Student Spotlight: Children’s author Tam Bui is an international student in PSU’s Early Childhood Education program

Tam Bui (Bui Phuong Tam) is the author of two beautiful children’s books. The first, “This is Tết” illustrated by Mai Ngo, introduces the reader to a Vietnamese family of four generations celebrating the holiday together, intended to help Vietnamese children living all over the world learn about their roots. Her second book, “Put the phone down, now” illustrated by Hoang Giang, was inspired by a course in the Early Childhood Education (ECE) master’s program at Portland State University.

One year into the program, Tam traveled from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to Portland in June for her practicum at the Helen Gordon Child Development Center on campus. While in town, she took the time to share about her career as a children’s author, and her experience in the ECE program.

PSU graduate student Tam Bui with her daughter Na smile behind copies of her book on a table.

COE:  Could you describe your work as a children’s author? 

Tam: “As a mother, I was looking for books to read to my daughter during bedtime. Books where we could see ourselves – our people, our culture, our traditions, our celebration of changing seasons, our challenges, our matters of concern, but most of the picture books in my country are imported from overseas, and they don’t reflect us. So I thought, if we can’t find what we need, why don’t we create?

• I started first with a poem for my daughter who was two years old – a poem about her first Tết (Vietnamese Lunar New Year). Then, I was told how my book inspired a love of reading among children of the 0-8 age group. The two-year-olds learned by heart my phrases as they expanded their verbal vocabulary. The six-year-olds learned to read and write with my poem. 

• Family values and traditions shape who we are. I would like to celebrate the seasons of childhood, the bonding among family members through these family activities, which will have a profound impact on our later years as adults, no matter where we will be in this world.

• My second book – ‘Put the phone down, now’ was written during Covid and was a reflection of a course that I took with Professor Sally Guyon on Big Ideas in Early Childhood Constructivist Curriculum. I wanted to share the story of how our family has addressed phone addiction through Play. The book was launched earlier this year and recently published in China. 

• At this point of my life, my identity as a children’s author fits me perfectly. I have come to acknowledge my love for writing and  storytelling as a thread that has always been there throughout my life. Yet, it takes time for me to realize my own sparkle which seemed to appear only in the moonlight.

COE:  Why did you choose the Early Childhood Education program at Portland State University? 

Tam: “I was introduced to PSU by Ms. Elsa Borelli, my daughter’s preschool teacher who was in her last year with the Masters in ECE Program – Constructivism at PSU. Every day when I walked into school, I noticed interesting provocations and documentation in Ms. Elsa’s class. Every day there was something worth noticing. Where does Ms. Elsa get all these ideas from? How does Ms. Elsa design an emergent learning experience that attends to the children’s interest? How does Ms. Elsa watch and listen and document such meaningful stories about each child’s learning journey? I can’t help but find out about what informed her practices and her story of transformation. We met for a chat and I was inspired to take a few modules for my own exploration. I took Constructivist Curriculum: Big Ideas in Early Childhood Education by Dr. Sally Guyon and Culture of Materials by Dr. Will Parnell. I felt that I had found my place in the universe.” 

COE: What do you like about the program as an international student? 

Tam: “The modules (foundation, specialization and electives) are ‘curated’ in a way which could speak to students from all stages of life, and especially for career switchers like me to rediscover the meaning of life, the meaning of early childhood, the meaning of school, the image of the child, the languages of the children, the role of the teacher, and how we join in to reimagine life and re-conceptualize our way of being, our way of teaching and learning.

• The platforms where learning takes place enable an experience that responds to our diverse ways of expression and representation, even better than sitting in a physical classroom. In our own time and space, we read, we watch and we construct our own knowledge. We are invited to share our weekly reflections and term assignments in writing, Flipgrid, Miro, Google Sites etc. We’ve discovered so many ways to bring our learning together in a shared space that is visible and is real to everyone at great breadth and depth.
• I could pursue this program online, at my own pace while taking care of my family.
• I am allowed to pay for my modules one at a time, and a few weeks after a new course starts.”

COE: Will you visit any special places while you are in Portland, Oregon?

Tam: “I loved all my morning walks across the campus to [Helen Gordon Child Development Center]. There were so many things to see –flowers, birds, and squirrels, the smell of morning coffee, and the lovely morning breeze. During my one and only precious weekend, I visited A Children’s Place – a lovely children’s bookstore and spent half a day at Powell’s. I was taken around the city by my classmate Diana, who showed me her life. We went to the Japanese Garden, visited Diana’s school, and went to a supermarket where she buys fresh groceries. 

COE:  Are your books available in English?

Tam: Yes, and my Tết book was also published in German and Swedish. Somehow my books have found their ways to travel around the world, visiting Vietnamese homes – as an emotional gift. 

For purchases of the book in English, please contact the publisher Tiny Wrist Bilingual Vietnamese Books in LA: https://tinywrist.com/  

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