The Ice Journey/Y Daith Dros Yr Ia
by Grandma Valerie
(Grandma’s Stories Ltd)
This is an unusual book in two ways. Firstly because it’s written in English and Welsh, and secondly because it’s about an unusual history topic: the migration of people after the end of the the last Ice Age and the possibility that some of them travelled from Europe to America. The information is presented partly as fact and partly as a story and is followed by ideas for follow up activities. The whole book is well illustrated with the English text on the left hand page and the equivalent Welsh text on the right hand page. Best for competent readers of one of the languages.
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Danny’s Blog
by Stephen Rabley
(b small publishing)
Danny lives in Borneo where his mother runs an orangutan reserve. When the reserve is threatened by loggers and lack of funds, Danny starts a blog to try to save it. Illustrated in full colour, this fast moving and enjoyable story is written in English and in French or Spanish (depending which version you’re reading). The English is on the right hand of each double page spread and the other language on the left. The author has used the present tense throughout which avoids complex verb problems.
This book should appeal to children of 7 upwards and could be used with much older language learners.
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The Time Twins
by Stephen Rabley
(b small publishing)
When Tom and Sophie go to visit their grandfather, they discover that his new invention is a time machine. Playing with it takes them to Ancient Egypt where, while trying to escape from Tutankhamun’s tomb, they discover the machine has no back button. Their desperate attempts to get home take them to Ancient Rome and Shakespeare’s England before, rather disappointingly, Sophie wakes up and finds it’s all a dream. This book is in the same series as Danny’s Blog with the story told in the present tense in both English and either French or Spanish. On most spreads, the English is on the right and the other language on the left. but on some spreads, the two blocks of language share the same page.
Ages 7+, including much older language learners.
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Alphabet
Illustrated by Louise Comfort
(b small publishing)
The words in this English/French alphabet book are cleverly chosen so that both the English and the French word begin with the same letter. The English word comes first with the French word underneath and below that a guide to the French pronounciation. The book has bright, colourful illustrations and is suitable for the very young or for older beginners.
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Lucy Cat at the Farm
Lucy Cat in Town
by Catherine Bruzzone, illustrated by Clare Beaton
(b small publishing)
In Lucy Cat at the Farm, Lucy meets lots of different the animals and saves them from an angry bull. In Lucy Cat in Town, she goes to a range of different shops before stopping a thief in the market and getting her reward in the toy shop. Each of the books is available in either a French or Spanish version.The story is told in two matching strip cartoons running across the pages with the top strip has the words in French or Spanish and the bottom strip in English. The vocabulary matches that taught in early language lessons so the books are suitable for children
in the early stages of learning a new language. But there is no pronunciation guide so either they or their helper needs to already know how to say the words.
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Buy French version of Lucy Cat in Town from Amazon
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Léo le Chat comes to Play!
by Opal Dunn, illustrated by Cathy Gale
(Frances Lincoln)
This book is written as a conversation between the reader and Léo, who only talks French. The reader’s section has the French in bold and the English translation beside it in italics. Leo’s dialogue is written in French on flaps which the reader lifts to find the English underneath. All the phrases are short and easy and the large, bright illustrations tell the underlying story of Léo’s over-ambitious attempt to skateboard. The pronunciation guide at the end helps parents read the words correctly and provides extra vocabulary for talking about the pictures. Aimed at very young children, it could also find a place in a class library for older ones although the flaps would wear out with constant use. Also available in Spanish as El Gato Leo comes to Play!
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Farben – Colours
by Clare Beaton
(b small publishing)
A lovely book for teddy bear fans with the bonus of learning the German words for colours. There’s a double page spread for each colour, with the only text being the German and English words for that colour. Fun for the library area for young beginners and also for very young naturally bilingual children.
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Clothes – Les vêtements
by Clare Beaton
(b small publishing)
Each double page spread of this book features one item of clothing with the French and English words for it, a picture of a teddy putting it on and another picture of the garment on its own. This approach is too young for older beginners but it’s a good first language book for the very young.
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What’s for Supper?
by Mary Risk, Carol Thompson and Christophe Dillinge
(b small publishing)
Written in both English and French, this beautifully illustrated book tells the story of Dad and the children making supper for Mum. The bilingual approach works well, introducing complicated language points unobtrusively and making the book accessible to reluctant readers and children with special needs. It links well to the curriculum, especially the Qu’est ce qu’on mange topic in QCA years 7/8, and could also be used for younger children learning language. It is rather young for use with a key stage 3 class but is suitable for individual work with children that age.
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Get Dressed, Robbie
by Lone Morton, Anna C Leplar and Christophe Dillinge
(b small publishing)
Another enjoyable bilingual book in English and French, this time telling the tale of Robbie whose ideas of what to wear differ from his mother’s. The pictures add a delightful touch of humour while the text introduces useful vocabulary and some complicated language points. It links well to the curriculum for year 8 and is suitable for learners past the complete
beginner stage as a stand alone book.
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