Top 10 Language-Based Board Games for Elementary Kids by “The Unlikely Homeschool”

Posted on May 17, 2013 by McNeillDesigns

YBS012_NewBox_lg_cmykED (3)Jamie of “The Unlikely Homeschool” is formerly an elementary school teacher, as well as an employee of one of the nation’s leading homeschooling curriculum, ABeka Book. Now a dedicated homeschooling mom, Jamie offers suggestions, tips, and an insiders view to the world of homeschooling.

Recently, Jamie offered her Top 10 Language-Based Board Games for Elementary Kids list including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game. Here’s brief excerpt:

“If given the choice between learning vocabulary words via a worksheet or learning those same words and countless others while playing a board game, my kids…and I’d venture to say almost ALL kids…would choose option B.

For this reason, I’ve tried to stock our game closet full of family-friendly, brain-building games that can serve as the much-needed “jazz hands” to an otherwise run-of-the-mill homeschool lesson.”

In addition to the You’ve been Sentenced! word game, here are the rest of Jamie’s top picks:

  • Blurt - Educational Insights
  • Buzzword Junior - Patchwork Products
  • Scattergories Junior - Milton Bradley
  • In A Pickle - Gamewright
  • Boggle or Boggle Junior – Parker Brothers
  • Bananagrams - Bananagrams
  • Apples to Apples Junior - Mattel
  • Balderdash Junior - Western Publishing
  • Outburst Junior - Mattel

To read this post in its entirety, visit The Unlikely Homeschool.

While you’re here, don’t forget to enter for a chance to win a copy of the NEW You’ve been Sentenced! country music edition. Giveaway ends 6-7. ENTER HERE

Want to learn more about McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds award-winning games like You’ve been Sentenced! and more? Visit McNeill Designs for game rules, printable score sheets, or even order online!

Need more fun and games? Find You’ve been Sentenced! on TWITTER and Like us on FACEBOOK  for special offers, coupons, and insider gaming news!

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Father’s Day GIVEAWAY! Win the You’ve been Sentenced! Country Music Edition for the dad in your life!

Posted on May 15, 2013 by McNeillDesigns

YBSCM_boxtop4_smlWhat do you get when you take the multi-award winning You’ve been Sentenced! word game and add words like tractor, cowboy hat and achy-break-y heart? The You’ve been Sentenced! Country Music Edition, of course!

Game play for the You’ve been Sentenced! Country Music Edition mirrors the perennially popular original game, but now you can add all-new fun (and funny!) words like calf-roping, deep-fried Oreos, and Dairy Princess to your wacky sentences.

Remember, you don’t need to come from Nashville to love this game – the You’ve been Sentenced! Country Music is for country music enthusiasts everywhere.

Now, WIN a copy for your dad (or keep it for yourself) using the RAFFLECOPTER form below. Giveaway ends June 7, so enter today!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to learn more about McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds award-winning games like You’ve been Sentenced! and more? Visit McNeill Designs for game rules, printable score sheets, or even order online!

Need more fun and games? Find You’ve been Sentenced! on TWITTER and Like us on FACEBOOK  for special offers, coupons, and insider gaming news!

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Valley Bookseller in Stillwater, Minnesota is THE gathering place for all things word-related!

Posted on May 7, 2013 by McNeillDesigns

 

Storytime at Valley Bookseller in Stillwater, MInnesota.

Storytime at Valley Bookseller in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Valley Bookseller sells books – naturally — but, alongside an expansive selection of adult fiction, non-fiction and children’s books, you’ll also find magazines and newspapers, CDs by local musicians, greeting cards, posters, and even word game favorites like You’ve been Sentenced! 

More than simply a place to pick up the latest bestseller, this store features a lounge with free Wi-Fi –encouraging customers to linger with their books over coffee. Plus, local authors frequently visit for book discussions and book signings.

Customers can even join the shop’s book club, where local readers meet for cocktail hour and literary conversation!

Will Alexander reading from "Goblin Secrets" at Valley Bookseller in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Will Alexander reading from “Goblin Secrets” at Valley Bookseller in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Best of all, Valley Bookseller is now participating in Twin Cities Literary Punch Card, a rewards program for attending author events! CLICK HERE to learn more about earning rewards for attending events like these:

  • David MacArthur, author of “The Day the Watertower Froze”
  • Mulberry Street Poets
  • Thurs Evening Book Club, “The Imperfectionists,” by Tom Rachman
  • Writers On Writing with Jim Link
  • Rachael Hanel, author of “We’ll Be The Last Ones To Let You Down: Memoir of a Gravedigger’s Daughter”
  • VBS Classics Book Club, “Age of Innocence,” by Edith Wharton
  • TCCH with Michael Stanley

And, if a particular hard-to-find book beckons, but doesn’t appear in-stock at the store, Valley Bookseller will even order it at no additional cost, with the order usually arriving within a week. Now that’s my kind of bookstore!

Visit Valley Bookseller at:

217 North Main St.

Stillwater, MN 55082

Phone 651.430.3385

Hours:

9-8 Monday thru Saturday

9-5 on Sunday

Want to learn more about McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds award-winning games like You’ve been Sentenced! and more? Visit McNeill Designs for game rules, printable score sheets, or even order online!

Need more fun and games? Find You’ve been Sentenced! on TWITTER and Like us on FACEBOOK  for special offers, coupons, and insider gaming news!

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McNeill Designs is proud to sponsor the 2013 Winterthur Point-to-Point Stick Horse Races!

Posted on May 1, 2013 by McNeillDesigns

Stick Horse Races 1For over 30 years the running of the Winterthur Point-to-Point Steeplchase has been a must-attend social event in Greenville, Delaware.

The races are held annually on the spectacular grounds of Winterthur Museum and Gardens and the event helps raise money for the museum, which houses the largest collection of American furnishings in the country!

For the second year, McNeill Designs will sponsor one of the day’s most anticipated races – the Stick Horse Races! Part of Winterthur’s ongoing commitment to keeping the event family-friendly, the Stick Horse Races are an exciting opportunity for kids of all ages to run the course… with a valiant steed!

YBSCM_boxtop4_smlChildren can bring their own Stick Horse or purchase a plush, whinnying stick horse for $25 on-site and enter the races. Winners in each category receive medals and all entrants will receive a You’ve been Sentenced! game, country music edition, (retail $29.99), courtesy of McNeill Designs.

Kids’ can also participate in the Winterthur Hunt — kids visit various stations all over the museum grounds to enjoy fun activities like pony grooming, leading a pony through an obstacle course, and navigating a hay maze. Plus, all kids receive great prizes!

Meet us there! General admissions information and wristbands

General admission wristbands include access to all of the race day activities, free remote parking on Winterthur grounds, and the option to picnic on the Infield hill overlooking the race track and finish line. Please note that general admission wristband holders do not have access to the tailgating areas.

  • Available online
  • By phone at 800.448.3883 or 302.888.4994

Want to learn more about McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds award-winning games like You’ve been Sentenced! and more? Visit McNeill Designs for game rules, printable score sheets, or even order online!

Need more fun and games? Find You’ve been Sentenced! on TWITTER and Like us on FACEBOOK  for special offers, coupons, and insider gaming news!

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This summer, Sister Wolf Books in Dorset, Minnesota carries your favorite books… and a whole lot more!

Posted on April 30, 2013 by McNeillDesigns

Sister Wold Books #2 outsideMay 2 is just around the corner. And, if you’re in northern Minnesota, you know that means that popular, independent bookstore Sister Wolf Books is reopening for the season!

Located in Dorset, Minnesota, just six short miles east of Park Rapids, Sister Wolf Books is a must-visit destination in this unique community.

The store was originally founded in 1994 by Mary Kay Watson. Her goal was to create a community center for book lovers and Sister Wolf quickly became known for its excellent selection of books, discussion groups, as well as highly anticipated special activities.

Sister Wolf Books #1In the fall of 2004, Bob Wills and Sally Wizik Wills purchased Sister Wolf Books. Not only have Bob and Sally continued the tradition which Mary Kay began, they’ve also expanded! Sister Wolf Books now offers numerous new lines of books, as well as other exciting products. One example is the award-winning You’ve been Sentenced! game – it’s the game for folks who love words!

One of my favorite features is store’s famed coffee bar — aptly named the Wolf Den. Enjoy brewed coffee and tea, hot and cold espresso drinks, smoothies, chai, Italian and French sodas, and cookies. Yum!

Plus, the Wolf Den provides free Wi-Fi and a complimentary newspaper – believe me, you’ll never want to leave.

Sister Wolf Books, coffee barTo learn more about Sister Wolf Books, get directions, and learn about upcoming special events, visit Sister Wolf Books.  Can’t wait that until May 2? Try Sister Wolf Books’ store Beagle Books which is open year-round.

Sister Wolf Books 1-218-732-7565

Beagle Books   218-237-BOOK (2665)

Want to learn more about McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds award-winning games like You’ve been Sentenced! and more? Visit McNeill Designs for game rules, printable score sheets, or even order online!

Need more fun and games? Find You’ve been Sentenced! on TWITTER and Like us on FACEBOOK  for special offers, coupons, and insider gaming news!

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