LITTLE PIM BLOG
Bilingual Kids in the News!
Last week, our friend Ana Flores of SpanglishBaby made an appearance on NBC's Today Show to talk about raising bilingual kids and the importance of starting early. #BilingualKids swiftly became a hot topic on twitter, and we want to keep the conversation going. First, watch the video in which Ana and Columbia professor Erika Levy make the case for bilingual kids. Note, especially, how adamantly professor Levy dispels the myth that bilingual children start speaking later than monolingual children – good news for all!
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
If you'd like to continue to explore the topic of bilingual kids in the news, here are two informative articles from the last two weeks.
- This Huffington Post piece by Dr. Gail Gross delves into the effects language can have on babies before they are born. Even in the womb, babies can begin to distinguish their mothers' voices and languages!
- And this recent article in TIME Magazine also reveals how different languages affect the way children process and analyze information. The more languages they learn how to balance, the more analytical tools they have!
5 DIY Halloween Costumes with Global Appeal
Looking for some inspiration for your family's Halloween costumes this year? Pull out the globe and give it a spin. With a little inspiration from our great DIY globally-inspired options below, and a few accessories, your kids’ costumes will be United Nations worthy in no time.
1. Harajuku Girls, Japan -- Here’ an opportunity to open up the costume chest and go wild. Fun-loving Harajuku girls are known for their creative style of dress and love of all things kitsch --- to channel their irrepressible style into a unique Halloween costume, think layers: Start with striped knee socks, layered crinoline skirts, and a Hello Kitty tee or the like. Then add HIGH pigtails tied with bows and layer on the plastic accessories. Add some glittery makeup and you’re ready to rock the trick-or-treat block.
2. Gondolier, Italy – This is an easy and memorable costume. To start, your little gondolier will need a striped shirt and black pants, plus a round-rimmed hat (party stores often have inexpensive Styrofoam versions). Take a trip to the trim department of the craft store for thick red ribbon (about 6 inches across) for a waist sash and a thinner red ribbon to tie around the base of the hat. Then add a broom, small oar, or even a long dowel to stand in for an oar. Extra points for crooning “Amore”.
3. Frida Kahlo, Mexico – The beloved Mexican artist had a unique look that’s easy and fun to recreate. Pick up a felt mustache at the party store and stick between the eyebrows (conversely, use an eyebrow pencil to create a uni-brow). Tuck brightly colored silk, paper, or plastic flowers in a wreath around the hair. Add a fringed shawl around the shoulders and wear a peasant skirt and brightly colored shirt. Palette optional.
4. Ninja, Japan – A comfy, easy, and easily recognizable costume for boys or girls. Start with black pajamas, black sweats, karate gear, or a black fitted tee and soft pants. Take a plain black head scarf and wrap tightly around the head and covering the brows, and then another around the mouth and chin. At the craft store, purchase red masking tape and the use it to create a criss-cross pattern on lower legs and arms. Add a red sash, and you’re ready to stealthily sneak down the block.
5.French chef– Start with largest white chef hat you can find (party stores sell inexpensive paper ones you can personalize with glitter and markers to say FRANCE or the fine cuisine destination of your choice). A white chef’s coat would be perfect here, but you can improvise with a white karate top, or even long sleeve white tee and a large white apron. Tie a red kerchief tied around the neck, the use plastic measuring cups or spoons or plastic food to accessorize. Bon appetit!
Celebrate Columbus Day with Little Pim
“In fourteen hundred and ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue….” This childhood ditty is often what first comes to mind when you hear it's Columbus Day. But there’s more to the day, which became a Federal holiday in 1934, than the basic facts of the catchy song. It’s also an opportunity to celebrate Columbus’ Italian roots, and the holiday is an important part of Italian-American heritage. Many Italian Americans festeggiare (celebrate) the day by watching or participating in a parade (New York City’s is the largest in the world), enjoying traditional Italian foods, and of course, recounting the amazing tale of Christopher Columbus’ journey to discover the New World. (Kids especially love to hear about the voyage of Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.)
It’s also a great excuse for any family to practice Italian and cook up a feast.
Get started by having kids, grandparents, parents --- anyone who’s at home --- whip up Marinara Sauce, which translates to “the sauce of the sailors” in Italian. It’s the perfect way to celebrate Columbus Day with your whole family. Have the kids help in the kitchen by adding seasonings to the pot and stirring the sauce (with adult supervision of course). Mangia! (Eat up!)
COLUMBUS DAY MARINARA SAUCE
- In a large pot, sauté one chopped onion in three tablespoons of olive oil until translucent. Add 3 cloves of chopped garlic, ½ a teaspoon of dried oregano and ½ a teaspoon of dried basil. Cook until garlic softens, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add 1 large can of diced tomatoes (29 oz) and 1 large can of tomato puree (29 oz), season with salt and pepper and 2 tablespoon of sugar. Stir frequently while sauce comes to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
- Serve over any pasta shape you like best.
(adapted from Around The World Cookbook by Abigail Johnson Dodge)
Allons Chanter! French Sing Along at the Brooklyn Library
Come one, come all to Little Pim's latest French Sing Along at the Brooklyn Library! On Saturday, October 5th, from 1-1:45pm, join Little Pim and friends for a French Sing Along at The Brooklyn Central Public Library! This free activity will be fun for French-speaking and non-French-speaking families alike. Your kids will be able to sing, dance, and shake maracas along to some of their favorite French Bop songs... and maybe even learn some new ones!
Singers and guitarists will be leading the performance of French Little Pim songs. Your kids will love the singing and dancing, and will learn some French too! We look forward to seeing you there!
Address: 10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn, NY 11238 (Easily accessible to the 2 and 3 trains)
The Little Pim Kickstarter is Live!
Aaaand we're live! We've only got 30 days to make our goal, so let's make 'em count. We can't do this without your amazing support so click below to learn a little more about the Little Pim ebook Kickstarter, make your pledge, and share with your friends!
What Is Kickstarter?
- It’s a website where anyone can pitch a creative project. So we’re pitching our ebook!
- If you think it’s a good idea, you can back the project. Donations of ALL sizes are welcome
- If you back a project with a donation, you get a reward! Our rewards, which would make great holiday gifts, include pre-orders of the ebook, getting your child drawn in as a character, and lots of other surprises in between…
- If we reach our goal, we get the funds we need to make the ebook and you get your rewards!
- If we don’t make our goal, we get nothing and you don’t get a reward. You also won’t be charged. It’s all or nothing on Kickstarter.
The Portuguese Complete Set is Finally Here!
Almost... ...but you won't have to wait for it that much longer! Portuguese DVDs and flashcards are set to hit the warehouse any day now, and we're as excited as you are. So, starting this week, Little Pim will be accepting pre-orders on the Portuguese Complete Set:
Orders will start shipping on October 15th, but if you've been waiting for this day, why wait any longer? Before you know it, your kids could be asking, "Outra Vez!" Each Portuguese Complete Set includes the first volume of Little Pim DVDs ("eating and drinking," "wake up smiling," and "playtime"), the brand new Portuguese flashcards, a colorful multi-lingual poster, and the classic, soft Little Pim plush. To start a little smaller with your child's learning, the Discovery Set is also available for pre-order in Portuguese.
This is a magical time for new products, so stay tuned for more exciting announcements!
Little Pim Is Making an Ebook!
Leaves may be starting to fall, but it’s still somehow hard to believe that the holiday season is nearly upon us again. As you know, giving your kids the gift of a foreign language early will have a positive impact for years to come… and so will introducing your kids to the cultures and countries that speak those languages. This holiday season Little Pim is making an ebook that will feature beautiful illustrations of our favorite panda visiting his friends in Mexico, France, Brazil, and China! …Maybe.
Unfortunately, airfare for pandas can be prohibitively expensive. That’s why we’ve decided to launch a Kickstarter to produce our first ever holiday ebook! The amazing rewards make perfect holiday gifts. Here’s a sneak peek at a few of our favorites:
- Pre-orders of the ebook! (Delivered in time for the holidays, naturally.)
- A special thank you included in every copy of the book!
- A copy of the ebook plus your child gets drawn in as a character! Wow!
- And lots of other surprises…
The campaign should be going live next week, so please keep your eyes peeled for updates… and tell your friends! We'll be sharing more links and information in the coming weeks.
Looking back at some of our old blog posts, you can see that Little Pim has grown tremendously over the last few years, and your continued support will help us make our next big leap… over the ocean!
New Release: A Second Set of Flash Cards!
You might notice something new when you shop Spanish, French, or Chinese today. Okay, go down… up… a little to the right… there! Our second volume of flash cards is out! Do you see them?
This beautiful set of cards is chock-full of brand new images of Little Pim ready to teach kids some of the new words that appear in the second volume of Little Pim videos. They can be used on their own or along with the videos ("at home," "feelings," and "let's count!") to teach and reinforce words related to mealtime, playtime, and emotions.
And by the way, the first volume of flash cards is coming soon in Arabic and Portuguese!
Make a Peace Crane for International World Peace Day
Learning a new language makes the world feel like a smaller place: being able to communicate in a foreign language helps kids make new friends both when they’re traveling and here at home while giving them insight into cultures around the globe. These basic principles are the heart of the International Day of Peace created by the United Nation and held every September 21, the fall equinox. With “Education as Peace” as their motto, the United Nation's Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon says, “Education has to cultivate mutual respect for others and the world in which we live, and help people forge more just, inclusive and peaceful societies."
A fun and easy way to participate in this World Peace Day is to create a “Peace Crane” with your children. Directions are below:
Make a Peace Crane Project
1. Find a piece of paper (any type of paper can work, but lighter weight ones will fold more easily)
2. Cut the paper into a perfect square.
3. Write words of peace on one side of the paper. Here are a few ways to say “peace” in Little Pim languages: Paz (Spanish), Paix (French), Frieden (German), Shalom (Hebrew), Pace (Italian), Salam (Arabic)
4. Create an image of peace on the other side of your paper square. (Markers, crayons, or colored pencils will work best, allowing the paper to be folded without smudging or cracking)
5. Fold your paper into an origami crane following the detailed folding instructions here.
6. Exchange your Peace Crane with friends, or give them to a member of your community. Or send a picture of Peace Crane to PeaceCraneProject.org and they’ll add you to their map.
(Instructions courtesy of PeaceCraneProject.org)
4 Eye-opening Articles on Foreign Language Learning
Every week we find ourselves geeking out over all the amazing new information about foreign language learning that we find on the internet. If you’re like us (and we think you might be since… well… here you are), you might sometimes find this wealth of information a little overwhelming. Not to worry, friends! Little Pim is here to help! Each week, we’ll cull the internet for our favorite language (and panda) related articles. This week, for your reading pleasure, four articles about the way language works inside the human brain:
- Your Mind on Language: How Bilingualism Boosts Your Brain. The title of this HuffPo blog post might say it all, but it’s a great read for anyone who wants to read about the science of language without having to wade through all the science-ese. Dan Roitman defines common scientific vocabulary associated with the study of language and also breaks down the way the brain processes language.
- Does Your Language Shape How You Think? You might have seen this piece in the New York Times Magazine! As it turns out, our first language may affect the way we formulate thoughts.
- EastEnders Effect: Watching TV Can Change Your Accent. A curious phenomenon, indeed! The cockney accent (‘ello guvna!) that features prominently in the UK soap opera EastEnders has been slowly sculpting and altering the way the Scottish accent sounds.
- Bilingualism Is Yoga for the Brain. A quick recap on the importance of starting early!
Until next time, read on!
