Book Review: Margaret and Margarita/Margarita y Margaret | By: Committee for Children by Lynn Reiser Reading Level: Preschool–Grade 2 When two mother/daughter pairs arrive at a park one day, the little girls are reluctant to stay. “There is no one to play with,” says Margaret to her mother. “No hay nadie con quien jugar,” says Margarita to her own mother. Their mothers at first encourage the girls to play with each other, but when they realize they don’t speak the same language, the mothers sit facing away from each other on the bench, assuming the families can’t forge a connection. Meanwhile, the girls get down to business, systematically dismantling the language barrier with shared interests (stuffed animals) and a mutual desire to connect. Their similar names, and those of their animals (Susan and Susana) are no coincidence on the author’s part, but an underscoring of the similarities we all share in spite of our differences. As the girls play, they begin to take on one another’s words in a most natural way, until, as they part, they can introduce their new friends to their mothers: “Margarita, this is my mother. Mama, this is my amiga, Margarita, and her gatita, Susana. We had a fiesta and a siesta.” And, “Margaret, esta es mi madre. Mamá, esta es mi friend, Margaret, y su little rabbit, Susan. Hicimos un party y un nap.” Author Lynn Reiser gives Margaret the left side and Margarita the right side of each two-page spread, with English words in pink and Spanish words in blue, but once the girls are truly immersed in their play, the pages of the book become a swirl of combined Spanish and English words until it’s time to go home to their similar-looking respective neighborhoods, promising to play again. Classroom Activity for Margaret and Margarita Teachers will find multiple opportunities to incorporate Margaret and Margarita into Second Step lessons, from “Welcoming” to “Same or Different?” (or “Similarities and Differences”) to “Inviting to Play” to “Having Fun with Friends” to “Making New Friends in Kindergarten.” After reading the book aloud (English-speaking teachers can recruit a Spanish-speaking person to share the reading if they wish), pair off the students and have them act out a playground meeting without speaking at all—they can use props and body language, though. Then discuss how the children were able to make connections with each other, decide what to play, work out any confusion about meaning, and still have fun. Did they have to pay closer attention to one another? How did they show that they understood each other? How did they find out if they wanted to play the same thing?