Book Fairs/Curriculum Sales

Each year, Compass hosts 2-3 large book fairs and resource sales that are open to the homeschool community!

Usborne Book Fair

Annually during the last week of September, Compass hosts a giant Usborne Book Fair from 9:30 am – 4:00 pm in the Compass Commons. Special offers and discounts are available to homeschool families. Hundreds of books are on display and can be browsed in person. Books can be purchased on the spot from the book fair inventory, and other resources can be ordered and delivered to Compass with no shipping fees.

Usborne Books specializes in educational and entertaining books with over 2,000 titles available. Usborne books are widely regarded for their quality bindings, thorough content, lavish illustrations, and detailed photographs- they even carry a guarantee! Usborne titles are frequently cited by other sources and referenced in homeschool resource guides. Usborne educational consultants with more than 30 years experience are on hand to make recommendations for different reading levels and personal interests!

• Usborne Book Fair Details

  Usborne Strategies
  – emerging readers
  – developing higher level reading skills
  – adapting for different learning styles
  – intriguing a gifted learner
  – supplementing core curriculum
  – supporting your child’s passion for science or humanities
  – choosing a good book for your youngster to get lost in
  – purchasing as gifts

  Usborne Genres
  – Illustrated encyclopedias
  – Discovery books
  – Art books
  – Science experiments
  – Big Book of…
  – Foreign language
  – Fairy tales/myths
  – Activity/Project books
  – Beginning readers
  – Illustrated classics
  – Things to spot, seek and find
  – Math manipulatives
  – Historical fiction
  – Biographies
  – Human body
  – Board books
  – Hot topics such as pirates, dinosaurs, fairies, wizards, horses/ponies
  

Used Curriculum Sale

Compass hosts a large, multi-family Used Curriculum and Resource Sale in late April each year from 10:00 am- 3:00 pm. Weather permitting, the sale is held outdoors, and families socialize and network while browsing an impressive array of gently used homeschool resources. Homeschool families from the community at large are invited to shop from our 40-50 sellers. The Used Curriculum Sale is timed for people to re-home items they have finished for the year and to pick up items for the next year. A table of free items is also offered. Guidelines for seller follow:

• Used Curriculum Materials

  Materials That Can be Sold
  – Pre-owned curricula, workbooks, text books
  – Fiction and non-fiction books
  – Reference books
  – Manipulatives
  – Educational games
  – Science or craft kits/sets
  – Software

  Materials That Cannot be Sold
  – Children’s clothing
  – Toys
  – Catalog/independent rep items. (Save these for the Spring Marketplace)

  Free Items
  There will be a ‘Free’ table for items that families want to give away to other homeschool families. Any unclaimed free items will be donated to the Scholarium Foundation, a non-profit that funds homeschool scholarships and awards.
  

• Seller Instructions

  Compass Affiliation
  Sellers must be current (4th quarter) Compass families. Due to space constraints, non-Compass families and former Compass families cannot sell items at the Used Curriculum Sale. The sale is open to all area homeschoolers, and Compass sellers and families are encouraged to disseminate information about shopping at the sale to other homeschool families.

  Sign-Up to Sell
  Sellers may sign up to participate through an online link. This link will be emailed to current, registered families in early April. There is no fee charged to participate, and Compass does not ask for any portion of your sales.

  Set-Up
  Sellers can begin to set up at 9:00 am the morning of the sale.

  Tables/Chairs
  Tables can be provided for first 12 people who sign up early and need a table. Compass-furnished tables will be 8-foot rectangles with two sellers per table (4 ft each). All others will be asked to provide their own tables, limited to a standard card table size, or no longer than 6 feet. Compass will not be able to furnish any chairs for outdoors. If you wish to sit during the sale, you should bring your own folding chair.
  If you have more items than fit on half of an 8-foot table, you may want to bring study boxes or bins (such as milk crates or copy paper boxes) to stack under the table.

  Pricing/Labeling
  Sellers are responsible for labeling and pricing their own items. Consider using adhesive “dot” stickers, strips of painter’s tape, bookmarks, or post-it notes to price items. In lieu of pricing every item, sellers could use a system with a $1 box, $5 box, etc. Sellers are encouraged to use thick rubber bands to secure sets together, such as student book plus instructor manual. Sellers are encouraged to bag small items such as game pieces, flash cards, etc. to keep them from becoming separated. Sellers are also encouraged to use non-residue tape for labeling or securing items. Painter’s tape (usually blue or green) will not damage paper book covers or boxes. Masking tape (beige) will usually work OK, but Scotch tape and packing tape (clear) will damage paper and cardboard.

  Selling
  Sellers must staff their own tables. Sellers may want to set-up with a friend so they can share duties working at the table and handling sales if someone needs to step away. Sellers are expected to handle all of their own transactions including having plenty of cash to make change. Compass will not be able to make change.