February 2021 Monthly Newsletter

February 1, 2021

The following post will be a blog archive copy of the Build Your Library’s February 2021 Monthly Newsletter. If you missed the email, you can subscribe to our mailing list here. [Scheduled to be sent 2/1/21 8:15 AM EST]

Hey everybody, it’s Emily from Build Your Library! If you are just going to skim the beginning, here are the main topics in this month’s newsletter:

Now that I have your attention, here are the details on those items and more.

Monthly Newsletter

Welcome to February! Is it just me, or does January always seem to be the longest month? Maybe it’s because it’s after the holiday season, and it just takes a while to get back into our routine. But I hope that we’re all buzzing along in 2021, ready to tackle a new year!

We have some new information to share as well as some reoccurring monthly reminders.

2021 Practical Homeschooling Reader Awards

We’re excited to announce that Build Your Library has again been nominated for the Practical Homeschooling Reader Awards! If you’d like to cast your votes for the best homeschooling products – hopefully including ours – please click here.

We are nominated for the Elementary Curriculum category, although we have Levels K-12. Please feel free to place your vote before February 20th, if you are so inclined. Be sure to scroll through and vote for the other great secular curriculum nominated as well!

Build Your Library Update Schedule

In an attempt to answer when the next level update will be ready, we have compiled our projected schedule into a post for easy reference. We will periodically update the chart when we make progress or have any changes to our tentative schedule.

February Bookish Holidays

The month of February is designated National Library Lovers Month, followed by February 14th being Library Lovers Day! Children’s Authors and Illustrators Week falls on the first week of the month, and Freelance Writers Appreciation Week is the second.

As far as birthdays go, Charles Dickens (Feb. 7, 1812), Mo Willems Birthday (Feb. 11, 1968), Judy Blume (Feb. 12, 1938), and John Steinbeck Jr. Birthday (Feb. 27, 1902) all celebrate this month.

We also have a couple of Harry Potter character birthdays with Arthur Weasley Birthday (Feb. 6) and Luna Lovegood (Feb, 16).

Finally, mark your calendar for World Read Aloud Day on February 3, 2021!

In the not necessarily book-related holidays, February 12 is Charles Darwin’s birthday, which has been designed Darwin Day. This is a great excuse to work on the Darwin and Evolution unit study if you haven’t already. 😉

Black History Month Book Recommendations 2021

For the past several years, I’ve been sharing Black History Month book recommendations each week of February. There are so many fantastic own voices books to read to our children this month! At the end of the month, I compile all those recommendations into a blog post for easy reference. What are your favorite books to read during Black History Month?

Previous year’s book selections:

2021 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

Are you looking for a fun reading challenge for the whole family? It’s still not too late to start! We had so much fun this past couple of years with the 2019 and 2020 BYL Reading Challenges, we created a new list of 41 reading prompts to help you and your children stretch your reading muscles in 2021. This year’s challenge is all about Hygge! Head over to our blog and download your checklist today!

We also created a YouTube video “Build Your Library 2021 Family Reading Challenge | Prompts and Recommendations” to help you out!

“Read Aloud Book Club” Pack

Our 14th monthly “Read Aloud Book Club” subscription pack is now available! The February 2021 theme is “CREATE!”. This month’s selection is different from our typical middle-grade fare. It’s a book of short stories and art by a variety of popular middle-grade authors and it is sure to inspire your child to get creative. It’s the perfect read-aloud for the whole family!

“Tea with Emily” Facebook Live Streams

We hope you all enjoyed our last “Tea with Emily” Facebook Live Stream. If you missed our “Homeschooling High School” last month in December, you can find a recording by scrolling our Facebook or direct links on our past events page.

Our next Facebook Live will be February 12, 2021, at 1:00 PM EST, where we’ll discuss Burn Out: 2021 Style! We’ve talked about homeschool burnout in the past, but let’s be honest… we’re dealing with a new level of burnout after 2020. We’ll talk about how to work your way through it and find the joy in homeschooling again.

Every other month, I host a 30-60 minute Build Your Library homeschooling chat. You can ask questions about homeschooling, using Build Your Library curriculum, book recommendations, etc. We will announce the date ahead of time, and you will be able to submit questions you would like to cover. Additionally, you can also ask questions during the interactive live stream. Grab a mug of tea (or coffee) and cozy up with our virtual hangout!

Build Your Library Support

Are you looking for help or advice on your homeschooling journey? We have compiled all of our helpful resources into one blog post for you. From the many BYL related Facebook groups to my book A Literary Education, there is a treasure trove of information and helpful parents out there to help guide you along your homeschooling adventure. If you have any questions, just ask!

BYL Social Media Shout Out

We always have our Social Media “chicklets” at the bottom of our newsletters and webpage, but we wanted to make sure you are following us on our other platforms. The Build Your Library Facebook is our go-to social media site, and we post there frequently with cool Amazon products and book recommendations we think you would like, as well as all of our Read Aloud Book Club announcements, blog posts, full-year and unit study product releases and updates, and more.

Our Build Your Library Instagram page regularly posts pictures and insider info about projects I’m currently working on or what I’m doing with my kids.

Although not 100% exclusively Build Your Library related, our Arrrgh Schooling YouTube channel has videos about books and homeschooling, but let’s be honest, it’s mostly books. If you want to see what I’m reading, join my Arrrgh Booked Book Club (we are reading Game Changer by Neal Schusterman in February), or just want ideas for books to read (either for you or your children) you are sure to find something useful! We also have a BYL Twitter feed where I share links and information about BYL and homeschooling. Or you can stay subscribed to our email list and browse our monthly newsletters.

Wrap Up

I hope your school year is going well! If you are looking for inspiration during the long winter months, here are some articles you might find helpful:

We have well over 100 blog posts on various homeschooling and book-related topics if you want to browse for more.

I think that is about all for this month. Again, please follow us on whatever social media you frequent, there will be periodic updates posted there as well, but we will try to keep everyone in the know where ever you are surfing!

Thanks and Happy Reading! Emily

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February 2021 Monthly Newsletter