SB Finds : Books + Libros

As those of you with preschoolers and early elementary schoolers may have discovered, it’s difficult to find bilingual books to transition them from the baby board book phase to the early readers phase. Books need to be complex enough for them to learn new vocabulary, but short enough for a bedtime story. My Big Sister/Mi hermana mayor by Samuel Caraballo is the bilingual story of a little boy named Pablito, who spends the days with his big sister, Anita, whileRead More ...

  With few exceptions, I’ve never been a huge poetry fan — mostly because I wasn’t really exposed to poems growing up, other than the obligatory ones for school. But I love the beauty, repetition and rhythm in children’s poetry and how great they can be to explain certain concepts in simple terms. To celebrate Children’s Poetry Day on March 21, I wanted to share some of our favorite bilingual children’s poetry books: Poems to Dream Together/Poemas para Soñar Juntos by FranciscoRead More ...

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 ...

Whether you call it Valentine’s Day, Día de los Enamorados or Día del Amor y la Amistad, February 14th is almost here. I’ve never been a huge fan of this day, but ever since I became a mom I take it as an opportunity to talk to my children about love, family and friendship. And what better way to do that than through books! Some of the ones on this list are strictly about Valentine’s Day, while others are just aboutRead More ...

If you’re looking for a great bilingual book that will entertain your niños from beginning to end look no further than The Pumpkin Moon Empanadas. Like the name  suggests, The Pumpkin Moon Empanadas by Clementina Llanes is a magical story about a little girl name Paloma and her curiosity about the orange tinted moon she saw on an autumn night walk with her papá. Such was her curiosity that her papá promised to one day bring her the moon. This magical story ofRead More ...

Before I share about the creative people and organizations that put these wonderful little bilingual books together I must say that my two-and-a-half bilingual baby girl approves! They are perfect for my vibrant explorer who is busy putting all the words she knows in Spanish (with some English) together because the illustrations are not only unique, but strategically placed to provoke conversation. For instance, in the Colores Everywhere! book the colors white and black are on side-by-side pages. On theRead More ...

If you’re searching for some great new titles to add to your kids’ bookshelves, look no further than multilingual publisher Barefoot Books. El fandango de Lola by Anna Witte is a rich, beautiful tale about a girl named Lola, who finds her mother’s tacones and becomes fascinated with the idea of learning to dance flamenco. Her Papi teaches her to dance in time to surprise everyone at her Mami’s birthday party. Niños and niñas alike will love this story becauseRead More ...

Now that my daughter is in a Spanish-language dual immersion program, I realize more than ever how important it is to have quality Spanish-language and bilingual materials and books in the school. We’re lucky that the parents and the Foundation in our school is very active and involved and our multi-lingual library is growing leaps and bounds. But, still, you can never have enough enriching in-language material for children and teachers. Vme Spanish-language television network and Santillana USA Publishing CompanyRead More ...