Teach Your Children Spanish Through Reading Together

Literacy is an important aspect of your child’s development! By adding bilingual
titles to your home library is an excellent way to enrich your child’s development
with Spanish. Teaching your children Spanish through reading is a fun, easy way
to keep the language learning alive. Here are a few tips and resources for
teaching Spanish through reading together:

1.If your own Spanish is limited, choose titles that have small amounts of
text, so that you are able to read and reinforce the story without trying to
read too much. Board books by Rebecca Emberly are a great choice.
2. Whether you are a native speaker or learning alongside your child, audio
books offer a great option for reading together. Check out Lorito Books
and their great list of bilingual audio books. You and your children will love
listening to the stories aloud!
3. Barron Books have a great collection of bilingual titles, including cute
pictures, and easy to follow along story lines. Kids are able to easily make
connections with the text and illustrations.
4. If you haven’t bookmarked Latin Baby Book Club, now is your chance! They
have a wonderful list of Spanish and bilingual titles that they review and
recommend. I have found so many fabulous books to add to my collection
from this helpful site.
5. If you like to do computer activities with your children, visit Cody’s Cuentos
and enjoy the online audio stories together. You and your children will be
able to follow along with text and practice comprehension and fluency.
6. Take a trip to your local library together and visit the juvenile international section. You will probably be surprised to find lots of bilingual titles. Our library also has a great collection of audio books, big colorful picture dictionaries, and picture books in various languages. Check out some of that interest your child and enjoy reading together!

Buena Suerte!

And The Winner Is....

Beth Ineson!

Felicitaciones!

Thanks so much for your comments and input. I hope that you will visit Lorito Books and consider them for your bilingual library, they are fantastic!

Teach Kids Spanish with Audio Books! Giveaway!

I am huge fan of any kind of literacy learning that will enrich my children's bilingual development. Lorito Books is one of our absolute favorites! Their audio books are beautifully written, illustrated, and narrated. The audio portion really keeps children engaged and interested. It is a fantastic tool for comprehension and fluency reinforcement. Audio books are a powerful tool for teaching Spanish to children!


Lorito Books offer high quality, word-for-word audiobook readalongs for young readers and second language learners. They are dedicated to building literacy and second language skills with the use of audiobooks as learning tools. The culturally relevant titles and bright, appealing illustrations engage children and bring the stories to life!

Check out their new releases here!

Giveaway! You have the chance to win this fabulous audio book El Desierto es Mi Madre. Simply visit Lorito Books , return here and make a comment indicating which title interests you most, or what you have learned about their company. One lucky winner will be chosen Dec. 13. This is a perfect holiday gift.

Comment now for your chance to win this gorgeous book by Pat Mora.

Teach Children Spanish with Holiday Words

As parents and educators trying to incorporate bilingual learning in our children's lives, it is always fun to find fresh ideas for keeping the learning alive. It is fun to take time from the busy holidays to teach kids Spanish using thematic words and phrases. My kids and I made a list of a few Spanish holiday vocabulary words and how we could actively use them. Feel free to share any ideas you may have that might fit with this vocabulary list. Gracias!

diciembre- each day talk about la fecha. Count days on the calendar and say the date ( hoy es el 3 de diciembre).

la tarjeta de Navidad- make a creative Christmas card and send it to a loved one or teacher.

el abrazo- hug your familia each day!

la lista- make a list of things that need to get done, or all the ways you were good this year. Keep lista on the fridge to stay focused.

las luces de Navidad- talk a walk through your neighborhood and look at Christmas lights. Name the colors in Spanish.

los villancicos- Sing or listen to your favorite Christmas carols.

los adornos- help decorate the tree and house with Christmas decorations. Make creative ornaments for the tree.

las galletas- make some Christmas cookies for a neighbor and say "Feliz Navidad".

el regalo- decorate butcher paper and wrap gifts together.

La flor de nochebuena- play I Spy everytime you go to the mall or public places and see how many poinsettas you can count each time.

For more info about Mexican Christmas traditions and lesson ideas, click here.

Learn Spanish Live!

Typically I am focusing on early language development, but I wanted to share a great resource for adults. This is a super option for parents trying to teach children Spanish at home. If you are proficient and just need a conversational buddy, or if you are learning alongside your child, SpeakShop is a fun, educational option! Speakshop is an online tutoring service that connects you to live Spanish speaking tutors in Guatemala and Nicaragua. Simply hook up via webcam and you will have access to live, conversational, native speaking Spanish professionals. This is a fantastic resource that allows you to learn Spanish live through audio and video. If you are looking for reinforcement for your own Spanish profeciency so that you can effectively continue to enhance your child's bilingual development, check out SpeakShop.com. You can try it out with a FREE TRIAL now.