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There is truly nothing like having friends.
Growing up with friends, sharing experiences, bonding with each other, and eventually becoming adult friends has so many benefits. Friendships will boost your happiness especially when they are lifelong friends.
My son is an only-child, and I strive to make sure he has friends. He actually has some very close friends since he was a toddler, and although at times its hard for them to meet-up because of the parent’s busy schedule (including myself) he knows they are his friends.
Cecilia and Miguel are Best Friends / Cecilia y Miguel son mejores amigos is a beautiful children’s book that precisely focuses on a lifelong friendship.
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| Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book for the purpose of reviewing it. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review. All opinions are my own. |
Written by author Diane Gonzales Bertrand and illustrated by Thelma Muraida they created an album of memories that reflect their shared Mexican-American childhood in San Antonio, Texas: swinging at birthday party piñatas, breaking cascarones over friends’ heads and dancing at quinceañeras.
Publisher Synopsis
Cecilia and Miguel are best friends, and have been since the third grade when he gave her bunny ears in the class picture. Their life-long friendship is recorded in warm recollections of bike races and soccer games, beach time and fishing from the pier.
Their closeness endures separation, even when he drove north to college and she drove west. The relationship evolves and grows, but remains strong even when … he dropped the ring and she found it inside her flan … he set up one crib and she told him they need two … the twins climb into their bed and beg for another story. In this celebration of friendship, best friends forgive mistakes, share adventures and sometimes even become family!
I love this book for so many reasons! As a mamá raising a multicultural child I love being able to read a book with my child that he can relate to. The kids in the book look like him, and he can actually connect with the characters of the book. In this book you’ll find themes such as, friendship, culture, and most importantly the book is in both English and Spanish!
I am always looking for diverse and multicultural books. So having the opportunity to review this beautiful children’s book was more than I asked for!
Now for some fun activities that your child and friends!
Remember I told you that my son has friends since he was a toddler? How about having your toddler create an easy friendship art with his/her friend from Teaching 2 and 3 Year Olds.
Friendship bracelets seem to be a hit with older kids.
This 2 minute twisted bracelet from Twitchetts is super easy to make. Maria Magdalena Living Ideas has another fun do-it-yourself friendship bracelet while Mother Natured has this natural wood slice bracelet that kids can help decorate (adult assistance is required). Kid World Citizen shares a cool shrinky dink bracelets that the kids will enjoy making.
Looking for something different? This beautiful friendship pin craft from Kitchen Counter Chronicles is beautiful, and a unique craft for kids.
Munchkins and Moms has a great post on friendship art. This is another activity that both younger and older children can enjoy together.
What about an ice cream craft that reveals friendship words from To Be A Kid Again? My son will go crazy with this!
What’s cooking or not? ?
How about making a friendship bread together with this simple recipe from Kid World Citizen or a yummy strawberry cream cheese wrap from Mommy Maestra.
The kids can also make a yummy frozen sweet treat from Mama Smiles. The kids will surely bond over this friendship ice cream.
While I do realize my son was able to make friends as young as a toddler, not all children are the same. The Preschool Tool Box Blog shares some great ttips for helping preschoolers be a good friend.
Hope you and your kids enjoy this book, and the activities in this post, and may they continue to nurture lifelong friendships.
Mission
Our mission is to not only raise awareness for the kid’s books that celebrate diversity, but to get more of these of books into classrooms and libraries.
Children’s reading and play advocates Valarie Budayr from Jump Into a Book and Mia Wenjen from Pragmatic Mom have teamed up to create an ambitious (and much needed) national event. On January 27th, Jump into a Book and Pragmatic Mom will be presenting yet another Multicultural Children’s Book Day as a way of celebrating diversity in children’s books.
Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day, Mia and Valarie are on a mission to change all of that. Their mission is to not only raise awareness for the kid’s books that celebrate diversity, but to get more of these types of books into classrooms and libraries. Another goal of this exciting event is create a compilation of books and favorite reads that will provide not only a new reading list for the winter, but also a way to expose brilliant books to families, teachers, and libraries.
Multicultural Children’s Book Day will include book reviews from noted bloggers all over the world, giveaways and book-related activities for young readers of all ages. The MCCBD team is also offering teachers and librarian the chance to earn a FREE hardcover multicultural book for their classroom and library shelves. As a new incentive to schools, the Junior Library Guild has signed as a major sponsor of MCCBD and together we have launched the joint Classroom Diversity Reading Challenge.
Source: Teddy bear image