Bilingual education projects utilizing various literary genres--fables, folk, and animal tales--as the stimuli for written and oral English activities have aided Mexican-American children in overcoming English language handicaps. During the three summers such an English program was undertaken with children from a Mexican-American disadvantaged area, it was observed that (1) these children need many oral and written language experiences; (2) a flexible, creative climate within a structured language program produces maximum learning; (3) literature provides an appealing basis on which children can build their understanding of the language; (4) oral-aural opportunities help children to internalize the English language; and (5) children's ready recognition of story structure stimulates their improvisations which increase their communication skills. (JMC)