Travel, Learn, & See the Great Wall is a bilingual picture book written by Edna Ma. The story is very relatable to my son, and it captured his interest immediately. The two main characters, Dean and Ethan, are both learning Mandarin, just like my children. Dean is Chinese, and Ethan is Black, and they became the best of friends during their time at a Mandarin Immersion school. The story follows the three children on a trip to China, where they visit the Great Wall.
At the end of the trip, Dean and Ethan were eager to show off who knew more about the Great Wall. Travel, Learn, & See the Great Wall sparked my children’s curiosity about Chinese culture, and they even asked to watch videos to learn more. We saw that the first section of the bridge really does look like a dragon’s head!
The book opened up other discussions as well. I pointed out that Dean is kind to his sister and even includes her in all their adventures, something my son struggles with. We discussed that Ethan is not Chinese, and he is learning Chinese too, and that people from lots of backgrounds also learn Chinese.
A few things I love about this book:
- Big text that is easier for emerging readers
- Full-color illustration on every page
- Depicts interracial friendships
- Encourages kindness to siblings
- Develops excitement for learning
This is a great book to read to get children excited about summer language camp, especially if it’s their first trip and they are a bit nervous.
I hope to see more books in this series. Perhaps Dean, Ethan, and Genevieve will take a trip to Taipei next!
Travel, Learn, & See the Great Wall is available for purchase from Amazon.
