¡Saludos! I have wanted to review the Mi Mundo Bilingüe: Hola Amigo Box monthly subscription for a few months. We first registered as a Christmas present & well, my daughter LOVES these boxes! Hola Amigo was launched by two educator moms seeking to raise bilingual children. They focused on producing a high quality product that would engage the modern bilingual child & I must say they have succeeded! Read along to find out more.
Cost
You can sign up for a 3-month, 6-month or 12-month subcription. These boxes run at about $70 each, so getting the long term subscription will save you money! The website does ask for your email before you see any pricing. I paid a whopping $332.69 for a 6 month subscription. They throw in an extra box or three developmental toys for first time subscribers, however. I must also note that the subcription automatically renews, so make sure you cancel a month prior to your last box, which usually mails the 5th of every month.
Storage
Initially I only did a 3 month subscription to try it out, and then I cancelled by 2nd renewal because at 12×9 inches, these boxes are big! If you live in a mansion or have space in your house this is irrevelant, but if you live in a small home or apartment, you will have to clear some storage room for these babies! I passed along puzzle boxes that my children were no longer interacting with to clear some room.
Why I Chose a Longer Subcription
Because this girl loves them! I have done a Sol Book Box subscription, and although that is fun & cultural in its own right especially with their Latin American curated books, the Hola Amigo box makes sense as a teaching tool for emergent bilingual readers!
The video below demonstrates the variety that comes with each box. I do love the short non-fiction readers because the language is repetitive and easier for beginning readers. The wooden figurines… really everything… is labeled in English & Spanish. They throw in different types of games in each box, sometimes puzzles, sometimes matching, we have gotten Bingo as you see below. Camila loves her re-usable stickers in her mascotas box. I also love that the wooden figurines are double-faced & usually means you get both male and female characters.
Learning + Entertainment = Educational
My father in law scoffed a bit when Mila showed him her box: “I don’t like books with toys!” he said. This is also the man who has my son reading adult non-fiction books about the afterlife or life on the American frontier, ha ha. But nowadays access to toys is so prevalent that we may as well make the toys educational, right? The concept of “play-based learning” has won traction in the last decade, however, and is second nature for our kids.
Personally, I have brought out boxes strategically, knowing I needed Mila to be engaged quietly. I presented her with the Restaurante box while I was having brunch with a friend, and her zoo box while I had a meeting at the school.
Gorgeous High Quality Prints & Content
Something about having three dimensional blocks & press out cardstock pages make these boxes very exciting for kids. The sets are always colorful & on themes that attract preschool children (& aesthetically-conscious parents). The fact they replaced their zoo set building pieces because the printed letters were defective is testament to the company’s commitment to quality. The boxes are sturdy & can definitely be passed along if treated with care by their first owner. I guess this is another reason I know the subscription is worth it for me: they will be going hopefully to two homes after mine (¡para los primos!)
Hola Amigo has kits for 3 years, 4-5 years, and 6-8 years. Honestly, I’m not sure if the contents vary per age or this is just for marketing/demographic purposes. I have bought Camila the boxes for 4-5 years.
Academically, the non-fiction books in her sets are easier to read than their board books. My eight-year-old son who is finishing 2nd grade can easily sit & read the books in both languages & do the activity journal in one sitting, but he still enjoys it.
I admit that at first I found the set overwhelming! Compared to Sol Book Box which comes with 2 picture books, Hola Amigo definitely is more of a teaching tool you and your child do together. The sets come with instructions that tell you how to use its contents. There is audiobook versions of the books which you access via QR code: This is awesome for monolingual homes! The Pinterest QR code has learning or craft activities based on the theme & the Youtube QR code is a playlist of theme-related music or informational videos. This is a monthly subscription but honestly it will take you longer than a month to go through all of the contents! Keep that in mind when choosing your subscription. I definitely think a family could spend a minimum of 2 months in each box if you want to cover the content thoroughly.
Once you sing up for a subscription you will receive weekly emails with additional free, printable resources to use in your Spanish teaching/learning. Emails seem to be sent only after a subscription has been paid but you will continue to receive them even after cancellation.
Yago y Mila Approved!
The subscription may appear expensive, but if you consider how often we buy toys that will be forgotten within the week, Hola Amigo is worth the investment! This is a solid resource for homeschooling & practicing Spanish literacy with bilingual children! Monolingual children may find the Spanish reading a little challenging, but that is also something parents are seeking. I definitely recommend this resource for more fluent or dual-language two-way students.
I leave you with some peeks into the boxes we have gotten and Mila’s Spanish reading fluency. I’m definitely hoping to use these sets this summer to improve her Spanish reading skills!
Biblioterika 