Mango, Abuela, and Me
Mango, Abuela, and Me
Book Title: Mango, Abuela, and Me
Book Author: Meg Medina
Book Illustrator: Angela Dominguez
This book addresses: Language differences, family ties
Potentially Tricky Vocabulary:
Abuela: grandma
Abuelo: grandpa
Poquito: small, little
Empanada: A breaded exterior with a savory filling
Los pollitos: the little chickens
Buen día: good day
Pintura: painting
Questions to ask the student before reading:
How do people communicate with each other?
Can we communicate with each other without using words?
How can you make friends with someone who doesn’t speak the same language as you?
Historical context to give before reading:
Not all countries speak the same language. This means that when someone moves from one country to another, they may need to learn a whole new language, too. Being able to communicate with others is an important part of making friends. For someone who is new to a country and learning the language, this can be especially scary. That’s why it’s important for us to make sure that everyone feels welcome, even if we don’t speak each others’ languages.
(The questions to ask the student and historical content above are interconnected. The historical context is typically going to be a supplement to what your student might not know. Some students may already be knowledgeable about a subject, others may not know much yet. Pay attention to what your student already knows and share the historical context accordingly.)
While reading:
If you’re unfamiliar with Spanish pronunciation, that’s ok! Your student might know some, in which case it will be a cool opportunity for your student to be the “teacher”. If you and your student are both unfamiliar, then looking the words up online and hitting the speaker button to hear them outloud is a great learning exercise and will show your student that learning never stops.
After reading:
How did Mia’s and Abuela’s relationship change throughout the book?
Is there anyone in your family that speaks another language?
Follow up activity (time permitting):
Have your student draw a picture of a room that they are familiar with. This can be their classroom, living room, bedroom, kitchen, etc. Next, they should label different things in the room with their English names like Mia and Abuela did in the book. If there is still time at the end, they can add translations of those words into another language. The language that they choose to translate into should be a language that they have some connection with. Maybe they have a family member who speaks another language at home, or maybe they have a friend who speaks another language at school.
All definitions were adapted by Karina Connolly from the Merriam Webster online dictionary.