Diá de los niños , el diá de los librós

April 30th marks Diá de los niños , el diá dos librós, an annual celebration of literacy for children and families of all lingual and cultural backgrounds. On this day of literary celebration, I had the opportunity to visit the students of Gunter Elementary School as representative of the library. We discussed cultural differences and similarities and the importance of embracing other cultures. After all, if we didn’t take time to embrace different traditions we wouldn’t have tacos or pizza. The student all agreed a world without tacos or pizza would be unacceptable.

After an insightful discussion of culture, those elementary kids really know their stuff, a few savvy fourth graders helped me read Thank You, Mr. Panda/Graciás Sr. Panda in English and Spanish. Thankfully they were very forgiving of my blunders as I carefully read the Spanish version I had meticulously practiced. Learning a new language is tough and terrifying. I asked the kids to imagine what it must be like to stand in front of a group of people as you fumble and say the wrong words. I thanked them for not laughing at me and asked them to remember to be just as courteous to others.

We continued our book talk and I learned a few fun facts about the Gunter Elementary School students. First, any mention of Taco Tuesday gets them all riled up. Second, they love watching YouTube and can’t wait to come use the library computers to find their favorite videos. Third, they super excited to explore the Trailblazer truck. Did I say super excited? I mean ECSTATIC! I told them all about the 40 foot trailer filled with all kinds of expensive sciencey stuff they get to crank and squish and who knows what else! They’re excited to get their hands on all of it. So, parents mark your calendars for June 5th. The Trailblazer trailer will be parked in front of the library from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

But wait, there's more…picture book author Nancy Churnin will also be there to kick off our Reading Rocks Summer Reading Program by reading her book Irving Berlin: The Immigrant Boy Who Made America Sing.

I hope everyone comes out to our special event. While I love visiting the kids at school, I love it even more when they visit me at the library.