November, 2008

Autumn Greetings!

Grab a hot mug of cider (or other beverage of your choice) and sit with me for a few minutes while I tell you what’s going on at The Thinking Cap. Our Game Nights are in full swing. Please check the calendar on our website for where we’ll be in November. If we are at a school near you, make sure you come! Your family will have great fun and you’ll be strengthening not only your family bonds, but demonstrating to your children that learning is a lifelong quest.

Teachers – you may have heard of Linda Tilton and her book “Teacher’s Toolbox for Differentiated Instruction.” I understand she has been in Warren County lately for a workshop. FYI: we carry her book! Look for it on our front counter or in our teacher resource book section. We have also stocked 2 new math books – “Five Times Five Is Not Ten” and “Two Plus Two Is Not Five” by Susan Greenwald. You might recognize her name as she has written for Teacher Created Resources before. Each book has “magical” math tricks to help unlock the mystery of learning math facts. And we all know that if they have math facts on the tips of their fingers, the rest is easy!

A rep who has a list of companies the length of his arm was in recently. One of the companies we talked about was C-Line which offers “Shop Ticket Holders.” You are probably scratching your head wondering why I’m telling you about shop ticket holders, but here’s the unique application … Slip a worksheet into one of these clear vinyl pockets and it immediately makes the sheet a wipe-off surface! There’s a metal eyelet at the top of the holder and room for you to apply a label with a name or skill on it. You could put several of these on a hook in a center area or some other handy location for quick practice! Or use it for important info like emergency contacts/numbers, schedules, reminders … the possibilities are endless! Sold individually in 5 different colors, the neon edged holders will run $1.89 each.

Well, Kiddies ... it’s all downhill from here! Before you know it, the holidays will be here! Hopefully The Thinking Cap is tops on your list as your first stop for holiday gifts for your family and friends! Every year we hear customers say they wish they had come to us first. So if you were one of those people last year, make sure you don’t make that mistake again THIS year! Most of us have vivid memories of certain beloved Christmas presents. Let us help you make those memories this year. We are fully stocked and ready to help you make it a wonderful Holiday Season for your entire family! When you select a gift for a child, keep in mind some important guidelines.

1. Safety - Is the toy safe? Does it present a choking hazard for very young children?

2. Fun! – Will it really entertain the child? How much “play value” does it have?

3. Age Grading – Is the toy age appropriate? Even tho your child/grandchild is an absolute GENIUS, there are still other things to consider when choosing toys/games/puzzles. The ages on the packaging are really on target developmentally & socially. Really.

4. Durability – Will the toy last thru the Holiday season? How about years later?

5. Creativity – Will it expand your child’s creativity and/or imagination?  Is there more than one use/way to play with the toy?

I take all of these things into consideration when I select toys to stock and our staff will help remind you of these points when helping you make your selection. We want you to be happy with your selection and we want your children to be happy and engaged.

A calendar correction … please remark your calendars for our Holiday Open House. The date for the Plaza’s Open House has been changed to November 22 from 10am to 5pm. Santa will be strolling by, WBUT will be broadcasting from the Plaza, there will be a raffle for a basket of gift certificates from participating stores, refreshments at our shop, and the inventors of Thryme and Thryme Jr will be with us to demonstrate their award winning games and autograph your game board.

And speaking of games, we have another new one for you! It’s called Amuse Amaze and touts itself as a “spellbinding word race game! For 2-6 players ages 8 – adult, the object is to spell your way thru a maze. Never the same game twice with more than 6 BILLION set-up combinations! The inventor of this game has told me that he’s developed a curriculum guide for teachers to use it in their classrooms. At this writing, I have not received it, but it should be here by the time you read this. The curriculum guide will be free to teachers with the purchase of this game. So, like a lot of our other games, we’ll have a demo unit at the counter if you’d like to play a bit, just ask! We’ll be more than happy to pull it out and demo it for you!

November is full of specials and sales for you!

Nov 10—15     20% off all in-stock Thomas the Tank & Friends

Nov 17—22        20% off all in-stock Puzzles & Games

Nov 22         Point Plaza’s Holiday Open House – we’ll have refreshments, the inventors of Thryme & Thryme Jr

Nov 24-29     20% off all in-stock Playmobil

Nov 26     Special hours 10am-5pm

Nov 27     Closed Happy Thanksgiving! Enjoy your family & count your blessings!

Nov 28-29 & Dec 1     Annual Toy Sale 15% off all in-stock toys, games & puzzles

Remember, gift wrap is always complimentary!

And please don’t ask us to hold product for any of the sales. First of all, we just don’t have the space to do that for everyone, and second, it’s not fair to ALL of our customers.

By now you should have a copy of our Holiday Toy Flyer. Those of you who have not been in The Thinking Cap in a while should know that what’s in the flyer is only a FRACTION of the gift choices we have in-stock. There are a lot of items that just didn’t make the flyer! And if you don’t have a copy, we have a limited number at our front counter. Stop by, email or call us for one before they’re all gone!

Well, I could go on and on and on, but I’d much rather that you come in and visit us instead. Come during a sale, come for Silly Saturday, come to see what’s new, come just for the heck of it! Your smiling face just makes our day! Hope to see you soon!

Oh! One more thing … since this is November, the month of Thanksgiving, I do want you all to know how very thankful I am for your support, business, friendship. So from the whole Reed Family and the entire staff of The Thinking Cap, we hope you have a Thanksgiving Day full of wonderful memories. And remember, there’s always, always, always something to be thankful for … each and every day. Much love and blessings to you all …

Carol