Perico the parrot has something to say but apparently his timing is off and he’s speaking the wrong language! As each customer comes into the pet shop requesting a talking parrot, Perico attempts to imitate their expected lines–“Polly wants a cracker,” or”I am a pretty bird.” Just as the potential buyer begins to leave, Perico squawks out a reply in Spanish, “Agua,” “Mal,” or “Si.” The pet store owner, anxious to make a sale, says, “Wait! He’s talking.” The woman in the purple glasses is sure Perico has called out “opera” instead of “agua” and takes him on an ill-fated visit to the performance. The next morning, Perico is returned to the pet shop for the next customer to misinterpret “mal” for a desire to visit the “mall.” Each misunderstanding leads to an outrageous outing until just the right owner visits the pet shop. A perfect read-aloud for a class just learning Spanish or a bi-lingual class to spark a conversation about the mistakes we can make in trying to understand a language different from our own!
About Erika
