Multicultural Picture Books for Young Children
Ruth Shagoury
The Sounds of Language: Picture Books for Young English Language Learners, Part II
Children learn about the sounds of language through exposure to linguistic awareness games, nursery rhymes, and rhythmic activities. Engaging children in choral readings of rhymes and rhythms allows them to associate the symbols with the sounds they hear in these words.
There is a growing list of multicultural children's books that combine the delight in playful oral language with striking images to enhance the experience. As an added bonus, you can use federal funds to purchase these texts; according to the National Association for the Education of Young Children, these are the perfect books for an early--and contextual--exposure to phonemic awareness.
Durango, Julia. 2006. Cha-Cha Chimps. Illus. by Eleanor Taylor. New York: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.
Ten little chimps do the cha-cha-cha in this counting concept book with a catchy beat. Mambo Jamba's is the place where hippos do the hokey-pokey, ostriches polka, and meerkats macarena. The dances are international from the jitterbug to the tango, with the little chimps sticking to their cha-cha-cha as a refrain. Lots of fun--until Mama chimp says, "Time for bed!"
Park, Linda Sue. 2005. Bee-Bim Bop. Illus. by Ho Baek Lee. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Children delight in the rhythm and sounds in this fun-to-read story of a little girl anxious to eat her delicious traditional Korean rice dish of bee-bim bop. Besides beging a cheery picture book about the fun of shopping and cooking with Mama, the language itself is a pleasure to savor as well. At the end of the book, the author provides kid-friendly instructions for making bee-bim bop that a child and grown-up can do together.
Park, Linda Sue and Julia Durango. 2005. Yum! Yuck!: A Foldout Book of People Sounds. Illus. by Sue Rama. Watertown MA: Charlesbridge Publishing, Inc.
This playful book is a true celebration of language. Each fold-out page shows children around the world using different sounds to express their feelings. By looking at the expressions on the faces from many different parts of the world, the reader gets hints about what they are saying. Languages from French and Spanish to Farsi and Punjabi are represented as children around the world make "people sounds" such as happy surprise, sneezing, and cries to show delight or sadness.
Sekaquaptewa, Eugene & Barbara Pepper. 1994. Coyote & the Winnowing Birds: A Traditional Hopi Tale. Illus. by Hopi children. Santa Fe, NM: Clear Light Publishers.
Told by a respected Hopi elder and storyteller, this story is presented in both English and Hopi with illustrations by Hopi children. Coyote the trickster's plans backfire when the winnowing birds find a way to trick him instead. There is a gentle lyricism to the story, with an emphasis on rhythmic repetition. The book concludes with a primer on the Hopi alphabet, so readers can sound out and hear the original language of the tale.
Schachner, Judy. 2006. Skippyjon Jones in Mummy Trouble. New York: Dutton Children's Books.
If you haven't read any of the Skippyjon Jones books, you are in for a treat. They are terrific readalouds for home or the classroom. In his latest adventure, Skippyjon--a Siamese kitten who thinks he's a Chihuahua--wants to travel to ancient Egypt with his gang of Chihuahua amigos. Playful language abounds, as Skippyjon creates rhymes and sings songs, like this one (sung in a "muy soft voice"): "My chicos insist/and I dare not resist/the chance to meet a mummito."
Stojic, Manya. 2002. Hello World! Greetings in 42 Languages Around the Globe! New York: Scholastic, Inc.
In this book, readers can learn how to say hello in many different languages. Beneath each word translation is the phonetic spelling, so an adult can experiment with the different languages while enjoying the book with a young child. The large colorful illustrations also expose children to a world of skin colors, hairstyles, and cultural accessories . . . A great read filled with new sounds.
Thong, Roseanne. 2000. Round is a Mooncake. Illus. by Grace Lin. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books LLC.
In a walk through her urban neighborhood, a little girl discovers the shapes that surround her: round, square, and rectangle. Most of the images are specifically Asian, such as rice bowls and dim sum. The book provides a lesson in shapes as well as contemporary Asian-American culture. The rhymes are charming and unique: "Rectangles are inking stones/Paintbrush racks/and mobile phones. " It is a wonderful book to share with children about writing systems, as the family uses name chops to make an inky square shape, and paints characters using rectangle inking stones.
Wyndham, Robert. 1998. Chinese Mother Goose Rhymes. Illus. by Ed Young. New York: The Putnam and Grosset Group.
Traditional Chinese poems, lullabies, and counting songs are collected in this charming book. The translator, Robert Wyndham, stresses that his English versions cannot be exact equivalents, but are meant to capture the feeling and intent of the originals. Along the sides of each vivid illustration are the actual Chinese characters, so this book is perfect for sharing with families who want to read to their children in both languages. The playfulness with rhyming language is entertaining for young children and adult readers alike.
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