In FEELINGS, Little Pim helps kids learn how to say useful phrases like “I am happy” and “I am scared” and “I am shy” and in COLORS we learn seven colors, through a balloon treasure hunt that ends in a surprise party! The books are written in English, with French and Spanish words and phrases throughout, and as always, we include easy phonetics so that parents can use these even if they don’t speak the language themselves.

I love reading books to my children and never found the right bilingual books that were engaging and interactive. These books will help you bring French and Spanish learning to storytime in a new, super fun way.

Like all Little Pim products, our books are beautifully designed, affordable, and easy to use. Two more books in this series, published by Abrams Publishing, will come out in the Spring, so stay tuned. For languages other than Spanish and French, look out for our e-books, coming soon!

To order the books, click here.

Cities with large Mexican populations like Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston host annual Cinco de Mayo festivities that draw hundreds of thousands of people every year. Whether or not you live in an area with a large Mexican community, there are many things you can do to celebrate Cinco de Mayo this May 5th:

1) Even the youngest Spanish students can say “Cinco De Mayo”, already a big confidence boost for young language learners! You can lead your kids in a fun chant: ”¡Viva México! Viva el 5 de mayo!”, and even if your kids are not studying Spanish, it’s the second most widely spoken language in the US. Many of those Spanish-speakers are from Mexico, and while Cinco de Mayo does not hold as much significance in Mexico as it does in the abroad, it’s observed in the US as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride.

2) Mexican food is one of the world’s great cuisines. In fact, in 2003 UNESCO officially declared Mexican food as a piece of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity! Although Mexican food can be incredibly complex (some sauces take literally days to make) a lot of Mexican food is simple and fun. Try making guacamole and chips with your kids, or cookies with red, green and white sprinkles (à la Mexican flag). You can also follow this simple guide to create your own maracas, then play Little Pim Spanish Bop while you are cooking and have a Cinco de Mayo dance party!

3) Your kids can understand a good story about the underdog. Tell your kids a simplified version of the history behind Cinco de Mayo, which is really about how a small group of clever, determined people (the Mexicans), overcame a much more powerful, bigger army (who were French). Since kids always can relate to the little guy, they will appreciate this story (leaving out the details about all the gory battles and beheadings, of course).

Most of all, make it fun! ¡Diviértanse! (have fun). Enjoy the fiesta!

Cinco de Mayo Giveaway: Post photos of how you celebrated the holiday to our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/mylittlepim) for a chance to win a free digital download of any three Little Pim DVDs (worth $41.95). Alternate entry method: email info@LittlePim.com

Try this FREE online game: Spanish Heritage – Piñata Game

The fact that Emmett goes to school with kids from Korea, India, Australia and China is one of the things I love about his school. Even though Emmett is in one of his “picky eater’ phases (OK it’s more than a phase) where anything that isn’t fish sticks, white meat chicken, pasta, yellow pepper or pizza meets with a resounding “no thank you!” I was happy we could share this international experience. His little brother Adrian was slightly more experimental, taking a crack at some chick peas with yellow rice.

The kids, who helped organize the evening, (along with a parent volunteer committee) drew colorful maps of each continent which hung on the walls, and the food was grouped by region. That way, as you went down the buffet line you could sample empanadas from Spain, fried ravioli from Italy and then move on to Samosas from India and sushi from Japan. Each dish was numbered so we could vote for our favorite one at the end.

We had a great time and it was a fun way to bring some of these countries my kids have not had much experience with to life through the foods they eat (we’ve been doing a lot of spinning our globe lately and learning about where it lands). There were also signs up all over teaching kids how to say “hello” in a variety of languages! Of course I loved that! All that was missing was Little Pim himself.

Does your child’s school or daycare have an “international night” or activity? if it did, would you attend?

He notes that by 2050 our nation is on track to be 29% Spanish speaking and we are increasingly doing business with Latin American countries. He also makes the sobering case that more of us will be retiring to Latin America, where the living is cheaper. He says Chinese is more of a “specialty” language that will only help our kids if they become proficient and choose to work with China. which should remain in the foreseeable future one of the world’s economic super powers.

Here at Little Pim we have also seen the rising popularity in Chinese (it is our second best-selling language, neck in neck with French, after Spanish) and have noticed another trend – that more and more parents are choosing to introduce their children to TWO languages in addition to English. Thousands of parents in the United States are getting their babies and toddlers going on some combination of Chinese and Spanish or Chinese and French.

We field many calls and emails about this each week. Often parents explain that the Chinese is to give their kids what they think will be a competitive advantage in tomorrow’s economy, and the romance language is to honor a family heritage, or because one of the parents speaks that language and can help with it at home.

The benefits to kids of learning more than one language during early childhood are widely documented (it improves memory, advances verbal and math skills and analytic thinking). What about the benefits of two? Research shows that a child can learn up to three languages without any confusion. The learning results are even better if one of the languages is spoken at home, and if the languages have a different base, such as Chinese, which is tonal, and French, which is a romance language. A child will never confuse “sourire” with xiao’ or ‘笑’. But they might confuse “sonreía” (Spanish) and “sourire” (French).

Ultimately choosing a language, or languages, for your child is a very personal choice that takes into account your hopes for your child’s future (will she be part of a multi-national company someday? Will he be able to travel, work and live abroad? Can she communicate with family members who don’t speak English?). But whatever language parents choose, their children will be getting a huge advantage over their monolingual peers. Spanish is by far still the leading language being studied in the U.S., with 88% of all foreign language classes in schools in Spanish (per the Today Show – link to the home page video here?).

Picking up a THIRD language is much easier once a child has learned a second one, so rather than dwell on “Which Language is Best,” debate, parents should just dive in and know their children may make their own choice later about what language they want to learn, and it will be fairly easy for them to make that change if they have a solid base in any language.

My own sons, Emmett and Adrian, have been learning French since they were babies, because of my family connection to France (I know Spanish or Chinese might be more “useful” in their careers) but if they get to high school and decide they want to learn Chinese or Spanish I will happily let them change, and know they will have a much easier time understanding the grammar rules and acquiring new vocabulary thanks to their years of French.

What do you think? Are you considering introducing your child to two languages? Do you know people whose kids are studying Chinese and a romance language? We’d love to hear from you. Take our new QUIZ on our homepage about which language/s your child should learn, if you haven’t chosen yet.

Nicolas Kristof

*Kristof is a Pulitzer prize winning journalist, who writes powerfully about pressing international women’s issues, such as inadequate maternal health care and the shameful ongoing slavery of young girls, notably in his book Half the Sky, written with his wife, Sheryl WuDunn. Kristof resides outside New York City with his wife and their three children: Gregory, Geoffrey and Caroline.

MAGNETIC BLOCKS

Tegu Blocks are the kind of invention that makes you think “why didn’t I come up with that?” Take a block and combine it with a magnet, and voilà! Embedded inside each block is a powerful magnet that allows you to build things that couldn’t be done with traditional blocks. To boot, Tegu blocks are made from eco-friendly wood native to Honduras, where they are manufactured.

You can get them in New York at Doodle Doo’s (11 Christopher) or on line at

http://www.amazon.com/Discovery-Set-Magnetic-Wooden-Building/dp/B003TU7ZIS

PUZZLES THAT TAKE YOU PLACES

My kids love GeoPuzzles, and are always excited about a new game or puzzle from this wonderful company. GeoPuzzles makes jigsaw puzzles with pieces shaped like individual countries, so children learn as they put the puzzle together. Invented by a dad, these great puzzles are made by a a family-run business. They make Geo Cards and Games too (like Geo Bingo – which is what it sounds like!).

http://geotoystore.com/

PAINT A ZOO

My kids love doing art projects, and Alex Toys keeps coming out with cool new crafts to keep us busy on cold winter afternoons. This zoo kit lets kids paint bright colors on fun animal shapes and add silly accessories to create a zoo full of creative fun. The activity kit includes 6 cardboard punch-out animals, 12 poster paints, 6 crayon bright crayons, wiggly eyes, glue and easy instructions. Even better, my six year old and my almost three year old can both take part in this zoo-stravaganza. It’s tough to find activities for them to share, but big and little kids alike love zoo animals, so you can’t go wrong!

http://www.alextoys.com/product/132735/145/_/Paint_A_Zoo

CITIZENS OF THE WORLD T-SHIRT

For one of those 8 nights or Hannukah or a stocking stuffer: You can’t go wrong with these adorable Tea brand t-shirts that announce your child’s membership in the global kids citizens club in four languages!

“for little citzens of the world” written in four languages on the shirt – comes in blue or pink

http://www.teacollection.com/product/TS3201F/Little-Citizens-Tee.html

SPANISH INTRO GIFT SET (NEW)

At Little Pim, we have just come out with an intro gift set to help you give the gift of language to little ones in your life – at a new little price! Our $29.95 intro gift set comes with the Little Pim Spanish DVD 1, Spanish Bop CD and plush panda, all in a see through vinyl tote that can later become a home for doll clothes, blocks or overnight at grandma’s supplies. A terrific value, and provides hours of play and learning.

http://www.littlepim.com/store/spanish-language-for-kids/little-pim-intro-gift-set-spanish/

Happy Shopping!

This week she talks about some of the hurdles she is facing in trying to incorporate French into their daily routine. It’s not as easy as she thought it would be! At the end of the video Roxana’s daughter and I sign a French song together so be sure to watch the whole video. Vanessa est adorable!

Read the blog here: http://www.spanglishbaby.com/2010/10/our-trilingual-adventures-with-little-pim-media/

This week she talks about some of the hurdles she is facing in trying to incorporate French into their daily routine. It’s not as easy as she thought it would be! At the end of the video Roxana’s daughter and I sign a French song together so be sure to watch the whole video. Vanessa est adorable!

Read the blog here: http://www.spanglishbaby.com/2010/10/our-trilingual-adventures-with-little-pim-media/

What will you be dressing up as this year? We’d love to see what your little ones in their Halloween costumes.

For this week’s contest, either post a photo of your child in a Halloween costume (from this year or previous years) on our Facebook wall or email it to info@littlepim.com.

One person will win either Spanish Bop or French Bop! Both CDs feature three original songs by the popular children’s band, Milkshake.

Below are a few Spanish and French Halloween vocabulary words to get you in the spirit of the season!

Spanish

• una arana – spider
• aterrador – scary
• una bruja – witch
• una calabaza – pumpkin
• caramelos – candy

French

• un chat noir – black cat
• une chauve-souris – bat
• une citrouille – pumpkin
• une araignée – spider
• un balai – broom
• des bonbons – candy

*photo from coolhalloweencostumesforkids.net

What will you be dressing up as this year? We’d love to see what your little ones in their Halloween costumes.

For this week’s contest, either post a photo of your child in a Halloween costume (from this year or previous years) on our Facebook wall or email it to info@littlepim.com.

One person will win either Spanish Bop or French Bop! Both CDs feature three original songs by the popular children’s band, Milkshake.

Below are a few Spanish and French Halloween vocabulary words to get you in the spirit of the season!

Spanish

• una arana – spider
• aterrador – scary
• una bruja – witch
• una calabaza – pumpkin
• caramelos – candy

French

• un chat noir – black cat
• une chauve-souris – bat
• une citrouille – pumpkin
• une araignée – spider
• un balai – broom
• des bonbons – candy

*photo from coolhalloweencostumesforkids.net

My older son Emmett (6) must have read those books because he is in a full on frontal defense mode, practically arm wrestling me with his eyes when I try to speak French with him. He says “don’t speak French!” and sometimes covers his ears in case I don’t get it. Happily, he has been hearing French since he was a baby, so even though he’s far from fluent, he’s pretty comfortable and I know that this is just a phase. I can also always speak French to his 2 1/2 year old little brother in ear shot!

Even so, I must admit that it has not been fun. For awhile I stopped speaking French to him, it just didn’t seem worth the battle. This was until last week when I was interviewed by Roxana of SpanglishBaby about helping her get her daughter started on her third language (French). We commiserated about kids occasional resistance to our language (she taught her daughter Spanish), and her persistence inspired me to re-commit to teaching Emmett.

I made a promise to Roxana and to myself that I would speak French at breakfast to my boys every day for two weeks. To make it fun for Emmett I told him that at the end of the two weeks I’d take him out for a special French breakfast ( he loves croissants and chocolat chaud!). That did the trick. Now we are back on track, drinking our ‘jus d’orange‘ in the morning and having ‘du lait s’I'll vous plait‘ in our cereal!

Thanks Roxana!

Too all the moms and dads getting through “No” right now, hang in there and remember to keep it fun! Make up a new game or offer a special treat but don’t give up. They will thank you later if you keep it up.

Watch my video blog with Roxana below.