Chelsea Torres is SpanglishBaby’s Book Editor and a regular contributor. She is not a native Spanish speaker, but is raising her Latino son to be bilingual. A graduate of Rollins College, Chelsea lives in Orlando with her blended family.
On the Losing End of the Dual Language Immersion Lottery
There are two public dual language immersion elementary schools in my county, and there’s one school that offers everyday foreign language lessons, though it’s not an immersive setting. We applied for two of the three total options for next school year, when my son starts kindergarten, and just received word that he was not selected for either. We could choose to stay on the waiting list and wait for several months to have an official answer about that, but thatRead More ...
Mr. Mouse Multilingual Spelling App
Another multi-level, multilingual app, Mr. Mouse from Chocolapps is a great spelling and vocabulary resource. In six languages and three levels, your kids can learn themed vocabulary, including First Words and Fruits & Vegetables. The objective is to spell as many words as possible correctly so as not to wake Mr. Mouse, the sleepwalking mouse whose dreams provide clues for players. Mr. Mouse is just one of many educational apps from Chocolapps, which offers a helpful parents’ community. Find Mr.Read More ...
Multilingual App: La Sirenita Pop-Up Book
Little princes and princesses alike will have fun with the new StoryToys app, The Little Mermaid/La Sirenita. A pop-up book in electronic form, it’s another cute adaptation of a classic story. The best part, of course, is that it can be played in Spanish (and 4 other languages, too). Even kids who don’t know the story of La Sirenita will enjoy the games that pop up every few pages and include tasks like decorating Ariel’s hair with conch shells andRead More ...
Amy’s Travels {Book Review & Giveaway}
Given that my son just finished learning about the seven continents at school, I was happy to share the book Amy’s Travels with him. This children’s book by Kathryn Starke is a cool blend of geography and culture that promotes all the things we love to encourage as multilingual families. The book takes us around the world with a little girl named Amy, whose family has lived on five of the seven continents. She is from Perú and although theRead More ...
Learn Spanish: Challenging Spanish Game For All Ages
I don’t often get sucked into iPad games, but I must admit that I got a bit competitive with myself on this one. Learn Spanish from MindSnacks is an excellent way to challenge your language skills, no matter your level. Learn numbers, body parts, foods, vacation vocab, and more in a quick-paced game. Create an account, tell the app your skill level, track your progress, and level up with “Quests.” This is quite different from a kids’ app that runsRead More ...
Money as a Barrier to a Bilingual Life
Today, I’m writing about something that most of us don’t talk about: MONEY. Personal finances. Status. Just typing the words makes me cringe because they are such taboo topics in this first world, competitive country. None of us likes to admit that we might be down on our luck, or that we can’t afford to keep up with the Joneses (or los López, as the case may be). This constant pressure is something we can get over when we’reRead More ...
