En español

El día de los niños/El día de los libros

April 30

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Meet Pat Mora
Celebration Ideas
Author Interviews
Classroom Activities

El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day), 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. Learn more about how you can celebrate from Pat Mora's website!

Meet Día Founder Pat Mora!

Celebrate Día with founder and children's book author, Pat Mora! Pat shares a number of ideas and success stories through her website, Bookjoy blog, and video interviews with Colorín Colorado.

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 Early 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

The Spirt of Día: Diversity in Action

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.

Classroom Ideas

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