2007 Printable Manual - Texas State Library and Archives ...

Sail Away With Books!
Introduction”
Bilingual Programs Chapter
By Paola Ferate-Soto
¡Navega lejos con libros!
There are probably as many ways to present bilingual programs as there are personalities,
presenters, and audiences.
Sometimes librarians feel a great need to translate familiar English rhymes into Spanish.
The familiarity is beneficial for English-speaking children attending bilingual storytimes
for the first time. They don’t feel as insecure in the new language environment. For
Spanish-speaking children, this can also be positive because it introduces to them
children’s songs of the North American culture in a way that they can understand. And
the next time they hear them in English, they will remember what the songs and rhymes
are about.
However, if a program consists only of translations of English rhymes and songs,
librarians may be doing the children a disservice. Latin American culture is filled with
songs, rhymes, hand games, riddles, and poetry. These should also be introduced to
Spanish and English-speaking audiences as you will be giving them the gift of their own
culture. Many of our Spanish-speaking patrons come from families in which they heard
none of these. In some cases, their parents, and their grandparents before them, may have
had very little formal education. The rhymes and songs and the love for reading may
never have been passed down because the parents were constantly working. For us as
librarians and educators, passing down these songs and rhymes in Spanish is just as
important as passing down Mother Goose rhymes. They help Spanish-speaking children
maintain a sense of their own culture, and the children’s background is enriched. This can
be done even if you yourself are not a Spanish speaker, either by having guest presenters
or parents or teachers in the audience present the rhymes and songs, or by playing CDs or
tapes during the program.
Something to consider is that the sense of poetry and meter cannot usually be
successfully translated from one language to another. It is a very talented person who can
translate a rhyme. Although there is a time and a place for using translations, many times
the best solution is to choose a rhyme in the other language that has the same idea or
theme, but that is traditional to that language. For example, for a unit on farms, librarians
might do a better service to the children by using the traditional song, “Vamos a ver mi
granja” rather than translating “Old MacDonald” into Spanish. It has very different
music, but the main idea of the various animals and the sounds they make is the same.
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