Question - Reading / Books

[shehmeth]

Hi, :)

I have a question about a situation and would like your input to see what you've done.

My older child reads very well in English and Spanish... I do not like her to read books that are bilingual (by this I mean both languages in the same page) - but rather books that are either in English or Spanish.... My experience has been that when both languages are in the same page, she would just read one...

Speaking wise, you can see that she thinks in english and prefers to talk in English... but reads like a native in both languages, and when we meet family and friends that speak only Spanish she has no problem talking and being understood..


I've been looking for simple chapter books in Spanish for her to read, and continue to build fluency and reading comprehension...

She's been reading the Magic Tree House Book series in English - but the last time I went to B&N I saw that they now have the series in Spanish as well....

The question is - she hasn't read all the books of the MTH series - so do I buy in Spanish new books (books she has not read) or do I buy books she has read already?

One would work more on fluency & vocabulary (she already knows the story since she read it in English first) and the other option would work on all three levels comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency because is a completely new story...

Or do I go completely with a new series, there are 4 other series like the Junie B. Jones, A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, and 2 others I can't recall now - that I could choose that are translated into Spanish...

Any suggestions? :grouphug:

Thanks ;)

Kate

[Ester Maria]

I'd go with different materials for different languages. My kids have some "duplicates", but for most of the time they have a copy of the book in only one language (speaking about free time readings, of course). They concentrate better if the content is unknown, it's a lot more exciting, and they're working on the language more with the new content. Get her a child-friendly Spanish dictionary (ONE WAY! Spanish with explanations in Spanish, not a translation to English - so that she thinks directly in Spanish when learning new words) so if she doesn't know words, she can check them up there.

[shehmeth]

Ester Maria,

That's a great advice... Thanks... She was so excited when she saw the MTH books in spanish at B&N "Wow, they have it in Spanish I can read them in Spanish too!!!!!"

So I'll take advantage of this excitement and offer her new items that she has not read... she did get a duplicate - "Mom, this is my favorite story from the MTH books I've read... I want this one in Spanish, please... " -

Thanks,

Kate

[CleoQc]

That's a great advice... Thanks... She was so excited when she saw the MTH books in spanish at B&N "Wow, they have it in Spanish I can read them in Spanish too!!!!!"
Kate

Although I'm pretty sure it's a question of personality, but my kids really enjoy having the same book in many languages. We have MTH in English and French, Asterix in French and Latin. Harry Potter is French/English too and I'll be adding Spanish to it soon.

[shehmeth]

Cleo,

Do you have the links for the MTH in french? This is something I would love to read myself - and maybe save them for them later down the line.... Also for the Asterix in Latin - Thanks..

Thanks,

Kate

[CleoQc]

It's called "la cabane magique". You can order them through Chapters.ca
http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/search?keywords=cabane%20magique&pageSize=10

As for Asterix in latin, you have to navigate the German site of Amazon. A friend bought ours in Germany.
http://www.amazon.de/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?__mk_de_DE=%C5M%C5Z%D5%D1&url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=asterix+latin

[gordalopez]

Do you still read aloud to your daughter (books that may be too difficult for her to manage on her own).........just curious. I've found that since I'm the only Spanish model, the only way for my kids to learn more advanced vocab (things I don't say on an everyday basis) is to read aloud to them. The rich language in the stories helps their oral lang development. That doesn't sound like an issue in your household, but I was just wondering...

[CleoQc]

Yes, we still do read-alouds in English. I don't remember the last French book we read aloud! Both kids are doing Sonlight as their ESL, so that gives you an idea of the level they've reached. My son just finished SL6, and none of the read-alouds were read aloud. He could handle them all on his own. My daughter still needs my help, mainly with vocabulary. It's a very nice way to build vocabulary to native level.

Once in a while, I buy the audio book, but we always follow in the printed book, so she gets audio and spelling at the same time. The audio version is to get her used to different pronunciations, and accents. And once in a while, I find a word I was badly mispronouncing :)

[Nan in Mass]

I don't speak French very well (although I read it fairly well) and I found that reading aloud was an absolutely essential way to build my son's language skills. There is a direct link between when he stopped wanting me to read aloud to him in French and when his French stopped growing. Just wanted to encourage you to keep reading...
-Nan