Elephant and the Lost Blanket
Written and illustrated by Alex Naidoo
Reviewed by Missy-Anne, mum to Ava (2) and Mia (8 months) who are both moderately deaf.
"I think this is a really good book. I like how simple it is; there’s not too much going on in the story or on each of the pages, making it easier to read and show my daughters. Both of them are at different stages so it’s great to read the words to my older daughter who’s able to follow the story more and point to the elephant or butterfly for the younger one. I also like how it’s clear to see Elephant has hearing aids but it’s not made into a big issue. It also shows her being able to do things like other children who are hearing.
It would be good to see more sound words in the book, for example when Elephant rushes down to breakfast there’s the word ‘crunch’ but that isn’t shown anywhere else in the book. I feel it could be added to the page where Elephant is checking her boots are still good for jumping and her blanket blows away, for example under the blanket the word ‘whoosh’ or when giraffe is going down the slide ‘weee’. As a parent whose daughters go to speech therapy, these types of words are brilliant for keeping children engaged.
Throughout the book I also thought it would be good to see signs so I was pleased when I got to the end to see the top tips for reading and also the video link for bringing signs into the book to make it come to life."
Reviewed by Stuart, dad to Lois (3) who is profoundly deaf.
"Elephant and the Lost Blanket is about a young elephant who loses her favourite blanket during a trip to the park with her friends.
The book is set in a child-friendly environment with the contents of the book featuring everyday occurrences in a child’s life. The book is useful for developing language with deaf children, particularly as it includes words for objects, animals, activities and the emotions that they learn throughout their early years.
The book is handy for reading at home and nursery and is useful for prompting children to explore the sounds and noises that the characters would make. It’s vibrant, colourful, exciting and packed full of illustrations and words that can bring the story to life. It also includes some useful tips to make sure that deaf children can access and learn as much from the book as possible. It’s reassuring for deaf children to read stories where the main characters wear hearing aids/cochlear implants and this provides a valuable talking point when narrating the story. I would recommend this book for all children, but especially to parents, carers, teachers and supporting staff of deaf children as a fun way to learn and develop language."
Useful signs to help you and your child bring 'Elephant and the Lost Blanket' to life!
View transcript
Have you seen our deaf awareness videos for hearing peers in the early years?
To help children in the early years understand how to support their deaf peers, we've launched a free series of 5 videos on our YouTube channel. These short, fun and colourful animated videos feature a diverse range of animal characters from our children’s book, 'Elephant and the Lost Blanket'. Complete with subtitles and a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter, each video covers a different theme on how children can communicate with, support and include their deaf peers.
About 'Elephant and the Lost Blanket'
Elephant never goes anywhere without her special blue blanket – it’s her most treasured possession. But when it mysteriously disappears in the park one day, she is desperate to find it. Luckily, her friends are ready to help, but the search takes an unexpected turn. Building on the success of our 'Jake and Jasmine to the Rescue' and 'Daisy & Ted’s Awesome Adventures' books for children aged 4 to 7, we're thrilled to introduce our third book! At the National Deaf Children's Society, we believe it's essential for deaf children to see themselves reflected in the stories they read, even from the earliest years. That's why this time, we've created something for little ones aged 0 to 5. We hope you enjoy it!