This book is about a young girl that comes from two different racial backgrounds. On Saturdays she visits her fathers parents and on Sundays she visits her mothers parents. This book shows the differences in culture from a white American background and a Latino/Native American background. She talks to her fathers parents in English and her mothers parents in Spanish. Shows the diversity and how she has learned to be bilingual and love both sides of her family.

This is a great book to show and introduce for having ELL students. It can bring up questions and topics about their two different cultures and bringing a connection into the classroom. For the school I work in, this would allow students to see and view different racial backgrounds. That students at this age can speak two languages and they communicate differently with other family members. And towards the end of the story it shows how everyone shows acceptance of everyone and loves everyone.

This is a wonderful story of a little girl who has one set of Mexican grandparents who she spends Sundays with. She also has a set of American grandparents who she spends Saturdays with. The book shows us how each set of grandparents is different but yet they have many similarities especially their love for their granddaughter.I especially liked this book because it is a reality for many children today to have people in their families from diffrent cultures. I read this book as a read a long on Tumblebooks .com and I found that listening to the story in this format would be benificial to kids because they can hear the words pronounced correctly which adds to the enjoyment.

Summary: Saturdays and Sundays are very special days for the child in this story. On Saturdays, she visits Grandma and Grandpa, who come from a European-American background, and on Sundays -- los domingos -- she visits Abuelito y Abuelita, who are Mexican-American. While the two sets of grandparents are different in many ways, they also have a great deal in common -- in particular, their love for their granddaughter.
While we follow our narrator to the circus and the pier, share stories from her grandparents' pasts, and celebrate her birthday, the depth and joy of both cultures are conveyed in Spanish and English. This affirmation of both heritages will speak to all children who want to know more about their own families and ethnic backgrounds.
Genre: Fictional Picture Book
Reading Level:Fluent, this book is fluent because the text on each page is very long. There are several paragraphs on each page. The book is written in both Spanish and English, so this will be difficult for children. The illustrations only add to the text of the story, but they do not help you to understand the text.
Topic: Spending time with Grandparents, diversity in Spanish & English lifestyles
Curriculum Uses:This book could be used as a Read-Aloud in early grades K-4. It could also be used with older grades if you are doing a lesson on Spanish culture. This book could also be used independent reader in 1-4.
Social Issues:This book addresses the importance that the elderly can have on a young person's life. It also discusses diversity. I love Saturdays y domingos, shows how different cultures live.
Literary Elements: This book uses imagery such as, "the spongy, warm pancakes." The book also uses metaphors such as balloons like a big bouquet of flowers.
Illustrations & Text: The illustrations go along with the text in the book. The text discusses the lifestyle of those who are hispanic and the pictures show how they live as well. The illustrations and text go hand and hand.

I don't think there are too many picture books out there that so seamlessly incorporates two different ethnic backgrounds. Alma Flor Ada has perfectly balanced this story between the English-speaking grandparents and the Spanish-speaking grandparents. In fact, the balance is so carefully and evenly maintained that it felt a little forced to me and made the story feel not quite as real. Although the love between both sets of grandparents and their granddaughter felt very real. I liked that part of the story a lot.

I also liked how the Spanish vocabulary was incorporated into the story. That felt very authentic as well. The translations to the Spanish text were worked so seamlessly into the story that you might not realize that's what they are. I do agree with other reviewers who have felt that it would have been nice to have a list of Spanish vocabulary words used in the story.

Overall this is a nice story about the grandparent/grandchild relationship incorporating two ethnic backgrounds. Pair this with The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster. 3.5 stars.

This is a cute story about the integration of two cultures; a little girl’s European-American ancestry and her Mexican-American ancestry. In this book, a little girl spends Saturdays with her European-American grandparents. On Sundays, the girl spends time with her Mexican-American grandparents: abuelito (grandfather) and abuelita (grandmother), who is actually Native American.

Throughout the story, the little girl spends time with her grandparents and learns about her family’s cultures. While we follow out narrator to the circus and the pier, share stories from her grandparents’ pasts, and celebrate her birthday, the presence and enjoyment of both cultures is evident.

What I really appreciate about this story is the way both European-American grandparents and Mexican-American grandparents enjoy similar activities. This notion provides a nice compare and contrast of cultures. In this story we see that European-American grandparents have a cat, while Mexican-American grandparents have a dog. Another example of the compare and contrast is the European-American grandparents make scrambled eggs and pancakes for breakfast while the Mexican-American grandparents make huevos rancheros. By examining the activities the narrator does with her different grandparents, the author establishes the universal language of what being a grandparent is all about (feeding the grandchild and playing with them) while keeping their identities separate.

My favorite moment of the story is when the narrator receives a dress from her European-American grandparents on her birthday and the same dress for her doll from her Mexican-American grandparents. This shows the reader that though the grandparents may be from different backgrounds, the lines of communication are open.

Overall, I Love Saturdays y domingos delivers a solid message of acceptance. Though I found the illustrations to be a little pedestrian, they capture the enjoyment that the narrator gets from being with her loved ones. The illustrations also add to the comprehension of the story when the narrator speaks about her Mexican-American grandparents since the Spanish language is intermixed with English.

This is a great book about a kid who is a part of two cultures. A great book to attract some of your bi-lingual spanish speaking students

Award winning author, Alma Flor Ada’s children’s book, "I Love Saturdays y domingos", is a heart warming story the depicts the love and affection the book’s young narrator has for her families heritage. Through out the book, the narrator describes the experiences she shares with both her European-American grandparents, and her Mexican –American grandparents, on Saturdays and Sundays (or domingos), respectively. She weaves the components of her family together by sharing with the reader parallel activities and experiences she has with her grandparents. For example, she describes how her European-American grandma makes her eggs and pancakes for breakfast, while her Mexican-American Abuelita makes her a traditional Mexican dish, huevos rancheros. In her description of each experience through out the book, the narrator expresses her unique adoration for each. Furthermore, the narrator’s use of both English and Spanish through out the book adds authenticity and further respect for each aspect of her culture.

The story shows children how one can appreciate and connect all aspects of their family’s heritage and culture. It could serve as a wonderful read aloud for students in Kindergarten or first grade and as a conversation starter on family history. Although it specifically highlights European-American and Mexican-American heritage, the stories relevance is not limited to students of those same backgrounds. I am confident that this book could be used with students of any background as a tool for building cultural awareness. Following the book, students could be encouraged to explore their own family’s unique heritage and share what they find special about their culture. As our student population continues to diversify, educators are faced with the increasing need to teach acceptance among students while encouraging them to celebrate their unique heritage. This book encourages the reader to see similarities between different cultures and shows that although they may have differences, each culture can, and should, be honored equally.

Alma Flor Ada has authored many works of realistic-fiction for children and adults. A list of all of her books and additional resources for teachers and parents can be found on her website http://almaflorada.com

I like this book a lot! It's great for so many of my students from hispanic or mixed backgrounds to read/hear a book that they can relate to. It's great for my own children who have English speaking grandparents and Spanish speaking grandparents. I love that it shows that while some parts of the culture are different, there are many commonalities and that both sides of the family love the grandchild. I love how at the end both sets of grandparents collaborate to give the little girl a very special birthday gift.

My favorite part of this book is how excited she gets over her grandma's breakfast. Will use this in writing free time.

This is an excellent book to read in the classroom if you have Spanish speaking ESOL students.

I Love Saturdays y domingos is the story of a little girl who spends her weekends with her two sets of grandparents. Her American grandma and grandpa make her breakfast, watch movies with her, and tell her stories about their youth. Her Mexican abuelito y abuelita take her to the circus and the seashore, help her fly a kite, and tell her stories about growing up on the ranchero in Mexico.

I thought that this would be an excellent representation of multicultural literature. I struggle within myself with this one because I could be very critical, or not so critical. If you take the book for what it is, it demonstrates a little girl's ability to appreciate and love two sets of grandparents from different walks of life who both love her very much. Students reading this story who are bi-racial may be able to identify with this story and appreciate their multicultural families that much more. At times, the goal of making the two sides of the family seem equivalent seems a bit forced, but the message is a good one.

Okay, now I'm going to be critical, and if it's too much, feel free to disagree with me. I feel as though the Mexican grandparents not only did more with their granddaughter, but they were made out to be harder working people and were celebrated more in the end of the story. The book has many direct comparisons between the two sets of grandparents. For example, grandma and grandpa watch the circus on t.v. with their granddaughter, while abuelito and abuelita actually take their granddaughter to the circus. Grandpa buys granddaughter some balloons, while abuelito buys granddaughter a beautiful kite. Grandpa was a paperboy in his youth, while abuelito worked in the fields and was left in charge of his whole family at the age of twelve while his father looked for work in the U.S. Finally, on the granddaughter's birthday, she receives a new doll from her grandma and grandpa and a dollhouse AND new dress for herself from her abuelito and abuelita. The party commences with a pinata game and the singing of "Happy Birthday" and "Las mananitas." The lyrics for the traditional Mexican song are written out in both Spanish and English.

On the plus side, I like the fact that the author incorporates the Spanish language into the story. Even non-Spanish speaking readers can understand the words since she is basically restating what she already wrote. I hope that I'm wrong about assumptions I am making about the Mexican grandparents being made out as the better grandparents. Maybe I'm just being too critical.

What do you think?

Wonderful book about an Hispanic family and what they like to do on Saturdays and Sundays. Great family book to read.