Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan by Adriana Bergstrom: Book-Based Activities & Printables

 

Some picture books tell a story.

Others make you want to gather around the table.

Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan by Adriana Hernández Bergstrom is one of those warm, delicious stories that feels like a hug from beginning to end.

With a grandmother, a little girl, a special family recipe, and a very important birthday celebration, this picture book invites children into a story about family, culture, food, honesty, problem-solving, and the special things we pass from one generation to the next.

And, of course… there is flan. ❤️

Originally published in English as Abuelita and I Make Flan, the Spanish edition celebrates Cuban food and family traditions and includes a traditional flan recipe. 

What Is Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan About?

Anita loves cooking with her abuela.

Especially when they are making one of Abuelita's special Cuban desserts: flan.

But this isn't just an ordinary day in the kitchen.

Anita and Abuelita are preparing a flan for Abuelo's birthday when something unexpected happens.

Anita accidentally breaks Abuelita's special serving plate—the one Abuelita brought with her from Cuba.

And suddenly, making the flan isn't the only problem.

Anita knows she should tell the truth.

But what if Abuelita gets angry?

What if she has ruined everything?

Instead of giving up, Anita tries to help.

And after the flan is ready, there is still one very important question:

How are they going to serve it?

Anita comes up with a wonderful solution.

And along the way, children discover that sometimes mistakes can lead to creativity, connection, and something even more meaningful.

Why Children Connect with This Story

Children know what it feels like to make a mistake.

They know that moment when your stomach drops because you accidentally broke something, spilled something, or did something you wish you could undo.

Anita's story gives children a gentle way to explore those feelings.

She is worried.

She feels responsible.

She wants to make things right.

And she learns that telling the truth and looking for a solution can be part of taking responsibility.

The story naturally opens conversations about:

• honesty
• responsibility
• problem-solving
• family
• traditions
• feelings
• helping others
• creativity
• cultural identity
• food and celebrations
• intergenerational relationships

A Story That Opens Meaningful Conversations

One of the beautiful things about this book is that the flan is only the beginning.

Ask questions like:

• Why is the flan special?
• Why is the serving plate important to Abuelita?
• How do you think Anita feels when the plate breaks?
• Should Anita tell Abuelita what happened? Why?
• What would you do if you were Anita?
• How does Anita try to help?
• What makes a family tradition special?
• Do you have a food that reminds you of your family?
• Is there a recipe that someone in your family makes?
• What things can we learn from our grandparents?
• Can a mistake sometimes lead to a good idea?

These questions can turn a simple read-aloud into a meaningful conversation about feelings, family, culture, and responsibility.

Try These Book-Based Activities

Make Flan Together

The most obvious extension is also one of the most meaningful.

Make flan!

The book itself includes a traditional flan recipe, making cooking a natural extension of the story.

Invite children to notice:

• the ingredients
• the measurements
• the sequence of steps
• changes in texture
• smells
• colors
• temperature

Cooking turns literacy, math, science, and sensory exploration into one shared experience.

And then comes the best part:

sharing the food together.

Create a Family Recipe Book

What special foods does your family make?

Invite children to talk about a favorite family recipe.

They can draw:

• the food
• the ingredients
• the person who makes it
• when the family eats it

Older children can dictate or write the recipe.

Collect the pages into a simple Our Family Recipe Book.

It becomes more than a literacy activity.

It becomes a little piece of family history.

Explore Family Traditions

Abuelita's flan is connected to family and cultural tradition.

Invite children to think about their own traditions.

Ask:

What does your family do again and again because it is special to you?

Maybe it's:

• making a certain food
• celebrating a birthday
• visiting grandparents
• telling stories
• singing a special song
• gathering around the table
• making something together

Children can draw one family tradition and explain why it matters.

Sequence the Flan-Making Process

Cooking is perfect for sequencing.

Invite children to put the steps of making flan in order.

Use words such as:

first → next → then → after that → finally

You can turn the activity into a hands-on sequencing game with picture cards.

And suddenly, children are practicing important language skills while thinking about something concrete and delicious.

The Feelings of Anita

Anita experiences several emotions throughout the story.

Create a simple feelings path:

happy → worried → scared → responsible → helpful → proud

Talk about what happens in the story that causes each feeling.

Children can act out each emotion using their faces and bodies.

You can also ask:

Have you ever felt this way after making a mistake?

Design a Special Serving Plate

The serving plate in the story isn't just an object.

It has meaning.

Invite children to design their own special plate.

What would they put on it?

Maybe:

• family members
• flowers
• favorite foods
• colors
• symbols
• places
• memories

Then invite them to explain:

Why would this plate be special to you?

This is a lovely combination of art, storytelling, and personal connection.

Food as a Way to Talk About Culture

One of the things I love about this story is the way food carries memories.

Food can tell us about:

• where families come from
• celebrations
• traditions
• grandparents
• childhood memories
• special occasions
• things we make together

Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan gives children an authentic reason to talk about the foods that are meaningful in their own families.

And that makes it a particularly lovely book to explore during Hispanic Heritage Month.

Rather than simply talking about culture, children can explore how culture can live in something as everyday—and meaningful—as a family recipe shared around a table.

Discovering Family Stories Through Food

You can take this idea even further.

Ask families to share a recipe, food memory, or special dish.

Children can bring in a story about:

“A food that reminds me of someone I love.”

It doesn't have to be complicated.

Maybe it's grandma's cookies.

Dad's pancakes.

A special birthday cake.

A soup someone makes when you're sick.

Or a dessert that only appears during a holiday.

Every family has stories hiding inside its recipes.

Exploring Illustrations

Adriana Hernández Bergstrom is both the author and illustrator of the book.

Invite children to become picture detectives.

Before reading the words, ask:

• What do you notice?
• What is Anita doing?
• What is Abuelita doing?
• What details tell us that they are cooking?
• How can you tell how Anita feels?
• What objects seem important?
• What can the pictures tell us about their relationship?

Children can look closely at expressions, gestures, food, kitchen details, and objects connected to the family's story.

Building Vocabulary Through the Story

This book naturally introduces vocabulary connected to:

• cooking
• food
• ingredients
• family
• celebrations
• feelings
• traditions
• kitchen tools
• sequencing
• problem-solving

Instead of teaching these words in isolation, let children encounter them through the story.

They can:

touch them, act them out, draw them, use them, cook with them, and talk about them.

That's when vocabulary becomes meaningful.

A Natural Invitation to Math and Science

And then there is the flan.

Cooking provides so many natural opportunities for early learning.

Children can explore:

Math

• counting
• measuring
• comparing quantities
• sequencing
• fractions
• more and less

Science

• melting
• heating
• cooling
• changes in texture
• ingredients
• cause and effect

Language

• recipe vocabulary
• sequencing words
• describing
• retelling
• asking questions

Learning doesn't have to feel like a lesson.

Sometimes it can simply look like making dessert with someone you love.

Extending the Learning with a Book Companion

One beautiful picture book can become the starting point for days of meaningful learning.

My Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan Book Companion can extend the story through literacy, vocabulary, comprehension, sequencing, feelings, family connections, cooking, cultural exploration, and playful hands-on activities.

Children can revisit Anita's story while practicing important early learning skills.

The goal isn't simply to answer questions about the book.

It's to help children read, talk, create, play, cook, connect, and make the story their own.

A Story About More Than Flan

At first glance, Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan is a story about a little girl making dessert with her grandmother.

But underneath the recipe is something much bigger.

It is a story about love passed down through generations.

About the things grandparents teach us.

About the foods that carry memories.

About the traditions that travel from one generation to another.

About making mistakes and finding a way forward.

And about how sometimes the most meaningful learning happens when we are simply together.

Final Thoughts

Some picture books make us laugh.

Some teach us something new.

And some make us want to call our grandmother.

Abuelita y yo hacemos un flan does a little bit of all three.

It reminds us that food can be memory.

That recipes can be family stories.

That mistakes don't have to be the end of the story.

And that a kitchen can become a place for learning, connection, culture, and love.

Because sometimes the sweetest part of a recipe isn't what's on the plate.

It's the people sitting around the table. ❤️