The LBBC's 2012 Día de los Niños Book List

The Latin Baby Book Club's 2012 Día de los niños book list is now available for download - FREE! In keeping with the theme of diversity, the LBBC's list features titles that show the diversity of Latino families and culture.

Happy reading!!

Día de los Niños Resources

Día de los niños, Día de los libros is fast approaching, so over the next few days I'll be sharing various resources.

To begin with you may want to check out my article from last year when I shared some ideas for celebrating Día with your family.

Also, be sure to check out the official Día website hosted by the American Library Association (ALA). There you can check and see if there are any Día events being held near you by using their interactive map. Librarians can also download their free Resource Guide that helps them plan an event at their own library.

In addition, parents can download their latest Día book list, as well as coloring pages and activity sheets.

Enjoy!

Poetry, Día, and Earth Day on Pinterest

This weekend, have a little fun and explore some of my pinterest boards. You might find some good ideas or resources on my Poetry, Día, and Earth Day boards.

I can certainly say that Pinterest has been a real blessing for me. I use it to categorize and store the fabulous resources that I stumble upon during the course of any given day. I can then go back later and find them so easily!

Are you on Pinterest? Do you use it for education? Home inspiration? Hobbies?

Share your boards in the comments below...

Inspirational Video: 9-Year-Old Kid Creates His Own Arcade

Caine's Arcade from Nirvan Mullick on Vimeo.

I watched this video yesterday and was so moved. This kid is so inspirational. His name is Caine Monroy. He's a nine year old with a monster imagination, loads of determination, and an optimistic attitude that I admire. He is an engineer and an entrepreneur in the making.

You will have to watch the video yourself to learn his story, which Nirvan Mullick presents much more beautifully than I ever could. But while you watch, I want you to think about Caine's dad, George, and what it takes to let your kid explore, experiment, and dream.

I also want to applaud Nirvan Mullick for having the heart to recognize all the hard work Caine put into his arcade. For caring enough to share his story...and make him feel valued.

Mullick's video went live two days ago. Since then it has received over 1 million views and has exceeded their goal to rasie $25,000 to help him go to college. In fact, they have raised over $73,000 for Caine's scholarship fund through his impromptu website, http://cainesarcade.com/

But I think Caine has given us all far more than we could ever give him.

I shared this with my children as encouragement to follow their dreams. Sometimes things don't work out like you plan. Sometimes no one appreciates your hard work. Sometimes you have to wait. But with persistence and hard work and a happy heart, someone will eventually notice.

Thanks, Caine.

Visit Caine's website at CainesArcade.com
Facebook page: facebook.com/cainesarcade
Twitter: twitter.com/cainesarcade

Free Education Guides for Disney's "Chimpanzee"

In case you didn't know, I'm a former zookeeper.

And I spent part of my time in the zoo field working great apes. It was a remarkable experience. They captured my heart in a way that no other animals ever have. It is impossible to gaze into their eyes and watch their daily lives and not feel the connection. They demand you give everything you've got to make their lives as good as can be in captivity.

So naturally, I'm pretty excited about the upcoming Disney film, Chimpanzee. It is the fourth film released by Disneynature, the first new Disney-branded film label from The Walt Disney Studios in more than 60 years. My family and I have seen the first three films, all of which have been released in the last few years on Earth Day. You may remember me gushing about African Cats, which came out last year. (The other two films, Earth and Oceans, were equally phenomenal.)

So I am beyond delighted to be able to offer you, once again, some high-quality education downloads to supplement the movie.

Teachers and parents who homeschool, this Educator's Guide is for you. Written for students in 2nd through 6th grade, it is 135 pages of lesson plans and activities that correlate to National Science, Social Studies, Music, and Arts Standards, as well as Common Core English/Language Arts and Math Standards.

I plan to use this Educator's Guide like I did last year: As a summer unit study. I so appreciate how the guide is arranged with support lessons that are geared for specific grades. The guide covers things like chimp biology, habitat, behaviors, food chains & webs, adaptations & tool use, communication, social hierarchy, and much more.

DOWNLOAD EDUCATOR'S GUIDE HERE

I hope that each of you gets an opportunity to celebrate Earth Day by seeing what promises to be a fabulous movie. And if you see it during the opening week, Disney will donate a portion to the Jane Goodall Institute. 

NOTE: I have not seen this movie. Knowing chimps as I do, I might recommend that you preview the movie first and not take very young children to see it. Chimps can be a little...intense. Loud. And you don't want to scare your kids!

Don't forget that you can still download the activity guides from last year's film African Cats.

Disclosure: Disney has given me permission to share these educational materials and movie trailer with you. I have not been compensated for sharing this information. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Todo es canción {GIVEAWAY}

Canción

Canta

el agua en la roca,

el pájaro en la rama

y el poema en la página.

                       ~ Alma Flor Ada

What better way to celebrate National Poetry Month and Día de los niños/Día de los libros than by giving away Spanish poetry for children? Todo es canción is an anthology of original poems by author Alma Flor Ada. Written completely in Spanish for children, Ada does a remarkable job of creating poems that reflect the imagination of a child. Parents and teachers will love these beautiful poems, which students will enjoy reading and maybe even memorizing.

The poems are divided into 12 categories: Mi cuerpo y yo; Con los que más quiero; En la escuela; Para reír y jugar; Aires de la ciudad; Somos amigos; ¡Cuántas delicias!; Vuelan y nadan, trepan y saltan; Hojas, frutas y corolas; Sol y espuma; Sueños y fantasías; and La fuerza de la palabra.

And in the prologue, Ada discusses the question: ¿Qué es poesía? She cover things like rhymes and metaphors, alliteration and poetic themes, to name a few.

Here's an example of possibly my favorite poem, found at the beginning of the book...

Mi cara

Dos ojos, para ver
el amplio azul del mar,
el color de las flores,
la cara de mamá.

La nariz me avisa,
¡gran adivina!,
que hierven los frijoles
en la cocina.

Dentro de mis orejas,
en mis oídos,
hacen fiesta las voces,
música y ruido.

La boca me permite
comer, hablar,
dar besos a abuelita,
reír, cantar.

THE GIVEAWAY

One MommyMaestra reader will receive a copy of this beautiful little book.

To enter to win, simply leave a comment below.

The deadline to enter is 11:59 EST, Sunday, April 15th. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. and contacted via email - so be sure to leave a valid email address in your comment!

By entering this giveaway, you agree to the Official Sweepstakes Rules. No purchase required. Void where prohibited.

¡Buena suerte!

10 Latino Poets Your Children Should Know

Top: Alma Flor Ada, Federico García Lorca, Pat Mora, José Martí, Gabriela Mistral
Bottom: Jorge Luján, Pablo Neruda, Isabel F. Campoy, Francisco X. Alarcón

Did you know that April is National Poetry Month? Since we're celebrating literacy and children this month here on MM, I thought it would be nice to share with you a short list of Latino poets your children should know. Do you see your favorite poet listed here? If not, please add them in the comments section so we can all benefit.

This post contains affiliate links.

10 Hispanic Poets for Children

Pablo Neruda
Pen name of the famous Chilean poet and diplomat, Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto, who always wrote in green ink because to him it symbolized hope. His life is a beautiful story in itself, and is best introduced to children via the children's biography written by Monica Brown, Pablo Neruda: Poet of the People. (Psst! It's also available in Spanish!)


Gabriela Mistral
Another Chilean poet, Gabriela Mistral is also a pen name. Her real name was Lucila de María del Perpetuo Socorro Godoy Alcayaga! In addition to being a poet, Mistral was also an educator, diplomat, and feminist. She was the first Latin American writer to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. Deeply committed to education, she traveled all over the world in an effort to improve schools. Inspired by her travels, Mistral published more than 30 collections of poetry during her lifetime. Children will enjoy her story, My Name is Gabriela/Me llamo Gabriela: The Life of Gabriela Mistral/la vida de Gabriela Mistral, also written by Monica Brown.

José Martí
The Cuban poet and political activist was a national hero. Dedicated to liberty and democracy, he fought for Cuba's independence, and even published his own newspaper, Patria. Perhaps one of his most famous poems for children is Los zapaticos de Rosa. If you'd like to introduce him to your children, check out the book Marti's Song of Freedom by Emma Otheguy.


Federico García Lorca
The Spanish poet who achieved fame as the member of the Generation of '27, an influential group of 10 authors who expressed themselves through avant-garde forms of art and poetry. There are a number of Spanish books for children written by Lorca, but few have been translated into English. The Cricket Sings by Federico Garcia Lorca, Maria Horvath and Will Kirkland is one. But if your family is comfortable with Spanish, your children may enjoy Federico Garcia Lorca (Cuando Los Grandes Eran Pequenos/ When the Grown-Ups Were Children) by Georgina Lazaro.

Jorge Argueta
A Salvadoran poet and writer whose first collection of bilingual poems for children, A Movie in My Pillow, won the America's Book Award. Argueta's cultural ties are reflected in his books for children, and he has recently launched a series of cooking poems based on traditional Latin American dishes.


Alma Flor Ada & Isabel F. Campoy
Incredible writers individually, Ada and Campoy have frequently collaborated to create some of the finest bilingual poetry and other materials for children. One of their greatest contributions is Música Amiga, a 10 volume set that uses the power of music and poetry to build literacy.


Jorge Luján
An Argentine writer who has created numerous poems for children. In 1995, he received the Poetry for Children Prize from the Asociación de Literatura Infantil y Juvenil Argentina. Perhaps one of his most popular books is Con el sol en los ojos / With the Sun in My Eyes, a collection of short poems in English and Spanish.  


Pat Mora
A Mexican American poet, writer, and children's literacy advocate, Mora's most significant achievement may be the establishment of Día de los niños, Día de los libros, a holiday celebrated by schools, libraries, and families across this country on April 30th. A prolific writer, Mora's most popular book at this time of year is Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day; Celebremos El dia de los ninos/El dia de los libros.


Francisco X. Alarcón
A poet and educator, Alarcón is a three-time winner of the Pura Belpré Author Award Honor for his bilingual Magical Cycle of the Seasons series of poetry for children. A Mexican American author, Alarcón writes poems that reflect the lives of Latino children in the United States. Take a look at his book, Laughing Tomatoes: And Other Spring Poems / Jitomates Risuenos: Y Otros Poemas de Primavera.

Other Posts You May Enjoy:

• Hispanic Poets: One-Page Reading Passages
  
  
• 5 Redacted Poetry Resources
  
  
• 6 Children's Books that Feature Latino Poets
  
  
• 3 Books of Spanish Poetry for Children
  
  
• 7 Books to Help Celebrate National Poetry Month

Items I Recommend for Nurturing Young Poets:

For bilingual poets, my favorite resource is this Magnetic Poetry Kit in Spanish! The words easily fit on any refrigerator and your kids can create poetry whenever the mood strikes them. 

I also love this Paint Chip Poetry Game that was created by author Lea Redmond. Players draw handfuls of paint chips and a prompt card, then rearrange the chips to create spontaneous poems out of the color names.

And for young creative writers who look for inspiration everywhere, here are some of the bold and colorful pens and journals that my kids enjoy:

Ooly Yummy Yummy Scented Glitter Gel Pens

Sakura Gelly Roll Moonlight Pens and Sets

Ooly Color Write Mini Pocket Pal Journals

Easter Coloring Book in Spanish {PRINTABLE}

Since we are celebrating literacy this month, and since so many families will be celebrating Easter this weekend, here is a little coloring book I put together to teach Spanish colors. It is best suited for Spanish learners Pre-K through 5th, or Spanish speaking children in Pre-K through 1st. It is also a nice short book for beginning readers.

DOWNLOAD HERE

The instructions for putting the book together can be found at the bottom of the Terms of Use page. (Don't worry, they're easy!) My kids enjoyed this project. Here's a sneak peek...

If you download this printable, please feel free to rate it.
Enjoy!

The Love for Literacy {Guest Post}

© RHIMAGE - Fotolia.com

The following is a guest post by teacher and mami, Eileen Carter-Campos, for our "In Your Words" Literacy Series as we celebrate Día de los Niños, Día de los Libros this month on MommyMaestra.



When I hear the word "literacy" so many thoughts race through my mind. I remember when I was a young girl and my mother would order the highlights magazine, our visits to the library, and just glancing over and seeing my mom reading her favorite book. She was the perfect role model for me to become even more curious and hunger for more pages in a book. I looked forward to birthdays and holidays because I knew that a gift card with "Borders" or "Waldenbooks" inscribed on the top would be waiting for me.

This love continued throughout my college years where I continued to collect books, children’s books. I was immersed in them throughout my classroom visits and my lesson plans that were created for my college observations. I was taught how to create a lesson plan that was driven by a piece of literature. I began to have favorite Authors- Todd Parr, Shel Silverstein, Kevin Henkes, Patriccia Polacco just to name a few. I purchased books with the intentions of sharing my own love for reading with my children some day, who were a thought in my mind. How could I raise a child who had a love for literacy just like me?

Upon getting the news that I was expecting I knew I wanted my child to carry on that same love for reading. I packed my bookshelves with loads of books. The books that I collected were Early Emergent, Emergent, Early Fluent, and Fluent Readers. I wanted to have a supply of all books for every stage of reading. I began reading while my son was in utero. I had read prior to having children that the baby would recognize your voice better and I just thought why not start now?

When my son arrived it became a ritual that we read every night. He would choose the book, and the first book that he memorized was that of Margaret Wise Brown, "Goodnight Moon". Listening to him was like music to my ears. Just the fact that he was aware of the repetition and hat the illustrations amazed him every time gave me great comfort that he was well on his way. He soon moved away to Dora & Diego books and was becoming more independent with his choices. This made me even prouder to know that he was comfortable enough to venture off and choose what he wanted, and that I was not pushing him but guiding him.

Of course nothing in life is perfect and we reached our stump in the road just last year. My baby who loved reading so much soon became defiant and was steering away from that love. I questioned why but didn’t pry. I knew something wasn’t right. In my eyes, he was not reading on first grade level but I felt that I should ease up a bit and be mommy and not "maestra". My teacher mode finally kicked in and I began to assess him. According to Fountas & Pinnell Guided Reading he was not at target and I questioned how could this be? He is suppose to want to read, he is my son! I soon realized that he did want to read but his decoding skills were weakening as the words were becoming more difficult.

Every night we continued to read. I modeled fluency and we worked with our blends. We read for the phonetics component. As he became stronger in his phonics his love for reading began surfacing again. His reading became fluent and his levels increased within months. I remember listening to his voice, his tone, his expression as he read that "on level" book. My heart skipped more than a beat and by the look of his glance and the radiance of his smile I was reassured that I hadn’t lost that little boy who loved to read. He was brave enough to let his mommy guide him and to continue to strengthen that love for literacy that was so gently instilled.

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Eileen is a 3rd grade teacher of a Charter school in Brooklyn, New York and a freelance writer for VOXXIMujer. A wife, and mother of two energetic young boys. She is a contributor for VOXXI and enjoys blogging about her pride in teaching, parenting, and the blessings and trials that life have to offer. You can follow her on twitter at EileenCCampos as well as on VOXXI.com.

Celebrating Día de los Niños, Día de los Libros

April is one of my favorite months of the year. At the end of this month, libraries, bookstores, schools, and families all across this country will be celebrating Día de los Niños, Día de los Libros. So each April, I typically celebrate the holiday on the LatinBabyBookClub (LBBC). This year, instead, I willl be celebrating it here on MommyMaestra with guest posts from teachers and parents about literacy. They'll be sharing their stories and tips with you.

The LBBC has already posted their pick for April's Libro del mes, or Book of the Month, on their site. It is a wonderful book by poet, Jorge Argueta. Be sure to take a look.

I'll also be announcing a great new project from MommyMaestra and the Latin Baby Book Club.

So check back regularly!

Con mucho cariño...

D.W.'s Unicorn Adventure Encourages Healthy Eating

This post is part of MommyMaestra's series on Fighting Obesity in Latino Children.


My big holiday gift this year was a Kindle Fire. I thought I'd finally enjoy a few good books and browse blogs on the go. What I didn't realize is this: an episode of Arthur on my Kindle Fire is a sure fire way to get in a good shower.

Moms, you understand, right?

My almost 3 and almost 5 year old are huge Arthur fans; so they had stars in their eyes when I told them I needed their help for work. We downloaded the app and (15 after talking about how unicorns are not horses) let them know their job was to help get a lost unicorn safely home. I pointed out its home is very far away so they'd need to fill up on healthy foods to make the trek. They immediately loved the concept because it sounds exactly like what I tell them everyday about fueling their bodies with healthy foods and not just foods that taste good but don't help their bodies get through their day.

I have to admit, I love this game as much as my daughters! It's fun and teaches a very valuable lesson.

Targeted at children 4-6, it was a bit advanced for my almost 3 year old. However, it didn't deter her from having fun. When things got too challenging, I had her play sidekick. While big sister or I played, her job was to name all the colors she saw, identify the healthy and unhealthy foods, tell a story about the fun backdrops, and her favorite, hum along to the very kid-friendly music.

My almost 5 year old, on the other hand, was a pro! As a family who limits screen time, I admit to sometimes wondering if my girls will have a hard time picking up skills related to new technology. A minute with Arthur and friends, and my girl was in the zone. She found it easy to navigate and was really proud of herself for being able to identify so many of the foods. When asked her favorite part, she smiled from ear to ear and said it was the unicorn. :)

I think this will be a lifesaver in long lines or drives. We didn't get through all the levels and I so wonder if it's challenging enough to be a long term favorite. After some practice mastering the purple boot, double tap jump, my oldest zoomed through the first 4 levels. We'll see if the other levels can challenge her a bit more.

There are two ways I know this app is a keeper. First, and maybe important, I got in a 20 minute shower, hair washed and all! Ever grateful, Arthur, ever grateful. But the big thumbs up? My youngest asking for an Arthur/unicorn themed birthday party, the true kid seal of approval. Now to figure out how to get this app in the goody bag! :)

This app is for iPhones and iPod touch. You can download the app for only 1.99 here on PBSKids.org.

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Carla Molina is a weaver of words and creative collaborator. A Jersey girl at heart with lots of love for Boston, she spends most of her time raising two bilingual little ladies and brainstorming more ways to write her heart out. She blogs about being a woman and a creative creature at All of Me Now. And plays cheerleader to the local businesses serving families in her current home state at Petit Rhody.

Bilingual Earth-Friendly Printables

On Saturday night at 8:30, all around the world people will be celebrating Earth Hour by turning off their lights for one hour. It is a movement for change, a call to environmental responsibility. Last year more than 5,200 cities and towns in 135 countries worldwide switched off their lights for Earth Hour, including our little home. This year, we'll be participating again. But instead of sitting at home in the dark, we will be outside with friends, enjoying the evening and the beauty of our natural surroundings.

If you'd like to learn more about Earth Hour, the website has a lot of information and fun activities, like making your own virtual lantern or downloading a Pocoyo activity pack for children. (SpanglishBaby.com, I think, has a Spanish version you can download.)

And for you, dear readers, I have a small gift. A set of bilingual Earth-friendly chore charts and note cards. May you enjoy them and remember the blessing we have in our planet.

You can download both of these for free from my online shop. If you download the files, I simply ask that you please leave some feedback on my store. Thank you!