Bilingual contemporary stories are useful tools for teaching and learning foreign languages and English as a Second Language. They also provide a fun way to expose children to traditions in other cultures (see Wibbly Wobbly Tooth, Mei Ling's Hiccups, Welcome to the World Baby).
Some stories are particularly good for helping children appreciate diversity and build self-esteem and self-confidence (Floppy, Floppy's Friends, That's My Mum, All Kinds of Beliefs could all be used in diversity education programs). Others will make them comfortable with new situations (Nita Goes to Hospital, Sahir Goes to the Dentist, Tom and Sofia Start School) or help them deal with their feelings and fears (Flash, Bang, Wheee!, Sam's First Day, Ellie's Secret Diary, All Kinds of Feellings).
There are classic books that can help kids learn about numbers (Handa's Hen), colors (Brown Bear, Brown Bear) foods (Lima's Red Hot Chilli, Very Hungry Caterpillar, Handa's Surprise), animals (Walking Through the Jungle, Splash!, Dear Zoo), and more. Others are just fun to read and sing with your children (Wheels on the Bus, Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes).
The characters in the stories reflect the racial, ethnic and cultural diversity in our communities and some stories include beautiful illustrations of settings around the world (e.g. Jamaica, Africa). The dual language books are available in English with Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Farsi, French, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, japanese, Korean, Kurdish, Panjabi, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian, Shona, Somali, Spanish, Swahili, Tagalog, Tamil, Turkish, Twi, Urdu, Vietnamese, Yoruba and more.
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