Sunday, August 23, 2015
Yes, I've fallen off of updating the blog lately, but I promise you, it's been for a great reason! I'm so excited to share that I am close to finishing a book that is all about bilingual storytime! I'm co-authoring it with Dr. Jamie Campbell Naidoo, and it is being published by ALA Editions. Our working title is Once Upon a Cuento: Bilingual Storytimes in English and Spanish. I've been pouring my heart into this work for the better part of a year now, and I'm feeling very excited about it as it gets closer and closer to finished. We are covering all of the "how-to's" of bilingual storytime planning, as well as the critical component of library outreach to Latino and Spanish-speaking communities. Whether you speak Spanish yourself or not, if you are wanting to develop library programming for young children that engages Spanish-speaking families, this book will help you find your way. And it will be full of awesome resource and sample program plans. I'll keep you posted with all the details as the book gets closer to publication!
Another announcement is that registration is now open for my fall session of "Bilingual Storytime at Your Biblioteca." This is always such a fun class! It's totally online and asynchronous, but we do interact a lot throughout the month, meaning that participants are often learning as much from each other as they are from me, which is one of the best parts of the class. Please consider enrolling if you'd like to learn more about establishing a bilingual storytime or if you're looking for new tips and tricks for your current program.
Finally, since it's been so long since I've posted anything useful, I wanted to share some pretty great stuff today. I remember when I first started offering bilingual storytime, one of my biggest challenges was to find fun Spanish-language or bilingual children's music. José-Luis Orozco is, of course, one of the best out there, and I was so happy when I finally found him. Today, however, there are so many amazing children's performers creating really fun music bilingually or in Spanish. I wanted to share with you a few of my most recent favorites. Check them out, and have fun getting your groove on in bilingual storytime!
Basho & Friends
Favorite Song: "Baila con tu cuerpo" from ¡Aún Más!
Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band
Favorite Song: "A bailar" from ¡Fantástico!
Mister G
Favorite Song: "Frota tu panza" from ABC Fiesta
Nathalia Palis
Favorite Song: "Animal Bop" from From Here to There
Patty Shukla
Favorite Song: "Muévete" from Canta y baila con Patty