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This book follows a little girl that explores what she can do with a paleta, which is a frozen, Mexican, summertime treat. The little girl goes through the streets of her hometown and her community sharing what you can do with a paleta.

Two kids get paletas from the paleta cart and think of all the things they can do with them. They could draw on the ground, they could give themselves a mustache, but they decide the best thing to do is to eat them.

Fairly simple, but lovely colorful drawings. There are enough Spanish words to provide a sense of specificity but not so many that I, a person who does not know any Spanish, couldn’t easily read it. My niece was not terribly into it yet but we’re going to get paletas soon so hopefully that will change. ( )

There's more to do with a paleta (popsicle) than just eat it - you can turn your tongue colors and scare your brother, learn to make tough decisions (which flavor?), make new friends, give yourself a big blue mustache, make a masterpiece, use it to cool off, and more! This is a warm-toned, joyful celebration of life in the young narrator's barrio, and would make a great read-aloud at storytime. ( )

I enjoyed the book “What can you do with a paleta” for various of reasons. First, the book was a bilingual book which is so essential to what many students face which is being knowledgeable of one language but being unable to transfer that information to another language. This books allow students to be exposed to multiple languages at once. I also enjoy the book because of the recognition of the culture used along with the illustrations. The pictures were very descriptive and related to Mexican-American children. Next, I love the way the language transition and how the text is formatted. For ELL students, they can read the language that they are accustomed to and under there is the proper translation that matches the words. For students who speak English, they can have exposure to a new language and connect it to theirs right above it. Last, the structure of the book is important. How the book is set up, the students would read the Spanish version and the English translation is under that text. Overall, I believe that this book does a great job of exposure and incorporating culture into the classroom. ( )