Top 10 Books for Non-English Speakers

I am happy to participate in this wonderful project – Top 10 Holiday Lists –  initiated by Little Bins for Little Hands and joined by few bloggers from Kid Blogger Network !

Please join us as we share with you are favorite books, games, building toys, pretend play toys, crafting supplies or kits, and stocking stuffers (without food)! Each participating blog will create their own unique list each week for each of the categories so be sure to see what everyone has to offer. You will find all the links below to visit each website. Pin and share for all to see. Happy Holidays!

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Today I bring you Top 10 Books for Non-English Speakers!

How did I decide on these books? Very simple. Being a non-English speaker myself (not a Native at least), I raise a multilingual and multicultural family. Our book shelf is a happy mess of Russian, English and Chinese books. Both my husband and I are ESL teachers and we use the books we have at home for both our children and our students. Our children are more Native English speakers than I am (because their first language is English, not Russian).

The following 10 books and series are very popular among our students aged between 1.5 and 12 years old. These books are not written or published specifically for non-English speakers but they are great for them nevertheless!

1. Ladybird series. All books are amazing and I whenever I have a chance get these books! Visit Ladybird website to learn more about these amazing series!

2. You just can’t avoid including Dr. Seuss’s books! While most of them are quite difficult for beginners to comprehend, these 2 are old time favorite and I adapted them to read for both little ones and older students I work with.

3. Another great set of series – Maisy  Mouse! All Maisy books are written in very simple language suitable for younger and older children and they are absolutely loved by parents of my students and students themselves. This is one example of Maisy series – Maisy’s Christmas Eve.

4. Nursery Rhymes. You can’t learn English without learning them! This is one example of the nursery rhymes collection but there are just so many! I love chanting and singing them with my students along with showing them the colorful pages!

5. I have to recommend these series by Child’s Play (International) Limited and any similar books you can find. They are called “Life size companions to Pocket Pals”. They are almost real size interactive books about animals and they are a huge hit with my children and my students ages from 1 to 6 years old! They give a brief description of the particular animal and written in very simple language.

6. This lovely books – Five Shiny Bugs – is a part of Baby Gold Star Series. I love how simple it is and it also has a sensory part to it – the bugs are made of fabric which is great for younger children who are explore the book as they listen to the story.

7. We love this book by Cressida Cowell! What I do with my students, after becoming familiar with the book and vocabulary, I offer them to replace tigers by other animals and of course trees and branches by other animals’ natural habitats. It become a fun way to read and learn!

8. We got this book before we ever learned who The Wiggles were! It is a fun interactive book full of sensory experience to assist learning country and extra vocabulary with the children.

9. This books is for younger children and also for when you learn various verbs of movement.

10. This is just a fun book that I like myself and if you ever find it – it is a good gift too! It teaches about being brave and also has a good vocabulary.