Hi friends, what have you been reading lately? Lately, we’ve been reading this fun and interactive bilingual series “All Kinds of… 各种各样的系列”.
It’s a really neat bilingual Chinese English book series which covers these 6 topics:
- people
- bodies
- fears
- feelings
- homes
- transport
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About the All Kinds of... Book Series
Originally published in English in 1995, this popular series of books have since been translated into many different languages, including Spanish, Chinese, Italian, and German.
You can purchase this bilingual series in a set or individually.
Full Book Set Details
Book Title: All Kinds Of… 各种各样系列立体书
绘者：爱玛 戴蒙
Written and Illustrated by Emma Damon
ISBN (Simplified Chinese)：9787541747908
Recommended Age: 3-6 years old
We got our set from Taobao. I have also seen it for sale at JD.com. Individual book details are listed below.
What we like about the "All Kind of..." books
The appeal of these books lie in the delightfully interactive nature. You can pull tabs ups down, left, right to reveal cleverly designed pages. Amongst its cleverly designed pages, there are also turn the dial pages, mirrors, games, advice and tips. Definitely a book series that you can take a lot away from.
It’s written simply and factually, which helps give a non-judgmental tone to more sensitive subjects such as bodies, and people.
For example,
💜 From the All Kinds of People Book: “Some people are tall. Some people are short.”
💙 From the All Kinds of Bodies Book “Some bodies use crutches…or wheelchairs…or walking sticks…or prosthetics.”
Fact is, by a very early age, children start to see similarities and differences in the environment, be it objects, or people. As parents we can use this observation as a vital teaching moment to teach diversity and acceptance.
I have used these books as an entry point to discuss personal differences and how to respect these differences. Some other books that we read which promotes diversity are here.
I love how the children and adult are presented in a myriad of differences: different skin colour, different hair style, different sizes etc.
As a reading-mad, budget-conscious family, I tend to select physical books that are interactive in nature, and reading 70% ebooks so my children don’t break our savings account with their insatiable appetite for books. There are some cool Chinese ebook apps where you can score free audiobooks, and electronic books.
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541765360
Available for sale at Taobao and Book Depository.
There are all kinds of bodies, some long, some tall, some short, some skinny and some larger. We are all physically different!
This book, and All Kinds of People, was great for opening up a discussion with my children about differences in people and how valuable this diversity can be.
各种各样的害怕 All Kinds of Fears
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541822780
Available for sale at Taobao.
“Some people are scared of being bullied, not having any friends being criticised being different, being too clever or not seeming clever enough”
“有些人害怕被欺负，没有朋友，被批评，与众不同，太聪明，开起来很笨。”
This book not only address the common fears of monsters, snakes, bees, trying out new things etc but also more complicated fears of rejection, and standing out.
各种各样的人 All Kinds of People
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541765346
Available for sale at Taobao.
My children like to label me as the “brown one” in the family (which is true). They take after Daddy and are all very fair. When physical features are presented as fact, and not judged as being better or worse, I think it can help children to form a more positive attitudes about different physical features. This message is conveyed clearly from this book too. We are all different, and we are all special!
The magic mirror in the end was a really fun feature for all my children too.
各种各样的房屋 All Kinds of Homes
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541822797
Available for sale at Taobao.
My eldest boy really like this particular book. It was fascinating for him to see that people lived in homes on the water, homes in the snow, homes in the desert, and how people slept differently.
I personally slept in a hammock bed as a baby in Singapore, so it was a delight to see that the hammock bed was featured as well!
各种各样的交通工具 All Kinds of Transport
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541765377
Available for sale at Taobao.
Out of all 6 books in the series, this book is the most informative of the lot. You will learn about common vehicles, as well as exotic modes of commute, such as Japanese bullet train, and space tourist vehicles.
ISBN (Simplified Chinese): 9787541765353
Available for sale at Taobao and Book Depository.
Explore toddler’s elementary feelings of anger, happiness, sadness and more in this book.
It also touches on how people may feel differently about us in a factual manner. Calling out such unfairness is an important lesson to teach.
“Sometimes…the colour of our skin, or the colour of our hair, or because we wear glasses or have a disability, or the size of our nose, ears or lips, or the way we dress, or the things we like to do…make other people feel things about us. Sometimes these feelings are unfair or wrong.”
“有时候，因为。。。我们的肤色，头发的颜色，带着眼镜或者身体有缺陷，鼻子，耳朵的大小或者嘴唇的厚薄，穿着的方式，喜欢做的事情会让别人觉得我们很奇怪。有时候这些感觉是不公平的，或者是错误的。”
What are your favourite interactive books to read with your children? Do share with us and our readers.
Happy Reading!
And while you're here, check out these great reads too!
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Have a toddler age Chinese reader? These are our favourite books to read for that age group!
