Let's read in Spanish! ¡Leámos en Español!

I am an avid reader. I love the written word and luckily for me, so do my little ones. I have read to them ever since they were born. Have I mentioned that all I read to them is in Spanish? What? Are there any children’s books in Spanish out there? Actually, closer than you might think! 

I know we can find almost any book we want through amazon.com or any other online retailer but some local stores actually carry a very impressive selection of children’s books in Spanish.  I was able to find a whole section dedicated to children’s books in Spanish at both my local Target and Barnes and Noble. Some Half Price books stores carry them as well. At my local Target I was able to find some favorites of my children like “¿Dónde está el ombliguito?” and “Azul el sombrero, verde el sombrero” by Sandra Boynton (a favorite in my house).  

So, what are you waiting for? Make it an outing and take your little ones to pick out a book (or two!).

Hasta pronto!

Some of our favorites, you can see how much they've been loved

When God sent us snow, mami gave them Netflix...en Español

Mickey Mouse también habla Español! 

OK, I’m not going to lie, my children DO watch TV. I don’t have cable so there is only so much they can watch. What I do have is Netflix, and I love it! Here’s why: They have an audio and subtitles option that allows me to change the audio to Spanish, if it’s available for that title WOOHOO!!! When I discovered that feature I was out of this world happy, seriously.

Some of the great titles I have been able to find with Spanish audio are: Dumbo, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Top Cat, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, really most Disney titles.  Also, NBC has Saturday morning cartoons that have the sap (second audio program) option, so you can get them in Spanish too. Aside from what I get from network TV and Netflix, I hardly ever buy a DVD or Blue-Ray that doesn't offer the option of Spanish audio.

Now, my husband doesn't speak as much Spanish as I do, so, how do I avoid making him feel left out? English subtitles! So even family movie night allows for all of us all to enjoy the show (I admit, nobody likes to read subtitles but it is all a joint effort to make sure our children are bilingual, so sacrifices are necessary)

Hope this little bit of info helps! Even when you are on a budget there are options for Children’s programming in Spanish. Now you can feel a little less guilty for letting your kiddos watch TV since they are reinforcing their Spanish, right? Sit down and enjoy, they might pick up a new word or two.

Hasta Pronto!

Please note: I have only tried this feature on 4 different devices: Nintendo Wii, Vizio smart TV, Kindle Fire and personal computer. I hope it works on yours too.