.png)
Blindness
Age 0-3
A Day at the Seaside (Hattie and Friends series), Lesley Berrington
Hattie and Lucy enjoy a day at the seaside with their daddies. Lucy is blind. Her disability is not mentioned in the text. Great positive images of disability with educational content. Perfect for meeting EYFS Statutory Framework Guidelines.
Age 3-5
My Three Best Friends And Me, Zulay, Cari Best
Story about a blind girl who, with the help of her friends, enjoys a fun race at school.
The Seeing Stick, Jane Yolen
Story of a little girl who is born blind. The emperor tries to find a cure for his daughter. Then, one day a wise old man with a mysterious seeing stick visits the princess.
The Black Book of Colors, Menena Cottin
Living with the use of one's eyes can make imagining blindness difficult, but this innovative title invites readers to imagine living without sight through remarkable illustrations done with raised lines and descriptions of colors based on imagery.
Age 5-7
Some Kids Are Blind, Lola M. Schaefer
Teaches diversity and tolerance to young readers on the topic of blindness. This book also helps them understand and appreciate those who have health differences.
Cerebral Palsy
Age 3-5
Howie Helps Himself, Joan Fassler
About Howie, a child with cerebral palsy. Though he enjoys life, he wants nothing more than anything else...and to be able to move his wheelchair by himself.
Taking Cerebral Palsy to School, Mary Elizabeth Anderson
Even though Chad has cerebral palsy, he can still attend school and do many of the same things as his classmates.
All the Way to the Top, Annette Pimintel
Jennifer uses a wheelchair because of her cerebral palsy. Using a wheelchair means that she can’t get into the neighbourhood school with stairs or eat lunch in the cafeteria with the other kids. So, even though she’s a kid, Jennifer joins other activists to speak up for access to all places. Read Jennifer’s true story about being a force for change.
Age 7-11
Sara's Secret, Suzanne Wanous
Sara has a secret: her younger brother has cerebral palsy. At first she doesn't want anyone at her new school to know.
Deafness
Age 0-3
A Day at the Park (Hattie and Friends series), Lesley Berrington
Hattie and Toby enjoy a day at the park with their mummies. Toby is deaf and has a cochlear implant. His disability is not mentioned in the text. Great positive images of disability with educational content. Perfect for meeting EYFS Statutory Framework Guidelines.
Freddie and the Fairy, Julia Donaldson and Karen George
Freddie is desperate for a pet, so when he rescues Bessie-Belle and she offers to grant his wishes he knows just what to ask for. The only problem is that Bessie-Belle can't hear very well, and Freddie tends to mumble. Whatever can they do? Luckily the Fairy Queen is on hand to explain . . .
The Hospital Dog, Julia Donaldson and Nick Sharratt
The jackdaw is flying into danger! The other animals are trying to warn him, but he can't understand the signs they're using. Will he work out what they mean before it's too late?
What the Jackdaw Saw, Julia Donaldson
Dot the dog loves visiting the children of Wallaby Ward and they’re always pleased to see her too; from a crying baby to a bored teenager – a pat, a stroke and a cuddle with Dot cheers everyone up. But the work of the hospital dog doesn’t stop there and when one of her patients is in trouble, it’s up to Dot to save the day!
Age 3-5
Moses Goes to a Concert, Isaac Millman
Moses and his school friends are deaf and communicate using signing. Today, Moses and his classmates are going to a concert. Their teacher, Mr. Samuels, has two surprises in store for them, to make this particular concert a special event.
Age 5-7
Some Kids Are Deaf, Lola M. Schaefer
Teaches diversity and tolerance to young readers on the topic of deafness. This book also helps them understand and appreciate those who have health differences.
Age 7-11
Keep Your Ear on the Ball, Genevieve Petrillo
About a blind boy named Davey who tries to play kickball! Sure, he misses and tramples a base keeper at first and everyone thinks he should not play, but maybe there is a solution that will work for everybody!
Down’s Syndrome
Age 0-3
What's Inside of You Is Inside Me Too, Deslie Webb Quinby
This book informs people about Down syndrome in a fun illustrative way and also explains chromosomes and their role in making every living thing special.
47 Strings. Tessa's Special Code, Becky Carey
A picture book about the remarkable lessons to be learned from a little girl named Tessa, who was born with Down syndrome.
Age 3-5
We'll Paint the Octopus Red, Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen
A story about six-year-old Emma becoming a big sister to her new baby brother who has Down syndrome. In this touching story, Emma helps her father as much as he helps her to realise that Isaac is the baby they dreamed of.
You're All Kinds of Wonderful, Nancy Tillman
Encourages children to embrace the things that make each one of them unique.
I Will Dance, Nancy Bo Flood
Like many young girls, Eva longs to dance. But unlike many would-be dancers, Eva has cerebral palsy. She doesn’t know what dance looks like for someone who uses a wheelchair. Then Eva learns of a place that has created a class for dancers of all abilities. At last her dream of dancing has come true.
Age 5-7
My Friend Has Down Syndrome, Jennifer Moore-Mallinos
Two children, one with Down syndrome and one without, learn that they are both good at different things and that by helping each other overcome their fears and difficulties they can accomplish a great deal together.
Mobility and physical disabilities
Age 0-3
Amazing, Steve Antony
A little boy in a wheelchair and his pet dragon are the very best of friends. A celebration of friendship and being yourself with a positive message about celebrating diversity. Steve Antony is the winner of the Oscar's First Book Prize and has been nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal and shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize.
A Day at the Zoo (Hattie and Friends series), Lesley Berrington
Hattie and George enjoy a day at the zoo with their mummies. George uses a wheelchair. His disability is not mentioned in the text. Great positive images of disability with educational content.
A Day at the Farm (Hattie and Friends series), Lesley Berrington
Hattie and Nisha enjoy a day at the farm with their mummies. Nisha wears leg braces and uses crutches. Her disability is not mentioned in the text. Great positive images of disability with educational content.
Just Because, Rebecca Elliott
An amusing and touching story that encompasses the issue of disability in a charming celebration of sibling friendship.
Age 3-5
Susan Laughs, Jeanne Willis
Told in rhyme, this story follows Susan through a series of familiar activities. She swims with her father, works hard in school, plays with her friends -- and even rides a horse. Lively, thoughtfully drawn illustrations reveal a portrait of a busy, happy little girl with whom younger readers will identify. Not until the end of the story is it revealed that Susan uses a wheelchair.
Don't Call Me Special, Pat Thomas
Explores questions and concerns about physical disabilities in a simple and reassuring way.
When Charley Met Emma (Charlie and Emma series), Amy Webb
When Charley goes to the playground and sees Emma, a girl with limb differences who gets around in a wheelchair, he doesn't know how to react at first. But after he and Emma start talking, he learns that different isn't bad, sad, or strange--different is just different, and different is great! This delightful book will help kids think about disability, kindness, and how to behave when they meet someone who is different from them.
Awesomely Emma (Charlie and Emma series), Amy Webb
Emma has limb differences, but different isn't bad, sad, or strange. It's just different! Amy Webb's follow-up to When Charley Met Emma, Awesomely Emma will have all kids cheering as they learn to see the inner awesome in themselves and those around them.
Some Kids Use Wheelchairs, Lola M. Schaefer
Teaches diversity and tolerance to young readers on the topic of kids using wheelchairs. This book also helps them understand and appreciate those who have health differences.
Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story Of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, Laurie Thompson
Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah's inspiring true story--which was turned into a film, Emmanuel's Gift, narrated by Oprah Winfrey--is nothing short of remarkable. Born in Ghana, West Africa, with one deformed leg, he was dismissed by most people--but not by his mother, who taught him to reach for his dreams. As a boy, Emmanuel hopped to school more than two miles each way, learned to play soccer, left home at age thirteen to provide for his family, and, eventually, became a cyclist. He rode an astonishing four hundred miles across Ghana in 2001, spreading his powerful message: disability is not inability. Today, Emmanuel continues to work on behalf of the disabled.
Hooway for Wodney Wat, Helen Lester
Rodney Rat, can’t pronounce his R’s and the other rodents tease him mercilessly. Read along with Wodney as he surprises himself and his classmates by single-handedly saving the whole class from the big bad bully.
Age 5-7
The Christmasaurus, Thomas Fletcher
A dinosaur-obsessed 10-year-old boy, William Trundle, goes on an adventure to see Father Christmas in a unique version of the North Pole. William is a wheelchair user. A story that shows wheelchair users can be action heroes too! The Winter Witch is the sequel to The Christmasaurus.
Some Kids Wear Leg Braces, Lola M. Schaefer
An engaging text and full-of color photos where readers learn how leg braces can help and what daily life is like for someone who wears them.
Other
Age 3-5
I Have Asthma, Jennifer Moore-Mallinos
The story of a child who suffers from asthma, a chronic condition that sometimes produces frightening attacks. But kids learn that with proper medical supervision and treatment, asthma can be kept under control, and kids who are affected by it can live happy, active, and normal lives.
Hooway for Wodney Wat, Helen Lester
Rodney Rat, can’t pronounce his R’s and the other rodents tease him mercilessly. Read along with Wodney as he surprises himself and his classmates by single-handedly saving the whole class from the big bad bully.