Are you looking for back to School book Recommendations for elementary Spanish teachers? In that case, you are in the right place. Picture books are powerful resources. Not only they share compelling stories, but also allow us to expose our students to new stories, some of them they might feel identified with. In this blog post I am sharing with you 6 must have books for your back to school lessons. If you would like to know more about books from Latinx authors, make sure to check this list featuring 12 inspiring authors.
Isabel and her colores go to school by Alexandra Alesandri
This is one of my class’ favorite books. Isabel is a bilingual girl, she goes to a new school and feels nervous with all these changes. This is a lovely story about friendship and it is also a good book to review colors. This is a must for us, a lot of my kids feel identified with Isabel feeling shy and having a hard time making new friends. Find the book here
Rene has two last names by René Colato Laínez
This book is a great resource for students to learn about Latin American naming customs. This lovely story by Salvadorian author René Colato Laínez tells the story about René and how he embraces his two last names and shares about both sides of his family. Find the book here.
Nuestra clase es una familia by Shannon Olsen
This book by author and educator Shannon Olsen shares everything about being a classroom and a family. The Spanish adaptation is just as lovely as the original book. Most of my students already know this book in English, so that is a plus whenever we read it in Spanish class. Check the book here.
Shannon also wrote a new book “Una carta de tu maestra en el primer día de escuela”. Make sure to check it out here.
Actually, it’s Yefferson by Kat Trejo and Scott Martin-Rowe
Names are important, and how we pronounce them matters too. This great book brings the story of Yefferson, and how he invites everybody to say his name correctly. Yefferson feels frustrated, because everybody, teachers and friends cannot pronounce his name correctly, but he is confident and he will make sure everybody will say his name, the way it is. Check the book here.
El cucuy is scared too by Donna Barba Higuera.
This lovely story illustrated by Juliana Perdomo shares the story of a boy moving to a new town, feeling scared about all the newness. So scared, even the cucuy is scared. Make sure to ready about “el cucuy” and the meaning of it in Latin American culture, before introducing this story to your students. Check the book here.
Let’s by friends by René Colato Laínez
This is perfect book for bilingual classrooms. Two friends named José and Joe share about their day. They both like to paint and eventually become amigos. This is a great book to introduce high frequency words and common expressions. Check the book here.
I hope you enjoy these books with your students. Check this previous blog post with more book recommendations for your elementary Spanish class. What other books would you recommend for your first week of school? Let me know in the comments.
Resources you will like
All About Me Writing Book in Spanish – Todo Sobre Mi
“All about me” book in Spanish. Get ready to go back to school and get to know your students with this fun resource in Spanish.
This document includes:
Sequence and scope to use this resource
2 covers for “Todo sobre mi” book
1 basic “Todo sobre mi” page
7 pages for the book: all about me, all about my school, my birthday, my faves, mi friends and my vacations.
Flashcards to review and introduce new vocabulary:
¿Dónde vives?
¿De dónde eres?
¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?
¿Cuántos años tienes?
¿Quién es tu maestro/a?
¿Quiénes son tus amigos?
¿Cuál es tu libro favorito?
¿Cuál es tu color favorito?
¿Cuál es tu animal favorito?
¿Dónde fuiste de vacaciones?
¿Cómo te llamas?
¿Cuál es tu juego favorito?
Vocabulary included
-me llamo/my name is
-vivo en/I live in
-soy de/I am from
-tengo/I am
-mi cumpleanos es /My birthday is on
-mi escuela/my school
-mi maestra/my teacher
-mi clase/my classroom
-mis amigos/my friends
-color/color
-libro/book
-animal/animal
-comida/food
-bebida/drink
-juego/game
-favorito/favorite
-vacaciones/vacations
The pages on this book are not numbered, you can choose which pages you want to use or leave out of your book.
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