Sam is fascinated by her new neighbors and their ability to talk with their hands, and when she meets Mai, she starts to learn Filipino sign language so they can communicate.
language and culture
The Words We Share
A young girl helps her dad navigate life in a new country where she understands the language more than he does, in an unforgettable story about communication and community. Angie is used to helping her dad. Ever since they moved to Canada, he relies on her to translate for him from English to Chinese. Angie is happy to help: when they go to restaurants, at the grocery store, and, one day, when her dad needs help writing some signs for his work. Building off her success with her dad’s signs, Angie offers her translation skills to others in their community. She’s thrilled when her new business takes off, until one of her clients says he’s unhappy with her work. When her dad offers to help, she can’t imagine how he could. Working together, they find a surprising solution, fixing the problem in a way Angie never would have predicted. A gorgeously illustrated picture book from up-and-coming author-illustrator Jack Wong (When You Can Swim, Scholastic) that is at once a much-needed exploration of the unique pressures children of immigrants often face, a meditation on the dignity of all people regardless of their differences, and a reminder of the power of empathy
Ella Cara Deloria: Dakota Language Protector
Ella Cara Deloria loved to listen to her family tell stories in the Dakota language. She recorded many American Indian peoples’ stories and languages and shared them with everyone. She helped protect her people’s language for future generations. She also wrote many stories of her own. Her story is a Minnesota Native American life.
Other-Wordly
Discover words to surprise, delight, and enamor. Learn terms for the sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees, for dancing awkwardly but with relish, and for the look shared by two people who each wish the other would speak first.
Work
This series of bilingual books encourages children to ‘imagine words’ and build vocabulary with the aid of pictures in a storytelling setting. By providing words in two language simultaneously, the books create a platform for children to build their own narratives. This helps them use words creatively, and remember them.
What’s Your Story
What’s Your Story is set against the backdrop of the First Settlement of Australia. It describes the friendship of a little orphan boy from England, Leonard, and the friendship he strikes with a little Aboriginal girl called Milba.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 7, Issue 1
Halala Means Welcome: A Book Of Zulu Words (Jump At The Sun)
Introduces words in Zulu, a “musical language with unusual clicking sounds” while following the activities of a boy at home in South Africa.