Since 1925, Día del niño, or the Day of the Child, has grown as an annual celebration throughout Mexico. This day recognizes children, pays homage to their importance in society, and endorses their well being. Pat Mora, a Texas native and nationally recognized author of children’s books, first heard of this Mexican tradition during a 1996 interview for a public radio program. As so often happens, the wheels in her head began to turn as one good idea (Día del niño) bred another one (Día de los libros).

From its inception, the goals of El día de los niños/El día de los libros have extended beyond a single April 30 observance and called for a daily commitment to:

• honoring children and childhood;
• promoting literacy and, the importance of linking all children to books, languages, and cultures;
• honoring home languages and cultures, and thus promoting bilingual and multilingual literacy in this multicultural nation, and global understanding through reading;
• involving parents as valued member of the literacy team; and,
• promoting library collection development that reflects our plurality.