1. Sharing books with children with additional needs

2. Introduction

3. Introduction to today’s session
1. Reading for pleasure with children with additional needs
Why is it important? How can it be supported?
2. What do BookTrust offer for children with additional needs?
Bookstart additional needs packs
3. Case studies
How are the Bookstart packs used? What is the value of reading for pleasure?
4. Connecting families with BookTrust programmes
How can you access the Bookstart packs?
How can the packs can be gifted in your local authority?
Cathy: Run through the outline of the session.

4. Reading for pleasure for children with additional needs

5. Our Research
Debs: Could you add some slides on the rationale for the research, methods and main findings. These can probably be pasted from the session you did at BookTrust.

6. Everyone was very positive about BookTrust and affirmed its impact.
Appreciation for the resources provided by the BookTrust: Keep up the good work.
The parents and practitioners participating in this project were full of praise for the quality and appropriateness of BookTrust’s additional needs resources.
Families welcomed these gifts and felt that their children were being valued through them.
Schools welcomed the arrival of the School Library Packs and valued the quality of these resources.
They appreciated the care and investment that had been made in their selection and presentation.
Everyone was very positive about BookTrust and affirmed its impact.

7. The benefits of reading for pleasure
University of Derby and BookTrust
The benefits of reading for pleasure
Books were also important scaffolds for development and were being used to provide a highly personalised route to learning. For example, books were a stimulus for movement, communication, language development, learning about the world and learning to be independent.
The benefits of reading for pleasure among children with additional needs were significant and often profound.
Books were important in their lives. Among the benefits were opportunities for comfort, closeness and well-being.
BookTrust resources were clearly seen to contribute to delivering these positive outcomes and there were countless examples of this in the data.
Books were a focus for shared attention, pleasure and enjoyment.

8. Case Study – Books as gateways to language

9. Case Study – Words from a wise practitioner
University of Derby and BookTrust
Case Study – Words from a wise practitioner
‘For children with special educational needs, who are often surrounded by ‘special’ resources and equipment and stuff, a book is a bit unique because it is, how can I put it, its ‘normal’ and what I mean is it is something ‘ordinary’ that people use in the wider world and that carries no ‘special’ stigma. It is really nice for children and families to enjoy that ordinariness. This is why books are so important.’

10. Introduction to BookTrust

11. Who we are…
BookTrust is the largest reading charity in the UK. Aim: to inspire a love of reading We give out over 5 million books to children every year through our programmes Delivered through partnerships with: health, libraries, schools, early years practitioners
Cathy

12. What we do – our universal programmes
Cathy: We deliver programmes for children from birth to secondary school age all aimed at inspiring a love of reading and supporting reading for pleasure. We’ll just talk through a few examples now – I’m going to concentrate on our programmes for younger children as I know that’s where your work is focused.
Bookstart is our flagship programme which is universal (i.e. every child in England receives it). Bookstart gives a pack including a book and guidance for parents to every child to keep at two key ages, in their first year (before they turn 1) and when they are aged 3-4.
Time to Read is another universal programme which gives all reception-aged children a pack including a book and guidance for parents. (Time to Read is a new programme which we have launched this year to replace Booktime, this year’s programme has included a connected press campaign around continuing to read to and with children as they get older)

13. What we do – our targeted programmes
Cathy: We also deliver targeted programmes to help us meet the needs of particular children and families. For example, the Letterbox Club programmes supports children in care from ages Local authorities subscribe to the programme and children are sent one parcel a month for 6 months, each including books, maths games, and stationery. We’re also piloting an early years version of Letterbox Club for children aged 3-5 at the moment.
Alongside our universal Bookstart programme we run Bookstart Corner, which is a programme delivered by children’s centres to families who may need additional support to develop a love of reading. Practitioners visit families homes or run sessions in children’s centres to support families, and families receive resources including books, rhyme sheets and puppets.
We also offer dual language books for families with English as an additional language, which can be added to the universal Bookstart packs – the dual language books are available in over 20 different languages. Free. There are also lots of online resources to support our programmes, for example, to provide further support to families with English as an additional language we have an online story ‘Lulu Loves Stories’ which is in English, but you can listen along to the story in over 20 different languages.
We do run lots of other programmes and campaigns so if you want to find out more, just ask us or visit the BookTrust website.

14. What we do – our programmes for children with additional needs
Bookshine
For children who are deaf
Booktouch
For children who are blind or partially sighted
Bookstart Star
For children who have disabilities that impact on their fine motor skills
Jen/Lou: We also offer Bookstart packs specifically for children with additional needs: Bookshine for children who are deaf, Booktouch (which is pictured here) for children who are blind or partially sighted, and Bookstart Star for children with conditions affecting their fine motor skills. These packs include things like touch-and-feel books, sign-along books, signing rhyme sheets, Rhymetime CDs, finger puppets, etc. Again, all packs include guidance for parents and there are lots of additional activities available on the Bookstart website, such as interactive storybooks and accessible booklists. Children are entitled to these packs as well as their universal Bookstart packs. Free
Show packs.

15. Development of accessible books
There is a clear gap in the market in terms of books available for children with additional needs, particularly ones that are suited to older children. As a result of this, we have worked closely with the publisher, Child’s Play to develop these three books.
We worked with a school for visually impaired children to understand what they wanted from books and a number of experts from different organisations such as Inclusive Minds, Clearvision and RNIB to make sure we got it right.
We worked with the publisher, Child’s Play and children with additional needs to develop these accessible books

16. Case studies

17. Case Study Video Extract – highly personalised responses.

18. Case Study Extract – Highly Responsive Adults

19. Case Study Video Extract – Books as gateways to communication: a profound example

20. Discuss in small groups…
Have you experienced any challenges in promoting reading for children with additional needs?
How did you overcome the challenges?
What would have helped you overcome the challenges?
Have you experienced success in promoting reading for children with additional needs?
- What contributed to the success?
Debs: Ask delegates to talk through these questions with each other for a few minutes and then feed back to the group.

21. Connecting families with BookTrust programmes

22. Our current reach
During practitioners gifted: 2,176 Bookshine packs 2,240 Booktouch packs 3,459 Bookstart Star packs Across around 120 local authorities But…we want to make sure as many children as possible can benefit from the Bookstart packs.
We have quite a wide reach geographically, but obviously we aren’t reaching all children who could benefit from the parcels, and we’re keen to expand this to ensure we are reaching as many children as possible.

23. How to get hold of the BookTrust packs
Bookstart Coordinators
Gifting partners
Jen/Lou
BookTrust produces a range of additional needs packs
These get sent to Bookstart Coordinators. We have one in every local authority who coordinates ordering and local delivery of Bookstart packs.
They work with partners who are best placed to gift the packs directly to families. At the moment, these are mostly health, early years settings and children’s centres but we now have around 30% given out by you.
We can give you the contact details of your local Bookstart coordinator so please come find us at the end.
Families with children with additional needs

24. Discuss in small groups…
Would you be able to deliver the Bookstart packs in your local authority?
How would this work?
What support would you need from other practitioners?
How could BookTrust support you?
What would be best practice?
Do you deliver the Bookstart additional needs packs in your local authority?
What are the challenges and what works well?
Do you have any advice for other practitioners?
Do you have any feedback for BookTrust?
What is best practice?
Jen/Lou: Ask delegates to talk through these questions with each other for a few minutes and then feed back to the group.

25. Any questions?

26. Contact us BookTrust Jen Luk: jennifer.luk@booktrust.org.uk
Louise Hampton:
Cathy Harris:
University of Derby
Debs Robinson:

28. Thank you!

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