Editor’s note: We continue with our 31 Days of Reading in Spanish. Check out the book review below and don’t forget to enter our weekly GIVEAWAY of $100 worth of books in Spanish!

BOOK DESCRIPTION/REVIEW

I love the books by Alma Flor Ada, but Amigos is by far my favorite! The story teaches children about shapes, colors, and the concept of size, but there is also a deeper message.

The story details the lives of triangles, squares, rectangles and circles that all live in the same town, but keep separate from each other because of their differences. One day two circles venture out of their neighborhood and come to play with a rectangle. Soon all of the shapes realize that their differences lead to new and more interesting experiences. Through the story, children learn to appreciate diversity and acquire an increased multicultural understanding.

I also purchased a recording of the author reading the story. My kids love to listen to the recorded book while in the car! Alma Flor Ada also rewrote the story in verse that was set to music by the talented folk musician Suni Paz.  Another bonus is the mini-lesson on the Del Sol Books website that uses the creative dialogue process for exploring the story and its message on diversity.

The books of Alma Flor Ada are a treasure to own and read with your children! Amigos is special because it explores individual differences and diversity in society in a way that children can understand.

   BOOK DETAILS

   Title: Amigos

   Author:  Alma Flor Ada

   Illustrator: Barry Koch

   Ages:  2-10 years

Publisher/Year:  Santillana/1999

   ISBN:  978-1581052008

   Price:  $7.95 on Del Sol Books

Website: www.delsolbooks.com

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 Francisco X. Alarcón — This was the first book of poetry I read to my daughter. I had the pleasure of interviewing award-winning Chicano poet Alarcón who told me that he writes poetry for children because “I believe poetry is a direct way to empower children, so that they can see themselves not just as ‘readers’ of poetry but as ‘creators’ of poetry”. Alcarcón has written several books of poetry for children; this particular one is perfect to explore dreams both literally and figuratively.

Yum! ¡Mmmm! ¡Qué rico! by Pat Mora — This series of haikus is perfect to teach little kids the colors and names of all kinds of yummy foods native to the Americas. It’s one of Santiago’s favorites! Although not fully bilingual, Spanish words are embedded in the English version and there’s a Spanish version of the book too.

Guacamole: un poema para cocinar/A cooking poem by Jorge Argueta — This is the third in a series of cooking poems written by Argueta and jus like it’s title says, it’s a poem to learn how to make delicious guacamole, one of my daughter’s favorite Mexican dishes.

Sol a Sol by Lori Marie Carlson — A collection of bilingual poems written and selected by Carlson. We found this in our local library and my kids were delighted by the poems, which basically tell the story of a family from when the sun rises to when the sun sets.

¡Muu, Moo! Rimas de animales/Animal Nursery Rhymes by Alma Flor Ada and F. Isabel Campoy — Another one of Santiago’s favorite, these traditional nursery rhymes from Latin America, Spain and the United States will probably bring back some memories of your own childhood. The collection also includes original poems by Ada an Campoy. A great baby shower gift!