You might think that your kiddos will learn if you plop them down in front of a screen and let them listen to bilingual books over and over. I’m not going to lie, they will learn a little.
HOWEVER-
If YOU sit down and listen, learn, and repeat the words by yourself, then YOU can read to them with a physical book and it will be ten times more potent than just putting them in front of a screen. Trust me on this.
Not only will YOU be learning new words, you can integrate these words into your daily life. AND your kids will hear you using these words and know they are important. And they will have more respect for you, for the language, and for learning new concepts in general.
That price tag has a lifetime of value written all over it.
Here are some great resources for listening to books being read in Spanish and in English. Since 2020 has blown up our entire society and EVERYTHING has had to become a digitized version of what we used to do in real life, there are so many great resources to choose from.
Don’t be limited by this list – there are literally thousands of videos out there. Find a favorite book you already own and see if there is a bilingual version available on Amazon or at your library.
Below are some of mis favoritos libros for mis ninos.
Bilingual Listen & Read
Mi osito loves this book. After a few readings he could point to ALL the things la oruga ate and say them all. The twins rarely let me actually read the entire thing (especially when I’m stumbling through the Spanish translation!)
I definitely watched this video more than once, reading aloud, trying to match my words with the narrator’s. It is worth it my friends, to repeat aloud.
I found this book once at a school where I worked. It was the English version, but it was still adorable. I grabbed a copy for my kiddos and we read it all the time. THEN – I found a bilingual version! (insert happy awkward mom dance here.)
I bought this book after we found it at the library. It had so many words that were repetitive AND we knew enough of them for it to make sense. In the words of Goldilocks – it was juuuuust right for our learning minds to grasp.
We are HUGE Usborne book fans around here. (If you have no idea what those are, click here to be taken to their website.) They have a TON of books in Spanish. This particular series is super popular. I like them because they repeat the phrase “Este no es mi…”.
This reinforces the learning target for us as parents while teaching our children: repetitive phrases have meaning in our every day lives. Find books that help you grow your phrasal vocabulary, like this one.
I found this book while scrounging around on Amazon and when I got it, I loved it. With a repetitive phrase of “Me gusta cuando…” I can say, “I like it when you hold my hand” in Spanish to mis niños. Because, I do. It’s totally true.
This is a series of books – three in all. And all of them have simple wording and wonderful artwork. The other two titles are Bravo! & Siesta. Our library has them and we check them out frequently.
We also LOVE Elephant and Piggy Books. They were actually the books that helped my oldest daughter get over the “hump” of trying to read in the 2nd grade. We don’t own any in Spanish just yet, but mi osito’s favorite book in English is “I am Invited to a Party!” I haven’t found it in Spanish, but I’m going to keep looking! If you know where I can find it, please leave a comment!
~Feliz leyendo, mis amigos.
~Happy Reading, my friends.
Learning Spanish as a Family 