May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the contributions that people of Asian and Pacfic Island heritage have made to the United States. In honor of this month, this week we are reading a story about a boy whose family came from Pakistan. In the story, the boy shares one of his family traditions with his friends: making a delicious dish called Daal. As the boy and his friends learn, Daal takes a long time to make, but it is worth the wait. Watch the video of the story here.

Make

In Bilal Cooks Daal, Bilal introduces his friends to a food his family likes to make, daal. This dish is new to his friends but is part of his family’s tradition. Is there any dish that your family likes to make together? Is there a food that is part of your family’s tradition? This week, write a story or draw a picture that shows a dish that is special to your family.

Wonder

This week, take some time to learn about traditions and customs around the world. How do people in other countries get around? What do they like to eat? What holidays do they celebrate? How are these traditions and customs similar or different to the ones in your family? You can explore all these questions and more on PebbleGo (username: brookline, password: brookline). Open PebbleGo, click on “Social Studies,” then click on “Culture and Awareness,” and then “Customs Around The World.” Explore an area that looks interesting to you. You can also learn more about Pakistan or other Asian and Pacific countries by clicking on “Social Studies” and then “countries” in PebbleGo.

Here is Bilal's recipe for Chana Daal from the back of the book. Yum!