Language Lizard is excited to announce a new bilingual children’s book that will make a great addition to your library or home collection! Food, Food, Fabulous Food introduces young readers to multicultural foods from all around the world.
Continue reading New Bilingual Children’s Book! Food, Food, Fabulous Food
Language Lizard was thrilled to be a sponsor of Multicultural Children’s Book Day (MCBD), a movement to bring attention to the need for more multicultural children’s books in classrooms and libraries. Check out our previous post about the importance of books that feature diverse characters and multicultural stories.
We enjoyed discussing issues about multicultural books with educators, authors and parents as part of the #ReadYourWorld Twitter party in January. If you missed it, be sure to sign up for the MCBD newsletter so you can join in next year.
As part of Multicultural Children’s Book Day, we shared a few of our favorite bilingual multicultural books with bloggers and book reviewers, and we’re excited to share their feedback here.
Continue reading Multicultural Picture Books & Reviews
Searching around for a really special gift for multicultural families and teachers working in diverse communities? Check out our new, exclusive collection of 25 of the best multicultural books for grades 1-3 that celebrate diversity and teach children about different cultures. (Note: Additional sets targeted to Pre-K through K, and to grades 3-5, are also available on the Language Lizard site.) Continue reading 25 Favorite Children’s Books About Diversity
Language Lizard is thrilled to offer a new, exclusive collection of must-read multicultural books for preschool and kindergarten children! This set of books gives you an instant, award-winning library of diverse books for your classroom or home. No need to search around! We’ve selected 25 of our favorite multicultural stories that expose children to cultural and ethnic diversity and celebrate differences.
The books portray children from various backgrounds, including African American, Hispanic, Middle-Eastern, Asian and Native American. The set includes stories related to the immigrant experience, books that help children embrace their unique heritage, and folktales from around the world.
The entertaining and well-reviewed stories help students appreciate diversity and build community with those around them. Children in diverse classrooms will build self esteem as they read/hear books in which their culture or ethnicity is represented. (Note: All books in this set are in English. Educators looking for bilingual multicultural books, click here or visit Language Lizard’s language-specific pages.)
In a previous article, we offered tips to get you started in terms of choosing the right bilingual baby books, making dedicated reading time and reading with enthusiasm. In this post, we would like to offer some of our favorite bilingual books for babies and toddlers.
In a recent interview published in the Princeton Alumni Weekly, Casey Lew-Williams, co-director of the Princeton Baby Lab and Princeton assistant professor of psychology, discussed research regarding how young children learn and communicate, and how this supports their development. Lew-Williams mentions that quality of speech comes first, and then quantity. In other words, it’s not important to talk all the time; even when playing with a young child, you’re interacting with them and exposing them to language, often in creative and meaningful ways.
In terms of reading to babies and young children, he says: “Reading is another fantastic way to expose a child to language. Ideally you’re not just reading the pages in a book. You’re pausing to engage with the child: How does this relate to his or her life? Children’s books are more diverse in terms of vocabulary and grammar than speech. So there’s an extra value to reading, because it gets parents outside their own natural tendencies or conversational topics and into the language and ideas of an author.”
In this bilingual board book by Annie Kubler, little fingers have fun finding the pre-cut holes on each page, while singing along as the driver and passengers of the bus ride through town!
Summer is a great time to enjoy fresh food, try new recipes, and connect with family by sharing both a good meal and a good book. Language Lizard is making that easier with our “COOK & READ” Giveaway where you can win a cookbook and a bilingual book.
Family Language Learning: Learn Another Language, Raise Bilingual Children
Written by Christine Jernigan, PhD
Paperback and ebook
Review by Sue Kwon
Inspired by her experiences with foreign language learning, in professional settings and in her own family, Christine Jernigan, PhD, set out to write a unique guide for parents who want to raise their kids to speak more than one language. Specifically, Family Language Learning is designed for parents who are still in the process of learning a second “target” language themselves, or who are fluent but living in a country where another language is dominant. Jernigan, who instructs foreign language teachers at North Carolina State University and works as a language coach for parents, writes in a flowing, humorous and engaging style. The many personal anecdotes told by the author, as well as by other parents raising bilingual children, range from amusing to deeply moving. Readers will find themselves relating wholeheartedly to the language learning adventures (and misadventures) these parents have experienced.
This book is meant to be a how-to guide, or “springboard” as Jernigan calls it, for parents in the early stages of teaching their children a new language. It is also intended as a motivational tool, or “cheerleader” for when those parents inevitably run into roadblocks, or are feeling discouraged. Throughout, readers are encouraged to remain flexible, and to make adjustments when a situation demands it: “Keep your language plan in play dough, not stone,” as Jernigan very nicely puts it.
Family Language Learning stands out particularly because of Jernigan’s unique approach to the subject of language learning. While most experts focus on the academic, social and economic benefits of learning a second language (as does Jernigan, from the very first chapter), this author also explores in depth the greater emotional bond that learning a new language can create.
This book is accessible to every stage of language learner, even those at the very start of their journey. Concepts and terminology are explained in a clear and concise manner that assumes you have arrived with no prior language training. Each chapter delves into a different aspect of language learning, from why it’s important for your children to learn a new language to why you should encourage your kids to read foreign language material on their own, and how to motivate them to practice writing in the target language.
While Family Language Learning can easily be read cover-to-cover, thanks to Jernigan’s conversational style of writing, the chapters are broken into sub-sections that also make it easy to flip to the particular topic you’re seeking answers to. So, even when you’re well into your language journey, you can find just the right words of guidance and encouragement you need when you reach a bump in the road.
Family Language Learning
Additional, valuable information on bilingualism and language learning can be found in A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism by Colin Baker, a classic book in the field now in its fourth edition. This book is an extremely thorough guide for teachers of bilingual students, as well as parents who are raising bilingual children, whether they are fluent in the second language or not.
A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism can serve almost as an encyclopedia of language learning because it offers a wealth of information on a very wide range of topics. Each chapter is dedicated to distinct subjects, like “Family Questions,” “Language Development Questions” and “Reading and Writing Problems,” and within each chapter are Frequently Asked Questions that Baker has encountered over decades of working with parents and colleagues in bilingual education, as well as in his personal experience successfully raising three bilingual children.
A Parents’ and Teachers’ Guide to Bilingualism (4th ed)
New Words, New Friends
Written by Karen Nemeth
Illustrated by Diego Jiménez Manzano
Paperback and ebook
Available in English and Spanish
Ages 4-8
Review by Sue Kwon
Theo and Wyatt, two friends at school, are at the center of New Words, New Friends
Little ones can sometimes get upset when reading about or seeing an emotionally charged situation like this. Yet Nemeth narrates this story with a sweet, uplifting rhyming style that allows kids to understand the important aspects of the plot without prodding any negative emotions. The lines are kept brief and concise – something adults will appreciate when kids ask to hear the book again and again. (And with this one, they will.)
The story’s characters, brought to life by Spanish illustrator Diego Jiménez Manzano, are drawn in a bold, playful, childlike style. The characters have round faces and big, bright eyes that are sure to please young readers. Jiménez Manzano also takes the time to fill each page’s background with small, colorful details, so there will be something new for kids to find on multiple readings.
In the story, Theo and Wyatt are lucky to have a knowledgeable, nurturing teacher who takes the time to explain why the New Kid behaves the way she does: She speaks another language, and didn’t understand what they were saying to her. The teacher tells them, “‘When a friend speaks a language that’s different than you, these are three things you can easily do.'” Thanks to her thoughtful guidance, a brand new friendship is able to grow between Theo, Wyatt and the New Kid, who we find out is named Violet. This story is about the importance of kindness and empathy when interacting with people from different backgrounds.
While New Words, New Friends is a book that kids will love reading, Nemeth also intends it to be “a storybook resource for teachers, librarians and parents.” The end of the book features Discussion Questions to help adults get their kids thinking and talking about the important lessons in the story. This book is meant to be a guide for adults who are helping little ones navigate the tricky yet essential journey of learning social and communication skills. “New Words, New Friends” delves into these important tasks, and presents it in a fun way, for both adults and children.
New Words, New Friends is available in English and Spanish, in paperback and ebook on Amazon.com
Be sure to check out languagecastle.com, Karen Nemeth’s website that offers a wealth of resources for anyone who teaches young children who speak different languages.
With spring finally here, it’s hard not to SMILE! And did you know that NATIONAL SMILE POWER DAY is just around the corner on June 15th, 2014? (Yes, this is also Father’s Day… another reason to smile!)
With this in mind, we’ve decided to GIVE AWAY our favorite bilingual book about SMILING: Augustus and His Smile. This award-winning book – available in over 20 languages* – teaches children that happiness can be found all around and within us (see review at the bottom of this page for more details about the book).
How can you get a free bilingual copy of this book?
There are two ways you can receive a free copy of “Augustus and His Smile”: either make a purchase of $150 or more via our website; or enter our lottery to win the book (3 lucky winners will be chosen)! Here’s what you need to do (by June 15, 2014):
Option 1) Place an order of $150 or more on our Language Lizard website between today and June 15, 2014, and we will add a FREE copy of the book to your order! To be eligible, you must write the word SMILE in the order notes (also write the language edition* that you would like). Note: this giveaway cannot be applied to orders already placed. Product total must be $150 or more (excludes shipping/handling).
Option 2) Enter our GIVEAWAY. THREE Winners will be chosen at random to win a copy of the book (your choice of language edition). Fill out our contact form in full by June 15, 2014. In the Questions/Comments section, write “SMILE GIVEAWAY” and include the language edition* that you would like. Note: we never share your contact information, we use it solely to notify you and send you the prize if your name is chosen.
–> Want an extra giveaway point? Simply write a comment on one of our other blog posts or post about the giveaway on Facebook or Twitter. Let us know that you have posted when submitting your contact form and you will be entered twice!
And be sure to subscribe to our Culture Connection Newsletter to be notified of future giveaways and special promotions!
*This bilingual book is available in English and you can select one of the following language editions: Albanian, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese Simplified, Czech, Farsi, French, Haitian Creole, Hindi, Irish, Panjabi, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovakian, Somali, Spanish, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Welsh.
Details: Winner will be selected using random.org‘s sequence generator. Winner must include ship-to address in order to be included in drawing. Only new orders placed and contact forms received between May 20 and June 15, 2014 will be eligible for the book giveaway. The offer is only for shipments to the US and Canada. For more details, please see our giveaway page at http://www.LanguageLizard.com/Bilingual-Book-Promotion.htm
BOOK REVIEW
“Augustus the tiger was sad. He had lost his smile.” So begins an epic quest as Augustus searches for his lost smile. His search takes him under bushes, up to the treetops, and to the crests of the highest mountains. He finds a beetle, chirping birds, and swirling snow clouds, but no smile.
As his journey progresses, however, Augustus’ expression gradually begins to change. His pleasure becomes evident as he swims in the oceans and “splishes and splashes with shoals of tiny, shiny fish.” His long tail also begins arching in a smile to match the one on his face. Suddenly he is prancing and parading in a desert, dancing and racing in raindrops, and splashing through puddles. Then he finds it – in the reflection of a “huge silver-blue puddle” – his smile!
Augustus comes to realize that he carries his smile with him, “whenever he (is) happy”. His journey teaches him that he only has to do the things that please him, like swim or dance or look around him at the world “for happiness (is) everywhere around him.”
For Augustus and his Smile, award-winning author and illustrator Catherine Rayner spent hours observing and sketching tigers at the Edinburgh Zoo. Her talent and attention to detail are evident as we watch this boldly-drawn tiger move through his various poses. Children will appreciate both this story’s message as well as the illustrations of Augustus.
The last page of the book lists some “amazing tiger facts” and notes their endangered status.
(Review by Maureen Barlow Pugh)
