Hello Book Bums families!
In this week's newsletter we are sharing some Thanksgiving favorites - book recommendations, game and contest ideas, crafty turkeys, and more. We wish you a wonderful holiday with your family and friends.
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Pause for Poetry
Thanksgiving
by Edgar Albert Guest
Gettin’ together to smile an’ rejoice,
An’ eatin’ an’ laughin’ with folks of your choice;
An’ kissin’ the girls an’ declarin’ that they
Are growin’ more beautiful day after day;
Chattin’ an’ braggin’ a bit with the men,
Buildin’ the old family circle again;
Livin’ the wholesome an’ old-fashioned cheer,
Just for awhile at the end of the year.
Greetings fly fast as we crowd through the door
And under the old roof we gather once more
Just as we did when the youngsters were small;
Mother’s a little bit grayer, that’s all.
Father’s a little bit older, but still
Ready to romp an’ to laugh with a will.
Here we are back at the table again
Tellin’ our stories as women an’ men.
Bowed are our heads for a moment in prayer;
Oh, but we’re grateful an’ glad to be there.
Home from the east land an’ home from the west,
Home with the folks that are dearest an’ best.
Out of the sham of the cities afar
We’ve come for a time to be just what we are.
Here we can talk of ourselves an’ be frank,
Forgettin’ position an’ station an’ rank.
Give me the end of the year an’ its fun
When most of the plannin’ an’ toilin’ is done;
Bring all the wanderers home to the nest,
Let me sit down with the ones I love best,
Hear the old voices still ringin’ with song,
See the old faces unblemished by wrong,
See the old table with all of its chairs
An’ I’ll put soul in my Thanksgivin’ prayers.
Word of the Week
savory (say-vuh-ree) adjective/describing word - pleasing to the taste or smell
Anna couldn't wait to taste all the savory foods on the table.
Literary Calendar
• November 24 is the birthday of British author Frances Hodgson Burnett.
• She is best known for her classic novel, The Secret Garden.
• This story is full of descriptive language and imagery. A young reader or listener could add their imagination to create illustrations to accompany the novel.
From our Bookshelves
I’ve shared about Thank You, Sarah in the newsletter before, but it’s just SO darned good that I have to share it again. This is one of those kids’ books that you’ll absolutely enjoy as an adult. The writing is outstanding, and the message is downright inspiring.
Thank You, Sarah was written by Laurie Halse Anderson—who just happens to be a very distant great niece of the unsung superhero named Sarah Hale. In the book, we learn that Sarah fought for things important to her . . . with her pen.
This Thanksgiving, instead of just slapping down some coloring pages or setting the kids free in a playroom that is bound to be destroyed before even one bite of turkey has been consumed, recruit someone to read this book aloud to the kids. A family member who’s a skilled oral reader can engage even the very young children attending this year. When the book is finished, the reader can challenge the kids to write about something they care about. Then the reader can present them with a pen like this cool feather pen (They’re about a dollar apiece for a pack of 12 on Amazon.) and plenty of paper options like the ones shared below, along with the promise that they’ll read what the kids have written as the family begins wrapping up your holiday together. Want to ensure engagement? Offer CA$H prizes or other incentives for winners for a variety of categories, so all participating kids can be positively acknowledged (most persuasive, most thought provoking, best organized, best handwriting, etc.).
Maybe you don’t want to spend the money to add this book to your personal collection, and you don’t have any kids who’d appreciate it. I get it. But would you please check out this YouTube video of the book being read? You absolutely need a little Sarah Hale in your life.
“Anderson turns a little-known historical tidbit into a fresh, funny, and inspirational alternative to the standard Thanksgiving stories.”
—School Library Journal
Tips for Families
If you’re feeling even the slightest bit crafty, make some of these adorable turkeys with your little ones’ hands and feet like this:
You need:
heavy white paper
tempera paints (e.g., brown, yellow, orange, pink)
Almost any four colors of washable, non-toxic paints will do.
paint brushes (Having 5 brushes makes things a bit easier.)
scissors
glue
permanent marker (for making eyes)
These are so cute when they’re cut out and a slightly larger piece of colored paper is glued to the back to frame the turkey! Just get the paints and papers ready, and right before bathtime, make some quick prints. You can finish making these treasures when the paint has dried and the kids have been tucked into bed. Who’ll love receiving these little turkeys? Everyone who loves your little turkeys!
While you’re good and messy, you could go ahead and make this too!
Think: Christmas gifts that will be forever-treasured keepsakes. You can use Christmas colors to make this something your loved ones display during the holidays year after year.
You can make your own using paper, or you can get fancy and purchase a kit like this one found on Amazon for under $30.
Quick Links for Items Mentioned Above
Tips for Raising Readers and Writers
With the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday in mind, we’re sharing some things you can do as a family to promote all things literacy—which includes: 1) reading, 2) writing, 3) speaking, 4) listening, and 5) thinking.
M & M’s Gratitude Game
Participants will take turns drawing a single M&M out from their bags of candies (without looking) and, using the following code, they will share something for which they are thankful.
Red
Share about a person who made this year an especially good one.
Green
Share about a talent you’re grateful to have developed this year.
Orange
Share about an opportunity you are thankful to have experienced this year.
Blue
Share about a hope you have for something new to be enjoyed in the days ahead.
Yellow
Share about a challenge you’ve recently overcome that makes for a brighter future.
Brown
Share about a sacrifice you’re presently making to promote joy in the coming days.
Use leftover Halloween candies or use this Quick Link to order approximately 32 bags of fun size M&Ms candies.
I’m Thankful for You & I Want to Learn What You’re Enjoying These Days
Participants will simply fill in the forms you provide, understanding that you’re committing to sharing everyone’s information with the entire group via email. You may find something new that you’ll thoroughly enjoy (and you can get some Christmas gift ideas too)! Just print as many pages as you’ll need, and have some pens &/or pencils ready.
Name:
_______________________________________________________________
Email address:
_______________________________________________________________
Book I’ve recently enjoyed:
_______________________________________________________________
Audio Book that I loved:
_______________________________________________________________
Podcast I look forward to each week:
_______________________________________________________________
Show/Series I thoroughly enjoyed:
_______________________________________________________________
Movie I loved that others might enjoy too:
_______________________________________________________________
Music/Song that is totally my jam right now:
_______________________________________________________________
Music/Song for my slow groove mode these days:
_______________________________________________________________
Restaurant/Meal I can’t get enough of lately.
_______________________________________________________________
Sweet Treat/Snack for when I’m really celebrating (or just because):
_______________________________________________________________
Beverage I look forward to enjoying:
_______________________________________________________________
Tips for Teachers
I was today years old when I realized that
when you replace the w
in when, what, and where
with a t,
it will give you the answer to each question.
We can see that our local schools are using more science-informed methods for teaching kids to read this year. Thank you, Governor DeWine! The other day a student was learning about the digraphs c-h, t-h, and s-h at Book Bums. The students asked, “What about w-h?” Good question! (We didn’t hear questions like this in the past. Someone’s teaching kids how words work/using phonics. Yay!)
A digraph is a pair of letters representing one unexpected sound. The word part di- means two, and graph means to write, so digraph literally means write two letters. We write two letters to represent one sound.
We do not teach about w-h right away beause though the w-h did used to represent an unexpected windy, whistly sort of sound, today we generally agree that w-h represents either the sound /w/ or /h/, and both of those sounds are represented with the letters w-h—they’re not so unexpected.
In our Foundations for Literacy lesson progression, we teach our students about the most commonly used digraphs first, and as they master those sounds we move along in the progression, systematically, until we’ve equipped our students to accurately decode most any word they will find in a book.
We begin by teaching that . . .
For c-h we say /ch/ like in Cheerios.
For (the puff) t-h we say /th/ like in thumb.
For (the buzz) t-h we say /th/ like in this or that.
Note: A t-h usually makes a puff sound, so we try that first. If it doesn’t make a word we know, we can “flip it” from the puff sound to the buzz sound to see if that makes a word. We don’t guess what words say, but we encourage kids to be flexible within the confines of the phonics rules they’re learning so they’re equipped to read even those really tricky words.
For s-h we say /sh/ like the “quiet sound” we hear in shake and shiny.
Later in our scope and sequence we teach that the digraph n-g says /ng/ like in ring.
After that we share about those two sound for w-h: /w/ like in when and (rarely) /h/ like in who.
Eventually we teach that p-h says /f/ like in phone.
Later still we teach that c-h can also say /k/ like in stomach and even /sh/ like in Chicago—though this happens only rarely.
And that’s it. Those are the consonant digraphs used in the English language. They’re two letters, together, that represent one unexpected sound.
When it comes to using explicit, systematic phonics in the schools, you may ask, “Are we there yet?” I’ll prayerfully say, “Almost!”
Practical Grammar
Is this funny?
Maybe it’s just sad.
Anyway, if you’re going to be mean (which we really don’t recommend), use good grammar to help ensure folks take you seriously. Let’s brush up on the basics—just in case!
Your- means something belongs to you
You’re- means you + are
To- indicates movement in a direction
Too- means either more than enough (You’re too late.) or also (I love you too!)
Two- 2 (To help kids remember, say: “The number two has a /double u/ in the middle.”)
There- means in a place or in that matter
Their- means something belongs to them
They’re- means they + are
Towed- means a vehicle is moved away by another vehicle
Toad- a bumpy amphibian resembling a frog
Loose- means not tight or firmly fixed
Lose- means not able to find something, not able to win
There are- used when talking about multiple things (plural)
There is- used when taking about a single thing (singular)
News from Book Bums
IF YOU’RE LOCAL, WE NEED YOUR HELP! If you have availability on either Mondays, Tuesdays, or Thursdays from 2:55 until 4:30 p.m., beginning the first week of December and ending in mid-April, we would love to have you join us as we serve struggling readers at Adena (Mondays), Freedom (Tuesdays), and Union (Thursdays) Elementary Schools. We’re serving 3rd graders along with some 4th graders, and we’d love to have each student sit alongside a caring, smiling adult to help them as they learn to read and spell well. It’s so much fun, and it’s truly rewarding as you watch the growth of the students you’re serving. Email Dr. Christy at [email protected] today to share at which school you’ll come alongside to help some soon-to-be soaring readers! Please invite your friends to join you. You could even plan to go out for a dinner date afterward!
Just for Fun
Oh, the irony . . .
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