Come and enjoy a puppet show, the petting zoo, games, and the children’s costume contest.
Apple Butter Festival at Hueston Woods
October 4 & 5, 10:00-5:00 ($10 per car)
Experience 19th-century farm life, watch apple butter being made, and tour the historic Doty Homestead.
Operation Pumpkin
October 10 & 11, 11:00-10:00
October 12, 11:00-5:00
Downtown Hamilton transforms with incredible sculpted pumpkins, a pumpkin weigh-off, artisan vendors, and live entertainment.
Harvest Fest at Garver Farm
October 11, 10:00-6:00
Search for the perfect pumpkin to pick, take a hayride, and enjoy sweet fall treats. Sit and listen to live music as you sip on cider. Browse 30+ local vendors and find unique, handmade gifts. Grab a bite from one of the food trucks and enjoy activities for kids!
Sauerkraut Festival in Waynesville OH
October 11, 9:00-8:00
October 12, 9:00-6:00
Join us for a weekend full of fun, charm, fabulous shopping, and fantastic food. Approximately 460 craft vendors from over 25 states bring their handmade goods to our small town of Waynesville.
Barn-n-Bunk
Lots of days and times (see image, below)
Find fun on the farm with a corn maze, pottery painting, duck races, and unique weekend entertainment.
Wordology Workshop
• The Latin root vend means sell.
• It shows up in two common English words: vendor and vending.
• Remember this root when you're out shopping at a festival or grabbing a snack from a machine.
Practical Grammar
I decided to share the top ten grammar errors with which adults tend to struggle—one per week for the next ten weeks. We’ve been publishing the Book Bums newsletter for so long now, many of our readers have never seen these. Here we go with a top ten brush up!
1. Subject-Verb Agreement
Tip one is to make sure singular subjects have singular verbs and plural subjects have plural verbs.
This sounds simple, but those darn prepositions can make it tricky.
This is the example error:
The list of items are on the table.
The tricky part is that the word items is plural and it feels like it could be the subject of the sentence. It’s not. The actual subject is list. The word items provides additional information about the list. It’s part of the prepositional phrase of items.
When we remove that phrase, we’re left with “The list ____ on the table.” The word that best fits, now, is is.
PRO TIP: Watch out for those prepositions!
News from Book Bums
Whether you’re a parent who wants to help your kids with their handwriting or a teacher who wants to sufficiently equip the students in your classroom with explicit, systematic handwriting instruction, or you’re an entrepreneur who’d like to make some extra money with a short-term side gig (that you can use over and over again), or you think you might be interested in hosting after-school program workshops through your local school district’s elementary buildings’ programming . . . the Handwriting Workshop curriculum could be just what you’re looking for!
Click the link below to purchase the Book Bums Handwriting Workshop that has everything you need to teach kids to use tidy, efficient letter formations and maybe even launch your own mini business!
Book Bums Handwriting Workshop (for teachers and parents)
As you know, we’ve been hosting our Handwriting Workshops for about twenty years.
The entire curriculum is on sale now for only $50!
That’s not bad for a business startup investment. In the most recent workshop we hosted, we served about eight students, and we charged $85 per student.
We’re sharing all the tips and tricks you need to transform kids’ handwriting skills!
If you would please help us spread the word about this opportunity, we’d really appreciate it!
You can copy and paste the link to send via email or text or even share on social media.
We feel bad about not being able to host our Handwriting Workshops when most of our families wanted them. Maybe you or someone you know can help us help kids improve their handwriting!
Tips for Teachers
I love Jesus.
I’ll talk about why with anyone who asks. I also love Eminem. Not very churchy, huh?
In truth, I don’t know very many Eminem songs, and some of them I do know are just awful. But I have always loved artists who sing so you feel it. I feel Eminem, and I’m a fan.
He had me the first time I heard the following lyrics from “Lose Yourself.”
Look... If you had one shot or one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted
One moment...
Would you capture it? Or just let it slip?
(You can do anything you set your mind to, man.)
I’ve prayed for Eminem for decades. I often said, “When he finds the grace and hope I found in Jesus, that man’s testimony will transform more lives than any preacher ever could.”
I also love Jelly Roll. Again—I feel what I believe he’s feeling when he’s singing.
I recently discovered this song “Somebody Save Me” covered by Eminem and featuring Jelly Roll. I love the original song, but when I heard this version, my heart soared.
I have felt a little guilty in my adult life for liking some things that are, let’s say, edgy. One friend said, “Oh, so you’re an earthy Christian . . .” That made me smile. I mean, sort of.
Here’s the thing: I try not to be someone who counts people out just because the two of us are different from one another. I trust that there’s good in everyone.
We’re all entitled to our opinions and perspectives. I raised three kids, and each is extraordinarily unique and wonderful. They’re exactly the same while also so different it could make your head spin. And each is my greatest treasure.
When my kids were young, I’d sing to them, “Love one another. John 13:34; Love one another. John 13:34” –especially when they were arguing. They hated that, but today they’re all so good at loving one another. (Maybe it was the song?)
In the science of reading community, people actually hate Lucy Calkins. They’ve demonized a perfectly wonderful human for being wrong about something. Here’s a video I shared about four years ago.
You know, I love it that when I’m walking down the street, I could be unknowingly passing by someone who’s playing the lead in a beloved musical, someone who’s rushing home after completing a surgery on a precious grandpa, or someone who just saw the lightbulb come on for a child who’s been struggling to learn to read. We simply cannot judge people. We miss by a mile when we do.
Tattoos? Voted differently than you? Cut you off accidentally? Smells like sweat? Used a few choice words? No fashion sense? Disagree about vaccinations? Made a rude comment once?
That person could be the very person you’re going to be so very thankful for one day soon—you just don’t know it yet.
To be the best we can be, we simply must surround ourselves with people of diverse perspectives who can disagree with us about lots of things without fear that we’ll retaliate (or cancel them).
I’m so thankful for the grace folks extend to me when I miss by a long shot, aren’t you?
Just for Fun
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