These two books, one completely written in English and the other completely in Spanish are writeen by Alma Flor Ada and illustrated by F. Isabel Campoy. These books are informational texts as well as being being counting books and narrative stories. Because of the various text themes throughout these books, they can be used with children as young as prekindergarten and as old as high school. The main theme of these books is art. Each page contains a different piece of real Latino/Mexican art work as well as a short narrative piece containing the days of the week as well as the seasons and a portion counting things from the featured painting.
These two books are authentic for many reasons. Each piece of art featured throughout the texts was made by a native Mexican or from someone who has spent time in Mexico or has Latino/Mexican heritage. This makes the book authentic because all the art work portrays real life aspects of Mexico or Mexican life. Each book lists the artists and a small background as well as explaining the paintings used throughout the texts. This allows the reader to gain knowledge of accurate Latino/Mexican life and heritage.
These books can be used with all ages, from children learning to count to adults studying Mexican artwork or artists. Before reading, the teacher can introduce both books to the children and have them try to figure out the two languages used and compare the language. During reading, the teacher could have the children stop and discuss the paintings that interest them and talk about what they think it may mean or why the artist painted this particular piece. After reading, the teacher could have the children choose their favorite piece of artwork and research more about the artist or the particular painting and then depending on the age of the children, they could try to reproduce or mimic the artist's work.
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