Con el tiempo, las familias recogen innumerables historias, momentos y recuerdos que no siempre tienen un principio o fin claro. Pero esos recuerdos son lo que nos hace ser quienes somos, y es importante atesorarlos—tanto los que ya tenemos como los nuevos que creamos. Una forma de hacerlo es comenzando una nueva tradición familiar: el Día de la Memoria.
Entonces, ¿qué es exactamente una tradición familiar? En pocas palabras, una tradición familiar es la historia de nuestra familia—nuestras experiencias compartidas, los recuerdos que tenemos de nuestros padres, abuelos e hijos, y los momentos que nos unen. Pero, ¿por qué son tan importantes las tradiciones? Nos ayudan a mantenernos conectados con nuestras raíces, reflejan nuestros valores y refuerzan el sentido de unidad en nuestra familia.
Hagamos que sea una parte divertida y regular de nuestras vidas volver a visitar nuestras tradiciones familiares y crear nuevos recuerdos cada mes. Ya sea a través de una actividad, cocinar una comida, crear una imagen o simplemente compartir historias, el Día de la Memoria nos permite honrar el pasado mientras creamos algo nuevo con nuestros seres queridos.
Aquí te contamos cómo empezar:
Escoge un día cada mes en el que todos en la familia puedan reunirse—ya sea una tarde de fin de semana, una noche después de la cena, o un tiempo libre en el calendario.
Comienza con algo visual—una foto, un dibujo o un objeto que tenga significado en tu familia. Deja que inspire conversaciones sobre tradiciones pasadas.
Disfruta el momento. Tómate el tiempo para rememorar, reír y compartir recuerdos. Esto se trata de vincularse y crear conexiones.
Hazlo oficial. Añade tu Día de la Memoria al calendario como un evento mensual recurrente, para que se convierta en una tradición.
¿Necesitas inspiración? Puedes consultar nuestra colección de libros, actividades y kits sobre tradiciones familiares, incluyendo nuestras Mochilas Bilingües que cuentan con recursos sobre tradiciones familiares, música, comida y más. Estos kits están disponibles en nuestras sucursales o en el catálogo en línea.
Cada familia tiene una historia que contar—¡asegurémonos de que nunca olvidemos contarla!
Over time, families collect countless stories, moments, and memories that don’t always have a clear beginning or end. But those memories are what make us who we are, and it’s important to cherish them—both the ones we have and the new ones we create. One way to do this is by starting a new family tradition: Memory Day.
So, what exactly is a family tradition? Simply put, a family tradition is the story of our family—our shared experiences, the memories we have of our parents, grandparents, and children, and the moments that bind us together. But why are traditions so important? They help us stay connected to our roots, reflect our values, and reinforce the sense of unity in our family.
Let’s make it a fun, regular part of our lives to revisit our family traditions and make new memories each month. Whether through an activity, cooking a meal, creating a picture, or simply sharing stories, Memory Day allows us to honor the past while creating something new with our loved ones.
Here’s how you can get started:
Pick a day each month when everyone in the family can come together—perhaps a weekend afternoon, an evening after dinner, or a free time on the calendar.
Begin with something visual—a picture, a drawing, or an object that holds meaning in your family. Let it spark conversations about memories and traditions.
Enjoy the moment. Take time to reminisce, laugh, and share memories. This is all about bonding and creating connections.
Make it official. Add your Memory Day to the calendar as a recurring monthly event, so it becomes a tradition.
Need inspiration?
Borrow a Bilingual Backpack. These backpacks feature resources about family traditions, music, food, and more. These kits are available at our branches or online catalog.
Have you ever experienced storytelling without a book, perhaps storytelling through a radio or podcast? What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you listen to a story?
Our imagination goes wild because of all the fantastic visuals we create as we listen to the story. Young children enjoy storytelling because they can ask questions, be detailed, and add to the story. Experience the joy of storytelling with the Yolo County Library Dial-A-Story/ Telecuento services.
YCL Dial-A-Story features stories for children 3-8 years old.
You can choose to hear a story in English or Spanish. Try it by calling 530-298-9990
Here are some other benefits children gain from storytelling:
– Develop listening skills.
– Develop vocabulary.
– Develop an understanding of storytelling, e.g. sequence of events.
In this backpack, you will find various books of traditional stories that you will enjoy reading with your children. The backpack contains picture books, a puppet, and a felt board.
¿Alguna vez has experimentado la narración de historias sin un libro, tal vez a través de una radio o un podcast? ¿Qué es lo primero que te viene a la mente cuando escuchas una historia?
Nuestra imaginación se vuelve loca debido a todas las fantásticas imágenes que creamos mientras escuchamos la historia. A los niños pequeños les gusta contar cuentos porque pueden hacer preguntas, ser detallistas y agregar a la historia. Nuestra Biblioteca del Condado de Yolo cuenta con servicios de Dial-A-Story / Telecuento.
Este mes de atención es nuestra mochila bilingüe de alfabetización temprana, Cuentos Tradicionales; En esta mochila encontrarás varios libros de cuentos tradicionales que disfrutarás leyendo con tus hijos en casa. La mochila contiene libros ilustrados, una marioneta y un objeto de fieltro.
Whether your little one is stepping inside the classroom for the first time ever or for the first time since last year’s virtual learning, these first couple of weeks in school are sure to be a mix of nerves and excitement. This last year no doubt tested the patience of kids of all ages and caregivers alike. So much change in so little time is difficult to process! Reading together invites the opportunity to talk about school expectations. Sharing stories can help identify and tackle any fears so that your little one can start off school on the right foot.
A story that reminds us it’s okay to be different and have the courage to stand out and tell your story, even if not everyone understands because in our differences we find similarities.
Asiya is wearing a Hijab for the first time in school. Though kids at school bully Asiya, her mother’s words and her little sister’s admiration give her strength to be her true self.
Little Bat is excited about night school but soon finds it difficult to make friends. He retreats into a cubby where Ophelia the possum is also hiding. Together they meet other nocturnal buddies and learn how to make friends.
Sophie’s world is changing; it seems scary and she’s worried about going outside. With her Grandfather, they make masks for her entire neighborhood. This book teaches kids the importance of wearing masks to keep everyone safe.
It is no secret that anti-immigrant rhetoric has increasingly been normalized over the recent years and utilized as a scapegoat to attack BIPOC (Black Indigenous People of Color) communities. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie once said: “…show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become.” Well, the narrative about the job takers, the criminals, the worst of the worst has stuck and it’s here to stay.
Within our own immigrant communities, however, we’ve always heard of the gut-wrenching stories about undocumented children in detention centers. At quinceañeras and family gatherings, we’ve always heard the Tias whispering to one another about how “so and so’s father” had their naturalization certificate torn into little tiny pieces and got taken by the Migra, the border patrol feet away from American soil. We’ve heard of all the atrocities that occur long before any foot is ever set on this imaginary line that separates us from a good and ordinary life.
It wasn’t until July of 2019 when the outcry of activists and whistleblowers finally put a spotlight on these issues for the rest of the country. Reports about the unsanitary and unsafe conditions children as young as five months old endure in these so-called detention centers led to an ongoing conversation that keeps unraveling the harsh reality. The traumatization of undocumented children furthers when they have to face the reality that they might have to appear in court often without legal representation resulting in a high probability of being sent back to the country they fled from or a country that is completely foreign to them.
Whether they are part of the 29,792 unaccompanied minors who were apprehended in the fiscal year 2021 alone or part of the 16.7 million people who have at least one undocumented family member in their household, their story matters and it must be told. However, according to the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC), which has been documenting statistics on diversity in children’s books, of the 3,682 children’s books they reviewed in 2018, 252 depicted Latinx characters and only 207 books were written or illustrated by Latinx creators. The statistics dwindle for other ethnicities compiled in this report. Unfortunately, there just isn’t any data available that compiles any children’s books dealing with the diverse stories about immigrants, refugees, and undocumented folk.
As Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has said: “Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, stories can also be used to empower and to humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity.” These stories should be written accurately and they should be written by those who’ve lived through them. These stories must be told not only so that those who may not understand learn to empathize, but so that those whose legal definition blurs can see themselves reflected and begin to heal some of their trauma.
Here are 5 excellent books I recommend to start off with:
This story is from the perspective of a child who uses counting as a coping mechanism to distract herself from the difficult experiences in her journey to a new country. Though never mentioned in the book, both she and her dad are most likely Guatemalan refugees as Guatemalan worry dolls are shown at the beginning of the book, and illustrations of soldiers are sprinkled throughout the book. She also travels via train, most likely alluding to the infamously dangerous train dubbed as The Beast that runs from Guatemala all the way to the United States.
In this story, we follow Estrella whose father has been recently deported to their country of origin. She wishes people around her knew how her life has been affected by his absence. Her teacher notices she is withdrawn and distraught so she creates a safe space to talk about the things Estrella and her other students wish they knew. This gives Estrella the courage to share not only how much she misses her dad but also about the things they did together that brought her joy.
This story parallels Estrella’s story as Jose’s mom is also unexpectedly deported back to Mexico. Jose’s family lives close to The Tijuana US-Mexico border so Jose and his dad travel through the border to see his mom. Mama doesn’t know when she will come back to the United States. Jose and his dad must return to their home in the US without Mama. This is a book that tells the stories of countless children in between two borders.
Saya’s mom is sent to a detention center for being undocumented. It’s been a long time since her mom’s been home and the only thing she finds comfort in is her mother’s greeting on the answering machine. After Saya accidentally deletes the answering machine greeting, Mama sends bedtime stories inspired by Haitian folklore on a cassette tape. Saya decides she will write a story of her own, one that could potentially help get her mother back home.
Henri’s uncle invites him and his parents to leave Haiti and come to New York City to live with him. Hoping for a better life, Henri and his parents leave on an old rickety boat. The boat overturns in the middle of a storm and Henri’s parents float further away as he calls to them. When he finally makes it to his uncle’s home in New York, he becomes withdrawn, unable to speak. One day he takes a bucket and uses it as a drum. It calls to him so he starts using it to cope and express his emotions.
This book is written by Areli Morales, a DACA ( Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient who shares her own story as an undocumented immigrant child. In this moving picture book, Areli has to leave her home and Abuelita, to join her parents and her older brother Alex in New York. After her classmates bully her for not knowing English she learns about the term “Illegal”. Areli struggles with this imposed identity and the heavy consequences that could arise should anyone find out about her legal status. In the end, we see Areli give herself permission to dream and to exist just as she is.
The conversations you have with your child are creating a (1) rich vocabulary, (2) creative thinking, (3) conversation skills (e.g., taking turns, listening), (4) self-awareness and expression, and an attending mindset (e.g., making eye contact, body language, reacting by smiling, etc.).
Building a storytelling, reading, and singing routine is a quick way to boost your child’s early literacy skills. Parents can also engage their children by discussing what items to put in their cart at the grocery store. For example, you could discuss what the household is making for dinner, the array of colors you see in the food packages, and the texture of fruits and vegetables. Use descriptive words such as “smooth, shiny” or “fuzzy, soft”.
Reading a wordless book can give you and your child a chance to make up your own story.
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We acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory and homelands of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation. For more information, please go to: www.yochadehe.gov
