Maria Had a Little Llama / María Tenía Una Llamita

The very popular nursery rhyme “Mary Had A Little Lamb” is retold in a bilingual version featuring a Peruvian girl, Maria, and her little llama.

Both the English and Spanish for each verse appear on the double-page spreads.

Not only does the text facilitate the learning of Spanish words, but

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Peruvian culture is integrated into the charming illustrations also by the author. For example, when the text reads “And everywhere that Maria went, the llama was sure to go” we see a map of Peru behind Maria and her llama.

In addition, Maria is wending her way along the streets with a Peruvian flute as well as maracas. In all of the pictures, Maria wears a bright red chullo, or Andean hat. [Chullos are made from the wool of a variety of animals including llamas. They have distinctive ear-flaps to keep the whole head warm.)

But I only know this because I have a chullo myself. Unlike many books for kids, there is no afterward that explains the many Peruvian scenes and customs shown in the book. However, the intended age group, those still at the nursery rhyme picture book stage, will probably not mind at all.

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This would be a good book to do a lesson on compare and contrast with the traditional version of Mary Had a Little Lamb. Students could do a Venn diagram to list similarities and differences between the two versions.

I enjoyed this multicultural take on a classic American nursery rhyme. I enjoyed the writing and the illustrations the greatest.
The story is written in both English and Spanish which is beneficial to both English Language Learners and Spanish Language Learners. The text is clearly separated, the

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English text is closer to the top of the page and in bold font, to help distinguish the differences between the two languages.
The illustrations enhance the story and help with the comprehension of the text. Each illustration accompanies the appropriate section of the story. For example, for the line “And everywhere that Maria went, the llama was sure to go” a map of all of the places that Maria and her llama have visited is illustrated.
The main idea of this story was to tell the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb” from a Spanish speaker's point of view. “Maria Had a Little Llama” allows Latino students to relate to the classic American nursery rhyme.

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I enjoyed reading “Maria had a Little Llama” for three main reasons: the plot, the illustrations, and the writing style. The story is about a young Spanish girl named Maria. Similar to the song, “Mary had a Little Lamb,” Maria has a little llama. She brings her llama to school, and all of

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the children become excited. The children all start to play with the llama, but then the teacher tells Maria that she cannot have a llama in class. Maria puts the llama outside. The llama waits patiently outside for Maria. When Maria gets out of school, the llama jumps up and down with excitement. The students all ask the teacher why the llama loves Maria. The teacher responds that it is because Maria loves the llama and gives the llama so much love. The illustrations display colorful sketches of Maria and her llama at her home and school. I believe that children will enjoy seeing the illustrations of the llama in school with Maria. The writing style is very organized, and it follows a sequence. One of the best parts of this book is that it is in English and Spanish. The Spanish text is listed below the English text. This can be very useful for someone who is English and trying to learn Spanish (and vice versa). The big idea of this story is to teach readers that they cannot expect to receive love if they do not give love.

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Maria Had a Little Llama/Maria Tenia Una Llamita won the Pura Belpre Honor illustration award.This beautiful illustrated book with a peruvian setting engages both English and Spanish speaking children with the rhyming of "Mary Had a Little Lamb. The verses are both in English and Spanish. Wonderful

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book for bilingual children.

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Maria Had A Little Lamb, a Pura Belpré Honor Book is a multicultural book about a little Incan girl and her llama. This book is bilingual, using both English and Spanish as the text. To separate these texts from each other the illustrator bolds the English while the Spanish text is not bolded and

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a slightly different font is used. I believe this is very important because it separates the languages so even young children can distinguish the difference. The pictures are always running off the page and many small separate images of llamas and family can be found on pages with just text. The pictures show the great landscapes where the Incan people live and their traditional clothing. This book could be used as an introduction to Incan culture or possibly in an elementary Spanish class. I believe bilingual books are very important today because our classrooms are so diverse.

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In my opinion, Maria Had A Little Llama, which is the Peruvian version of the American tale Mary Had A Little Lamb, is a simple but fun translation. The story has the same plot, where a little girl brings her pet to school which causes a disruption and the llama must leave, so it waits outside the

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school until Maria returns to it. I like this plot because it shows children they cannot bring a pet to school, even if you are best friends with that animal. However, I was hoping this plot would have more of a twist to show more of the Peruvian culture. However, the language of the book impresses me. This is a bilingual book so each page has the words in English and Spanish. This makes the book more appealing to a wider range of audiences. The illustrations in this book are very nice. The pages are filled with warm colors and images of small villages and students of a variety of shades of color. In a scene depicting the town, the reader can see a mariachi band int he street, vendors selling goods, and children and a teacher waiting outside of an Escuela. This helps transport the reader into the culture pf the story. The big idea of this book is to always follow the rules so you don't cause trouble, but since this was a book from a different culture we got to see this lesson portrayed in a different way.

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A charming bilingual retelling of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" with a Peruvian setting.

This is a great bilingual book that is a simple read. It's cute and it also does well expressing the Peruvian culture. In the background you can see the colorful Peruvian hats, I love that! Another great introduction book to two languages.

A very pretty book that is a play on Mary had a little lamb (she's got a llama instead.) Offers the text in both english and spansih.

A very pretty book that is a play on Mary had a little lamb (she's got a llama instead.) Offers the text in both english and spansih.

A very pretty book that is a play on Mary had a little lamb (she's got a llama instead.) Offers the text in both english and spansih.

A very pretty book that is a play on Mary had a little lamb (she's got a llama instead.) Offers the text in both english and spansih.

A play on the well-known Mary Had A Little Lamb, this bilingual book tells the story of Maria and her little llama that follows her to school. The lines are in English and Spanish, and are accompanied by vibrant illustrations that take us through an Andes Mountain setting. Through these pictures,

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we learn much about the style of the Andean culture, and the story familiarizes us with the language. This would be a great addition to a classroom bookshelf as it is important to introduce children to the many languages of the world.

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An old familiar nursery rhyme- but I love that it is in English and Spanish. Many cultural elements from Peru are incorporated as well.

This was another multilingual read-aloud, this time with the Spanish built right in. The story is familiar and short, and the illustrations are warm, friendly, and inviting. This worked very well for a multilingual story time, and it has great potential for a smaller read-together with young

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language learners. Careful, though, or you'll have every kid wanting una llamita of their very own.

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