Hispanic Heritage is Des Plaines’ Heritage, So Let’s Party!

17% of Des Plainesians described themselves as Hispanic or Latino in the 2010 US Census*, and in 2012 over 30% of the children enrolled in District 62 schools spoke Spanish at home. With such a strong Latino presence in our community, Hispanic heritage is our heritage. So why not celebrate it?

Hispanic American Heritage Month runs from September 15th through October 15th. Here are some great ways to share the riches of Latino culture with your kids:

Love guacamole? Why not branch out with other scrumptious Mexican or Latin American dishes? Our Latin American cookbooks make it easy to try new recipes with your kids. Bring the party to your kitchen; check one out today!

Papel picado, piñatas, Guatemalan weaving – Latin American handicrafts may serve as the inspiration for tons of fun craft projects for you and your kids! Check out one of our Latin American craft books, and get out the glue sticks! You don’t have to tell them it’s educational.

Take your child to Latin America without leaving your armchair. Read a book! Stop by our Hispanic American Heritage Month display for great stories set in Latin America, or featuring Latino characters in the U.S. Our display also includes non-fiction titles like the craft and cookbooks mentioned above.

Party at the library! We will be celebrating with these fun events. Bring the whole family!

Dual Language Storytime - September 23, 6:30pm
Enjoy stories and songs in two languages.

Hispanic Heritage Music Night T - October 7, 6:30pm
Sing and dance to music from across Latin America.

Hispanic Heritage Drop in Craft - October 14, 5:30-7:30pm Stop by and create something beautiful from Latin America

Family Loteria (Mexican Bingo) - October 19, 2:00 – 3:00pm
Learn to play Loteria, a traditional Mexican bingo game. You could win a prize!

Cultural understanding is one of the most beautiful gifts you can give to your child, and it’s fun! Come celebrate the gifts Des Plaines has received from Latino culture.

P.S. Coming soon to your library! Stay tuned for more opportunities to celebrate the diverse cultures in our community. Polish American Heritage Month is in October.

*Sources: U.S. Census Data http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_5YR_DP05)

**District 62 Home Language Survey 3011/2012 school year.

Photo Credit: Andy Castro, Flickr.

Exploring Irish Culture

Taking your children to visit the land of their ancestors can be expensive. Fortunately, if your heritage is Irish, this is a great weekend to explore your culture without the cost of a plane ticket.

The 2013 Irish Fest is July 12-14 at the Irish American Heritage Center in Chicago. This festival features music, dance and family activities to explore Irish culture. Admission is a mere fraction of the cost of flying to Ireland.

Recently I learned that July 12 is a major holiday in Northern Ireland. That day is Orangemen's Day which commemorates the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. I also learned that people in in Ireland eat bacon and cabbage to celebrate St. Patrick's day, not the corned beef we eat here. Of course I learned those facts, and many others at the library.

Check out these resources to help you with your explorations.

Foods of Ireland by Barbara Sheen is a great book for learning more about Irish culture through its food.

Ireland by Colleen Sexton is a great introduction for young readers.

Ireland by Melanie Waldron provides a broad overview of the country for slightly older readers.

Irish is one of the languages you can learn online through Our Mango Languages database.

Slán leat. Goodbye for now.

Suburban Mosaic 2010-2011

Valentine's Day is almost here, and no doubt your children are busy making little gifts and cards for family members and classmates. Maybe they are cutting and pasting little pieces of brightly colored paper into a collage or mosaic heart to show you how much they love you. In the loving spirit of this holiday, I'd like to call your attention to Suburban Mosaic, a Cook and Lake County oriented community reading program, and its very special "mosaic" of books for children and adults.

The books that were chosen illustrate how caring people make a difference in diverse multicultural communities such as ours. This month, participating northwest suburban libraries, school districts, and colleges are highlighting six sensitive books through read-alouds, book discussions, and making copies of the books available to you to read on your own. Suburban Mosaic hopes that offering such outstanding book choices to your family will foster cultural understanding and a coming together between neighbors of many different racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds.

This year's selections are:

Pre-K: How to Mend a Broken Wing by Bob Graham

Grades K-3: Listen to the Wind by Greg Mortensen

Grades 4-5: Notes from the Dog by Gary Paulsen

Middle School: Back Home by Julia Keller

High School: Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd

Adult: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Suburban Mosaic has been selecting books such as these for your family since 2004. Information about participating libraries and schools, as well as a complete list of past titles is available on the Suburban Mosaic website. I hope that your family will have the opportunity to share and enjoy one of these exceptional books.