Bilingual Poetry for Young People

Young people who read or speak a language in addition to English will enjoy seeing poetry in their native (or adopted) language. There are many collections of poetry in Spanish and English available, as well as in other languages, as evidenced by this sample listing below. Try reading them aloud with two readers, one reading each language simultaneously (e.g., Spanish; English), as if written for two voices.

The list begins:

            Alarcón, Francisco X. 1997. Laughing Tomatoes and Other Spring Poems/Jitomates Risuenos y Otros Poemas de Primavera. San Francisco, CA: Children’s Book Press.

Carlson, Lori M.. Ed. 1994. Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing Up Latino in the United States. New York: Henry Holt.

Cashman, Seamus. 2004. Something Beginning with P: New Poems from Irish Poets. Dublin: O’Brien Press.

Luján, Jorge. 2008. Colors! Colores! Ill. by Piet Grobler. Toronto: Groundwood.

Mado, Michio. 1998. The Magic Pocket. New York: McElderry.

For more details, get your copy of The Poetry Teacher’s Book of Lists.

And if you already have the book and would like to offer additions, corrections, or other input, please do so in the COMMENTS area. Thanks!