La Mariposa

by Francisco Jiménez

In his first year of school, Francisco understands little of what his teacher says. But he is drawn to the silent, slow-moving caterpillar in the jar next to his desk. He knows caterpillars turn into butterflies, but just how do they do it? To find out, he studies the words in a butterfly book so many times that he can close his eyes and see the black letters, but he still can't understand their meaning.

Illustrated with paintings as deep and rich as the wings of a butterfly, this honest, unsentimental account of a schoolchild's struggle to learn language reveals that our imaginations powerfully sustain us. La Mariposa makes a subtle plea for tolerance in our homes, our communities, and in our schools.

Genres: Picture Books, Biography, Cultural, Realistic Fiction, Spanish Literature, 2nd Grade, Childrens

38 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Francisco Jimenez emigrated from Tlaquepaque, Mexico, to California, where he worked for many years in the fields with his family. He received both his master's degree and his Ph.D. from Columbia University and is now chairman of the Modern Languages and Literature Department at Santa Clara University, the setting of much of Reaching Out. He is the award-winning author of The Circuit, Breaking Through, La Mariposa, and his newest memoir, Reaching Out. He lives in Santa Clara, California, with his family.

Author photo courtesy of Santa Clara University.

Reviews

[BookNightOwl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute

[metimoteo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A beautiful, painterly picture book from Francisco Jimenez, with illustration by Simon Silva, that depicts an immigrant boy's first-grade experiences at school. Isolated because of his inability to understand English, Francisco turns inward to his imagination and later to drawing to escape his situation. He takes comfort in watching and caring for a caterpillar his teacher has placed in a jar near his seat. We follow his struggles to fit in, but we celebrate his triumph, as he discovers his artwork wins a prize.The caterpillar's metamorphosis into a butterfly mirrors Francisco's own transformation, as he begins to speak more English and fit in with his classmates as the school year winds down.

The author includes a helpful glossary at the end of the book, though readers might find it more useful to have the Spanish words and phrases better explained in context or have a footnote at the bottom of the page upon which they first appear in the story.

Readers will hopefully empathize with Francisco, knowing that so many children endure similar adjustments when put into schools without knowing any English and not having the support ease them into these situations. Adults should find it useful to discuss the book with children, posing questions about how they might react if they were Francisco.

[Margaret Chind]

Own pbk. 11/23/15 pbs

[Scarlett Bridges · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a boy, Francisco, who is from Mexico and is starting the first grade in America. As he gets to the school on the bus with his brother, he gains a headache due to the increasing volume of kids speaking English and Francisco not being able to understand. Once he gets settled in his classroom, next to his desk there is a caterpillar, which becomes his salvation throughout the school year. He is unable to understand his teacher, or his classmates, which gives him headaches, so instead of trying to pay attention to the teacher, he day dreams of being with his papa in the fields, and focusing on the caterpillar. Art becomes his favorite subject, and would have a habit of drawing butterflies, even got his artwork posted on the board by his teacher. He made a friend, Arthur, who knows a little bit of Spanish, but they get in trouble from the teacher since they aren't speaking English. One day during recess, a bully named Curtis comes storming over claiming that Francisco had his jacket resulting in them getting in a fight. What happens with Francisco's artwork from the board, what happens with the caterpillar after it cocoons, find out by reading this story.

The majority of this book is split between words and pictures. One set of pages is just words, while the next set is a combination of both words and pictures. The pictures are done in a brighter color scheme, lots of oranges, reds, greens and blues. The pictures seem to be done by paints, but I'm not quite sure. This story has a couple Spanish words interwoven into the text, giving it a more authentic type of culturally diverse story. At the end of the book, a glossary is provided with definitions of the Spanish words that were used, which I thought was a really good idea. I think this story is a really good example of how Mexican students feel when they get integrated into the American school system. They have a very difficult time understanding what's going on, they can't speak their home language, they have a hard time making friends, and they struggle in school and end up falling behind or even words, forgotten. La Mariposa is a very authentic Mexican story and I really enjoyed the way the story was told in this book and would recommend it to any Spanish speaking students I might have in my classroom.

[Nicole Givens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading La Mariposa by Francisco Jimenez. I made a strong connection with this story because I teach English Language Learners (ELL). This year, having a student that does not speak or understand English has been challenging at times. I shared this book with my second grade students and they enjoyed it. I also made sure to have another student who is bilingual in Spanish and English translate my understanding and empathy of how the non-English speaking student must feel. I chose to read aloud this book to all my students so it would let other students understand how ELL students feel not knowing the primary language of the classroom and make ELL students feel included because they would be able to relate to this story. Francisco is the main character and it is his first day of school in an English speaking classroom. He understands little English. This story also circles around a caterpillar that Francisco finds intriguing and soon turns into a butterfly. I think the focusing on the caterpillar is Francisco’s safety net when he gets a headache and frustrated from all the foreign language he is around and has no idea what is means. He understands little English. At the end of the story, he wins a blue ribbon for his drawing of the butterfly. As a teacher, this story really made me think about all students and what they need to be successful in school. Listing all the Spanish words from the book and having students and myself practice saying them has been engaging and meaningful in my classroom.

[Michelle Gallegos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is beautiful book about a boy named, Fransico, who struggles his first year of school in America because he does not know English. Fransico tries his best in school to do what is right and listen to the teacher but with the language barrier it becomes difficult. Fransico finds comfort in school when he watches the class butterfly and reads books in English, well at least attempts to read the book with the help of the pictures the book provides.
I can most definitely relate to this book; I came to the U.S. when I was just 5. This would be a great read-aloud to my classroom since I know there is a rise in ELL students in the classrooms. This will allow for the other students in the classroom to view school in the perspective of an EL learner and prevent bullying. One thing that really struck out to me, was when his teacher stopped him and his only friend from speaking Spanish. I can recall one of my teachers telling me that in elementary school and feeling sad and anger; not only can students learn from this book but also teachers. I will most defiantly have this is my class library!

[RLL22017Necole Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book. It has great illustrations. The illustrations are rich. The book is about a boy named Francisco who enters the 1st grade, but does not speak or understand English. While he is at school the only thing he does understand are the names. During class he often imagined flying away over the fields to work with his dad because of the language barrier. He looks at a caterpillar that's kept in a jar in the classroom. Art becomes his favorite subject and the caterpillar becomes his inspiration to draw a butterfly that the teacher enters into a contest and it wins first prize.

I think this story is great for children ages 3-12. I would use this book in my classroom to share with my students how some of their peers who do not speak English may feel. I work in a school where this is common in primary grades. It can teach the students compassion and understanding of why the student may do work slightly different from them.

[Sarah Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fransico was starting a new school and hardly knew any of the language they spoke, he was used to learning Spanish at home. He slowly tried to make some friends and then had an incident over a jacket on the playground. When he didn't understand or enjoy class, he just watched the cacoon and suddenly he got to watch the butterfly hatch. Miss Scalapino knew how fascinated he was with the butterfly and even let him release it at the end of the story.

If I were using this as a lesson with my students I would be able to use it in several subject areas, I could use it as a way to encourage welcoming to new students, the lifecycle of a butterfly, or even a lesson on the sequence of events. I would ask things like "Why do you think he would get frustrated in class when he didn't know the language?" or "If you saw someone struggling at school would you be mean to them, or be a friend to them?" as more of a rhetorical question.

[Cathy Sheetz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly a story of a Mexican immigrant's experience at a school. His family members are migrant workers. He goes to school not understanding any English but watches a caterpillar go through stages and become a butterfly just as he transforms in school.

This book is good for teaching the immigrant/migrant worker perspective on what it is like to not speak the language of those around you. This text would be good for a lesson about immigrants and immigration as well as laborers who harvest or tend crops. There is a substantial amount of text and the book is more text than pictures. I would include it in a classroom library for 3rd through 6th grade.

[Danielle Woolard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is very good - I think it could help English speaking elementary school students empathize with their classmates who don't speak English, to get a glimpse of how difficult it is to be a non-english speaker in an English speaking school. The illustrations are colorful and really nice. A small amount of Spanish vocabulary sprinkled in the story, and it seemed to be a different group of Spanish vocab than we usually see at this level of children's book.

[Ellice · Rating 4 out of 5]

The semi-autobiographical story of a young Mexican immigrant, the son of migrant farm workers, as he tries to fit in in a school where everyone speaks English when Francisco speaks only Spanish. There are parallels between the transformation of the classroom caterpillar into a butterfly and Francisco's adaptation to American school.

I enjoyed the illustrations that were there, but I did find it unusual and not particularly optimal that not every spread had illustrations.

[Arely Cortes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a rally nice book I enjoyed it a lot. The book was about a boy named Francisco. He doesn't know english so when he goes to school he can't understand the teacher. He saw that under a window there was a jar and inside that jar there was a caterpillar. He watches the caterpillar until it is a butterfly. He makes a friend and gets a prize for a picture that he draws of a butterfly.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through the eyes of an immigrant.

Valuable read. Short and simple tale of an immigrant child's first year in an American school as seen through his eyes.

[Noah]

good

[Jecel Cortes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was honestly one of the sweetest books I have read. There was so much that reminded me of how much we should help out our family.

[Angela Obeso · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very sweet children's book based on the author's experience going to school for the first time and not speaking English. The artwork is amazing and the story was feel good.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book one of my goal to practice my Spanish more in 2024. Really loved the autobiographical nature of this children’s story!

[Fernando Covantes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una entrañable historia. Bastante corta pero poderosa.

[vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was longer (I downloaded the Kindle version and didn’t check the page count). Very kindhearted and relatable as a first-gen.

[Lillian Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learning Spanish one children’s book at a time!! Beautiful story, loved this. Definitely some translations needed but overall a great experience!

[Gabriela Suchecki · Rating 5 out of 5]

La Mariposa by Francisco Jimenez is a very touching book. The main character Francisco is new at school in the United States. His family moved from Mexico and he has a hard time adjusting to the new surroundings. He doesn't speak English and because of it he has a hard time making friends. This book is for readers Prek-1 grade level. This book shows the struggles of students in a new culture, new language and new experiences. I would read this book during the read aloud session.

[Kelsey Yeakle · Rating 4 out of 5]

"La Mariposa" is a wonderful book to share with English Language Learners. A young boy moves from Mexico to start first grade in America. However, his inability to understand the English language results in him feeling lonely and isolated in school. While reading this book, it reminded me of a student I worked with once who had just moved to the United States from Puerto Rico. She also did not speak English well, but it always made me happy seeing the other children still trying to include her in everything. Reading "La Mariposa" really made me sympathize with the young boy in the story and the English Language Learner student I know. I cannot imagine being in their shoes with being immersed into a different place and having to deal with the language barrier. I would also feel alone so I give the young boy in the story a lot of credit. I love that he found a love in art and watching the classroom caterpillar. I empathize with him and all ELL students. I always strive to make the girl I know feel welcomed and included in everything!

[Megan Cureton · Rating 5 out of 5]

La Mariposa is a story about a young Hispanic boy named Francisco that is attending school and doesn't understand any English. He goes to school and comes home every day with a headache because he just sits there and listens to a teacher spill words out of her mouth that doesn't make any sense to him. He starts to drift off in class, even though his dad says that is disrespectful. He stares at the class caterpillar and imagines him flying around his dad in the farm and hanging with him. He's really interested in the caterpillar and is excited to learn about the cocoon and is amazed at the beauty when the cocoon starts to crack and sees the beautiful butterfly come out. I think this is a great book to have in a classroom library for those students that can't speak English fluently to have something to relate to and understand. Even if someone has to translate this book for the student, it will let them see that they aren't the only one that feels the way they do. I like that in the book Curtis starts a fight with Francisco over the jacket, but by the end of the book, Francisco gives Curtis his beautiful drawing of the butterfly that got him a number 1 blue ribbon award from the teacher. I like that this book is written by the author himself, so you get a sense of being in the authors mind while reading this book and the experiences are first hand. I like the illustrations in the book and i feel they connect to the text very well. I really enjoyed reading this book and i was excited to read on and i feel like my students would feel the same about this book. This book showed that you should not give up even when the going gets tough and you should push through the hard times, because everything will pass and you need to look forward to the future. I think this is a good story to give students faith and keep them looking forward to the future. I enjoyed reading the facts and real information at the end of the book, it let me connect with the real character and visualize him. Great read!

[Esther · Rating 4 out of 5]

La Mariposa
Written by Francisco Jimenez; Illustrated by Simon Silva
Published by: Houghton Mifflin Company, NY, NY 1998
Approx. Interest Level: Grade 2-4

This story revolves around a young boy, who is a native Spanish speaker, and how he copes with living in a culture that he is struggling to understand. In this story, Francisco, the young boy, struggles to understand English and loses interest in school while increasing his interest in a classroom caterpillar, which is the only thing he can connect to in his unfamiliar surroundings. I thought that this perspective of immigration and encountering new cultures was dynamic, interesting, and true to life. Although Francisco is not placed in a certain setting or time period, his experience is parallel and similar to many children or adults who encounter a new culture and language. His struggles with other children, lack of material possessions, and desire to fit in cross cultural boundaries allows many readers from various backgrounds to identify with Francisco easily. Also, some Spanish words and phrases are included in the text, which allows the reader to understand Francisco in his own language. The illustrations add greatly to the text and do hint to a time period in the past, but still allow the reader to imagine the actions of Francisco at times. Also, the style of the illustrations is an extremely realistic portrayal of the events, which adds to the sincerity of the story. Overall, La Mariposa is a great example of a multidimensional, complex portrayal of immigration and assimilation into an unknown culture.

[Angela Hutchinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, a boy named Francisco is starting the first grade and cannot speak any English. He is struggling in the classroom because he cannot understand anything the teacher is saying. So, he just decides to daydream because listening to the teacher had started giving him headaches. Francisco really enjoyed art class because he could draw anything that he wanted to. One day, the teacher hung one of his drawings up in the board for the class to see, but soon it just disappeared. Francisco has a fascination with a caterpillar that was located next to his seat in the classroom. There was book that he would look at and try to read what the words were saying. By the end of the first grade, Francisco did not pick up very many English words, but he could relate to a few English words and picture. This book is from a child’s viewpoint about his experience in the first grade and some of the struggles he faced. That is true in so many of the school systems in America today.

[carrietracy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really didn't like the message sent by this book. I read many books on immigration to my students. One of the themes I want them to understand is that life in America can be hard. And life is hard for Francisco, the main character of this story. He has few friends, is part of a school that favors English immersion and is bullied by the most popular boy in school. In the end, he wins a prize for his picture, which the bully admires. Francisco then gives the picture to the bully and you get the impression that now they are friends. I don't like that the ending is framed so as to seem positive. I can't imagine that the kind of boy who'd beat up someone who is different would really complement Francisco on his artwork and want to be friends. I do find Francisco's relinquishment of his prize work to be realistic, but not as an "olive branch" scenario.

[Elnara Browers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: A young boy, Francisco, moves with his family to the United States. He does not speak English which causes a turmoil for him, bullying by some, lack of understanding from the school's staff. Finally, Francisco discovers his latent for drawing which serves as a bridge between him and the school.
Genre: autobiography
mentor writing trait(s):
Sentence fluency (sentence length is consistent), organization (build-up of the story), voice (author addresses the readers and tells a personal story), conventions.
Identify specific concepts that could be integrated into the classroom.
Language arts, civics.Emotion, acceptance, differentiation.
Provide any other suggestions that would be useful regarding literary content, reading level, and other ways in which the book might be integrated:
Lower grades, Level 4.6

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

In La Mariposa, Francisco Jimenez recalls a time when immigrants were forbidden to speak in their native languages in schools in order to encourage them to assimilate. The folk art and autobiographical text portray a migrant child's perspective, from the different physical and social environments of home and school to the overwhelming, indecipherable cacophony of a new language. La mariposa, the butterfly, represents the natural world which is usually of intrinsic interest to all children. Francisco's interest in the metamorphosis of the butterfly motivated him to try to read and inspired him to draw. The beauty of the butterfly and of Francisco's drawing became a catalyst for personal and social transformation.

[Alison Durbin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that this story was incredibly touching. I loved how I was forced to put myself in the shoes of Francisco, as well as other ELL children when they come to an English speaking classroom for the first time. This took me back to my practicum experience last semester when I had an ELL student. Like Francisco, he was in first grade and had an older brother that would help translate for him. Also like Francisco, he was silent for awhile until he felt comfortable enough to speak. The stories were so similar, it almost brought tears to my eyes, because it was like I was getting a glimpse of what that ELL student was thinking last semester. I will definitely use this for my future classroom!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I read this book, I felt so much sympathy for the main character Francisco for not being able to understand anything his teacher said. There is a language barrier for many students who are not native English speakers and they might not have the desire to learn due to the simple fact that they do not know the main language that is spoken in school. The metaphor in the story compares Francisco’s journey of learning English to a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly. It takes time, but it will happen. Unfortunately Francisco’s teacher was not always patient and accommodating to his needs as an English language learner, which sends the message to people of all ages that you should be sensitive to those who do not know how to speak English and be willing to help them learn.