El día de los niños/El día de los libros
El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Day of the Child/Day of the Book), also known as "Día", is a celebration based on childhood and literacy that began in 1997. Borrowing from the traditional Mexican holiday "El día de los niños," the American version expanded to include literacy when acclaimed author Pat Mora took up the cause in 1997 with the support of REFORMA. The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is a major partner for Día.
Meet Día Founder Pat Mora!
Día Celebrates Its Anniversary!
Hear more from Pat in this special feature from School Library Journal, as well as in the prestigious Arbuthnot lecture that she delivered in April, 2016.
Video Interview: Pat Mora on Día's First 15 Years
Pat discusses the way Día has grown and changed, as well as the resources she has gathered to help more libraries and schools celebrate Día around the country.
Planning a Día Celebration
These online resources provide recommended ideas and activities for teachers and librarians, as well as examples from successful Día events around the country. They include a number of materials in Spanish.
- Pat Mora: Plan Your Día Celebration!
- Pat Mora: Dia Planning Flier
- Association of Library Services for Children: Día Website
- National Latino Children's Institute: Día Celebration Website
- Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Día Celebration Ideas
- Texas Library Association: Día Celebration Toolkit and Resources for Teachers and Librarians
- Random House: Día Brochure, Bookmarks, and Activities
- ReadWriteThink: Día Classroom Activities
- At Your Library: Día Information
Learn how the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County in North Carolina transformed their Día celebration from a small library program into a statewide initiative in this article written by Dr. Jamie Campbell Naidoo and Irania Patterson.
Take a look at these Día ideas for teachers!
Authors and Illustrators Discuss Día
Authors and illustrators discuss Día in these Colorín Colorado video interviews! For the complete interviews as well as additional featured authors and illustrators, see our Meet the Authors section.
Related Activities for Día
Bilingual books, games, & activities
- Colorín Colorado: Bilingual children's booklists by theme
- Colorín Colorado: Bilingual activity sheets in English and Spanish
- Reading Rockets: Bilingual themed reading adventure packs
- Reading Rockets: Start with a Book website
- Texas State Library and Archives Commission: Tell Me a Story
Colorín Colorado guides for parents
- Reading Activities at Home
- Parent Reading Tips in 11 languages
- Tip Sheet: The Resources at Your Library
- Visit Your Local Library!
- Retelling Stories
- Using Cognates to Develop Comprehension in English
- Spanish phrases for the classroom (PDF)