What Is Your Language? - Picture Book & KID KANDY

What Is Your Language?
Song by Debra Leventhal
Pictures by Monica Wellington
(Scholastic Inc., 1999)

Musical notes are included for this book you can sing. If you can't play a piano, don't let that stop you. One can enjoy reading the book aloud just as much.

What Is Your Language? is the story of a little boy who goes on a long trip around the world to meet new friends. At each stop, he asks his new friends to tell him their language. The friends, dressed in simplified traditional clothes, answer the boy and use the word for 'yes' in their own language. After many stops and new friends, the boy must return home. Now all of the friends respond with 'no' in their language, "Don't go!"

Of course, the boy has to go home. But the reader can tell how much he learned on his international journey just by looking at his room.

What Is Your Language? is a simple and fun language book. Though readers will only learn yes and no in several different languages, they will see clothing and some of the attractions from each country the boy visits. The last page of the book gives a pronunciation guide and tells a little about languages around the world (for adults or older readers).

What Is Your Language? is a great book to introduce young children to different languages and new friends that live around the world.

KID KANDY:

Adopt a Country!

~ Let your child choose a country about which he or she is interested. Adopt it!

~ Check out library books to read more about your country.

~ Search online for tourist sites featuring your country. Find language links that let you listen to the spoken language of the country. Listen and practice some words.

~ Go out to dinner at a restaurant that serves foods from your country.

~ Collect dress-up clothes that look like traditional clothes from your country. Play dress-up.

~ Adults: Start a Pinterest board about your country. Search for pins and pin them to the board. This is a great source of images specific to countries. Show the board to your child.

~ Enjoy learning about other countries and people.

Angie Quantrell likes to use Pinterest to collect ideas and images from other countries. A few simple clicks and it's almost like you are visiting in person. Almost. Maybe she needs to prepare some of the traditional foods so it will also taste like she is visiting.