I had the distinct pleasure of spending two days at Tyler Elementary School reading and discussing Talking Buddies with students in grades 1-5. This author visit was very rewarding for a number of reasons.
First, two of my grandchildren, Tyler and Lila attend school there and have been delighted to have a book where they are the protagonists, shared with their classmates and school community. Second, many of the students who attend Tyler Elementary are learning Spanish as a second language, so the fact that the story is about immigrating to a new country and learning a new language is related to their daily experience.
Last but certainly not least, is the fact that there are Spanish sentences and expressions embedded in the book, so we were able to engage in some choral reading in Spanish, which the children enjoyed. The students completed follow-up writing and art worksheets, were excellent listeners, asked insightful questions and made keen observations. All in all, a very rewarding experience.
Reactions to Talking Buddies:
“I liked Talking Buddies because the book was talking about making friends and helping people and making people feel welcome even if you just met them. And I think that it is also good because the characters in the book were speaking different languages.” Female student, aged 9
“Thank you, Dr. Franks-Randall, for visiting our school and empowering our students with life-long lessons!” Ms. Jasmine Brann, Principal, John Tyler Elementary School
“I think the plot of the story is really powerful. It helps students to understand that we can all help each other regarding our cultural and linguistic differences. Students can easily make connections with Talking Buddies because it relates to their experiences.“ Ms. Laura Chapa, Dual Language Coordinator, John Tyler Elementary School
“As a first-grade teacher at Tyler, the author visit was engaging for my students and left them wanting to know more about the main characters in the story. Students asked if I could read Talking Buddies again the next day. They were also excited to see Lila in the hallway. They said, “Look, that’s Lila in real life from Talking Buddies!” Ms. Thomas, First-grade teacher, John Tyler Elementary School
“The most important things I learned from Talking Buddies is to always be helpful and kind, make people feel good, teach people that don’t know and don’t be afraid to speak another language.” Male student, aged 10
“What I learned from Talking Buddies is that friendship is powerful.” Male student, aged 10
“I really liked the story because what happened to Alejandro happened to me because I don’t know a lot of English. I speak Spanish a lot because I’m from a Spanish country.” Female student, aged 9
My grandson Tyler proved to be a very capable assistant presenter!
I want to thank Ms. Laura Chapa, Dual Language Coordinator, for working with me to make this happen, Mr. Stephen Reichlen, Library-Media Specialist, for sharing his work space with me, and Ms. Jasmine Brann, Principal, for providing the leadership and support necessary for events of this nature to occur.