The Opposite Day (Araw Ng Kabaligtaran) is a fun and humorous children’s story about a girl named Sophia who woke up in a strange position and declared that it is Opposite Day!
Follow along her day to see how she celebrates it with opposite manners and actions.
The book includes both English and Tagalog so children can gain literacy skills in both languages.
The character is inspired by the author’s daughter, Sophia. His daughter’s birthday is April 24, so Jomike Tejido decided that April 24 would be the “Day of Opposites.”
He encourages Filipino children around the world to join in on the celebration and have a “day of opposites” or “araw ng kabaligtaran” on April 24.
Themed activities to go with this book
- Play “Eye Spy Opposites” – As you’re reading along, have an “opposites hunt” and ask your child to look for opposites. Discuss the vocabulary. It is the perfect time to teach the words and see them used in the context of the story.
- Have your own opposite day – Do opposite things during your daily routine. (Of course, make sure they are safe and responsible choices). Some examples include:
- Eating dinner before dessert
- Wearing your shirt backwards
- Walking backwards a few steps to another room
- Saying “Good morning” when it is night time and “Goodnight” when it is morning.
- Using your opposite hand to write
- Saying “goodbye” when you mean to say “hello.”
- Try this Backwards Mirror Writing activity
- Paint a picture using the tip of the handle of a paintbrush instead of the brush
- Learn opposite vocabulary words in Tagalog & English.
- We created a bundle of “Opposites” printables: flashcards, a memory game, and a matching activity. Learn or review Tagalog vocabulary for opposites with these lesson printables.
Tagalog “Opposites” Audio Glossary (to go with the Opposites flash cards)
- maliit (small)
- malaki (big)
- mabagal (slow)
- mabilis (fast)
- pataas (up)
- pababa (down)
- kaliwa (left)
- kanan (right)
- mainit (hot)
- malamig (cold)
- matigas (hard)
- malambot (soft)
- pandak (short)
- matangkad (tall)
- maliwanag (bright/light)
- madilim (dark)
- bukas (open)
- sarado (closed)
- gutom (hungry)
- busog (full)
- abante (forward)
- atras (backward)
- masaya (happy)
- malungkot (sad)
- Eat Tapsilog –
Although this isn’t an opposite activity, the book does show Sophia eating tapsilog, a popular Filipino breakfast composed of tapa (beef), sinangag (garlic rice), and itlog (egg). The word tapsilog combines a few letters from each element to form the full word. It would be a delicious pairing to share tapsilog with the family, whether you decide to go out for breakfast or cook it yourself. Here is a recipe from Panlasang Pinoy if you’re looking for one way to cook it.
We hope you enjoy Opposite Day (Araw ng kabaligtaran)! Feel free to comment below to share how you celebrate it.