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    My Name Is Maria Isabel
    My Name Is Maria Isabel
    My Name Is Maria Isabel
    Ebook48 pages27 minutes

    My Name Is Maria Isabel

    By Alma Flor Ada and K. Dyble Thompson

    4/5

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    About this ebook

    A third grader realizes the importance of her name in this classic story of heritage and self-identity.

    For María Isabel Salazar López, the hardest thing about being the new girl in school is that the teacher doesn't call her by her real name. "We already have two Marías in this class," says her teacher. "Why don't we call you Mary instead?"
    But María Isabel has been named for her Papá's mother and for Chabela, her beloved Puerto Rican grandmother. Can she find a way to make her teacher see that if she loses her name, she's lost the most important part of herself?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAtheneum Books for Young Readers
    Release dateDec 15, 2009
    ISBN9781439106969
    My Name Is Maria Isabel
    Author

    Alma Flor Ada

    Alma Flor Ada, an authority on multicultural and bilingual education, is the recipient of the 2012 Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, and in 2014 she was honored by the Mexican government with the prestigious OHTLI Award. She is the author of numerous award-winning books for young readers, including Dancing Home with Gabriel Zubizarreta, My Name Is María Isabel, Under the Royal Palms (Pura Belpré Medal), Where the Flame Trees Bloom, and The Gold Coin (Christopher Award Medal). She lives in California, and you can visit her at AlmaFlorAda.com.

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    Reviews for My Name Is Maria Isabel

    4/5

    62 ratings4 reviews

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    • 3/5
      A pleasant little read.
    • 5/5
      This book tells the story of Maria Isabel, an ELL student who is going to a school that has mainly Spanish-speaking students. Shows cultural differences and shows how different these students are dealt with.
    • 4/5
      Maria Isabel Salazar Lopez hates having to start over at a new school. But worst of all, there are already two other Marias in her class and her new teacher decides to call her Mary Lopez! Maria Isabel never hears her teacher when she is addressed as Mary Lopez and she ends up being skipped for the class play. I know exactly how Maria Isabel feels. I was always Debbie A. or Deborah in a class with scores of other Debbies. I just wanted to be called by my name, too, just like Maria Isabel. I loved this book and can't wait to share it with kids in my school. Favorite Quote: "Ah, Maria Lopez," the teacher said as she read the card. "We already have two Marias in this class. Why don't we call you Mary instead? Take a seat over there by Marta Perez and I'll give you your books later."
    • 4/5
      This is a great book about a little girl named Maria Isabel. She starts a new school late and is dreading it. And to make matters worse when she is going to the bus on the first day she trips and falls in front of the whole class. the teacher decides to change her name to Mary, because their are already 3 Maria's in the class. Throughout the story the teachers tries to call on Maria by calling he Mary, but Maria does answer (because she doesn't recognize her name) By the end of the book Maria is....have to read it to find out!As a student i loved this book. i showed me how people feel when you do not use their name! It is very sad story, but a very important one to read.As a teacher this is the book that i would recommend to other teachers. All teachers need to read this book before they teach to see what it is like for the child when you call them a nickname. Great story.

    Book preview

    My Name Is Maria Isabel - Alma Flor Ada

     On the Way to School

    aría Isabel looked at the cup of coffee with milk and the buttered toast in front of her. But she couldn’t bring herself to eat.

    Her mother said, "Maribel, cariño, hurry up.

    Her father added, You don’t want to be late on your first day, do you?

    But instead of finishing her breakfast, Maria Isabel just kept staring at the butter as it slowly melted into the toast, and at the cloud of steam that floated over her cup.

    You’ll see, you’ll like your new school, her mother said. But her mother’s soft, reassuring voice didn’t seem to convince Maria Isabel. Maria Isabel knew it wasn’t going to be easy starting at a new school, especially when the school year had already begun. She was probably the only new student. She kept thinking what bad luck it was that they had had to move two months after school had started. And she had had so many plans to spend her winter vacation playing with Clara and Virginia.

    "You’ll make new friends soon’ said Maria Isabel’s father, as if he could read her thoughts.

    María Isabel kept staring at the cup. But when her brother, Antonio, chimed in, Come on, Belita, hurry up. You’re going to make me late, she gulped down her coffee, even though it burned her tongue. Maria Isabel shook her head, trying to shake the nervous thoughts from her head.

    She got up and grabbed her blue backpack. Maria Isabel had always wanted a backpack, and at the store last Saturday, this seemed to be just the right one. She had been so happy when her mother decided to buy it, even though it was more expensive than the red one. Later that day, when Maria Isabel was alone in the apartment, she had walked back and forth with the pack on her shoulders and had even climbed up onto the toilet seat to see how she looked in the bathroom mirror. But now it just seemed heavy, and Maria Isabel couldn’t understand why she had liked it so much.

    Good-bye, Mami, María Isabel said softly to her mother, who was already washing the glasses and cups from breakfast.

    See you later, my love. May God be with you, her mother answered back, giving Maria Isabel

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