LET’S PLAY: More Resources
Let’s Play
Let’s Play is a touch-and-feel book for everyone.
It features bright, high-contrast imagery and simple engaging text. It also offers tactile elements and keywords in signs and braille to help make it as accessible as possible for all families.
The signs in Let’s Play
The back cover of Let’s Play features pictures of British Sign Language (BSL) signs for the five keywords in the book – ‘ball’, ‘rabbit’, ‘brick’, ‘duck’ and ‘bed’.
You may also find it useful to see these signed as video clips. For example, SignBSL.com is a BSL dictionary site that features real people signing, which can make it easier to copy the sign correctly.
Here are quick links to each keyword:
British Sign Language
The National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS) website is a great place to start for information and advice on BSL. It features a range of BSL videos that show regional differences too.
The braille words in Let’s Play
Let’s Play features each of the five keywords in braille: ball, rabbit, brick, duck and bed. The braille words are in the top right hand corner of each page.
Let’s Play also features the book’s title in braille on the spine.
All the braille has been checked for us by braille readers.
We included braille because we believe in raising the profile of braille and we know it can helpful to expose even young babies with vision impairment to braille, as well as being of use to braille-reading adults.
You can find more information about introducing children to braille on the RNIB website here.
Clearvision Books offer lots of advice and information and have free booklets to download on their website, such as Crack the Code and A Braille Reader in the Family (containing pre-braille skills at home, which can be helpful for all ages from babies onward).
Babies and children with vision impairment
This page of the RNIB website is a good place to find information for parents of children with vision impairment, including downloadable resources.
Deaf babies and children
The NDCS website is a good starting point for information for parents. The NDCS also have deaf awareness videos for children in the early years.
Hearing aids and cochlear implants
Let’s Play features a child with a bone-anchored hearing aid (‘BAHA’). You can find lots of information on hearing aids for babies and children on the NDCS website here.
ToyLikeMe
Let’s Play also shows a teddy with a BAHA. Did you know ToyLikeMe offer a range of toys which represent disability and difference? You can buy toys with hearing aids or individual toy hearing aids (including BAHAs) on their Etsy site here.
Tactile rabbit on spine
Let’s Play features a little tactile rabbit on the spine. This could be useful for children who have low vision as well as children who are going to go on to read braille but don't read yet, and parents.
More Child’s Play books
Browse more Child’s Play books here.
Find Child’s Plays books featuring tracking here.
Find Child’s Play books featuring signs here.
Find Child’s Play books available as Storysacks collections here.
Author Alexandra Strick
Child’s Play worked on this book with Alex Strick, a children’s book author who is passionate about ensuring all children are included in books. Alex has worked with Child’s Play on a number of touch-and-feel books, as well as writing several picture books.
Dedication to Wendy Cooling
Let’s Play is dedicated to Wendy Cooling, the founder of Bookstart. Wendy worked with Alex Strick and Child’s Play to create several touch-and-feel books that aim to be as accessible as possible, such as Off to the Park!, Off to the Beach! and Getting Ready.
Other useful sources of information
Find out about Widgit symbols here.
Find out about the Living Paintings free postal service of ‘Touch to See’ books here.
Find out about Bookstart packs for babies and young children with additional needs here.